On January 4, 2016 I began my Whole30 journey.
After months of pep talk and discovering many friends wanting to tag along and join the journey I said JANUARY 4th is the day I begin my Whole30 journey.
If you are following me on twitter, you may have noticed a ton of food photos. Well this is the documentation of my journey. I have become that crazy person taking photos of my food before I consume it.
I am sure if you have never heard of the Whole30 before you are more than likely wondering what the heck i am talking about well:
Established by Dallas Hartwig and Melissa Hartwig (of Whole9) in April 2009, the Whole30® is our original nutritional program designed to change your life in 30 days. Think of it as a short-term nutritional reset, designed to help you put an end to unhealthy cravings and habits, restore a healthy metabolism, heal your digestive tract, and balance your immune system.
Certain food groups (like sugar, grains, dairy and legumes) could be having a negative impact on your health and fitness without you even realizing it. Are your energy levels inconsistent or non-existent? Do you have aches and pains that can’t be explained by over-use or injury? Are you having a hard time losing weight no matter how hard you try? Do you have some sort of condition (like skin issues, digestive ailments, seasonal allergies or fertility issues) that medication hasn’t helped? These symptoms may be directly related to the foods you eat—even the “healthy” stuff.
– See more at: http://whole30.com/step-one/#sthash.h2SVuUlM.dpuf
I began my journey by reading “It Starts With Food” by Melissa & Dallas Hartwig ; now yes my passion, love, degree, & career surround the study of nutrition and food however this opened my eyes to so much more in the food industry! I really suggest reading this book if you are considering a Whole30. You’ll think twice when contemplating cheating, sneaking a piece of non-compliant food here and there, you will really think twice developing that new relationship with your food!
With my eyes wide open and my date set I began to prepare. I created a Pinterest board full of Whole30 compliant recipes (from many blogs) and getting an idea of things I can make. I also began visiting a lot of blogs with wise Whole30 followers. With this research I found helpful blogs with meal plans, recipes, tips and ideas! I tell you this blogesphere is amazing and the people in it are even more amazing!
Let me take a moment to share with you the blog that eased my mind and reminded me a Whole30 is nothing to be afraid of. It is a blog that gave me recipes to be prepared, gave me a sense of comfort and with many scans of all her recipes I was ready to rock the Whole30 with the tools. Without further ado Kendra with Our Paleo Life prepared me with the mind set, tools, and Whole30 compliant delicious-ness! OPL is a MUST check out if you are interested in doing a Whole30 challenge or even just contemplating a lifestyle change and visiting the wild Paleo side. Be sure you follow her as well on Instagram (@ourpaleolife), pin all the pins you want on Pinterest, as well as Facebook and the wonderful world of tweeting on Twitter (@ourpaleo) to help you stay up to date on all her released recipes!
Now: Here I am Day 13 on my Whole 30 and I am feeling pretty good. My energy is high and all my sugar withdraw symptoms have entered the upswing. My mind’s ability to focus has been crystal clear which has always been an issue for me, I guess you could say my brain fog is gone. One thing I have noticed is my acne has been subsided but not as much as I expected. I turned to the Whole30 message boards from the website and learned it is more than likely due to my lack of water. That is what I get for leaving my new water bottle an hour away when I was teaching a nutrition class with the American Heart Association, time to order a new one from Amazon. This leads me to talk a bit about the community. I know at the Whole30 headquarters there is a whole team (of four beautiful women according to their Facebook) who answer our questions, a community of over 100,000 men and women who have completed and help empower each other. This time I made sure I had a backbone of my close friends easily at hands access for me to hold onto when I needed. This round I have had my best friend and beautiful bride to be Lady H with me and a super supportive coworker whom I see just about every single day and eat lunch with, A. A even prepared lunch for me on day 1 because I had been out of town with family the weekend before and did not get home in time to prepare food. With this supportive team I have we text each other and hold each other accountable. I know these two amazing women are the reason I am almost HALF WAY in and no mistakes (A pointed out an ALMOST mistake) and absolutely no cheating!
I had my date, I had prepared, and I had a team. Closing with Day 13 in the books and approaching Week 3 of my very first Whole30 journey I acknowledge I still have to prepare just as I have for Day 1 and treat my body the same. I only have one chance and I want to tell my body and brain they are worth all the nutritious nourishment I can give them!
Now, with the remainder I have left of this beautiful evening on day 13 I am going to sit and attempt to have a full meal prep list ready to go for Monday. The Whole30 Chicken Cacciatore is looking mighty delicious! Doesn’t it sound divine!
Below I am sharing with you a little show of my current journey so far in my first Whole30.
Feel free to let me know if you are participating or have completed a Whole30 challenge before. Remember to continue hashtagging your photos with #dewieseatwell and I promise to be updating some recipes soon!
dreaeatswell.com 