Waiting is hard!

I'm not doing a very good job at waiting this time. You know how you always think it's going to be easier as you have had more practice, well that NEVER is the the case. The last few cycles I have not really been all that hopeful though so it was not too bad.

I pretty much gave up hope on this one too, around CD17 I accepted that it was an anovulatory cycle. The Fertility monitor still has me peeing on a stick every day and tells me I didn't even ovulate yet.

My temperatures tell a different story though.

That's almost triphasic, right? Its the best chart I have had since BB was born as waking in the night and breastfeeding seem to have an effect. FF is pretty certain I ovulated, and it is on the day that I expected it, and that I felt like I ovulated, and is was the day the test stick was a bit iffy - so there is a chance I really did, and that I really could be pregnant!

On the other hand, the monitor could be right, in which case I have no chance at all.

I have been having symptoms, like mild nausea and a sore abdomen, though that could be attributed to reintroducing foods that my body is not so keen on. It's hard to tell what's what. Yesterday I was soooo tired that I went to bed at the same time as BB, but that could just be due to eating the evil crystals (sugar) on Saturday.

I also noticed a huge blue vein on my boob yesterday - but its not so prominent today.

My boobs don't hurt though and I have tested and it was negative...

...but it could just be that I am too early.


Waiting is so hard!

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Sugar!

I am going to recall my suspicions re the effects of caffeine and dairy and blame sugar!

photo sourced from http://www.atyourpalate.com

Today I did a sponsored walk which I helped to organise. There was a cake stall as part of the fundraising effort. I baked a gluten free chocolate cake. Last year I made muffins, but this year, just to be sure I wasn't tempted to 'test' one, I did a sandwich cake instead.

It made it to the stall in one piece. I wasn't even tempted. But then everyone else bought cakes before we set off for themselves and their kids, so I did the same. The only wheat free cake was my own, so I ended up paying for a piece of the cake I baked. That's fine, it's for charity. What's not fine was that I ATE it.

Then when the event was all finished and there were some cakes left, we each bought our own home. On arrival, I made a cup of decaf coffee and ATE ANOTHER PIECE!

I know! What am I like? Give me an inch and I'll take a mile. Sticking to the Whole30 was not hard, so why can't I do it now I'm 'finished'?

Anyway - I have the same wired and on edge feeling that I had yesterday, and I am craving more sugar, so I would be prepared to bet that the wired feeling, the restless night and the 'hangover' are all due to sugar!

Will I ever learn!

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Whole 30 - The Reintroduction of Rice and Milk

In case you missed the post where I wrote about my reintroduction schedule, I decided to reintroduce  the foods that I had been avoiding throughout the whole 30 one at a time, with a day in between each, and with several days in between food in the same food group.

This decision was based on my experience with elimination diet in The Six Secrets of Successful Weight Loss,  the Whole 30 book It Starts with Food, plus my own knowledge, including that of myself! I wanted to be sure to reintroduce things gradually and not go crazy on everything at once. I really enjoyed the food that I ate and the way that I felt.  I want to keep hold of that. I didn't want to end the process and go straight back to my old ways, I wanted to stay changed! I really feel like the Whole 30 has the potential to change the way I eat for good, but I realise there does need to be some effort on behalf.

I was planning on putting all of these in one post - but after just two days I can see that would make for a very long post - so here's the story so far.

Day 31 - Rice

I chose rice first for a few reasons, the main one being that having done the elimination diet I was fairly sure that rice was not going to cause me any problems. Another reason is that I love rice, and ever since I cooked a curry last week and served rice to BB and DD and mashed cauliflower to myself I have been hanging out for it. So tonight I made Chicken, Cashew and Vegetable Curry, with RICE! Yippee.

I cooked the recommended amount (60g per person plus another 20g for BB's share). I wanted more, (I think in the past I would have had more than that) but I was being good and trying to start as I mean to go on, so I did actually measure it.

