Hey Yall, I did it! I finished The Whole 30©! When I started this journey I had my doubts that I could stay the course. I was full of fear as I anticipated giving up my favorite foods, showing restraint (what's that?!) and not giving in to cravings for an entire month. Now that I am finished, I realized that I was more afraid of failing to love myself enough to take care of my mind and body.
Now that I am done, I can honestly say that I see food differently than I did before. I've come to understand what my body requires for fuel. I don't feel obsessed about food, what I want to eat, when I get to eat it or will it satisfy and calm whatever emotion I am feeling in the moment. I've learned to plan ahead and eat what I've planned regardless if I want it or not. Nine times out of ten, I was satisfied because there was no emotion attached to the meal.
I am proud because I started and finished without cheating or having an emotional breakdown. I was very lucky to have not experienced withdraw symptoms and uncontrollable cravings. Yes, I know I previous wrote about wanting sushi and donuts, but really in the whole 30 days, I only had about 4 days of these cravings. Now that I am done, I'm not giving into these delights right away. I still have a week of re-introduction, one food group at at time to see how it affects my body.
Now, to toot my own horn! In 30 days, I only repeated 3 meals. Every night was a new recipe and my family loved most of them! This is one of the reasons I was successful. I love food and it has to taste good or I am bummed. I wasn't bummed! All the food was delicious. I think there were only a couple of recipes that I wouldn't make again. It was a lot of work, but so satisfying to know that I was making a meal of healthy clean foods for myself and my family. Before Whole 30, I hated leftovers and lunch usually consisted of a drive thru $1 taco or burger. Now, I just eat what's left over from the night before because I don't have to think about it and it tastes good.
Non Scale Victories over the last month: I am sleeping through the night, my inflammation and pain has decreased, I have been more focused and productive at work and my self confidence is better than it's been in quite some time. My close fit better and one of my extra chins has disappeared! I'm still dealing with grief from losing Baby Dog, but I'm not eating my feelings like I was before.
Now to the physical changes! Of course I'm going to tell you how much weight and how many inches I lost! I lost 12 lbs and 18 inches overall, specifically 4 inches in my waist, 5.5 inches in my hips and 2 inches in my bust. So yes I am still shaped like an upside down triangle, but hey, that's not going to change! Do I wish I had lost all my inches in my waist, YES, but I'm not that picky and I'm celebrating regardless!
I'm going to keep on going with eating clean, not giving away my power to my emotions by eating without intent. I will continue to work on loving myself by knowing I am worth the time and effort it takes to live a healthy lifestyle. I am sure I will fall into old patterns and need constant self reminders, but when I do, I'll jump on The Whole 30© and do another round. It's nice to find a program that works after a lifetime of yo-yo dieting!
Thanks for hanging with me this last month. I hope you are inspired to love yourself and take the steps you need to become a better you!
Until next time, check out this week's recipes. We especially liked the Tuna Zoodle Casserole!
