My Whole30 Experience

This post is overdue, but even as I write this, I am digesting my whole30 compliant dinner.  I did complete 35 days on the Whole30 (I finally buckled to a craving for an Elmo cookie from Oakmont Bakery).  That was 30 days with no dairy, no sugar (and I mean not an ounce), no soy, no alcohol, no grains, and no legumes.  I never thought I could complete something like this with my constantly waivering willpower, but I DID.  Tom was extremely skeptical at first (he knows my track record) and I know he never thought in a million years this would work for me. 

But it DID. 

I started at 

Pretty much my average these post baby days. 

I was embarrassed to meet one of Patrick's classmate's parents looking like this, in this exact bathing suit, just three days before I started my Whole30:

But 30 days later, I was here:

And here-

That was a loss of 11.5 at 30 days, and at the end of 35, I actually hit 144.5 ( for a loss of 13.5 lbs). I minimally exercised -maybe twice a week. I chalk up nearly all the loss to getting rid of all the processed crap I was eating. My arms were thinner, I didn't have to squeeze into the suit, and I felt better. 

Since finishing, I have stayed on for another round, but this time came with several cheat days( 4 to be exact). I am starting over officially today hoping to tackle another 5-7 lbs by the end of March.  

Overall, it wasn't as hard as I thought to give everything up.  The weight literally just fell off the fist two weeks and that was a great motivator. The weight wasn't as quick to come off during the second half, but I incorporated some exercise in and was happy with the overall end result. 

The two biggest downsides to the program were the cost (holy cow-my grocery bill just about doubled) and having to cook every single meal.  I got a little smarter toward the middle and started doubling recipes for more leftovers, but it seemed like I was always cooking or doing dishes.  I have also had eggs everyday for breakfast since January 5th. No joke. Boy, would a bagel be nice.

I learned that I love pad Thai made with spaghetti squash instead of noodles. I learned to COOK spaghetti squash. I now have a fondness for banana with almond butter. I learned there is sugar added to just about EVERYTHING (look at the label on your mustard, your spaghetti sauce, your bacon, the turkey breast you bought Thanksgiving). I learned to drink my coffee black. 

I never found the "jump out of bed" energy in the morning, but I did have much more energy throughout the day.  So much more so, I felt brave enough to give up coffee for Lent.

I still have a ways to go to hit my goal weight, but for the first time, I had a birthday where I was in better shape than I was the year prior. I will repost another after photo around March 26th when I wrap up Whole30, Round Two.

Mardi Gras!

We got fancy around here after dinner. A little fun before Lent begins.