Whole 30 Complete!

WOOT WOOT!!!! 

**CLAPPING FOR MYSELF** 

YAY!!! 

I finished my first round of Whole30!!!

I can honestly say that Whole30 has just in 30 days changed my relationship with food.  I heard about Whole30 from two of my friends that swore by it (Jeff and Kendra).  The main reason I decided to try Whole30 was because I have been friends with Jeff for 13 years now and I have seen him struggle with his weigh and try different weight loss efforts and this has worked for him and changed his life!  I am so very proud of him and he is an inspiration to me!  Now I will forever recommend it to anyone who asks!

I have decided to do another Whole30 starting today for a total of a Whole60!  In the book, It Starts With Food, they talk about how some people might need more than 30 days to completely get all of the benefits out of the program and sometimes for yo-yo dieters or people who need to lose a considerable amount of weight, so I have decided to do 60 days and then assess!  

But for now I wanted to do an update on how my first 30 days went, but I think it is more important to know where I cam from to understand how wonderful the changes are.  I will come back and update this when I am finished with my Whole60.

Before Whole30:

• I guess I would be considered a yo-yo dieter.  I lost 95 pounds over two years of very strict compliance with Weight Watchers.  After an injury, I put 50ish pounds back on, all due to emotional eating, and no matter what I did (Weight Watchers, counting calories, working out forever, etc) I could not lose the weight again. 

• Recently, when I tried to do anything to lose weight it would not work, I would get discouraged and the cycle would start again.

• I am tall (5'9'') and carry my weight very well.  I can easily gain or lose 30 pounds without being able to tell a difference in my clothes.

• I was a vegetarian for over four years and then a pescetarian for the last six months, all for ethical reasons on how the animals are treated in factory farms.  I had been recently thinking about adding humanely raised meat back into my diet but hadn't made the commitment yet.

• I had heartburn on a very regular basis.

• I always had energy dips after lunch...always wanted to take a nap.

• I was having bouts of insomnia from time to time and when I was able to sleep, I still woke up exhausted, never feeling fully rested, even if I slept eight hours.

• I would ALWAYS break out around the time of my period.  I had this one pimple that would always show up every month in the exact same spot.  He's been around for years.  I named him Period Pimple Pete. 

• I had strong food cravings and would sometimes satisfy them and the most of the times not, making them much worst.  My main cravings were chocolate and cheese. 

• My knees hurt pretty much all the time, since I was very young.  I was always told it was because of my weight but a doctor finally said I do have knee issues and that I would need to limit myself from most of the working out I was doing (squats, lunges, etc).  

• I constantly had the urge to use the restroom.  I never went to a doctor, but I bet I had an overactive bladder.

• I had pretty severe PMS symptoms mostly including low back pain and crabbiness.  

• I ate every 2-3 hours because that's what everyone says is "healthy" and if I couldn't eat for some reason and had to feel hungry, I would not handle it well and would sometimes get dizzy.

• I was an emotional eater - tired, sad, happy, bored, etc.  

• I had loved yoga for years and really wanted to become a teacher but was to embarrassed by my size to go to a training, always thinking that I had to be a certain size to be able to go to a training.

During my FIRST Whole30: 

(because I plan to do more haha)

• I remember the first week being HARD.  When I look at my blogs during that week it doesn't seem like I thought it was that hard, but looking back, it definitely was a challenge. 

• I was worried I was going to gain weight because I was so ingrained to count something (calories, points, etc).   

• I noticed my stomach seemed to look and feel like it was shrinking but I was wearing the same size jeans.

• People at my work would walk by my lunch daily and talk about how good it looked and how they were jealous.  I would just sit there and wonder why they just didn't make a salad for lunch instead of going to grab McDonalds.

• Some people would tell me I was "crazy," they could "never give up cheese," and don't know how I am doing it.

• My friends and family were very supportive of what I was trying to do and went out of their way to accommodate me.

• I added meat back into my diet, but trying to be as conscious as possible.  I am still learning!

After my FIST Whole30:

• I actually feel satisfied when I eat a meal and not think of it as a point or a calorie but just as yummy food.

• I haven't had heartburn in at least 31 days!

• I haven't had an energy dip after a meal in at least 31 days!

• I sleep very deep now and wake up feeling well rested and ready to take on my day.

• During the PMS/Period period of my 30 days, I did not break out and my PMS symptoms were much weaker than in the past.  PS I don't miss Period Pimple Pete at all :)

• My food cravings are under control!  I honestly feel like I have broken my addiction to food.  I feel like for once in my life I can say I am not an emotional eater!!! I didn't even crave chocolate during my period, which I think most women would not even believe!

• I haven't noticed any joint pain at all in my knees!!! I am not saying my knee issues are gone, but they definitely have not bothered me like they have in the past.

• I drink so much more water/coffee/tea than before and my urge to use the restroom has gone down drastically!!! I wish I had been diagnosed with overactive bladder so I could be told I was cured now ha

• I was able to be OK with hunger and know that I was going to be able to eat again and when I did eat, I didn't treat each meal like it was my last. 

• I have more energy now.  I don't think I have completely what the Whole30 people are talking about yet and this is why I have decided to go for a Whole60.

• I can drink black coffee now!!! Crazy since I used to only be able to get the super sugary drinks at Starbux ... I haven't even craved my go to drink: Iced Quad Mocha with no Whip!

• I overall just feel healthier and happier!

• I have inspired several people to try Whole30!  Including my mom, who has tried to diet on and off throughout the years and I think has a lot of the same issues as me, or I had the same issues as her since she is older haha For all people that say they are trying it, I most hope it works for my mom because I know she would feel so much better! :)

• I set my insecurities aside and signed up for a 200-hour yoga teacher training course and I also signed up for a PiYo training course so I can start teaching and inspiring people ASAP :)

• OK and let's be honest, what everyone really wants to know:  I lost 11 pounds and 11 inches!!!

For my next Whole30:

I am going to stick to the Whole30 plan but am going to add in some more cardio since I am finally starting to have more energy to workout.  The one change I will make is to make bacon a weekend only treat HAHAH :) And who knows if at the end of the Whole60 I feel like I need more, I will just go ahead and do it! 

Why not try Whole30 Yourself?!?!

I know  a lot of my friends wanted me to really tell the truth here so others could realize they are not alone in these types of feelings, so that is what I tried to do here.  If you are doing Whole30 now, good luck and keep up the hard work, it will be worth it!  If you are considering doing it, please just try it...it's only 30 days! You can do anything for 30 days!  I will post from time to time on my next Whole30 and then will post another final update on my Whole 60.

A special thanks to all my friends and family that have supported me over the last 30 days!!! I really appreciate it and <3 you all :)