Day 30! The End or The Beginning?

Hey Paleo Peeps!!

Hope you are all well on this the 30th day of November and the 30th day of my Whole30 November!!

It is hard to believe this is the 30th day and the "destination" of my journey. I have spent 30 days aiming for this day, and now that I am here I am not fully sure how I feel about it!

Its almost like when you spend hours on a road trip and your destination is all you can think of. You have the whole journey mapped out, the best route to take, the most suitable places to refuel, but you haven't really considered what you will do once you park up and get out of your car!!

I thought once I got to this point I would be elated that I could loosen the reigns a little and eat potatoes or drink some wine. But truth be told I am not counting down the hours to midnight to crack open the Pinot Grigio! My fiance asked me today "Are you going to eat chips/fries tomorrow?!" My response was "I doubt it". I think he thought I would be elated by the prospect, but my answer was fairly unemotional.

I suppose that last word sums up how my relationship with food has been changed by this experience. Food is no longer something I need as a pick me up. Refined carbs and sugars are no longer required to make me feel happy, and I no longer reward myself with bad foods. So for me this is not the end, but merely just one part of a longer voyage! Merely the beginning.

I have no intention of going off the rails and gorging myself on pastries and bread. But I am looking forward to having the occasional paleo baked good.

Whilst I have been Paleo for 4 months now, and therefore didn't make as many changes as someone starting out from scratch, but I none the less encourage it for anyone - novices or those wishing to get back to basics.

I definitely feel very proud of myself that I have got this far. It has been challenging but not impossible. And I definitely feel more justified in helping others on their Paleo journey.

I may even be persuaded to do it all again in January!

Full results, weight wise and otherwise, tomorrow!!

Day 28 - Update of my Whole30 November Challenge

Hey Paleo Pals!

Hope you are all well! I can't believe I haven't posted since Friday, so apologies for that! Hope you haven't missed me too much!

My weekend went well, Saturday was fairly quiet and uneventful as it poured rain all day! Not nice!
We did go to the cinema Sat night to watch the Twilight film (which I loved btw). Me, my bottle of water and (counterfeit) nuts! Love to live on the edge eh?!

Me and my son at Xmas Party, sorry for blurriness

Yesterday was a challenging day eating wise I have to say. My son and I attended a children's diabetic party for families affected by diabetes in the area (my son has been Type1 for about 15 months). We travelled there for the 1pm start time and thankfully I had fed my son before we left as we didn't get food until well after 3pm! You would think of all the groups they would ensure diabetic children got fed quickly to avoid hypoglycaemia! There were nearly tears (his) and tantrums (mine) but he enjoyed it once he got fed!

I was so hungry myself as I had only a banana for breakfast (thinking I would be having dinner early)

Dinner was Turkey & Ham with the works but I just avoided the potatoes and stuffing and piled my plate with  veggies. It was delish.

I wasn't expecting dessert too so I went to the bathroom and when I came back there was a lovely looking plate in front of me. My heart sank because I am fine once the bad food isn't in front of my damn face! On the plate was a trio of desserts including strawberry cheesecake, Christmas cake and profiteroles with choc sauce. Man that was tough! But I refrained and figured if I broke it now, with just 3 days to go, I would never forgive myself. So I ate the apple and strawberry garnishes and wrapped the Christmas cake in a napkin for my fiance.

Anyway, I am so grateful I didn't eat anything bad.

I know I could harp on about the fact I am glad I have almost done my Whole30 and that I can only envision myself 100% Paleo for ever etc etc, but the truth is I am not sure how I feel!
100% Paleo is amazingly challenging and difficult. A life without any sweetness, even honey, would be so tough for most people. Meat and veggies are so delish but sometimes satisfying a sweet craving has to be done!
It can also be incredibly restrictive when out and about especially when you have no choice over what you are offered to eat.
But I do feel proud of myself for proving to myself that I CAN do this - challenging though it may be.
And I do think any healthy eating worth their word should do this for 30 days. Coz it is easy to say "Don't eat this, don't eat that" but until you go off everything yourself for 30 days you don't know what you're talking about!

My eating has gone like this for the past few days:

Friday

Brunch: Bacon, 2 poached eggs, toms and avocado

Dinner: Bacon salad with cashew nuts
Supper: Steak, onions and tomatoes

Sunday:
BF: Banana
Lunch: T&H Dinner with creamed carrots and parsnips and Brussels sprouts
Dinner: Bacon and fried egg, banana, apple

Monday (Day 28)
BF: Bacon and 2 scrambled eggs, banana
Lunch: Tuna Mayo Salad with an apple
Dinner: Irish Lamb Stew with cauliflower mash

That's it for now! Hope you are still hanging in there and doing great. I know a few of you from the facebook page are still plugging a way, so keep it up! I can't wait to hear all your results!

Bye for now, chat soon and remember, Keep It Paleo

Denise
xx

Day 24 - The End Is In Sight and A Brighter Mood

Hey Paleo Pals.

Happy Thanksgiving to those of you across the pond. I hope you have an enjoyable day with family & friends.

Just a short post today, nothing major to report except that my mood has returned to normal and I am feeling a lot more cheerful.

I must say I have found this Whole30 more challenging than I thought I would. It has been tough excluding things sure, but it is the extra strictness I have really found tough. I guess I am in a bit of a rut and eating the same stuff. Also I had considered myself fairly strict Paleo at 90% but now I realise that that last 10% is the real challenge.
The little things like being able to occasionally have Paleo baked goods or honey or a potato!
So yes, this Whole30 journey has been fairly tough! But it has made me focus on eating real food - which is always good.

Anyway, it is hard to believe I have only 6 days left! Time is near complete!

Foodwise my eating has gone has follows:

Day23

BF: Spinach scramble with tomatoes
Lunch: Ham, avocado, an apple
Dinner: Pork Casserole with sweet potato and spinach

Day24
BF: Bacon, 2 fried eggs and tomatoes
Lunch: Banana, lamb chop
Dinner: Pork Loin stuffed with sundried tomato, garlic, chillie and basil. Served with roasted veg done in coconut oil, butter leek and mashed cauliflower

Enjoy the rest of Thanksgiving, and enjoy the leftovers!

Chat soon, keep it Paleo

Denise xx