Thoughts from day three

Whoa. I didn’t sleep for two nights, one of them extremely uncomfortable, so I don’t really know if the shakes and overwhelming feelings of vulnerability and hyper-emotionality I experienced  yesterday were due to Whole 30 detoxification, lack of sleep or PMS. I tried a few times to blog about my doubts and panicky feelings, but I was quite verbose and not comfortable posting my ramblings. However, I whimpered myself to sleep last night, slept like a baby and I awoke, well-rested and with my feet landed back on the ground. Yay! 

Insights:

Much mindfulness is required in preparing regular meals for the kids. I caught myself just in time from licking honey and peanut butter off the knife after making their lunches Monday, and I had to wipe ketchup off my tongue with a napkin yesterday after dousing Gus’s eggs and licking my finger. (Whole 30 says no sugar except that found in fruits and vegetables.)

I love my $10 citrus juicer. The amount of juice squeezed from a half a lime by hand is nothing compared to the quantity squeezed from one using the juicer. The lemon and lime juice makes our food taste so fresh!

Fresh herbs make a world of difference. Our spice rack is overflowing with dried herbs, but fresh ones can’t compare. Adding fresh rosemary to potatoes, a green bay leaf and fresh oregano to homemade tomato sauce and fresh thyme to sweet potatoes changes the game. This is such an easy way to bring boring veggies to life.

I am going to be a confident chef at the end of 30 days. Though I have to check and double check recipes now, I’m positive that roasting veggies, mixing up salad dressings and sauces and throwing seared and seasoned meat in the crock-pot is going to become second nature. My knife skills will improve too. Cooking lots of meals with lots of nutrients means chopping lots of veggies.

Cooking lots of meals means doing lots of dishes too.

The kids are digging eating a varied diet. I really thought they’d fight the dinner meals, but they are excited and supportive of TJ and me. They love the plethora of fruit that we have in the fridge, on the counter and in the pantry, and with curiosity they are eating a greater variety of meats and veggies too. Max actually thought the spaghetti squash we had covered with homemade tomato sauce was real pasta. Turns out Ted can eat a whole sweet potato with nothing on it. Gus didn’t notice when I skipped the honey on the sandwiches the past two days.

My marriage feels strong. I cannot imagine trying to do Whole 30 without TJ. He’s a more natural recipe finder, shopper and chef and he’s also much more decisive than I am about mealtime decisions (and about everything else in life). That we are giving up sugar and alcohol and working together to create fun, nutritious meals for our family makes me feel warm and strong. I love that we are on the same page at the same time and taking good care of ourselves and each other.

My friends are rock stars. I have three close friends doing whole 30 right now. Getting to touch base daily with them via text and knowing they are a phone call away is like knowing someone’s got your back. “Stay the course,” were the words that rang loud yesterday.

 

Three days in and I am not yet experiencing intense cravings. I’m finding it a relief to know that junk food and wine are off limits. Today someone hacked into my e-mail account causing all sorts of hassles. Normally I would have had a handful of chocolate covered almonds every time I paced through the kitchen waiting for a customer service agent to answer my call and had  wine tonight out of self-pity for my woes. Today, I munched on a sweet potato while pacing and only thought about the effect wine would have on my woes . For this, I am thankful.

I can feel my habits changing, and tonight, I am happy.

5 thoughts on “Thoughts from day three”

  1. Keep it up! I love the fact TJ is doing it too! That makes an extraordinary difference. Nothing worse than watching your mate drink in front of you and consume everything you are trying to avoid. Support each other?

    1. After 30 days, we add back in the food we’ve been eliminating, one food group at a time, starting with wine and ending with gluten, I think. We wait a couple days between each addition and hopefully discover what groups of foods causes our symptoms (low E, bloating, acne/eczema, low moods etc.). Hopefully after 30 days we’ve also made some new habits and learned a thing or two.

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