WHOLE 30 :recap

WOW! What a journey these past 30 days have been!

I want to start by saying I've learned so much about myself this past month. I've learned that REAL food makes a HUGE difference in how I feel, how I sleep, what I look like and even though it was HARD, it was completely worth it.

It was so helpful having a countdown. I love crossing each day off.

I lost 11 inches, dropped a pant size and shirt size, and I'm not sure how much weight I lost since I didn't weigh before hand. No more double chin! Hallelujer!

What now? Well, I'll slowly reintroduce foods by category so I can identify any target inflammation foods.Then I plan to eat pretty clean most of the time.

It makes me glad that I didn't decide to use some costly program to feel this way either.
For example,

• plexus
• my it works
• thrive
• 21 day fix
• shakeology
• metabolic
• weight watchers
• jenny craig
• nutrisystem

All these programs promise and provide the ever-coveted energy and weight loss, but they cost A LOT and you have to keep purchasing them to receive the benefits. I think what I love most about Whole30 is that the only cost was my time and grocery bill. But in turn by being faithful to the program, I do have energy and have experienced weight loss. Disclaimer: If you use or sell these products, I am, in no way, trying to discredit your business. I just want to share that Whole30 is QUITE effective and cost-efficient.

Hard to find and expensive, but worth it! 

Things I've learned since reintroduction SO FAR:

-Sugar is OBNOXIOUSLY sweet...like couldn't even enjoy Blue Bell ice cream because it was so nauseatingly sweet. Womp,Womp. I think this will be a good thing in terms of keeping weight off.

-Dairy doesn't bother me, but I'm sure nervous about trying gluten tomorrow. Think I'll be saying hello to bloat.

I plan on doing another round in January, but eating relatively clean until then. My appetite has shrunk and so therefore, I eat less naturally because I stop once I'm full.

I've somehow retrained my brain to think about food differently and I'm still checking labels even after its been over. I started experimenting with food more in the last few days since my options were so limited. I was surprised at how much fun I had trying out new things. Balsamic vinegar grilled chicken marinade? YES please!! Eggs with everything but the kitchen sink? Yummmmmm! Roasted Veggies? Love love love.

A Quick Synopsis of Whole 30 for you

I also tried adding milk to my coffee this morning and my reaction was "Meh, this tastes alright, but I like it black better" WHO HAVE I BECOME?  hahaha.  

MMMMMM, Black Coffee!!! 

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If you decide to try it, join the "Whole 30 first timers" group on facebook. (so helpful and encouraging!)
 Also, pinterest is great for finding recipes but be leary of SWYPO ones. 

Also, my apologies if I know you in real life and I talked about whole30 too much. It changed my life and the way I think about food. I even told the cashier at Wal-Mart about it.

Hope this post encourages you and makes you realize that this isn't that hard! Just takes some determination and self-control! You may even surprise yourself. Be sure to let me know if you do give a go.

whole 30 :: HALFWAY THERE

So many of you have asked me about Whole30 recently and I feel like it warranted a blog post to explain it all. It is TRULY amazing what you'll try when your choices are so limited. I'm so thankful for trying new things and finding that I love them.

Things I've learned about myself:

1) I can say no. - I never thought it would be easy. Strangely though, once I committed to this, I've said no a lot and often times it isn't hard. I just remind myself of my purpose for doing this.

2) I always have a choice. - I never have to feel obligated to eat something just because it is there. No more eating to eat or because its convenient or social.

Eggs for dayzzzzz #whole30

A photo posted by Emilee (@thebirdandthebicycle) on Oct 31, 2015 at 8:20am PDT

3) Eating out is POSSIBLE. Hard, but possible. Last weekend, we went to Pizza King, the best pizza around and I said no to pizza. I ate my salad with homemade dressing (I brought it in a small mason jar) and it was so hard. But I have found that I can eat compliant at restaurants we frequent (ie: bunless burger, fajita meat w/ veggies, grilled chicken & steamed veggies)

4) Sugar is EVERYWHERE. Oh my lanta! I just didn't realize this before.  Definitely aware of what goes in my body now. So much sugar. I recommend watching "Fed Up" on Netflix. It is truly eye-opening to the sugar epidemic.

