I started my second round of Whole30 November 2nd and finished it December 1st.
If you don’t know what Whole30 is; go check out their website. They explain it perfectly ;)
Whole30 has been so unbelievably fantastic. I did my first round in April 2014 right before hubs + I went on a vacay to San Fran-LA-Vegas-Arizona (you can read all about those trips here–here–here–here). I remember that round was difficult and an extreme challenge for me.
I was working at a restaurant and had to deal with the good ol’ fry bowl + my co-workers enjoying all the non-compliant food and drink around me. It was hard. I had the days free to cook and I spent a lot of time thinking about the food I was going to make + didn’t have much else going on. It was still really hard to beat my sugar dragon + I had annoyingly bad headaches at first; serious sugar + carb withdrawal. Ugh.
When I was done that round of Whole 30, I felt invincible. I felt lean, confident, and proud. It was the perfect feeling for right before a trip that involved lots of sunshine + bikinis…except I didn’t reintroduce foods properly + all my hard work got wasted as I got wasted…”M-O-B 3-0!”.
Anywayyyyy.
My second round was challenging in different ways + much easier on me too. The challenge being the fact that I have a little mister that is my priority and if he needs something, I drop everything for him (this includes showers, meals, blog posts, gilmore girl episodes [!!!]) and truthfully, pre-Whole30, sitting down and eating meals was the biggest challenge.
So, the Whole30 was wonderful because it put structure into my day + forced me to prep and eat (and when things got a little cray with the baby, I would make sure to eat as soon as I could + not run into the kitchen and shove graham crackers + a spoonful of peanut butter in my mouth)! I mean, mamas taking the time to eat and fuel the body that is fueling a little one?! Who would’ve thunk it? ;)
Another challenge I encountered was being reallllllllly hungry a lot. I mean, I spent the last year being pregnant + breastfeeding (still exclusively doing-so + I love it, oh so much!) and eating anything + everything I wanted. It was blissful. However, I wasn’t very mindful of what I was eating; more on that below. I love that I bought the Whole30 book this round; I recommend grabbing it if you decide to do a Whole30. It was such a support system (that along with my favourite twinsie/fellow Whole 30er Sharon for talking me off the ledge halfway through this round [all I wanted was cupcakes + red wine…]) and it is chalk full of wonderful easy to make recipes (this is key!). Oh, and there is a wonderful chapter all about Whole30 in regards to pregnancy and breastfeeding so I felt I had that little extra bit of comfort + support.
I had vowed that for the first three months of GBB’s life that I would focus 100% on him and not worry about my body (other than taking care of it!) re: weight, pre-baby bod, working out, stretch marks etc. And I didn’t. And I lost pretty much all the weight before I even started this round of Whole30.
I have a few more pounds to shed to get to my pre-baby NUMBER (which is really bullshit, frankly) but I am really not concerned in the slightest. Weight is exactly that, a number. My body is nothing like it was pre-baby even though the weight number is close to my old normal.
I grew a baby! I birthed a baby! I feed a baby!
It’s all so magical and it is easy to get caught up in the shenanigans of getting skinny blah blah blah. What we should be working on is getting healthy. And fit (I’m currently working on my motivation for that!). And loving ourselves. And it really, truly, starts with what we are eating. Good whole foods are assimilated faster by our bodies allowing them to work at their optimum capability. And yes, not having sugar can straight word suck the big one. Oh, and toast is my favourite meal and not having that can suck too.
But you know what doesn’t suck? Having clearer skin and more energy. Feeling happier and less sluggish. And feeling like you are taking responsibility for your body and treating it right! Woo to non-scale victories!
Woo! Rah rah! Whole30! Ha.
Okay, but honestly my friends, after these last 30 days I have come to some really great realizations (some I have already mentioned above!) and I have become much more mindful with what I am putting in my body. I take it meal by meal. I choose what I want to eat and enjoy it (if that’s three pieces of pie, fine..). I don’t need to eat a whole bag of chips to satisfy my enjoyment of chips! And I don’t need to run to chocolate or all things sugary when I am feeling sad/overwhelmed/excited/any and all emotions. I am an emotional eater, ha.
When I was pregnant I told myself I was going to do a Whole30 November 2015 and I am so glad I accomplished it even with a few rocky moments of questionable daydream-turned-into-reality of face planting into cupcakes. When I was preggo, I also became much more aware of the products I was using on my body + in my home. I have entirely chemical-free products (thank you Honest Company!) + am slowly working on using more natural products for my beauty regiment (and using essential oils in my life!!).
So with that being said, I wasn’t paying too too too much attention on the foods I was eating, ha. So silly + I felt slightly hypocritical. But not anymore! Whole foods make me feel good!
And don’t worry my friends, it is the holiday season and you better believe I will be indulging in some treats and drinks! And I don’t think I will be eating Whole30 forever (that’s why it’s called Whole30 and not whole life!).
^ the greatest pleasure is my dear GBB.
I did actually have a dash of milk in my morning coffee + realized, nope not worth it and I had a delicious Starbucks holiday treat today (a grande, extra-hot, non-fat, half-sweet, no whip chestnut praline latte; yes, that is my actual order…#sorrynotsorry it’s deeeelish!) and it was such a pleasure. I really enjoyed it.
And then my afternoon got all crazy + I enjoyed a night cap with my hubs (I had a glass and a half of red wine and omg, it was so yummo!). Like I said, meal by meal. And holiday baking has begun + I definitely licked the bowl and spoon (I gotta show GBB the way it’s done + it’s a tradition!).
I strongly recommend it + I know it is not the last time that I will do a Whole30 (and I’m sure each round will be easier!). Woo!
XO
PS.
I did buy this tin of Christmas cookies to enjoy. Why? Because, Christmas. Cookies. And they remind me of my granny + it’s a tradition to have one in the house during the month of December. Dipped in black coffee is such a pleasure moment.