Day 7: We CAN do it!

Well, here we are at the end of Day 7, what a good feeling! We are a full week into the Whole30! I can already say that some things have changed for me. First, I don't mind coconut milk in my coffee as long as I use big cans that mix up well. For a while I was using little cans and they didn't work. The milk was really runny and it had lumps; no wonder I didn't like it in my coffee. Now I'm back to using big cans and Barry whipped up a batch for me last night. It's going down OK. I can do this! Drinking my coffee without milk and sweetener, is. Not. Hard. Second, my relationship with food is already changing!

I'm finding that I'm not looking for snack foods; my meals are more than enough to satisfy me; I don't feel hungry (almost ever); and, I don't get that bloaty feeling after a big meal. And best of all? I don't feel like this is hard! It seems so easy! Comparing this to Weight Watchers (WW): I usually felt like I was hungry all the time; I was irritable; I always felt tempted by things I couldn't have. Now? With the Whole30? I don't feel any of that! Wow. I rarely think of things that I can't have. Mind you the first few days were tough but it seems to be getting a lot easier. I actually had a mental picture of pastries when I opened the fridge door this morning. It was quickly replaced by the thought of the savoury items that I have packed in my lunch. I finished my breakfast around 9am and at 1pm, I had to force myself to go get lunch, but I also listened to my body and only ate as much as I felt I needed. On WW, I would have been watching the clock so I could jump into my lunch bag at the stroke of 12, and devour every last item in there, even the ones that I didn't really like, but packed because they were healthy. Quite a difference right? Check out the video below. It's an interview with Melissa Hartwig from the Whole9 and she's talking about the Whole30 and It Starts With Food.

Now to weigh in on those goals I made on Day 1 to see where I'm achieving and where I need to work harder:
Nutrition: I will eat at regular intervals and I will eat breakfast every day. Well, so far I've eaten breakfast every day, but some days have been better than others. I recognize that a banana and two cups of coffee is not breakfast. My goal of eating at regular intervals has been achieved. I'm actually really surprised at this point at how "not hungry" I am. I don't look for snacks, my regular meals are more than enough to satisfy me. I wonder if my portion sizes will start to decrease as well?
Sleep: I will be in bed by 10:30 every night and will allow myself one episode of TV or one half hour to read. Lights out by 11:10. I know I should be turning off the lights earlier, but I've decided that this me time is worth it (for this first Whole30). I've not quite achieved this on a consistent basis. I have been in bed by 10:30 on most weeknights, but not all. And one of those nights I watched too much tv.
Stress Management: I will reflect tomorrow on upcoming situations where I know that sticking to my Whole30 will be difficult and I will develop strategies (written in a notebook) that will help me be prepared to stay strong. I have this one sewn up! I completed my notebook last week and even succeeded in one of these sticky situations at the workshop on Friday.
Exercise: I will continue to run 4-5km 2-3 times per week with an additional run on the weekends of at least 7km. I will also do 25 repetitions of some form of exercise every time I go to the bathroom (wall push ups, squats, crunches, etc). I ran twice this week of 4-5km but didn't make that additional run on the weekend. And I did do my bathroom exercises but only on 2/7 days. I guess I kind of forgot about it over the long weekend. Back at it today.
Active Recovery: I will stretch after every run and do some form of yoga once per week (even if that means stretches at work on a lunch break or doing it in a class). So far I have stretched after my runs and have done some yoga stretches on my own over the weekend.
Play and Fun: I will do something fun with Fury at least 1/week such as going for a long walk, taking him on my run, or going to the park. I did not get to do anything fun with Fury this weekend. Boo... poor pup.
Personal Growth: I will read my Whole30 Daily posts everyday as well as one other blog post by someone completing a Whole30. I will also read "Women, Food, and God" so that I can return it to my good friend Ashley (who is also doing the Whole30 this month. Yay Ashley!!) I have been reading and looking forward to the Whole30 Daily posts and I'm keeping up with Mark's Daily Apple, (check out his post on slow living) and Redefining Jaclyn. I haven't started Ashley's book but I'm still working on It Starts with Food.
Temperance: I will say thank you every time Barry does something supportive for my Whole30. Barry tells me that I don't always say thank you but I mostly do.

Today's Food Diary:
Breakfast: three boiled eggs mixed with steamed baby bok choy, homemade mayo and pepper. Coffee with coconut milk.
Lunch: three slices of pork belly, sweet potato casserole, cucumber and tomato salad
Supper: BBQ boneless chicken thighs drizzled with hot sauce, sauteed stir fry mix - sugar snap peas, broccoli, and carrot
Snacks: Plantain chips, peppermint tea

Activity Log:
Run: about 4km this morning at a 10:1 ratio but it was humid so the pace was slower than normal.
Bathroom breaks: 125 wall push-ups
Other: 45 minutes of gardening. I love to garden, but mostly edible things. I'm working towards an edible landscape. Right now I do a lot of container gardening. But I thinned out some carrots and beets this evening, and now I have a nice bowl of baby beet greens that will be the centrepiece of our supper tomorrow night. Yum!