I cannot believe I'm halfway through. Do you understand that? HALFWAY THROUGH! This week each day got easier. I had a few moments of weakness, but in those moments I realize how accustomed my body is to just eating whatever I want. Even on my healthiest days, there were habits that needed to be broken and I'm so glad that Whole30 is making me aware of those things.

Whole30: Week 2

Day 8: I finally decided to add a little variety to my meals. I think the first week I just didn't want to cheat so badly that I also didn't eat anything super tasty. Today was pretty normal as far as eating breakfast, working, and coming home to cook dinner - but tonight I made the most delicious taco salad with homemade guacamole! YUM! I made enough for me to have for dinner, Jason to have for dinner, and for me to take to lunch the next day. I cannot stress how YUMMY this was after a week of poorly cooked, bland chicken!

Taco salad packed up and ready for lunch the next day.

Day 9: FRIDAY! FRIDAY! FRIDAY! I love Fridays! Today I have a delicious lunch of leftover taco salad, I'm going to my first ever hot yoga class, and we have no plans tonight! Seriously, the best kind of days! I feel pretty good today. Optimal energy, lots of enthusiasm, minimal hunger pangs. Hot yoga was fun! I looked at the clock about 10 minutes into the class and thought that there was no way I could do an hour of it, but the next time I looked at the clock we only had about 20 minutes left in class. I'm definitely not nearly as flexible as I was the last time I took a yoga class (which was 10 years ago when I was 16), and at one point when we were laying flat on the ground I thought to myself, "Maybe I'll just stay like this for the rest of the class." Ultimately, I'm SO glad that I went though! One thing the instructor kept saying really resonated with me, and I don't think I'm remembering this word-for-word, but the gist was to BE AWARE OF WHERE YOU ARE TODAY. I'm not sure if there's a more accurate sentence for what I'm walking through on Whole30! Tonight for dinner I made a "leftover stir fry" which is basically all of the leftover food I had from the week together in a pan and sauteed until it was ready! I put diced sweet potatoes, peppers, onions, sausage, and spinach in mine and it was SO GOOD! After dinner I was really craving ice cream. Slow Friday nights are usually the nights when Jason and I will use an ice cream run as a way to get off the couch for a few minutes and get out of the house, but obviously I can't eat ice cream. I still really wanted something creamy and cold, so I halfway broke a run (you're not supposed to make "paleo desserts" on Whole30, but it was either this or Mountain Brook Creamery) and made my own "ice cream". I blended a frozen banana, almond butter, and coconut milk together until it was the consistency that I wanted and it was great! Even though this was as close to "cheating" as I've come, even though all of the ingredients were Whole30, it was a great way to realize that sometimes I just want to sensation of a sweet treat, and there are ways to satisfy that craving without going off plan. This is definitely a lesson (and recipe) that I'll be taking with me after I'm finished with the Whole30.

Swanson had a fun Friday night. Mr. Elephant did not.

Day 10: I've entered the first of two days that are deemed the days that people are most likely to quit the Whole30. But I won't quit. Quitting isn't an option. I slept for like 1,000 hours last night, thus sleeping through breakfast. For lunch I heated up my leftovers from last night and this meal was even better the second day. After lunch Jason and I took Swanson for a walk on Jemison Trail, and Swanson loved it. He always gets so many comments when we're out with him and he's a total attention hog. That's okay though, because he is super cute and I love when people comment on that! This afternoon we went to see Selma (and I totally recommend it). We have one of those giant Carmike popcorn buckets...and we brought it. Some people have said things like, "Jason brought that and ate popcorn in front of you?!" While I understand where folks are coming from, the truth is that I told him he could bring it and get popcorn. Whole30 is something that I'm doing for me. Jason is super supportive of it, but he's not doing the Whole30, nor should he unless he's going to do it for himself. This is not something that you can do halfheartedly, so I would never ask someone to do it with me if they were only going to do it for me. All of that to say, he got popcorn at the movie. I had packed my own snacks and was perfectly fine eating those rather than popcorn, but I realized a few times throughout the night that I had an urge to just reach my hand into the popcorn and grab a handful. But what's crazy is I didn't necessarily want the popcorn, I'm just in a habit of eating it at a movie because it's there. How crazy is that? After the movie (and lots of tears) I did a little shopping at Whole Foods and we also picked up dinner there. Overall, the first of the "quit days" wasn't too bad!

Day 11: Even though it's Sunday, I have to hit the gym this morning. My goal it to go to the gym three days this week, and I've only been two. Thankfully, I've been really active this week, with Thursday being the only day I didn't do any sort of exercise. Anyway, I did cardio at the gym this morning and felt great. After that, I went home to get ready for a baby shower. Yes, you read that right, today I'm going to a baby shower. Day two of "quit days" and I'm diving head first into temptation. But guess what? I didn't cheat!! I actually didn't eat anything there except for the almond I brought with me. Yay me!! I think that deserves a pat on the back or five. One thing that the Whole30 is teaching me is to really define what special occasions are. Is a baby shower, birthday party, or weekend meal at a restaurant special occasions? Or is a weekend away with Jason, my own birthday, or a celebratory dinner special occasions? I would much rather tell myself that I'm going to eat my way through Nashville on a weekend away than eat whatever I want at every baby shower, birthday party, or dinner out. It makes it more special. And you know what? I probably had just as good of a time as every other person that went to the baby shower because at the end of the day, those things aren't about food! They're about celebrating the people we love! After the baby shower I had a pretty low key evening, of going to church and then to dinner afterward. I did a little meal prep for the week before bed, and I realized that I could definitely get used to being this prepared! Thankfully, I made it through both "quit days" without quitting!!

Day 12: This morning I had a doctor appointment so it was up and out the door for me. Thankfully I'd done my meal prep last night so I was still able to get a good breakfast in before I had to leave. After my appointment I had a lunch meeting at Tazikis and I had a really good chargrilled tilapia salad. For someone who doesn't do much fish, I've gotten used to ordering that at Tazikis, and I never regret it! Tonight we had one of the best dinners ever! When Jason got home he grilled the steaks we bought at Whole Foods over the weekend while I roasted some sweet potatoes and asparagus. I was basically in a food coma after that. After dinner we watched The Bachelor and I prepped my crockpot soup for tomorrow. This really is a week of deliciousness!

Day 13: This morning I had my personal training sesh at the gym, so I was up-and-at-'em. My morning was a little thrown off its rhythm because Jason slept a little later than normal so I basically did my morning routine backwards, which had me out the door a little later than usual. Thankfully, I got my breakfast casserole in, and it was just as good as yesterday. Tonight I came home to a nice pot of sausage and sweet potato soup. Overall, not a bad day!

Day 14: I'm almost halfway done!! I cannot believe it. Today was kind of blah, but I think that has more to do with the cold and rainy weather than anything else. It was a day of leftovers and brinner, which is always a favorite of mine. I'm starting to really feel good and feel like I've got energy. I had a lot of trouble focusing today, but I think that's because we found out that we're #30 on the waiting list!!!! YAY!!! But back to Whole30...I'm especially tired at night and especially chipper in the mornings. Tomorrow is the halfway point!!