It was great. At first. But actually I found that I ate mostly curry and very little rice. I went back for more of the curry and ended up leaving quite a bit of the rice. It was just so bulky and filling! I liked it, I am not planning on giving it up, but I will cook less next time. I had some of the curry left over and so curry without rice was an awesome breakfast the next day.  There were no effects that I noticed from rice the day before either.

Day 32 - Milk and Butter

This wasn't in the plan...

...but we had Grandma and Great Grandma over for lunch and I made the food to suit Great Grandma's taste - which meant poaching some fish in butter and milk. Then afterwards, when they both had a cup of tea with milk, I figured it wouldn't make much difference if I had some too. Also they brought dessert with them, which was a trifle, with custard and cream and of course sugar. I ate some of that too.

Milk was something Dr Mansfield had a question mark over when I did the elimination diet, but I still didn't notice any ill effects from it.

Until I went to bed. I was late to bed and feeling 'wired'. This could have been the cups of tea - I had two - I have been caffeine free for some time. I did fall asleep no problem though.

But my sleep was very restless. I kept having really disturbing dreams. I woke feeling like I had a massive hangover.

It is of course hard to tell what caused this. A lesson in why you reintroduce things one at a time. At a guess I would say the hangover feeling is from sugar, the wired feeling from caffeine and perhaps the disturbing dreams from milk. I googled milk and sleep disturbances and of course I found stuff (don't you always!) but I wont really know unless I test it again.

So anyway, today I am being a strict Whole 30 girl again, and maybe tomorrow I will try chick peas.

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Celebrating Food Revolution Day

Today is Food Revolution Day

A global day of action for people to make a stand for good food and essential cooking skills. It's a chance for people to come together within their homes, schools, workplaces and communities to cook and share their kitchen skills, food knowledge and resources. Food Revolution Day aims to raise awareness about the importance of good food and better food education for everyone by focusing on three simple actions – cook it, share it, live it. 

At the heart of the day is Jamie Oliver, and the global day is brought about through the collaboration of The Good Foundation in Australia, The Better Food Foundation in the UK and The Jamie Oliver Food Foundation in the US. 

As you will know, I have long been interested in food and how it affects our bodies. Even prior to the recent elimination diet and Whole 30 experience I explored how food was effecting me almost 10 years ago, when I successfully altered my diet to reduce the symptoms of PCOS. I even studied Nutritional Medicine for a while and that is an area I would love to get back into one day. I am also passionate that everyone should know how to cook. It horrifies me when you are at the supermarket and the checkout operator has to ask what broccoli is! 

I have great memories of cooking with my mum when I was a kid. I am trying my best to offer BB a good foundation in the kitchen. He helps me to prepare at least a part of most of the meals that we eat.  He can stir and mix, put the peelings into the bowl for the chickens, put food into the baking trays or pans. He eats really well most of the time, and I really believe that when he has hand in cooking he is more likely to eat good food. He will eat cauliflower and green beans, for example, if he has helped to prepare them.

Sorting the Vegetables

Removing the stalks from the spinach

Coating the cauliflower with ghee, and
placing it on the baking tray ready for roasting

I have also long been interested in growing my own food. Again my these were basic skills passed on by my mum. My professional history in Education for Sustainability also brings all this together for me, having worked as an advisor to many schools in Central Australia who were working on projects planning their own gardens, growing food and then cooking, sharing and eating it. It was a fabulous time and this is definitely an area where my passion in education lies. It's hands on, purposeful, meaningful, fun, and good for you. How can you get better than that!

A School Garden on the edge of the Tanami Desert

Planting Sunflower Seeds (age 10 Months)

It's probably no surprise then, that I am also teaching BB how to grow his own food. He planted his first seeds last year. This year he has more idea about what we are doing, and his growing is more purposeful (my purpose admittedly, but he does enjoy!). This year we have created an allotment plot in a little corner of my parents' farm. BB has been out with us (DD and I) digging, sewing, planting and watering. He has also sown the seeds for the courgettes, butternut squash, corn and green beans. We use the bench in our laundry as our "green house" and he is fascinated watching the seedlings grow out of the soil. He will also help us plant them out,  watch them grow food and then harvest food for us to share, cook and eat. 

