Attempting a Whole Life

Straight off the bat: I didn't reach my step goal for week 1 nor for week 2. I didn't even reach half of my intended steps. Really, I didn't think it would be as difficult as it was to reach my step goal for both weeks. Week 3 goal is to definitely push past my lack of steps and get creative with finding ways to sneak in steps throughout the day. As for my grocery spending, during week 1 I spent approximately $232. That is way more than I intended the first week but did include bulk items such as fish, avocado oil, portions of avocado (clean guacamole, basically), and bacon from my Costco trip. Week 2 shopping was a bit more affordable, coming in at around $61. Nearly arriving at the halfway point and not anticipating any shopping happening until after then, I thought I was in good shape for my whole30 grocery spending this time around compared to whole30 2.0, last October but after reviewing my previous post it looks like $293 is about $23 dollars more than what I spen...

Day 29 Woke up with a headache, runny nose, and twinging from my spondy flare-up. But I still feel better than I did yesterday after my physical therapy appointment. I think I did push my self too hard instead of listening to my body. I've been dealing with these flare-ups for a decade and I know if I don't listen to my body, I will end up with emergency room type pain. I think I was putting too much faith in "trusting the process" and not enough in trusting my process. I get where they were coming from. I think when I said I lay down, they assumed I lay down all day. I don't. I lay down until the pain subsides, still fully awake and able to work on my computer or from my tablet. But I also make sure to get up and walk around when I can. My laying down is probably the equivalent to people sitting down. I still fully intend to continue my physical therapy and am very aware I need to work on my core and making sure I add stretching to my daily routine. ...

This second fail comes just over a week after my first fail. And it was with free samples - twice. The first refreshing sample was at a community event in the park hosted by a division of our city planning commity. It was a hot day, I had forgotten my water and was extremely parched. Unfortunately, this small sample of homemade ice cream was making me even more thirsty (who would have thought?).  To the delight of my kiddo, she was able to finish the ounce-sampling paper cup filled with cookies and cream ice cream sans 3 mama sampling-spoon scoops. The second sample of the day was after the earlier event when we were picking up some Whole30 approved groceries at Trader Joe's. I did fine my last shopping trip there, passing by their sampling section with only the kid trying a refreshing sparkling juice beverage. This time they were sampling mini ice cream cones. Needless to say, I scarfed that sucker down. So, now I am working on the Whole32 - a bit more than a month.

Photo by Igor Ovsyannykov / Unsplash I had my first fail yesterday and I ain't even [that] mad. Though, I am feeling completely bloated. Here's my excuse/reason/whatever-you-wanna-call-it: I am sitting at work, minding my own business when a group of co-workers walk in and invite me down to have my pick at left over – catered – Mexican food. I had just finished my lunch of garlic shrimp with red bell peppers I had prepped the night before (it was delicious and filling) and I let them know. One of the women reminded me I could take it home to feed the kid-o. So, I trotted along side them chatting, enjoying the time away from my desk until we got to this hall way of heaven. This was AUTHENTIC Mexican food. I took a paper plate and added a piece of delicious smelling chicken breast next to a pile of colorful potato medley that in my mind I knew my child would scoff at. I took a pre-portioned tortilla covered in foil as it was passed to me. There were plates and bowls of so...

I can't cook.  A big motivator for doing the Whole30 was to "re-learn" how to cook. Don't get me wrong, I can follow a recipe as well as the next person. It's the lack of motivation to come up with meal ideas, the search for the right groceries, dealing with the heat of the oven in the summer, (insert another excuse here). Along with my limited (but increasing) motivation to cook, I was a bit nervous about me skipping meals when I am at work or out and about due to lack of options (and preparation). Fortunately, there are 2 Whole30 "approved" snacks: RxBar and Larabar that I have tried and would recommend. The true intent for these is to have them available when you you need nutrients but not as a dessert after your meal or to substitute your normal snacking. I have only tried the Mint Chocolate RxBar and... my goodness! It tastes so much like a dessert I had to check and recheck to see if it was compliant . The extremely sticky and chewy texture ...

I am writing this as I prepare for my first Whole 30 . I have cleared my fridge; researched what I can and cannot eat; shopped 3 different stores; and basically spent more time on preparing for this than a person probably should. But this is not just physically preparing, I am also mentally preparing. I have been an unhealthy dieter for much of my adult life. For at least the last 2 and a half years my eating habits have been shit and have only gotten worse as I got closer to graduating by prioritizing deadlines and substituting nutrition for frozen convenience foods. It has been too easy for me to let those continue to slip into to dinner menu when I've just finished an 8 hour day with a 2 hour commute and I still need to put in a few more applications. Yes, this mental prepping is necessary. So is holding myself accountable and making my experience accessible to people who need to mentally prepare themselves for their own change.