Today is day 21 of the whole 30 plan for me, and I'm certain I am going to finish it this time. If you're not familiar with this program, I'll give you the basics of it. The idea is to change your diet to one consisting of whole and natural foods. That means saying goodbye to sugar (except that is nuts and fruits, but they should be limited) grains, legumes (beans of any kind,) and the big one for me; dairy.
The whole 30 plan is filled with easy days and very, very hard days, especially in the first 15 days. Headaches, mood swings, and bloating to name the most apparent for me. There were days that I really REALLY just wanted to eat a slice of pizza with my family, have a chocolate muffin with my ladies at MOPS, or grab a dunkin iced coffee on my way to church or the grocery store. However, I pushed through, and not without the help of a handful of friends who are doing this program with me, giving me even more ideas that they are discovering for making whole foods amazing!
I just wanted to name a few things that I've learned from this program. Partly as a way to inform friends of mine who are considering the whole 30, and partly as a way to document for myself what it's done for me, so I can look back on this if I ever fall completely off the wagon again. These amazing things are happening with my body. My clothes are fitting better, I've got a lot of energy (most days) and even my focus has improved! But I want to talk about how this program has changed the way I think about food.
1. I've learned that I do in fact, have self control. Something that I've done, and I'm sure a lot of us have done, is eaten food because it was there, available to me. Namely at meetings, birthday parties, anywhere that sells and serves food. Why not try a little, or a lot, of everything, until I left with pains in my stomach, full and ready to burst? Because, how is that a good feeling? Eating food means pleasure for so many people, including me. I felt pleasure every Friday when I ate half of a buffalo chicken stromboli slathered in ranch dressing. That pleasure was short lived. Sometimes followed by the pain of feeling full, or the pain of feeling empty because I knew what I had just put into my body was not healthy and not good for it. Now however, I know that I can drive by a dunkin donuts without stopping in, and say no to the sugary sweets at MOPS, and to the 2nd hamburger at a birthday party. Now, that is not to say that at the end of this program I won't still get a coffee, have a cookie, or eat a plate of food at a party. What it means is, that I won't overindulge just because it is available to me. If I can say no to it completely, I can say no to overindulgence. This I'm hoping will also continue to do wonders on my binge eating habits. I "binged" 3 times in the last 21 days, and when I say binged it was on an extra serving of veggies or a meal I'd made, always whole 30. I'm not perfect after all. I've learned to control my mindless eating habits which leads me to my next revelation.
2. I've learned what food as a form of pleasure really is for me. Like I said above, pleasurable eating meant junk food. The cheesiest, greasiest junk food. I never had much of a sweet tooth but savory foods were my enemy. Cheesesteak, tacos, wings, pizza, all very delicious foods, and also foods I can live without or change. I made homemade taco seasoning last night, and had taco salad. Ground beef, taco seasoning, over a bed of cauliflower rice, mixed with avocado and tomatoes. It was delicious and I was very happy to discover that I could have my comfort food without hurting my body. Tonight I'm having a sweet potato stuffed with buffalo chicken and topped with homemade whole 30 ranch dressing which tastes amazing! I enjoy food more now. I don't just scarf things down because I WANT to eat. I wait until I'm hungry, I cook the meal that I planned, and I enjoy food so much more because it has a purpose to fuel my body, and it really does taste delicious. I've had some food fails, like the first chili recipe I tried, and the cauliflower chowder I made. They were pretty terrible. The second chili recipe I made was amazing, and so were most of the other foods I've had.
3. Meal planning. This is an important step in a successful whole 30. My family will eat some of the dinners I make, but usually the kids have cereal in the morning and grains with their lunch, so I have a chart and each day is split into 9 squares. My 3 meals, the kids 3 meals, and because Tim works a different schedule and doesn't have a microwave at work anymore, his 3 meals. Sounds like a lot but like I said most of the time, we eat the same dinner. I've also learned that it's ok to make my kids eat leftovers. I can make a lasagna and feed Tim and the kids for two days with that. One less meal I have to make. I'm also making a bigger effort to feed my kids healthier as well by trying to buy less fish sticks and chicken nuggets, and when I do, using them as something on the side as opposed to the staple of a meal. It's been fun coming up with new ways to enjoy whole foods.
So what's next for me? Well, day 31 will definitely call for an iced coffee on my way to Hershey, and how sweet of a reward that will be! I'm going to keep going with my meal planning this way, however. I read about rewarding yourself without planning it. I'm not going to say things like "on this day I'll have a cheat meal, or a cheat day." I'm going to continue to eat whole foods as often as now, but with the occasional slice of cake or plate of wings here and there. I'll probably fall back into old habits again and again throughout my life as well, but doing the best I can will have to be enough.