Planting the green bean seeds this week

Butternut Squash seedlings

Preparing the soil at our new allotment

BB was given a a great book for Christmas. It's called Grandpa's Garden and it is both a beautiful story and a practical guide to what is happening in the garden throughout the year. There is a little plan in the back of the book showing the layout of Grandpa's Garden, and we have actually used that as the basis of our design, so we have a garden like Grandpa's. 

Today we celebrated Food Revolution Day with 4 generations of family. My mum and her mum came to lunch to share some food lovingly prepared by BB and I. When you're nearly 98, it has to be fish on a Friday, so we poached some haddock in butter and milk with a little parsley and garlic pepper, and served it with roast carrots, beans and potato chips. 

Preparing lunch

 Great Grandma and Grandma enjoying their lunch

BB with a hearty mouthful!

More posts to follow as our garden grows!

Happy Food Revolution Day everyone.

#FRD2013

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Did I Ovulate?

Here I am once again in the 2WW - or at least I think I am! I am not entirely certain. As you know, I am using the Clearblue Fertility Monitor to help identify the best days for insemination. It has been great so far, giving me two peak days every cycle that tie in well with what my temperatures say when I am charting. This cycle it was not so good though. I am on CD21 today, and according to the monitor, still no ovulation.

I was expecting to see a peak reading on Friday. Everything about me felt like I was ovulating. All of the signs,  EWCM, sore nipples, temperature dip that morning, and the general feeling that it is about to happen. I was somewhat surprised that morning then when the reading was only high. I removed the test stick from the monitor and noticed that the end of the stick was still dry. I then watched as the liquid moved across the stick. I can't think of any logical or scientific reason as to why this delay should have occurred, I can only assure you that it did. I took a photo of the stick, which did show a dark LH line, and wondered if this meant the monitor had missed my first peak day. 

As I always get two peak days, I expected that I would get a peak the next day... 

But NO! 

I still haven't had a peak, the monitor is still asking me to pee on a stick every day, and every day it says high. I had pretty much accepted the idea that I might not have ovulated this cycle, and been through all the emotions that go with that, accepting the fact that I am just too old for this game... and then yesterday, my chart on Fertility Friend gave me crosshairs! It says I ovulated on Saturday and that I am now 5 dpo. That makes sense with what I thought originally, I usually O on the night of the first peak day - so maybe I am in with a chance. My graph looks good when compared to other graphs. Our timing was good if I did ovulate. 

What do you think?

So, I'm waiting again. Test official test date is next Saturday, 25th May - we'll see if I hold out that long!

You might also remember that I had an appointment booked with my GP for last Thursday too. The update on that is that I had a bug and was actually vomiting that morning so I had to cancel. The next available appointment was 22nd May, so I figured I might as well and see what the outcome of this cycle is before I re-book.

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Whole 30 Day 30 - The End of the Beginning

So, today was the final day of my Whole 30.

Here are my meals.

Breakfast: Left over turkey mince and sweet potato,
with courgette pasta

Lunch: Swordfish steak carrots and beans

Dinner: Chicken, oven cooked in coconut milk and mustard,
with roasted cauliflower and green beans

Perhaps technically I should have waited until tomorrow to do the measurements, but I couldn't help myself!

Here are the results.

	Before	After	Difference
Weight	83kg	78.5 kg	-4.5kg
Neck	36cm	35.5cm	-0.5cm
Bust	114cm	111cm	-3cm
Bottom of ribs	100cm	94.5 cm	-5.5cm
Waist	100cm	93 cm	-7cm
Hips	112cm	107cm	-5cm
Bum	115cm	107.5cm	-7.5cm
Thigh (r)	64cm	61cm	-3cm
Calf (r)	40cm	40cm	no change
Arm (r - top)	32cm	31cm	-1cm

