30 Days of Real Food Challenge–Week 2 Meal Plan
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Well, we’ve survived the first week of our challenge! OK, the first 6 days of our challenge since we started on a Tuesday. But still, I think we can do this!! Thursday was my first tough day. I woke up really dizzy–kind of like I did an all night binger and was still drunk when I woke up. Yes, I know how that feels–no I have not dealt with that since college. I thought maybe I was having ear problems due to allergies, as I have been having a tough time in Texas with the pollens and such. I tried to sleep it off a little bit and that did help some. The dizziness was gone, but I was still in a pretty big head fog. Not to mention, I wanted a Coke SO bad! I had quit drinking soda the week before this challenge, so it had been a week exactly since I’d had one. I also hadn’t been drinking coffee as regularly, and was not drinking tea like normal, so I’m hoping that little incident was a one time-caffeine withdrawl-type thing. I felt great Friday and Saturday, but today I’m a little foggy as well. Not nearly as bad as Thursday, but still a little out of it. This one has to be my allergies. I spent about 2 hours outside this morning moving my “vegetable garden” around, feeding plants, screaming and running from HUGE scorpions, and killing fire ants. Not to mention, throwing the ball for Delilah so she would have no reason to give me the “I’m bored” look and whines all day. Maybe I just had too much pollen and that’s why I’m feeling foggy. Either way, Zyrtec here I come!
Besides craving Coke this week, I’ve also been missing sweets. Chocolate especially. My biggest weakness when it comes to eating and foods is sweets. That is and always has been my one vice–be it cookies, candy, gummies, sweet drinks–whatever. So, when we did our shopping trip last week, I didn’t buy anything sweet, except fruits. To combat this craving I have started drinking a glass of whole milk, or eating some yogurt and granola. That really seems to help. This week though while grocery shopping, I did throw in a bag of chocolate chips that had no bad ingredients. We will see if I cave and whip up some cookies or not. Hey–just because we are only eating real foods doesn’t mean we can’t have REAL chocolate chip cookies–right?
10 things I learned last week:
- I actually like making things from scratch
- Blueberry Muffins made with Greek Yogurt are DELICIOUS
- I am not good at baking bread
- When making Mayonnaise–do NOT use olive oil–GROSS
- I shouldn’t doubt my husband’s hamburger patty making abilities–they may look thin, but once cooked they are perfect!
- Tortillas aren’t as easy to make as they look
- Hummus isn’t so bad
- Store bought bread with real ingredients is EXPENSIVE–talking $4+for a small loaf–which is why I am working on #3
- Whole milk is not gross like I previously believed–it’s actually very yummy
- Agave is NOT a good sub for honey, but it’s pretty good in iced tea!
I’m curious to see what I’ll learn this week!
So, let’s get down to it. What are we eating this week?
Breakfasts
Smoothies-
–Orange, Strawberry, Banana, Greek Yogurt
–Raspberry, Blueberry, Spinach, Greek Yogurt
–Mixed Berries, Banana, Apple Juice, Greek Yogurt
Yogurt with Granola and fruit
Oatmeal with fruit
Whole Wheat toast with peanut butter
Blueberry Muffins made with Greek Yogurt and Whole Wheat Flour
Lunches
Veggie wraps with hummus
Salad
Leftovers
Egg Salad Sandwhich
Peanut Butter and Jelly
Dinner
Monday–Grilled Chicken, Quinoa, Salad
Tuesday–Chicken Fajitas
Wednesday–Southwestern Salad (Blackbeans, non GMO corn, leftover fajita meat)
Thursday–Spaghetti with Meat Sauce (½ lb ground beef), Salad (use homemade Marinara)
Friday–Crockpot Chilli (½ lb ground beef, black beans, red beans, tomatoes)
Saturday–Baked Chicken and Veggies (potatoes, carrots, onion, garlic, peppers)
Sunday–Rotisserie Style Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Salad
Snacks
Veggies with hummus
Hard boiled eggs
Yogurt
Fruit
Anyone following along with me? Or do you already try to eat whole foods? Leave a comment and let me know what you’ve tried or learned along the way!
Curious to know how the rest of the month goes?
Week 3
Week 4
Final Days
Real Food on a Budget Challenge
Chocolate isn’t considered real food? I could see that you’d need to stay away from gummy bears and white chocolate, but a piece of dark chocolate sounds fine to me! Good hummus is really good. Bad hummus sucks… 😉 We mostly try to eat real food – and grow a lot of it.Good luck on your real food challenge. I’m sure you’ll feel better very soon.
Well, the chocolate I used to enjoy wasn’t exactly the best 😉 But yes, a nice big piece of dark chocolate sounds good! I did cave and whipped up some cookies last night with whole wheat flour and semi-sweet all natural chocolate. BUT they aren’t the best cookies I’ve had.
The foggyness may be from a sudden change in the amount of fats your are getting. When I started my real food diet before the wedding I had the same foggyness issues. The milk, yogurt, and peanut butter offer some fat. Try olive oil and avocado for some more healthy fats. Salmon, too.
That could be too. The foggyness today I think was due to allergies because I am feeling better after taking Zyrtec. Not so much on Thursday. I will try your suggestions–minus the salmon 🙂