Today, June 13th, is a great day for two reasons:

1. It’s Chris Evans’ birthday. I love Chris Evans.
2. I am done with the Whole30! It’s day 31!

This has been an incredible and taxing journey with myself and my attempt to cure my food addictions. And to say it’s done some great work is an understatement.

To start, the biggest challenges were the nit-picky rules. I had to cut a lot out of my diet while other things got to stay in. Bacon that was cured in sugar? Nope? Taco seasoning with a few ingredients that weren’t compliant? Nope. The giant half of the watermelon I ate Saturday night while watching the LEGO Batman Movie? Yep, that was alright.

There were also a lot of temptations around my house and in social gatherings. Eating at graduation parties was a no-go, which was new for me, but it made me realize how much of a staple eating while socializing really was for me. Now, social gatherings are more about the people and less about the treats. Bonfire are more about my friends and less about, dare I say it, the s’mores. And it’s easy to find ways to be compliant if you really try.

There were so many positives to this whole process. For one, I had a great support system! Special shout-out to my mom, dad, Alli, Hannah, and Ellie who I could always count on for encouragement and ideas. Can’t forget Gram and Uncle Jim who have shared their support on my weekly blog updates.  They all really were my cheerleaders through these past 30 days. There were people who questioned what I was doing and tried to get me to cave, but that lack of confidence helped me really strive to prove them wrong. Also on the positive note, I’ve learned to snack healthier and avoid the foods that really make the calories add up, which is a huge accomplishment.

Of course, you are all probably wondering what came out of these few weeks. Here is a short list of what I’ve seen and felt change:

1. Acne (face, chest, and back) is pretty much completely cleared up. My chest was a pleasant surprise, which most likely came from cutting dairy out of my diet.
2. I’ve lost 14 lbs! While creating healthy eating habits is what Whole30 is all about, this change is gladly welcomed. I have noticed that the places I’ve lost the most weight were my face and around my hips.
3. I feel more energized, especially if I can get some nice black coffee in the morning. When that happens, I don’t feel the need to lay around as much.
4. My nails are long and strong, which is so impressive because they usually break when I’m cracking open pistachios.
5. My hair feels a lot softer, but I’m not too sure if thats from the Whole30 or from my shampoo/conditioner combo. Either way, it’s great.

I’ve gotten to discover so many new things, like Larbars (Apple Pie is my favorite) and compliant sweet potato fries (not too often though). I’ve noticed that I’m just as full eating a burger without the bun as I would be with the bun, and that is cutting out at least 120 calories of unneeded processed carbohydrates. Pickles are awesome and have no calories (they are high in sodium though), and mustard to replace ketchup works just fine.

You might be asking, WHAT NOW?

30 days of dedication to eating right, and I kept talking about pizza. Well, it’s halfway through day 31 and I’ve yet to have anything that isn’t a part of the Whole30. My plan is to follow the food re-introduction plan, and then for the most part keeping my meals, especially breakfast and lunch, Whole30 compliant. There are so many ways to be creative with this meal plan that I don’t feel like I’m missing out on much.

I keep saying it, but it’s so crazy how much has changed in just 30 days. On May 14th, day 1, I for sure thought I would be celebrating today with pizza from Lou’s and ice cream from Dairy Queen. But now, 30 days laters, I think I’m capable of holding out a little bit longer.

Now, while continuing to focus on my nutritional health, I am working on my fitness goals and, of course, aiming for a normal sleep schedule. Maybe I should try getting 8 hours of sleep every night for 30 days. I think it would be easier never to eat pizza again.

Till my next update, thanks for keeping up with me during this whole process!