Choices

     The first thing many people ask when they hear about the Whole30 is, "What can't you eat?"  It's not a matter of can't,  I am choosing not to eat these things.  At any moment I can choose to go eat a tub of ice cream or a plate of pancakes, but I don't want to.  I made a commitment to eat whole, non-inflammatory, unprocessed foods for thirty days.  That mindset has made all the difference this time around.  During my first Whole30 I was stuck on the foods I "could not" eat.  I obsessed over all the things I was missing out on and planned all the foods I was going to eat once the Whole30 was over.  I believe that mindset led to my first Whole30 basically failing.  I mean, I felt great during those 30 days, but after that, it was mayhem.  I ate anything and everything and I paid for it in headaches, weight gain, and fatigue.  Just like I chose to do all those things after my first Whole30, I am choosing not to repeat those mistakes again.  I want to stay headache free, continue to have more energy, and sleep better.  Does that mean I will never eat dessert again?  No.  But, when I do eat dessert (or bread, or pasta, or whatever), it will be a choice.  It won't be because I have to have it, it will be because I decided it was worth it.

     Meals have pretty much been typical day to day foods.  I have eaten a lot of leftovers.  I think we definitely waste less food while I'm doing the Whole30.  A few nights ago we had Hawaiian burgers that were pretty tasty.  I used the leftover toppings on some leftover ranch steak for lunch the next day.  I feel like by now, day 17, I have gotten into a good routine and started to build some good habits.  It has gotten so much easier to get out of bed in the morning.  I even naturally woke up at 7:30 over the weekend.  I am also sleeping much better and today is my 14th day without a headache!

                                 Somewhere under all that avocado, there is pineapple