My Whole30 Results

MY WHOLE30 RESULTS – I can’t believe the changes in my body & how much weight I lost. This includes before & after photos!

Woot woot – I completed the challenge!!

I know many of y’all have been waiting for my Whole30 results post – we took a family vacation right after I was done so I’m a bit behind on my updates!

But… I did the entire 30 days and I’m feeling amazing! It ended up just the jump-start my body needed & I’m super glad that I powered through and stayed with it… no matter how many times I really really really wanted a biscuit.

First off, I have detailed the meals that I ate on the blog if you missed any of them. Click on the week to see what I ate.

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4 (the longest week – 10 days to make the 30)

Now for my Whole30 results!

I lost 13 pounds during Whole30!

Not only that, but I went from a size 14/16 to a size 8/10!! WHOA!

The changes I’ve seen in my body have been dramatic.

I can wear JEANS again, y’all!!

Jeans!! And they button!!!

Jeans that haven’t buttoned in a year at that.

Heck, the changes in my face have been pretty dramatic too… Not only in the shape & size… but my skin looks & feels so much healthier.

Not only have I noticed differences in my physical condition, but I feel amazing – which is the best of all. So much better than I did!  I was feeling very ‘blah’ all the time before I did this reset. Not much energy at all. I was basically chugging Coke Zeros like they were the essence of life and not drinking any water at all… unless you count the water used to make my coffee & sweet tea. 😉 Probably not the best thing in the world when you have 1 kidney – heck not the best when you have 2!

I also had no idea how much I was actually snacking and eating before. The first week on Whole30 really put that into perceptive for me. I realized that when I went to get any sort of halfway tasty ingredient for a recipe or snack for a kid – 9 /10 times, I was putting a piece of it in my mouth. Then, come meal time – I ate up then too.

Before Mike died, I pretty much followed the philosophy of eating everything in moderation & I walked 5 times a week for an hour on my treadmill. I felt in shape and had tons of energy. After Mike died, all that went out the window. I stopped exercising. I ate what I wanted, when I wanted – sometimes without even thinking, It just became something to do. It was one of the things that helped to fill the emptiness in my heart. I guess I’m lucky that I didn’t gain more than what I did since July of 2015.

When I bent down to get something, I felt like I literally had a spare tire in my belly. I hated that feeling – and I’m happy to report that after only 30 days, that feeling is gone. I also have a lot of back issues stemming from a freak accident involving me at 7 years old, a bicycle, & a stop sign (also the reason why I only have one kidney) – and the extra weight definitely wasn’t helping that whole issue. My back pain had gotten considerably worse. It’s since improved some since dropping some weight, which is a huge plus. I’m hoping that I will be able to continue to strengthen my core muscles & hopefully rid myself of a little more back pain. I know it won’t get rid of it completely, but having less weight & a stronger core will definitely help the situation.

I still haven’t had a soda – and me & Coke Zero were besties before!!

I’ve been off of Whole30 for 2 weeks today, and I still haven’t had a soda. Not one. The crazy thing is I don’t even crave them. And this is from someone who craved them ALL the time. I drank at least 4 16oz bottles of Coke Zero a day, y’all. Yes, I said at least. I guzzled them like I should have been guzzling water.

And that coffee & sugar thing I was so worried about in the beginning?

I’m still not drinking sugar in my coffee! This is the craziest thing of all to me. I’ve ALWAYS had sugar in my coffee. It just was too bitter without it. I usually put 3 teaspoons of sugar in my coffee plus sugar every morning – and I drink between 2-4 cups of coffee a day. Been this way my entire adult life & I’m nearing up on 40 now. That’s a whole lotta sugar!

The first week without sugar in my coffee was actually kinda hard! By the second week though, I had found a Whole30 complaint creamer that I loved (NutPods) & once I heated the creamer (4 tablespoons worth is what I used), whipped with my spring whisk, & sprinkled it with cinnamon – it was actually pretty darn good. Like something you’d order in a coffee shop. The NutPods actually foam up quite well – I had it nice & foamy with just a few whisks from my spring whisk.

My first day off Whole30, I tried putting 1 teaspoon of sugar in my coffee with some creamer & it was WAY to sweet. I couldn’t even drink it and ended up pouring it down the sink. I made another cup with just my homemade French vanilla creamer and it was perfectly sweet. 2 weeks out from Whole30, and I’m still drinking my coffee without any sugar and a drizzle of creamer.

Was it hard?

Actually it was a lot less harder than I thought it would be. The first week was definitely the hardest but it certainly wasn’t something I couldn’t handle. The first week made me realize just how often I was snacking on things.

Whole30 was something to get used to – but not really hard. A little time consuming, yes – because you have to plan your meals out in advance… but it also gives you a chance to be creative. I actually created some really yummy recipes while on Whole30 that I will continue to make & eat. I’m so happy with my Whole30 results though!

Did I exercise?

Yes, but not at first. I didn’t exercise at all for the first 10 days… but I finally forced myself to add it to my schedule on day 11. The weather hasn’t been so cold lately here in Georgia so I’ve been walking/hiking at a park that’s near my home. I’ve been going 2-3 times a week and walking between 3 to 5 miles (depending on the trail(s) I take).

Products that I couldn’t do Whole30 without (and love even now that I’m done with Whole30!)

• NutPods French Vanilla Creamer
• Whole30 Mayo – the Chipotle Mayo is sooooo good! It made my Whole30 Jalapeno Burgers
• Frank’s Red Hot Sauce (don’t buy the Whole30 buffalo sauce… just use this with some melted ghee and make your own. The storebought versions have an odd aftertaste to me)
• the Whole30 book/cookbook
• Ring of Fire All-Purpose Seasoning 
• Tessemae’s Creamy Caeser
• Tessamae’s Habanero Ranch (I dip so many things in this…)
• Himalayan Pink Salt Ghee
• California Garlic Ghee
• Vital Proteins Collagen (goes in my coffee every morning – adds creaminess as well as the awesome things it does for your body)
• Georgia Grinders Cashew Butter (oh my gosh y’all…. this stuff is amazing. This plus a banana? YUM)
• Georgia Grinders Pecan Butter
• Dark Chocolate Sea Salt RXBAR (literally, the ONLY Whole30 compliant bar I can stomach. I’ve tried every single variety of both RXBars & Larabars… and well, yuck)
• Kasandrinos Organic Olive Oil – y’all, I’ve found my new favorite olive oil. Nothing else like it… it’s the real deal. WOW! I mean, just read the reviews.
• Unsweetened coconut flakes – this on top of a banana with cashew butter… so yum!
• Nutritional Yeast – this is pretty great mixed into food when you want a cheesy flavor but you can’t have cheese. Also, once you’re done with Whole30… it’s amazing on popcorn. Saw that one on Dr. Oz 😉

To be continued…

My goal is to lose 20 pounds – and my 30 days with Whole30 took 13 of those away from the occasion. Right after I was done, I went on a 5 day vacation with my family… where I ate such things like pizza & a burger and even fries… in moderation with other healthier things. So I was worried that I’d gain back. I did keep pretty active while on vacation with exploring though – so active, in fact, I was sore for a couple days. (I’m getting older now, I need a vacation from my vacation y’all). I didn’t weigh myself when I got back. I’ve just continued to pay attention to what & how much I was eating… and adding in some exercise along the way. I weighed myself yesterday, and I have dropped a few more pounds since I finished Whole30 – I’m currently down 17 pounds from where I was at on January 1st… just 3 pounds away from what my goal was.

Have you done Whole30? I’d love to hear your Whole30 results & experiences in the comments!

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