Sex With Your Pants On

Sex With Your Pants On (SWYPO) is referenced a lot during Whole30. It is a term used to describe foods made with Whole30 compliant ingredients but resemble a junk-food. This includes, pancakes, cookies, muffins, cake, pizza - all of the yummy things that we all have trouble saying no to. It's the addicting foods that we "treat" ourselves too. Now SWYPO means it's good and it's almost the real thing, but not quite, and it never will be the real thing. A paleo pizza will never be as good as the dollar pizza on the corner in NYC oozing with cheese and a dough that melts in your mouth and still has a crispy crust.

I have a problem - an addiction - to SWYPO. Even when I was gluten free, it was the idea that I was never full or satisfied until I had "dessert." Every night I would eat an amazing dinner and then a couple of hours later I would run to the kitchen foraging for chocolate. When I started Whole30, I had to fight the urge at 7pm to run to the kitchen for dessert, even if that meant nuts, almond butter or fruit. It was a mental addiction to the "treat." I was addicted to giving myself a prize for eating well all day and my body craved the sugar late at night. I was only hurting myself by indulging in these items and I looked to Whole30 to "cure" my addiction.

The first week of Whole30 I remember my stomach growling at 7pm and having to tell myself "just 5 more minutes and then you can go get a snack...just 10 more minutes and then you can go...just finish this commercial and then you can get a treat." The first few days I remember snacking on nuts and almond butter but as the days progressed, my meals were so satisfying and filling that I never needed anything after dinner.

Sunday's brunch definitely had SWYPO - chocolate walnut banana bread. And yes, I had a piece! It was made with banana, almond butter, eggs, ghee, coconut flour, cocoa powder, cacao nibs, walnuts and spices - All Whole30 compliant ingredients but once I turned those into a batter and put them in a bread pan and baked it and served it after the meal, it became a really good Sex With Your Pants On experience. And I wasn't constantly comparing this to a "real" banana bread because this was real banana bread, this is my new reality, but it was a treat. I was full after lunch but I still ate the bread. I can tell the difference this has on me mentally because now I am finding myself craving the bread. And not particularly this bread, but a treat.

Last night I made a delicious pork chop for dinner. I pan seared it with garlic, shallots, rosemary, orange spice and salt and pepper. It was perfectly cooked, melted in my mouth and had a great sear. I had an artichoke and walnut salad on the side and leftover shrimp & avocado salad.

Ryan made pork belly tacos. I could have had this with him as a salad and not eaten the tortilla but it was easier to make my own pork. We cooked together and ate together so it was a perfect meal. And I made 3 chops so I have leftovers for lunches and "emergency" dinners.

 

After dinner we went for a walk in the neighborhood. It was beautiful out so we enjoyed spending time together outside. I was so exhausted from not sleeping well the night before so when we got home, I got into bed before the sun was even set. This is where the trouble started. My stomach growled, I found myself telling myself "just once more commercial...just 10 more minutes..." - I was mentally my old self - and you know what I was craving? Chocolate Walnut Banana Bread. I knew it was in the kitchen, I knew it was sitting there waiting to be eaten and I knew there were enough leftovers for me and Ryan for a few days. Ryan was in the shower so I knew I could walk out there and have a piece and he would never know...but I would...I fought the urges and I didn't have the piece. I was very sad going to bed, but I woke up this morning so proud of myself for not having sex with my pants on!

Whole30 gave me tools for everyday living and eating and I was able to refer to these lessons and overcome a difficult situation. For my pre-workout meal today I decided to have a piece of the banana bread and although it tasted good, it wasn't as good as when it first came out of the oven so I knew last night that I made the right decision not having the "dessert" and instead incorporating it into my everyday the next day. It served it's purpose and preworkout fuel but it wasn't as satisfying as a hard boiled egg, nuts, almond butter or a monkey muffin (made with banana and nuts). Even though the banana bread had all of the same ingredients as my normal pre-workout meals, turning it into a bread made it more dangerous to keep in the house, but less appealing in other ways. I found myself hungry halfway through Bar class wheras the day before when I had only a hard boiled egg with a tsp of almond butter, I was full and energized the whole class. So I am glad I indulged this morning, glad I didn't give in to temptation last night and learned I have more self control than I give myself credit for!

Have a great day everyone!

XO