I finished the Whole30!

This post is a bit overdue, I completed my Whole30 June 27th.  Woot woot!  I wasn't perfect in the sense that I did snack occasionally, which is supposed to be avoided during the month.  But every morsel of food I put in my mouth was compliant.  I truly didn't think I could handle it for 30 days straight, but I did it!

Some of my favorite meals in the last week and a half...

Top left was salmon cakes from It Starts With Food.  I was completely grossed out by the salmon coming out of the can, thank goodness Chris was home and could handle mixing that one up.  I was worried I wouldn't like them at all just because I was so grossed out by the prep, but they surprised me and I loved them.  They were even better once I made some homemade mayo and created a dipping sauce.

Top middle was compliant chicken salad made with my homemade mayo.  Guys, seriously, make some mayo.  So tasty!  I loved the chicken salad on top of some romaine.

Top right was an open faced omlette with leftovers from a mexican skillet meal the night before.  Leftovers are an amazing tool while doing a Whole30, and this just shows you don't have to eat the 'same' thing over and over.  Use your leftovers but switch it up.

Bottom left was basically shrimp scampi.  I sauteed the shrimp in ghee, lemon juice and garlic.  Heck yes, it was very good.  I've discovered I don't really like ghee on my veggies, I'm not sure why, but it didn't bother me in this one bit.

Bottom middle was a grilled mahi mahi fillet (frozen, the Simply Balanced brand from Target) topped with a fresh mango salsa from Whole Foods and steamed asparagus.

Bottom right was my last meal of the Whole30, made by my mama.  She did the tarragon cream sauce (except she didn't have any tarragon, whoops, but threw in italian seasoning I think?) from It Starts With Food.  Oh my gosh SOOOO good.  Seriously.  I would like to have that again soon.

My Whole30 Results

I know that the majority of the people who are interested in doing a Whole30, are looking for the weight loss factor that generally comes with it.  I was.  What you get out of a Whole30 is so much more than that, it is different for everyone, but since I was shooting to lose weight here is my before and after.  Well the morning of day 29 anyway, I wasn't going to be home on day 31, so I took my pictures early.

Numbers wise, I lost 6.5 pounds.  I was really hoping for 9, but we all know the scale isn't everything.  And it is obvious that I lost a lot of bloating and some inches.  I never took any measurements (should have, I know) but it isn't a huge deal.  The photos are what I care about, and even though the results weren't drastic, I was happy with them.

I never got any 'tigers blood', but I felt good.  My energy levels are a lot more stable when I'm eating real foods, and my anxiety and temper are a lot easier to manage.  Granted there is a whole different sense of anxiety when I worry so much about meal planning and doing the extra dishes, however it was worth it.  And guys, seriously, I love all the food I was eating.  Sure sometimes (a lot of times) I wanted sweets, but I could handle my cravings.

So what is life looking for me after Whole30?  Well I wish I could say I've continued my excellent eating habits with no problem, but that isn't the case.  I didn't follow the reintroduction phase because I wanted to enjoy our anniversary dinner without worrying about what I was eating.  And I definitely enjoyed it, plus some cheesecake.  And then we had friends over for dinner and they brought some non-compliant foods.  Then we had a patriotic play date, and while I provided compliant foods, there were some desserts available that were not, and I took full advantage.  And then there was the Fourth of July and several days with lots of unhealthy food choices and holy heck.  I feel like I just erased my month of hard work.

The truth is that is just life, and I still need to figure out the balance.  I'm very much a black and white person, I'm not good at finding middle ground.  Right now I'm toying with eating Whole30 compliant foods until the first weekend in August (which includes my 10 year reunion, Chris's birthday and a baby shower).  And if not strict Whole30, then strict paleo.  I don't know.  When I'm planning meals for myself now, I have no issue with creating compliant, healthy and nutrisious meals.  It is making the right choices outside the home (or saying no to things when they're brought over) that is going to be the difficult part.

The only other reason I question whether or not I stick to a grain free diet, is because I've had some AMAZING runs the last 10 days, and I don't know why.  Maybe it is because on those days I've gotten a little more sleep, or maybe it is because there are some carbs in my life.  I'm not really sure.  But the morning after my first non-compliant meal I set out on a 6 mile run, and felt so good that I ended up running just over 8.  On the fourth I participated in the 'run around the lake' in my parents neighborhood, a 6 mile (I believe anyway) race I've done before.  And ran the whole thing in 51:54.  That is roughly an 8:40 pace.  I haven't run that fast in a LONG time.

Right now the only food that really bothers my body that I can tell, is sugar.  Surprise surprise, I knew that going in.  I expected to have more of an issue with gluten and dairy, but didn't.  I haven't really had much soy, it has been surprisingly easy to avoid.  I may not be making great food choices all the time, but I still don't eat a ton of packaged food, so unless I cook with it, I'm not getting it.

So...... until further notice I'm taking on Whole30 round two.  Well, a whole 26 I guess, since I don't intend to stay compliant at the reunion.  Goodbye tasty desserts, I'll miss you the most.