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Hiiii!
How is everyone’s 2018 going? Gosh is it going. We are through the first half of January and I feel as though time is just flying bye, bye, bye. At the same time, I am doing Whole 30 and I do sort of miss wine, chocolate and toast so another 14 days without them sort of feels like a looong time when I look at it that way. You know what I mean?
That said I am inspired and excited to continue with this journey because of my commitment to strengthening the connection between the foods I eat and how I feel. Hello BODY WISDOM! As a Holistic Health Coach, I believe that having personal experience using different tools allows me to be more of service to the people I work with. It’s why I tried Intermittent Fasting last year and why I am trying this elimination diet right now.
Knowledge of these tools to change your health and relationship with food is valuable but actual hands on experience experience is worth tenfold which is why I am trying things out for myself. For those not familiar, Whole 30 is a 30 day reset of our body where we eliminate certain food groups that could be having a negative impact on our body and how we show up in life each day (i.e fatigue, brain fog, arthritis, constipation, bloating, aches and pains, irritability, allergies ect.)
This includes dairy, sugar, alcohol, soy, grains, legumes, carrageenan, MSG and sulfites. The list goes on but those are the main ones. It is not about weight-loss or calorie restriction which is why I am ok to stand behind it. This elimination diet is about changing our relationship to food both physically and mentally so that we can find freedom around it.
However, I would not reccomend this type of a restrictive program to anyone recovering from an eating disorder or binge eating behavior. This could potentially be very triggering since binge eating is a natural response to deprivation and restriction. This program removes a lot of food groups. Only now after years of a balanced relationship with food do I feel like I am in a place where I can complete it without it sending me on a pendulum swing.
I feel very balanced in my relationship to food but find that it really does take alot of preparation. By eliminating so many things I have come to discover just how many products I consume that have one or some of these triggering ingredients in them like my coffee creamer. It is literally made up of 100% ingredients that are not allowed on Whole30.
While the program encourages you to drink coffee black there is just no way this girl is doing it. Over the last week I have shared my cashew coffee creamer substitute on IG Stories that I have been making because.when it comes to coffee my favorite color is beige.
When it comes to my food though…, the more vibrant the colors the better. Like this big ass salad bowl.
While most of my meals are vegan I’ve started adding in more animal proteins to replace legumes and grains in my mostly plant based diet. Surprisingly there has not been much if any shift in how I feel each day.
Stay tuned for more updates throughout the month here and on Instagram!
This bowl has my brussels salad (recipe coming soon in a free downloadable ebook), avocado, rosemary baked potatoes, beet tahini dip and this insanely flavorful carrot salad. Its so easy to make, you’ll love it!
5 Minute Sesame Carrot Salad with Cilantro
INGREDIENTS:
1 bag of shredded carrots from Trader Joes (3-4 cups)
1 cup cilantro, stems included, chopped
1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
2-3 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp coconut aminos
1/3 cup watermelon radish, sliced thin and cut in quarters
DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and dig in!
If you make this I would LOVE to see it! Please share by tagging @caraskitchen or using #caraskitchen on instagram.
XO,
Cara
ALSO, if you have been loving my recipes then you I am so excited to share that my first ever cookbook Vegan Buddha Bowls is now available for order.