Other changes

• I have so much more energy
• I can kneel (I couldn't before due to my legs just not folding like that)
• My joint pain has gone
• My back is better
• My shoulder where the nerve was trapped is much much better - no problems with it at all since I began the whole 30 - Drs., physios and osteopaths actually all agree that the cause was inflammation, so I am guessing this must mean inflammation has decreased
• My skin is clearer
• My sleep is better - I wake up less in the night
• I feel inspired to exercise and have recently created an exercise schedule which I am sticking too. In fact, having so much energy I actually feel like I NEED to exercise every day.
• My thinking is clearer
• My balance and coordination is better (measured by Wii Fit Plus)
• I am a better playmate for BB
• I am happier and more positive
• The way I think about food has changed
• Meal planning is much easier
• BB is eating better too

There is a negative though - it costs more! Our grocery bills have been higher. There are two reasons for that. One, I have eaten much more meat that I used to (I was vegetarian for 27 years!), and two, the meat I have eaten on the Whole 30 is organic and grass fed, free range etc. I think once I have completely finished I will be able to reduce those costs a bit. I can just buy grass fed instead of organic, and if I can eat legumes sometimes that will bring the cost back down too. I have also found it hard to eat three meals sometimes. In fact, on many days at lunch time it has been hard to motivate myself to make Whole 30 meal - I would have been happy with a bowl of soup, or a salad. or even just a couple of pieces of fruit.

Reintroduction of grains, dairy and legumes

I am planning on reintroducing grains, dairy and legumes gradually, one at a time, whilst sticking to the Whole 30 with the rest of my diet. I have made my own plan for this based on ideas from both It Starts with Food, the elimination diet in Six Secrets for Successful Weight Loss, and my own thoughts. It Starts with Food, suggest introducing a whole food group in one day, and then waiting two days before introducing another whole group. Six Secrets has you introduce them separately, two foods a day, with a 7 day gap between foods in the same group. My schedule is going to be one food at a time, every 2 days, (due to the fact that I know with wheat, when I eat it I feel great, it's the next day that I suffer), with at least 6 days between foods in the same group.

Here is my planned reintroduction schedule.

Day	Food
31	Rice
33	Chick Peas
35	Oats
37	Milk
39	Corn
41	Rye
43	Cheese
45	Lentils
47	Gluten Free Bread
49	Yoghurt
51	Kidney Beans

Beyond the Whole 30

The biggest difference the Whole 30 has had on the way I think about food and meal planning is the starting point of a meal idea. Although since being diagnosed with PCOS and making massive changes in my diet to reduce carbs and increase protein, I have been conscious about having protein in my meals for a long time - this is what has gradually brought me out of vegetarianism as I needed more protein sources. However, I always started thinking about a meal with the carbs. I made sure I varied the carbs on our plates, rice one day, pasta another, potatoes the next etc. Now when I think about food I start with the protein. This might not be a new idea to most, but trust me, as a vegetarian it is radical! 

I am going to continue to plan meals that way. The meat and two veg idea makes it easy. I will continue to rotate my pork, fish, chicken and turkey, all on their various forms, and maybe even add in a few more meats as time goes on.

I am going to try keeping up with the Whole 30 style breakfast for most days of the week as I think it is great to start the day with a pile of nutrients rather than pile of carbs that leave me hungry for more 2 hours later. Having said that, I would love to have porridge and berries some days, or maybe banana and yoghurt.

I think a minimum of two protein, fat and 2 x veg style meals a day is good, but if I fancy soup or a light salad some lunchtimes I'll go with that.

Eating out, I will make the best choices I can, but not beat myself up about it. 

I am going to exercise every day, where possible.

I am still really curious to try The Fast Diet too. That's not an option while I am breastfeeding or trying to get pregnant (or if I do manage to get pregnant), but once my body is my own again I think a combination of that with some good healthy meals that I have learned from the whole 30 would be a really good way to get  back down to my pre pregnancy weight (which was 68kg).

I will do the Whole 30 (strictly) again sometime. Several people I have found do it annually. In January seems like a good time, but I guess whenever I feel the need to get back to being more mindful about what and how I am eating is the important thing for me. 

