The month of January finally ended 🙂 And we finished our first whole30! I lost 8 pounds, as did my husband. But more importantly, I felt GREAT during the month! My skin was also super clear and I had no (ahem!) digestive issues at all. What I discovered:
1 – COFFEE –
I am not really dependent upon getting a morning caffeine fix from coffee. But I am dependent upon ENJOYING my coffee. Not being able to add a touch of sugar/sweetener to my coffee really changed the flavor – but worse, I couldn’t add CREAMER! I found a whole30-compliant recipe for a coffee creamer that consisted of canned coconut milk, raw (organic) eggs, and nutmeg. But it just wasn’t the same…
Apparently, the color of my coffee is super important. (SERIOUSLY!) By the time I added enough of my coconut creamer concoction to turn it the right shade of milky-brown, it was either lukewarm or tasted a bit watered down. I started heating the creamer first, then adding a teaspoon of coconut oil and frothing it together with the creamer every morning – DEFINITE improvement. But I just didn’t enjoy my morning coffee as much. 🙁
This was really disturbing, because your morning outlook should be to wake up thinking
“Hello WORLD and Good Morning! I am totally excited to be alive today!”
And I woke up thinking:
“Hello again world. *SIGH* I know you’re here again, but I miss real creamer in my coffee with a little bit of sugar to give me a sweet outlook on life. Oh, woe is me, how will I ever make it through today?!”
Totally not the best attitude with which to start your day!
2 – Cheese – Again, back to the dairy thing. “Hi, my name is Cheryl and I’m a cheese addict.” Seriously, this was HARD! OK, maybe an exaggeration… carrying twins full-term was hard, but STILL! I couldn’t have pepperjack on my eggs, gorgonzola on my ribeye, brie with a handful of smoked almonds, or mozarella with tomatoes! *SIGH* I actually dreamed about cheese.
3 – Meeting friends – I was 100% committed, so I wasn’t really tempted by bread or pasta. But having to turn down a glass of wine with friends was a bit difficult, so I tried not to schedule anything for the month. That is definitely easier in January than in June!
4 – Snowstorm and weather coordination – Next time, I will definitely need to coordinate the weather a little better. I was fine and didn’t cheat AT ALL… until coming back inside after shoveling from the big snowstorm (34 inches of white powdered fluffy happiness!). I “needed” hot cocoa in front of a roaring fire! Avoiding snowstorms is easier in June than in January!
5 – Day 21 blues – I just got bored with what I was eating and lost a bit of my passion for the diet. Perhaps it was a coincidence (probably not!), but I got bored around the same time as the snowstorm and being “forced” to drink hot cocoa in front of the fire. Brings out the kid in all of us! So I may need to add in a pizza or fresh bread day once a month just to address my cravings. Then I won’t feel quite so deprived.
So this is what my avoid list will look like in February.
NO Dairy (cheese, milk, half & half, and yogurt)- NO Legumes (beans of any kind, lentils, peanuts, and soy – including tofu)
- NO Sugar – artificial (Stevia, Splenda, Equal)
or real (turbinado sugar,maple syrupor honey) - NO Breads & grains (oats, wheat, rice, quinoa, etc.)
NO Alcohol– just a little!- NO packaged food with MSG, sulfites or carrageenan
Let’s see how this month goes. I will be traveling for work for 3 days plus 3 work dinner, so it will be tough! And one of these days, I will have time to add exercise…