Weigh In Wednesday 1/11/2017

I'm joining Rachel over at Living Better One Day at a Time for Weigh In Wednesday, a mutual accountability meme in the quest of many of us to lose weight, get healthy, and gain control.

Weight loss has been a lifetime journey for me and it always will be.  You know those people who say "I'm so upset, I couldn't eat a thing!"; yeah, that will NEVER be me.  Upset, stressed, whatever mood I'm in, chocolate, pastry, anything makes me feel better.  As I get older, I find that better feeling comes with tough consequences - aches, pains, lethargy, fatigue, stomach issues.  Ugh, I think I've got a little bit of an intolerance for everything.  No, that's not the case, I just overdo everything and that's why I suffer.

Two years ago, my sister and brother-in-law introduced us to the Whole 30.  We tried it for a month and felt fabulous.  Aches and pains - gone.  Lethargy and fatigue - gone.  Energy levels - amazing.  Sleep habits - awesome.  Lab results - excellent, huge improvement from before.  Sadly, we fell off the Whole 30 wagon big time and reverted to our old eating habits.  Part of that was my husband's job, sea duty with lots of underway time and eating galley food.  Part of it was that we weren't committed.  You CAN make it work, wherever you are.

Fast forward to December 27.  After eating at every Cracker Barrel we could find across the USA, living in hotels for twelve days, eating out because it took forever to get organized in our new kitchen, and the whole holiday season of sugar, sugar, and more sugar, we were ready to tackle the Whole 30 again.  I won't sugar-coat it (excuse the pun!), it's restrictive.  No grains, sugar, dairy, legumes, or alcohol for 30 days but it's not the end of the world.  The Whole 30 is designed to remove anything that could be a potential problem food for your body for 30 days and then after that, you slowly reincorporate foods to see how your body reacts.  First ice cream = bloating and/or stomach cramps obviously means you have a dairy problem.  Sandwich = same results, you might want to think about going gluten-free.

The Whole 30 is not for everyone but if you can give it a try, go for it.  Be prepared to prep, prep, prep and eat vegetables for breakfast.  You can do it!  We buy huge amounts of vegetables and chop, chop, chop, packaging everything up to throw in stir frys or roast trays of veggies to eat during the week.  Preparation is the key to success.

So, our weigh in was December 27 and we won't weigh again until 30 days are over.  I'm here with all of you, just not posting a number.

Exercise is not in the picture right now - I want to give my body a chance to detox from all the holiday sugar first and I need to drop a few pounds before I can feel comfortable putting on my sneakers and walking.  Plantar fasciitis is a real pain right now and I know it's related to my weight.  I have been checking out Leslie Sansone's workouts and think that's the way to go.  I received a Fit Bit as a farewell gift when I left my job in Washington so it will be put to full use.

Drinking water is key and I am faithfully drinking 64 ounces per day.

This week's task is to set the table for dinner each night and eat there.  With veggies and meat usually in a stew or other form that can be eaten in a bowl, we tend to eat that way in front of the TV.  That has to stop.

Until next week, stay motivated!