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November 17, 2015

Pork Overload {Recipe Files} & Whole24 {Round Three}

One of the tough things about Whole30 [in my opinion] is the lack of CRUNCHY foods. You aren't allowed to fry anything so even though meals are super tasty [ Salmon w/citrus salsa, Spaghetti Squash, Zucchini Poppers] they are all pretty soft. My palate was craving some crunch and after perusing recipes I came across the two below. BOTH are super easy and really jazz up food in my opinion.

Porkitos aka Prosciutto Crisps: 
I found this recipe via Nom Nom Paleo and it is super simple. I'm talking you need five things simple: prosciutto, tin foil, cookie sheet, wire rack and your oven. Full disclosure, Whole30 prosciutto is NOT cheap, but understand these cracklins can be used in multiple different ways and don't contain those nasty sulfates in regular prosciutto.

Nom Nom has great step by step instructions, but here is the quick and dirty. Preheat oven to 350. Spread out prosciutto pieces on a tin foil covered cookie sheet [to keep clean up to minimum and to keep prosciutto from sticking]. Place sheet in oven for 10 -15 minutes and watch your crisps the last few minutes so they don't burn.

When they are done, remove from oven and place pieces on a wire rack to cool. They will crisp while cooling so don't fret if they still feel soft when you move them from the pan.

Once they cool, place in an airtight container in the fridge to keep fresh. I added pieces to my salads, deli roll ups, eggs, and sometimes just snacked on a piece when I wanted something crunchy. Easy, tasty and functional, YUM!

Bacon Wrapped Dates

What You Need
Dates [preferably pitted]
Whole30 compliant bacon [tough to find but is available at Whole Foods]
Backing Sheet
Tin Foil

Make sure you buy the pitted dates, otherwise you'll have to slice into each one to remove the pit [totally the pits, hah]

Cut your bacon in half [or thirds depending on how many dates you are wrapping] then wrap your date with a piece of bacon.

Place on cookie sheet [on tin foil to make clean up easier] and bake at 350 for 10 - 20 minutes. You want the bacon to be a bit crispy but you don't want to overcook the dates.


When the dates are done, remove the pan from the oven and then remove the dates from the pan. Place them on a paper toweled plate to get rid of the excess fat. Note: These are on more one the DONE side because I HAAAAAAAAATE soft bacon, seriously grosses me out. Many other versions are a lot less crisp so make sure you don't over cook them.


Plate up to serve a party or place in air tight container to store in the fridge. I will have one or two a day for an extra special treat while eating Whole30. The sweetness from the date and the smokiness from the bacon is perfect to curb any form of sweet or crunchy craving. If you REALLY want to up the ante - and aren't eating Whole30 - stuff the dates with a lil goat or manchego cheese for a deliciously gooey center.

Whole24 aka almost Whole30 part three. 
Yup, part three y'all. Well, kind of. I skipped the last three day because we were in Orlando for kickball and I was meeting THE GIRLS for a HH. Ain't nobody got time for Whole30 on a blate, right?

After a super diligent winter and spring I really let my diet and fitness routine go over the summer. All the weight I lost doing my previous Whole30s was right back on my hips because I was indulging in whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. I'm talking Starbucks for breakfast, Chipotle for lunch and Z burger or pizza for dinner. Yeah, it was bad and I paid for it in my bathing suit and in my energy. I knew something had to change and really wanted to get back on track before the holidays. I like to indulge in homemade treats and a few extra glasses of champs during celebratory times and KNEW I would feel like doodoo come January if I didn't get everything in check. 

I CONFESS, this was not a complete Whole30. I only ate a Whole30 diet for 24 days so I did miss out on the extra six days of benefits. I also did NOT follow the true Whole30 template. There were snacks -- healthy ones -- and I did not adhere to the portion aspect. I simply ate ONLY foods allowed on the Whole30 program [which you can find *here*] and tried to limit my complex carbs as much as possible.

This round fluctuated between being the easiest of the attempts and the hardest. Easy in the fact I knew what was coming, I was comfortable with the program and I had a list of foods I enjoyed. Hard in the fact I was doing Whole30 while Le Husband was just counting his macros and I also weighed myself everyday. Watching Le Husband eat whipped cream, homemade pasta noodles and Pollo Rico rice was NOT fun at all, but I stuck to my guns and didn't cheat which made me feel awesome at the end. Checking my weight everyday was awesome in the beginning because I lost four pounds almost immediately, but after week two my weight pretty much plateaued which was TOUGH when I was eating so clean. There was a point during the last week where I turned to Le Husband and said "If this wasn't the last week, I would quite just now because this is so frustrating". I totally understand why they don't let you weight yourself until the end of the Whole30 program, it would be SUPER discouraging the first time to watch numbers fluctuation so much. 

Here are my Round Three results:

I honestly thought my weight was going to drop more because of everything I packed on, however this round I was still lifting heavy and doing BODYPUMP classes and training so I leaned up more than lost weight. Two inches of my stomach was awesome and almost two off my dorito was even better. Le Husband even told me he noticed my dorito last week so that was great to hear as well. FYI: We call the dorito the spot where your body starts to triangle down to your waist, kind of like a Dorito chip. Basically it is two inches above the belly button if you want a point on the body to measure.

