Belated Week 3 & Current Week 4

So, Week 3 was R-O-U-G-H y'all. Turns out my wellness coach at Title Boxing was right (go figure). My body could not sustain itself without clean carbs. In week 3 I crashed real hard, my muscles were fatigued, heavy and weak. I realized my body wasn't getting what it needed for me to maintain the rigorous, high intensity work outs I was putting it through. I rested, ate clean carbs, and some pretty unclean ones too, and regrouped. This week I am going from boxing 3-4 times a week to two times a week and beginning the Couch to 5K program (which means I'll be doing walk/jog intervals three times a week). My high intensity workouts will take a step down and my activity level will go up since I will be working out 5 days a week instead of 4 days. On the days I do the Couch to 5K I also do an arm and core workout.

I have to be able to do at least 17 push ups (Navy approved form) in 2 minutes in order to rank in the "good to excellent" category for my gender and age, because obviously "satisfactory" or "good" isn't enough for me. I've never had a lot of upper body strength, but that doesn't mean I can't gain any now. My body is much stronger than I have given it credit for in the past. So I'm excited to watch myself improve in the pushup arena.

I had my wellness check in today and it's been a little over 3 weeks since my initial meeting. Y'all I've lost over 6.5 inches and 1% body fat in just over 3 weeks! I wasn't expecting that at all!

I also spent an hour and a half with my recruiter today and he complimented me on my progress and he said, "Nothing motivates like seeing results". Hooyah Chief, Hooyah.

Grocery shopping has gotten much easier though, I usually spend around $65-75 a week (depending on what I'm cooking). So anyone that says eating healthy isn't affordable is clearly over buying, or buying groceries and then eating out every day or every other day. Granted I'm shopping for me, but I have left over food that rolls over into the next week too, so I don't think it'd be that big of a difference to shop for two people.

Week 4 has already started off well. I feel strong and able to challenge my body once again. When I eat something that isn't clean my body responds to it negatively. Whether my stomach aches or I even get a headache, my body tells me it's 1. Not appreciative of my choice and 2. Was hoping for something it could turn into fuel. This change is one of the most challenging for me because eating something I used to enjoy a lot of the time is no longer enjoyable. Mentally that's a big switch to make. To realize what you used to enjoy and get pleasure out of no longer satisfies like it used to is hard because my mind still tells me, "One piece of french toast would be amazing right now", and when I eat a piece of french toast (like today... a great example of an UNclean carb) and feel bloated with a stomach ache and slight headache for about an hour I realize that even though I KNEW french toast was enjoyable at one time, it no longer is. My body would MUCH rather have cinnamon sweet potato fries fresh out of the oven, or almond butter with a giant honey crisp apple, or pineapple, peaches, blackberries and blueberries with coconut water blended in my NutriBullet.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that what I used to know to be true isn't true anymore and that's a big adjustment I'm having to make. I can't explicitly trust my past experience anymore, I need to remember to pause, and ask myself do I know this to still be enjoyable, or am I confident that it will still be enjoyable since making the changes I've made in the past three weeks. If the answer is no, then I need to look for a better option. If the answer is yes, then go for it! Within moderation of course. If the answer is I'm not sure, I hope to take the time and consider if I'm willing to be wrong and suffer the possible physical consequences.

Even though y'all have already picked up on it, I want to be honest and come out and say that I am no longer doing the purest version of the Whole30 anymore. It's not the version that program endorses. However, I'm taking the principles of the program and using them in addition to clean carbs a few times a week (no more french toast... unless it's with Ezekiel 4:9 bread) in order to continue a longterm lifestyle of clean eating and consistent physical exercise.

I'll keep blogging about the coming weeks though; because I do still think it's important to share my journey of clean eating and exercising so that others (and me too) can know that just because you set out to do something and it doesn't work out the exact way it's "supposed to" or you believed it would, doesn't mean you failed. Course correction, adapting to unforeseen challenges and obstacles is how we grow, learn more about ourselves, the world and others, and how we attain the end goal.

So, until next Monday!

Whole38: Week 2

I wrote this on Monday and forgot to post it! Whoops! :) 

Well, Week 1 of the Whole30 is in the books! I had a great week all in all, there were a few minor adjustments I had to make, as well as two more trips to the grocery store. I wish I could say that this last week was PERFECT, but it wasn't, which honestly, I'm totally okay with. I went to Malone's the other night and cut myself a very small piece of bread and put garlic and chive butter on it, I had a few sushi rolls and didn't take the rice off, and I had several bites of an apple crisp with vanilla ice cream. The next morning I went to Middle Fork Kitchen Bar, one of, if not my all time FAVORITE places to go eat in Lexington and had the chicken and waffle for brunch. Their waffle machine broke and so it was more like chicken (seasoned and lightly breaded) and two paper thin pancakes made with waffle batter... but it was FANTASTIC.

Something interesting happened though, as I went outside the boundary lines of the Whole30. I realized I didn't miss the bread and butter from Malone's, and the apple crisp, though it was really good, wasn't as WORTH IT as I had built it up to be in my mind. I also found myself more obsessed with the chicken than with the waffle/pancakes. 

I share this for a few reasons:

1. I think it's important for people to know that you can deviate from a pretty strenuous meal plan/detox/metabolism reset and not jump off into the deep end and stuff your face with snickers bars, ice cream, and cinnamon rolls.

2. I think it's important to be honest about my experience and not hide things in order to paint a certain picture of myself or my experience.

3. I LOVE sugar, but since being on the Whole30 I really don't miss it. I eat a LOT of fruit, and I'm finding there's nothing as good as the natural sugars that are found in fresh fruit. <---That's a BOLD statement coming from a girl who was raised in Texas and knows ALL about some good, old fashioned, home made, from scratch, sweets.

4. I think that the majority of the bread, sugar, sweets, and filler foods I was eating were because I was either bored, emotional, etc... 

5. I'm learning that purposeful eating is way more satisfying and gratifying than mindless eating.

6. My body really likes clean, unprocessed food.

I just got done grocery shopping for Week 2 and I spent $30 less than last week.  Last week I bought wayyyyyy too much fruit and not enough protein. So I'm hoping this week I will find that I did a better job. Other than that I've had to have a talk with this sweet older gentleman that we call "the candy man" where I work. He brings everyone's favorite candy to them whenever he comes in, so telling him that I can't have snickers or almond joy's was really hard. Surprisingly, I haven't missed them. Hopefully it'll stay that way.

I will say that the Whole30 discourages people weighing themselves, but because I have a deadline I'm weighing myself once a week to keep up with my Weight Watchers points. I make sure every day that I eat my points, but I don't go over them. When I weighed myself I had lost weight, which was awesome. I think people who have done the Whole30 and not lost weight took the suggestion on the Whole30's website too seriously when they said "eat as much as you want". I could eat a tub of almond butter if I let myself, especially with bananas and apples! Four tablespoons of almond butter is 12 POINTS!!!! Imagine going to town on a tub of almond butter because the website said "eat as much as you want"... I'd probably GAIN weight. Anyhow, that's something I was wondering about for the people who were complaining online that they hadn't lost any weight or "only 3 pounds", maybe they just ate more than they needed to and/or didn't work out as well? I don't know, but I know that for me, staying with my daily points and boxing 3-4 times a week is paying off. #grateful

I'll write again next week and let  y'all know how Week 2 was!!!