So I have been quite the slacker and running way behind with my posts. So in an attempt to catch up am going to combine the last 4 days of my clean eating into one post.

So on day 26, I had breakfast at work, a bowl of fruit, yogurt and a cup of strong black tea. For lunch I had blackened tuna steak with peas and carrots.

That meal kept me happy for the rest of the afternoon. I was not hungry at all this evening but I decided to eat something nevertheless, so I had whole grain bread with a teaspoon of peanut butter downed with a blend of orange and cranberry juice. I didn’t need to eat anything else for the rest of the evening.

For breakfast on Day 27, I had my usual without yogurt - they didn’t have any in the cafeteria - I substituted a banana for it. Not quite the same but it did the job. From now one I plan to buy my own yogurt and have it in the fridge at work that way I always have my protein in the AM when I need it.

I had a couple errands to ran on this humid and pouring day - yuck! I was surprisingly famished when I was done with errands. I promptly stopped at panera for some chicken noodle soup and a whole grain baguette.


For dinner, I put together a hearty salad that was quite enjoyable.

- mixed greens
- alfalfa
- tomatoes
- avocado
- strawberries
- pumpkin seeds

For Day 28, breakfast was the usual; tea, bowl of fruit and yogurt. For lunch, a friend and I went to panera where I had a bowl of black bean soup and a side of their strawberry poppyseed salad.

It was absolutely delightful and had me full all afternoon into the evening. For dinner, my husband and I went to a local eatery, one we frequent almost on a weekly basis now, where we had a hummus appetizer and I had steak, potatoes and roasted vegetables. I had half the meal and saved the rest for the next days dinner.

On Day 29, breakfast was the usual even though it is Friday - free donuts and bagels at work! I of course stuck to my daily regiment of fruit and yogurt.

Lunch was an old favorite - salad bar. I started building my salad at around 11:35 am with the usual make up of spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, broccoli, cottage cheese, sunflower seeds etc

Dinner was leftovers from night before - tasted even better than it did the previous night.

It’s Day 30! where did the days go? So this is a pancake morning - I love pancakes. This week at my CSA pick up, they had graham flour as an item of choice to get which I did. So this morning I made our regular pancakes with an equal mix of both spelt flour and graham flour. Woow - what a difference - the pancakes cooked easier and tasted less grainy. My plan when I got it was to use it to make a crust for a rhubarb pie, which I still might do, but now I love it so much in my pancakes that I will continue to use it here too. I will give it a go with chapati’s as well especially since it is so much more nutritious than regular white flour.

Breakfast held me over until about 4 pm - which I thought was rather odd when I did look at a clock - but again it was a busy day. For dinner, I had mixed greens, roasted potatoes and pumpkin seeds served with whole grain bread with avocado spread. Sloppy but delicious!

Observation
- I have lost a total of 8.2 lbs
- PMS was a little bit of an obstacle through the process but am sure it gets better as the body adjusts to eating healthier
- Am surprised at how much variety in food is out there and how much of it is so enjoyable - Just because a food is good for you does not mean it will be bland and boring.
- It is funny that when I decide to eat better that is when all the bad foods are everywhere. I can’t tell you the number of times that coffee cakes, chocolate etc were flaunted in my face especially at work. At first it was very hard to say no but for every no I said it got easier.
- I plan to add, sparingly, dark chocolate and wine to my diet as they have amazing benefits
- I plan to experiment with making my own cooking oils using whole milk.
- It was a good 30 days and I thank all the people that came back to check on me- Thank you for holding me accountable to my health!