Whole 30...Half way!

As I have mentioned, Robert and I are doing the Whole 30 program. It is similar to Paleo, just a little more strict. It is all about eating clean for 30 days in hopes to form healthier habits. It helps you determine how certain foods might be negatively impacting your health. You eat lots of veggies, lots of meat/eggs and lots of fruit. 

Why are we doing this program?
Robert and I had a serious talk one day about how to stay healthy now and for the rest of our lives. We have eaten okay this past year but not great. We were not treating "treats" as treats and had just really gotten away from any self-discipline. So we are doing this program to form better eating habits and habits for a healthier life now and for always. Will we still eat desserts, pizza and fries after the 30 days? Heck yes! I cannot give that stuff up forever.But the plan is to introduce it back into our lives slowly and eat those things in much better moderation and occasionally instead of every day:)

How do we feel? 
We are 15 days in, half way through the program! Wahoo! Honestly, we feel incredible. The first few days we were tired, our bodies needed to adjust. But now...We are way less bloated, have more energy and just feel good. It is amazing how much more your body loves you when you cut out processed junk and eat clean food. Our bodies our definitely thanking us.

What do we eat? 
We eat a variety of protein with every meal...eggs, lean ground beef, chicken, shrimp, ect. We eat a lot of fruit, probably more than we should. So we are trying to exchange some of that fruit for more vegetables. Which surprisingly is the hardest part for me. In the first 10 days we ate a ton of sweet potatoes, they were/are a life saver. Since day 10 we have cut back quite a bit because we got a little tired of them. One of our favorite meals so far is this kitchen sink soup...

We followed her recipe pretty close. But also just used what we had in the kitchen...sweet potatoes (a must), carrots, ground beef, celery, yellow pepper and tomatoes. This was so good and made enough for leftovers for the next day! Other meals...

 Frozen shrimp, sauteed with a little olive oil and whatever spices you like. Eat with fruits/veggies. 

 Mexican meatballs. 

 This was our Easter brunch. We tried to make it a little special. Eggs, fruit, bacon and Whole 30 Banana Muffins. They encourage you during whole 30 to not to substitute "junk" food you were eating before for a whole 30 version of it. Like muffins for whole 30 muffins. But it was Easter and we needed a little something and these muffins hit the spot. They are made with almond butter and almond flour. It makes 12, so you can have some for the next few days!

A lot of meals look like this. A protein, sweet potatoes and a veggie. 

Is it hard? 

Robert and I tried this program back in November and failed miserably. We made it 4 days in, I think, and quit. I just thought it was too difficult. But for some reason this time around it has been much easier. Why? I think because we have set our minds to it. This is what we are going to do and there is no quitting. With that mind set, it is a game changer. We are finding all sorts of new foods and meals like the ones above that we love. They fill us up and it is so satisfying knowing how healthy it is for you as well. We are not just eating these meals, we are enjoying them! There have definitely been times where all I want is a pastry from the corner bakery or we walk by a pretzel stand and I can hardly stand it. And I kinda want to cry (but I haven't yet)! But we are determined and 15 days in we see how beneficial the clean eating is. This is soo do-able, just set your mind to it!

15 days in, 15 more to go! I'll do a recap at the end of this journey as well. I do not want to overload y'all with this information and every single meal I eat because we all know that is very entertaining:) So I will get back to blogging fun stuff! But if you do have any questions, comment or shoot me and email! And I will help the best I can. 

I hope you all have a great day!