Whole30... Round 2

It's a new year with new goals. About 8 months ago a friend at work told me about this thing called Whole30 and how clean eating can make such an impact of your body and mind. I had the advantage of watching her food and meal choices over the next few weeks, before I ever decided to dive in myself. After I started researching it and reading the It Starts With Food book, my best friend told me she had also recently completed Whole30 and not only had lost weight but her energy levels were up and had increased mental clarity.

In June 2015, the Fiancée and I (what choice did he have, really?) decided to give it a try. It was hard at times and meal prep was time consuming. But after we completed it we both felt a huge sense of accomplishment. How our bodies looked and felt was just as rewarding. We both lost weight. My skin hadn't been that clear since middle school. I had great energy levels that allowed me to take my workouts to another level. My focus and mental clarity at work were on point. My dependence and cravings for all things sweet didn't go away by any means but I felt like I took back some of the control. As the book calls it, I was beginning to slay my sugar dragon. For J, the best benefit he noticed was a significant decline in knee and joint pain. He has no cartilage in his knees so they ache almost constantly. He also felt the benefits of increased energy, restful sleep and better GI health.

Fast forward 6 months as we are on the eve of starting our second Whole30. We got engaged, went on vacation in the mountains and survived the holidays since then. But now that the holidays have passed, my sugar dragon has taken over and I need to get her back in her cage. And there's this little thing of not just fitting into but looking damn good in my wedding dress in 8 months!

With that, I'll be food journaling our Whole30 experience this go-around.

Whole Foods is the easiest place to get some compliant items to make cooking easier. Things like chicken broth, sugar-free bacon, ghee, salad dressings and some protein bars. Tessemae's dressings and marinades are great and we used them a lot last time. They were on sale at Whole Foods so I bought 4. Might as well stock up. Their mayo, ketchup and BBQ sauce are also pretty decent, if you can't go 30 days without and need a condiment fix. Applegate Organics' sliced roast beef is just about the only pre-packaged compliant deli meat I can find and it is delicious but pricey, so its more of a treat. I also found some prosciutto at Aldo a week ago and bought a few packs. Yum!

Well, I had my ceremonial last bowl of ice cream tonight and am ready and excited to dive in head first tomorrow morning. Wish us luck!