Whole30 Day 21

Hahah! To the left is a glorious moment in my kitchen yesterday. After making breakfast for the Fam and baking a SWYPO banana bread, I was having a bit of a moment. I am always in this kitchen these days, if I'm not at work. I love trying to keep this challenge interesting for my family. I love experimenting with new things. Most importantly, I love how I am feeling and the side benefits I'll mention later. But I have to admit, I had a moment where I felt like I might not want to do this anymore. A fleeting thought entered my mind of just quitting now, because it's too much work. Then I realized my floors were dirty, the stove needed cleaned,

I really needed to get a pedicure (or do SOMETHING with my toes) and do some laundry (not shown here is the banana bread batter on my stretchy pants that felt really good to cook in...really good). Then it occurred to me, there will ALWAYS BE WORK, why not CONTINUE working at something meaningful like nourishing my family's bodies, being an example of wholeness and demonstrating that keeping our eyes fully on Christ will cause us to do things we never thought possible. Ok. Good. Now that we have that out of the way, here's a summary of the week...

Day 15 - Monday I continued to feel great. I was able to sneak in a HIIT workout AND hang out with my daughter to watch Super Girl. OK show, kind of cheezy, but my girlie liked it.

Day 16 - Tuesday still feeling good, must be the "tiger blood" so often spoke of in the program. However, I did not make the spin class I had hoped to join. My hip was feeling a bit sticky and sore, so I chose to allow rest and healing. Tuesday was a challenging spiritual/emotional day. I shared a portion of my testimony. It was a struggle to do it, but I was glad I did. That evening, I had to coach my daughter through her own fears, affirming my decision to not allow the fabrications in the mind to be what holds me (or her) back.We shared gratitude in overcoming the moment with lots of hugs and cuddles :)

Day 17 - Wednesday I had a great workout and the sweat was a drippin'! It felt so good to move my hip and stretch it out after. The whole family enjoyed the crock pot chicken fajitas, and I enjoyed great conversation with my friend. I love being reminded of the importance of having people in our lives who know and appreciate EVERY ASPECT of who we are. Not only that, but who challenge, support and encourage. So, so, important. Thanks Chelle!

Day 18 - Thursday was a bit of an "off" day. I was feeling sleepy and had a bit of a headache. I quickly ran through the six pillars of wellness and realized all was good, when it occurred to me the sweater I had on and the pony tail were most likely the culprits. Sure enough, as soon as I got home and ditched both of them, I was MUCH BETTER. Caution: if you walk in the door after work and announce you need to get your clothes off and let your hair down, after your husband asks how your day was, you might get a perplexed look in return ;) We also shared dinner with my bestie and her hubby, which was SO NICE. Again, sharing relationships where ALL OF WHO WE ARE is known, loved and accepted - is SO IMPORTANT. Thanks Summer!

Day 19 - BOYS YOU MAY WANT TO STOP READING. I woke up, began my day per usual, and wanted chocolate. It wasn't a ravenous desire, but a craving nonetheless. Hmm, odd. Go on into work, later discover the surprise of my cycle. Well hot diggity! Absolutely no PMS leading up to the grand entrance of the red lady. This, my friends, is a super nice side benefit of being Whole30. The rest of the day was equally mild, and yes, I did prepare myself a Whole30 snack to cure my chocolate craving. And it was good. And it worked.

Day 20 - Yesterday was my momentary lapse of reason in the kitchen. VERY MOMENTARY. At this point I am not even sure how I could ever go back to eating grains and sugars (I believe these to be the primary culprits for my hormonal dysfunction and lack of ability to change body composition). My husband and I have discussed this and we are leaning on living a Paleo lifestyle, with a celebratory glass of wine or dessert here and there. WE both feel so good, and are convicted this really is the best way to eat for our children. Also, we both noticed the festive candies from last night did absolutely nothing for us. Yay for balancing out the body!

Day 21 - Here I am this morning, after falling back an hour (so weird), and I'm feeling good. I have made it to the point where my new habits are well established in my brain. This is now becoming MORE of a way of life for me, rather than a diet or the next hip thing to do. Perhaps this is why I can't imagine going back? My brain already registers this as normal and comfortable, and wants to now hold onto it. We are only half way there. I'm hoping to really get into my workouts again. While I worked out last week, it wasn't nearly to the degree I had hoped. This third component is really important to me, because I enjoy it so much!

Here's what I plan on doing, which is the same as last week:

Sunday - Upper Body, Steady State
Monday - HIIT
Tuesday - Lower Body
Wednesday - Glutes, HIIT
Thursday - Upper Body and Yoga
Friday - Rest
Saturday - Spin (HIIT)