Overall this program helped me reset and get me closer to where I want to be health and body wise. I am ADAMANT about continuing Whole30esque [90% -10%] until Thanksgiving and then will only indulge in homemade treats and a few drinks splurges here and there. Whole30 is work, good work, but still work so I don't want to go off the train like I did this summer. I already gained two+ pounds back after my eating bonanza in Orlando so it's back on the healthy train until Thanksgiving. I'm slowly wrapping my head around not getting to my goal 'weight' because of my muscle, so now my goal is to stay lean and keep these abs as long as possible. #babyabsshowingupfinally #pleasedontleaveme
These are me flexing, my abs do NOT look like this just standing. #iwish

Have you tried Whole30 yet? If so, what did you think? Are you interested in trying Whole30? I personally think everyone [except prego mamas and vegetarians] should try it once, just to TRULY understand their body. I've had quite a few people ask me about my experience and I have NO problem chatting via email about my thoughts. You can check out my previous Whole30s *here* and *here*!


linking up here here here here here and here today 

27 comments:

  1. Great job on completing the 3rd whole 30!! The dates and bacon would be a great app for Thanksgiving and I have to ask...what is the dorito portion of the check in? xo, Biana -BlovedBoston

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  2. Hey! Flexing or not flexing, your abs look fab! Great work! & you had me at pork! 😊

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  3. Those snacks look absolutely amazing. Especially if you add in the cheese - yum! I would love to try this but I am not sure if I have the willpower! Congrats on finishing!

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  4. Go you! I love that you're trying to balance life while being healthy. I am trying to clean up my act right now too, but still fall in the weekend "treat yo self" trap.

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  5. i don't follow a "program" of eating - i just eat clean 99% of the time (no processed crap, no junk, no sweets, no grains) and that 1% is reserved for special events like birthday dinners or my once a month "eat all the things at a fancy restaurant and fuck the budget" dinner date with my husband. i suppose you could categorize the way i eat as Paleo but i dont like labels and eat the way my chinamen ancestors ate when they lived off the land (except rice; no rice for me).

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  6. ok that is still super impressive! i am not gonna lie - i would love to make those prosciutto crips but i don't think i could bc i'd eat them all immediately! but so yummy i bet :) good work on the program girl!

    xoxo cheshire kat

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  7. Dang girl! Look at you! Even though you didnt' complete the Whole30 you still look amazing! I really need to look into what this Whole30 thing is. And omg those prosciutto things?! I'm totally making those for football this weekend! YUM! <3, Pamela Sequins & Sea Breezes

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  8. Killin it girl! I really want to give the whole30 a try, I'm gonna say that every time I see you post about it ha! Tripp and I just tried prosciutto this year and became HUGE FANS..it is delish!
    Linds @ Not A Mom

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  9. You look awesome girlfriend!! And bacon wrapped dates are literally my favorite things ever. We went out to eat on Saturday night specifically to a restaurant that I knew I could get them as an appetizer, haha! Can't wait to try them at home!

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  10. I think I am going to talk J into Whole30 after the New Year to reset!

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  11. Both recipes sound incredible! I love bacon wrapped dates.

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  12. Yummmmm! Two of my favs - bacon and prosciutto. I could eat both all day every day <3

    Green Fashionista

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  13. Congrats on completing another round of Whole 30!!! Those recipes both look amazing!!!! I am going to have to try the bacon wrapped date things this weekend or something. mmmmm

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  14. I just came across your blog and I love it! Food and fitness are two of my passions as well. I LOVE the dates wrapped in bacon idea!
    www.msmodify.com

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  15. Get it girl!! Both of these recipes look delicious!!

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  16. First off, both these recipe ideas - YUM!!!! I really wish I would have stuck to Whole30 better in my first attempt. Even with cheating during the program I saw significant results and felt a lot better. I will be doing another round post New Year's and I'm going to keep your recipes in the list! Amazing job sticking with it and seeing such good results!

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  17. Yes to porkitos!!!! They look so good! :)

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  18. I've had bacon wrapped dates and they're fantastic! And anything that involves prosciutto is amazing in my book. Congrats for finishing your Whole30! You look great, and it sounds like you saw some amazing results!

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  19. Looking awesome lady! Great work even though you didn't finish. I need to look into it...I'm also a huge fan of bacon covered dates even though I would never eat dates by themselves lol

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  20. Great job! Your hard work is paying off!!! You look great!!

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  21. you GO girl. wow what such motivation. those results are so cool. and ......... you had me a bacon. yum.

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  22. Even if it wasn't a perfect whole 30, those stats are still awesome! And I commend you for simply even doing three rounds of whole 30 to begin with!!!

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  23. Flexing or not - your abs are KILLER! Jealous!!! ;) great job girl. I love me some bacon!!

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  24. I have literally had your page open all day because I wanted to be sure & come back & read this! Go you girlfriend - you did an awesome job!! You are definitely an inspiration and your determination is contagious!! Makes me want to get up & go workout now!! HAHA! Seriously, awesome job though!!

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  25. With all the negative talk on eating processed meats and such we've been hearing, it is hard not to skip over this post and say, no, I won't eat it. I won't eat it. Well, screw it... these look amazing. I'll have to give it up after I try these. Thanks for the yumminess on Tuesday Talk this week. Always love seeing your links here.

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  26. Good for you! That is NOT an easy task and you're such a rockstar. Maybe someday I'll get the confidence to try it!

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  27. have you tried the actifry?? It is a game changer in my house. We have not used the deep fryer since.

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