Whole 30

So what I have been up to over the last 3 months besides school? Nothing out of the ordinary and nothing super exciting to report. Like I mentioned a few blogs ago I have been trying to focus and really fine-tune my eating habits. I am a self-proclaimed chocoholic! I will admit it. I love chocolate and have been trying to find a way to separate myself from this delicious confection. I may have found my answer...

Last month some of my GPP buddies from out west decided to have a challenge. A challenge that for 30 days would strip our diets of all the bad food that we as Americans love to eat. You can see another view about this from my friend Candice and her blog here (http://www.bodyofamother.com/) . Believe it or not, some of the foods that are deemed "healthy" or that we think are good for us really aren't. So we decided to join a movement, Whole 30 (http://whole9life.com/2012/01/whole-30-v2012/) . Now before you start rolling your eyes and click away, hear me out. Whole 30 is NOT some fad diet with a low calorie restriction, in fact there is NO calorie restriction. This program just promotes whole, natural, clean eating. There are no supplements, shakes, or bars to buy just guidelines for how you can eat cleaner.

It does call for you to cut out certain foods such as dairy, legumes, grains, and sugar. Believe it or not these foods can have a negative impact on your health and fitness without you even knowing.

Let me tell you this, I have never felt so good as when I was doing Whole 30. I was less tired, lethargic, and I felt better during my workouts. Whole 30 for me ended 3 days ago and you can bet what the first thing I had as soon as this challenge was complete, a chocolate bar. Oh my gosh I have never felt more sick from food in my entire life. It's funny how once you go without something for an extended period of time your body adapts beautifully. There is a quote that I stumbled across a few weeks ago that has stuck with me "if you put garbage in, you'll get garbage out." So with my first race of the season right around the corner I am going back to my Whole 30 way of eating for life.

Yep, you heard me right. First race of the season is less than 2 weeks away. I am excited and nervous. I have this hip pain that keeps flaring up. I went back to the doctor yesterday and got an injection, fingers crossed it helps A LOT. My race is XTERRA Gator Terra in Ruston, LA. Now I haven't been training for near as long as I had before I raced this one last year, but boy am I hungry for a win. Let's just say there is going to be a show-down on May 6th.