A photo posted by Emilee (@thebirdandthebicycle) on Oct 24, 2015 at 4:50pm PDT

5) Surprisingly, I like black coffee and unsweet tea. Its also amazing what you will try when its your choice. I hated coconut milk in coffee, so that wasn't going to work. But I like it black. I'm so shocked by this.

6) I don't need to try TOO MUCH new. As in new recipes... Last week, I did that and ended up making things I hated. I need to rely on faithful good recipes and try 1-2 new ones a week.

Recipes I've loved on this journey:

-our spaghetti is compliant (i just swap noodles for spaghetti squash)
-paleo chili (so so so good)
-pulled pork carnitas (slow cooker//from the book)
-sweet potato hash
-roasted veggies (seasoned with mrs. dash)

7) This book is SUPER helpful. I refer to it all the time and it has great recipes too.


8) The DREAMS are real. On the website and in the book, they give you a timeline of what you may experience and days 12-15 are dreams about non-compliant food. I've dreamed that I've eaten a cookie and had to start over. Last night, I dreamed about milk and cereal. It's crazy, y'all!

You'll hear back from me once I finish this round and start reintroducing foods into my diet to see how they make me feel. Overall, this is the best thing I could've done for myself. I only wish I had challenged myself sooner.

when church becomes messy & hard

photo credit: Lisa Leonard 

I don't have a degree in theology. I can't read in Greek. I never went to seminary. But I've witnessed struggle in church. I've dealt with struggle in church. At one point, I even felt like church owed me something and if it didn't measure up to my standards, I didn't need to be a part. 

BOY WAS I WRONG.

Church isn't about me at all. It's not about my comfort or convenience.

I've watched many run when things got hard. I don't always agree with how things are handled. I get frustrated at surface level conversation. I crave something deeper. I would've loved to be a part of the first church in Acts. 

The Lord is breaking me, y'all. He's showing me who He is and how He didn't run when things got hard. How steady He was. How He refines in the fire. How He wants to use me to help build a church that is more like Him, despite its current condition. 

In church,

-disunity bothers me- what are we doing to reconcile with one another?

-trendiness concerns me- how are we setting ourselves apart?

-each one of us is accountable to the Lord, ourselves and others- how are we being intentional with one another? how are we being intentional in our time with the Lord? 

Our spiritual growth is our responsibility, not the pastor's. 

The Gospel is enough. The Lord doesn't need our cliches, trends or convenience to make His truth cool. Others will be drawn to our love for another, our authenticity, our joy in the sorrow and hard times. What does it mean to look like Jesus? And how are we striving for that daily? 

So please stop pointing fingers and blaming others for the way things are... The power is ultimately within us to make our churches a place where "awe comes upon every soul." (Acts 2:43) 

It’s the broken hearts that find the haunting loveliness of a new beat — it’s the broken hearts that make a song that echoes God’s. -Ann Voskamp 

Brokenness brings people together. Hard times tend to create community. But maintaining community takes work and effort. So let's start having these messy conversations about our brokenness, the things that make us uncomfortable, the things we like to keep hidden. And since when did church become competition? Us vs. them, him against her...

Helloooooo,.. We are all on the same team.

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:23-25)

Let us be kind.

Let us be gentle.

Let us be real. 

Let us be Jesus to those around us.

Struggle well and carry one another. Rejoice in how the Lord is faithful. 

Perhaps if we strive for these things, we will then begin to see glimpses of His kingdom come. 

side note: I've been listening to this song on repeat. Enjoy! (thanks Julielle for sharing it with me!)
https://youtu.be/djrY_eFDOwE