Yesterday, I tried some different breakfast food, and I’m still on the fence about it. While at Paleo f(x), Sherry and I tried lots of samples at the vendors there, and one of the products I tried and enjoyed was an oatmeal substitute called Wildway Instant Hot Cereal. The sample we tried was delicious, and based on the sample, I bought not only the flavor we tried, but a flavor they didn’t have a sample of: Blueberry. Well, yesterday morning, I decided to go with the Blueberry hot cereal instead of my normal two eggs and two slices of bacon. Preparation was easy and to the point: add water, microwave for two minutes, and stir. I used the 3/4 cup of water because I like my hot cereals runnier than solid, and I was quite happy with the consistency. Taste was good; not too sweet and a little tart as natural blueberries are. Up to this point, I was pretty pleased.

What I wasn’t pleased with was the fact that I got hungry within an hour of eating. It seems that my body has gotten used to the protein and fat in the mornings and changing it to this hot cereal substitute didn’t fill me up nearly as well as the bacon and eggs normally do. I ended up eating lunch a little earlier to compensate. So, while I like the hot cereal substitute, I didn’t get filled up as much as I would have liked. I will try the other flavor next time and have some nuts on-hand in case I get hungry before lunchtime.

As for lunch, I had some sausage and squash that we had left over from Sunday. I also had a single Paleo thin mint that Sherry made that we keep in the freezer. It was the perfect lunch and kept me full until dinner.

We just bought a new Instant Pot and I decided it was time to try it out. The first thing I made was some applesauce by peeling 12 Gala apples and slicing them into small cubes leaving the skin on. I then added 1/4 cup of organic apple cider vinegar and set the Instant Pot to 10 minutes on manual. When it was done, I used an immersion blender to make the applesauce smooth after which I poured it into two mason jars and let cool. I decided this would be a great dessert or ingredient later for Sherry.

I then decided to make pork chops with a mushroom sauce, but I don’t think I did it right although it turned out delicious. Dinner ended up being one pork chop with mushrooms and onions as a topping/side followed by 1/2 cup of applesauce with cinnamon powder on top. This dinner kept me full and satisfied for the rest of the night.

I was rewarded this morning with more weight loss and a new low: 196.7 lbs! The best part is that once again, I’m not starving, not taking any pills or additional products, and I’m feeling better than ever. The nutrients my body needs are coming straight from the natural foods I’m eating, and as long as I make sure I get the right mix of nutrients, my body feels great. Now, I will admit I don’t track the macros as closely as others do. Instead, I let my body tell me how I feel after I eat certain foods. This feedback has been guiding me well for the past nine months towards over 93 lbs lost since September 1st, and over 112 lbs overall.

Current stats:
Weight: 196.7 lbs (Started 289.9 lbs on 9/1/15)
Body fat: 21.3% (Started 47% on 9/1/15)
BMI: 30.8 (Started 45.4 on 9/1/15)