Whole 30 Journey // Day 25 // Healing Diets

If you're reading this, you have probably already seen a multitude of random pictures of food that I have posted, showing how I am living out Whole 30.

I started this journey on June 6th, making today day 25. I probably should have written a blog every few days because I am going to have such a hard time conveying it all here and sharing all the pictures. Life has been so busy the past few weeks (as end of May-June ALWAYS are), that it was hard to fit everything in.

First of all, I decided to do the Whole 30 Program at the urging of a close friend. I was researching Gaps, The Anti-Candida Diet, and a few others in my efforts to choose what I would call a "Healing Diet." When I turned 25 in May, I suddenly became very introspective, thinking much about how I have spent my years thus far, and how I have treated my body. I realized that I needed to do a major reset, let my body do some healing, and that the only way that was going to happen was if I had some tremendous structure... (I have also been trying to lose weight for the last 2-3 months with very little success. The frustration from that propelled this!)

So, what the heck, I went for it. Here is the basic rules of Whole 30 as simple as I can put.

What you can eat:
Fruits
Vegetables (except white potatoes)
Meat
Oils
Eggs

What you're cutting out:
Processed Food
All other Dairy, including Butter
Sugar/Sweets/Natural Sweeteners
Flours/Grains/Rice
Beans
Alcohol

For all the details, check out this very helpful page.
Day 1 for me was just like a good day of eating, making good choices. Days 2-3, however, were brutal. I was in major detox mode and had cravings out the wazoo. I was seriously regretting my decision and all of the ramifications with it (major meal-planning, which I hardly ever do...).

BUT. I woke up on Day 4, a little rushed, grabbed a banana and nut butter, and went out to a meeting. When I left the meeting I noticed it. I realized that I felt absolutely amazing. This feeling continued until Days 8-10ish. At this point, from what I've read and understand, my body was beginning to accept that I was not going to give it what it wanted. It didn't matter how much I wanted the cookie, the ice cream, the pizza.... it wasn't happening. During this adjustment for my body, I felt crappy. I really, really wanted to be done with this deal. It was, however, getting easier to meal-plan and ensure I always had something Whole 30 approved with me to eat.

Days 11-25 have been fairly uneventful. My style of eating has totally changed. I have had plenty of challenges in those days, but not nearly as difficult as the adjustment days. Last night I had fantasy dreams that I was eating cheese and bread. I realized today that I had read about those dreams in my research of what to expect. So strange what the mind will do.


Here's what I would say I have learned on this journey so far...

1. How much junk I was eating:

I seriously thought I was doing great before this program. Then I realized that I was consistently eating cookies instead of meals, cinnamon rolls, carbs, etc on the weekends because I didn't pack breakfasts/lunches. I had a major sugar addiction that I was totally ignoring.

2. Meal-Planning:

Can we all just agree that this is hard? Maybe you're a genius and so organized and in control of your life and everything just falls into place for you, but for me, I always push this down on the priorities list... then I reap the consequences of that decision every day. People keep asking me what I eat on this program, and it's really not that complicated to find good things to eat. The challenge is in planning ahead to have those foods readily available, taking the time to hard-boil the eggs, chop the veggies, pack the berries.

3. Blessed with Abundance:

 

On the first full week, I was plowing through all the veggies we had, everything I had purchased at the grocery store, and I looked up on Wednesday (I grocery shop on Mondays), and saw a very empty fridge. Empty as in, half full, because we were actually eating the food we had purchased. I seriously went into panic mood. WE HAVE NO FOOD! I exclaimed to Jeremy. I felt as if I were starving. Reality check, Amber, there are a lot of people in the world who are, in fact, starving. You are not starving. You are blessed, and picky, and ungrateful. Phew - fun thing to realize.

4. Self-Care:

Something very beautiful has happened. I have begun to truly nourish my body, to give it what it needs to function at it's prime, instead of constantly giving into cravings for foods that are the opposite of good for me. Taking this step to heal some chronic conditions has really changed how I view myself and food, my relationship with food.

Self- Care (Pt. 1)

I have been learning quite a bit lately about what it means to really steward my body, to take care of it, to nourish it. I used to think that "self-care" meant being into myself... I accepted my sloppy habits, or lack of habits, because my mentality was that I need to be focused on everyone around me, not myself. Wrong-O.

I think that it felt to me as if it were shallowness. I don't want to be the person who spends hours everyday on her appearance and is always seen looking in the mirror. But perhaps I have been swinging the pendulum too far to the other side.


My curiosity about this whole topic was peaked as I sat across from a friend discussing essential oils. I had been doing some research, had a ton of questions, was super skeptical, and grilled her for about an hour. As she talked and we conversed, I realized that I had quite a few ailments in my life that I put up with on a daily-basis and had accepted as common-place. What do you do for headaches, she might ask.... Care to know? Nothing. How often do I get headaches? Almost daily. I began to look at my life, my health, and things jumped out at me like a flashlight had just been shone into the woods. Chronic digestive issues, anxiety, fatigue, the list goes on.

As you can probably guess, I got some essential oils - stat! I experienced great relief from my headaches and constant nausea! Then I met Wild Orange. Mixed with Peppermint, on the back of the neck, is the most invigorating feeling ever. I started using that frequently and found that my constant state of stressed-out-ness began to fade and overall I was much less anxious. I stepped back and realized that my M.O. was quite unhealthy, and I had ignored it like many other ailments, accepted as commonplace. 


You may have noticed my constant food posts lately as I have been doing the Whole 30 Program.  (Highly recommend it; post to come with more details!) I'm happy to say that this is the biggest step I have ever taken to put my health first, cure chronic problems, and say to everyone else and most importantly to myself, that self-care is so important. What we do to our bodies and put in them has great significance.

What self-care habits do you have in your life? Please share! 

-Amber

Want to learn more about using Essential Oils? Website // Email: hansenamber07@gmail.com

Memories from Turning 25

Confession #1 - I love parties.
Confession #2 - Since I have a bazillion siblings, I never really had a big party for just me (almost always shared with my dear sister Rachel whose birthday is 10 days after mine; I loved that as a child).
Confession #3 - I have some of the awesomest friends ever who threw me a party of epic proportions. They definitely made the standards for any future party quite high. 

Here's some highlights...

Crab + Crawfish Boil - Steven and Jeremy had a little too much fun playing with them

Sweet Christine with baby Norah (the party was held at her house)

Yum!

Life-Size Jenga

Luci Belle having fun with the sacks for sack-racing

We were in foodie, seafood-lover heaven

Linda + Jessica + Baby Dash + Me

The Trio!

The Crew - thanks for the best birthday ever!

Confession #4 - I'm moving to Austin this fall, and it's going to be a very difficult transition for me. Bittersweet. I'm so glad for what I'll gain in Austin and the opportunities there, but I know there will never be another "crew" like my current one, and that every year on my birthday, I will think back to this year and how much fun it was. As I sat in the backyard, enjoying every moment, there was a layer of sadness as I thought and knew that soon I would be sitting the backyard for the final time, saying goodbye, as we embark on a new chapter of our lives. Here's to enjoying and savoring every moment in life and having gratitude for the opportunities to live life fully with those around you.