Thanks

Finally I want to say thanks to lots of people. 

Firstly thanks to all the people that encouraged me to blog about it and post a photo of everything I ate. It did really help - having to put an image up meant I had to cook a proper meal and eat it, so it helped me stay on track. I also think it will be great resource should I ever fall back into less healthy eating - I can just come here and look at photos of some great looking easy to prepare meals and remember how good they made me feel.

Thanks also to all the other people out there blogging about the Whole 30, or the Paleo Diet, or weight loss particularly Kristen at A Change of Pace, and Tiffany at Skinny Jeans and a Healthy Me, both of whom are ahead of me on this journey and very inspiring! 

Thanks also to my regular readers who have put up with endless photos of food. Thanks for sticking with me. 

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Special offer from Learning Resources - Just for bloggers!

In case you haven't heard of them yet, Learning Resources® is an educational resource company providing quality educational toys, games and learning aids for children aged 2-12. 

Their mission is very simple;

To develop quality educational products which make learning exciting for children of all ages and abilities! We strive to create hands-on products which build a concrete foundation of skills through exploration, imagination and most importantly fun! 

Having long been a favourite with teachers, this resource company is increasingly popular with parents. I have found it to be great site to begin the search for gift ideas for BB.  People are already starting to ask what he would like for his birthday, and by checking out good quality educational toys and games suitable for a 2 year old on their website I am hoping to be proactive, suggesting things people could buy which have sound educational value, rather than risk an onslaught of junk toys that he will play with only once. 

Their web site is well organised, allowing you to shop as a teacher or as a parent, and also offers a way of searching the catalogue based on the special needs of the learners.  

You can search their catalogue by age or by subject, or by brand. There are also some downloadable resources available.

As you will see from their website, they routinely offer free delivery on orders over £50 and free returns, but as they are just beginning to celebrate the Parent Blogging Culture, they are also offering special deals, just for bloggers: From now until December 31st 2013 you can get FREE DELIVERY on ALL orders by using the code BLOGGER13 at checkout. 

Learning Resources® also have a presence on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube  if you want to know more.

And finally, for my US readers, there is a US store too!

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Whole 30 Day 29

Breakfast sausage capsicum and courgette

Lunch - not much appetite at all so just ate a few leftovers

Dinner, Turkey stuffed sweet potatoes and broccoli

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Whole 30 Day 28

Now that I am nearing day 30, I am starting to think about other foods. I have decided I will start reintroductions on day 31, but just do one food each time, perhaps one every other day. Much of my day has been spent thinking about which food to start with. Sometimes I am thinking sensibly and rationally, like I really don't think rice is a problem based on my experience with the elimination diet, so I should do that first. Then tonight as I put some ice cream in a bowl for BB I was thinking "yay - lets eat ice cream first!" I am going to try and go with the rice. I think I might have to write myself a plan so that I don't go off the rails though - its already tempting to eat everything!

I also forgot to photograph lunch today. It was white fish, cauliflower and beans.

Paleo tuna cakes with salad

Chicken fried in coconut oil and salad

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Whole 30 Day 27

Breakfast: Egg Tomatoes and Garlic Mushrooms

Lunch: Salmon and Salad with a rasher of bacon
(there are 2 on the plate but BB likes bacon!)

Dinner: Free from everything sausages
with roast broccoli and carrots

I have been having some further thoughts about my extended whole 30 today. I am wondering if it might actually be more useful to start the reintroduction process on Day 31, but to just do it slower, so that I only introduce one thing at a time in some cases instead of the whole group. For example the gluten free grains are all quite different (rice, corn and oats). If I noticed a problem after the day of introducing them it would be hard to know which was which. Perhaps I should add rice on day 31 and then wait 2 days and try corn on day 34, then oats on day 37. I would like to test the gluten grains without wheat too, but I am wondering if I should do wheat on a separate day as well, just so that I can be sure. It will take longer overall to reintroduce stuff but at least I will know what's what.

Any thoughts on that idea?

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