Disclaimer! I wrote this post on January 20th and "saved it to publish later". There WILL be Part 4 of the Series to catch you up on the last 10 days .... hint, hint: I feel AMAZING! Way better than how I felt on Day 20. The last 10 days were the BEST by far! Stay tuned for the big reveal!
Missed Parts 1 and 2? Read here for Part 1: Why I'm doing the Whole 30 and Part 2: Let's Nerd Out on Science.
So I've been getting this question a lot. I'm so genuinely psyched you all are so interested! And I have more than a sneaking suspicion you'd like to try it out for yourself "someday." All you need is that extra oomph of motivation and support right?
If you're reading this months or years from now, email me at michelle@fitvista.com with your secret dream to try the Whole30. We'll exchange a couple emails, gratis. I'd love to help be the motivating factor for you to try something new for your health.
But back to the question at hand, "So, How's The Whole30 Going?"
OK.
Yup, just OK.
We've stuck to the plan and I'm proud of that. It's been 20 days and we have 10 more to go.
I even went through a super tough emotional weekend with my grandmother passing away and didn't comfort myself with sugar, chocolate, or alcohol. That was hard. I had a lot of almond butter, omega trail mix and bananas though. And that's OK too.
This was my comfort food. Half a banana, almond butter and lots of omega 3 mix. And more coffee than usual. Our addictions always find their way out - crazy right?!
I love that we're cooking more meals.
I made my first ever hamburgers, roasted my first chicken, and shared some of my meal strategies with family while on vacation.
I bought new place settings for my table, to remind myself how awesome it is to cook at home (it's hard for me to say no to 6-7pm, 7-8pm clients, so I need to remind myself to schedule time for a real dinner!).
The big break from alcohol has been awesome. I'm loving that part!
I've had really good energy for my workouts.
I do feel lean and trim.
But definitely had some days of bloating, which is normal.
You can't weigh yourself during the 30 days, so I'm excited to step on the scale in February. My guess is 3-4 pounds, maybe 5, but some would definitely just be water weight.
Thing is, I was eating pretty darn well to start out with. I'm writing a post on "personalized nutrition" next week, so stay tuned for my thoughts there and my "Michelle Diet."
IS THIS DIET FOR ME FOR THE LONG-TERM? NO.
I want to be able to get back to my way of eating with balance: eating 80% Whole-30/Plant-based Paleo.
Then feeling perfectly COOL to add coconut sugar to my coffee, eat Mary's Gone Seed Crackers, have ONE square of 85% dark chocolate, enjoy hummus whenever I want, eat Kind Bars again (we had to cut out honey) and have a thin-crust fancy veggie pizza or some bread and butter when out to dinner. Some fried calamari too!
These indulgences pack a lot of pleasure for me. There are a lot of healthy things on this Whole 30 "diet" that are not allowed: lentils, hummus, beans, quinoa, whole-grains etc. I want them back!
Quick disclaimer! On Day 18, I did re-introduce my anti-inflammatory protein powder back to my diet. My holistic, functional medicine doctor had proscribed it to me, so I "justified" it as OK, even though it has a little bit of stevia and pea-protein in it. I felt great once I brought it back in and am proud of myself for listening to my body!
What have I learned?
It's not over yet, true.
This is me saying NO to the free 61% mini itty-bitty piece of chocolate they give you at Exki, where I like to get my organic coffee in the morning. I usually like 85% dark, but this is a fun treat.
I know my main victories already include:
- Reduced chocolate intake (Day 20 and I'm no longer craving it!)
- Pretty much eliminated my need for a daily 1/2 bowl of oatmeal
- Cooked more meals at home
- Re-affirmed that I can stop drinking alcohol for a month.
These are huge for me!
I'll jump on the scale in a few days and let you know about that! Well, maybe! I'm still hugely sensitive about the scale - always a work in progress!