Whole30 Challenge: Accepted

As I mentioned in my last post, I got married in October (woohoo!). The great thing about October, is that the Fall and Winter season holidays are not far behind. Holidays are great for morale, but not always for your health due to the ever-tempting sweet treats and overly decadent meals.

This is probably the most honest thing I’ll ever print, aside from my wedding planning advice below 😉 :I’m curvy and have been my entire life. I’ve always been told that I have a pretty face and nice hair, so I’ve never really felt confident about anything else. There’s never been a day that’s gone by where I didn’t worry about my weight or criticize myself on what I was eating or wearing. I’ve never felt truly comfortable or proud of the way I look, because there was always so much pressure to look like someone else.

The resolution that I made to myself on my most recent birthday, was to become comfortable with who I am as my own person. To become confident and proud of everything that makes me, me. I knew right off the bad that my biggest hurdle would be my body image. That got me thinking: Where does the notion of my body image start?

After thinking a lot about it, and coming face-to-face with some nasty truths about my habits, I realized that for me, my body image starts with the food I eat. If I start out the day with a crappy breakfast, guess what, I’m going to feel crappy and will most likely make lousy meal choices for the rest of the day! One of my nasty truths that I admitted to myself is that I’m a creature of habit, for better or for worse. To help combat any bad food habits I had, I decided to try a new eating plan that I’d heard a few of my very dear friends talk about, Whole30. While reading through the site, I was inspired, but also completely terrified what committing to this challenge would mean- few things would be convenient, and I’d really have to be all-in, no excuses whatsoever.

After debating internally about doing this challenge for no one other than myself, I reached out to one of my friends who revealed that she was thinking about doing it as well. From that conversation, a slightly bigger one happened, and within a few days I had a truly wonderful support system that was going to partake in this challenge as well. From February 1 – March 1, we successfully completed the Whole30 challenge, and I cannot tell you how much it helped to have the support system I did. Some days truly sucked (I’m talking to you, sugar withdrawls and my always-packed sink!), but we kept each other honest, on-track and motivated, and it was absolutely wonderful. Hard, and not always convenient, especially if you like to dine out, but completely and totally worth it.

Why would you put yourself through the pain of not eating any processed foods, dairy, alcohol, sugar, gluten or legumes, you might ask? Because I got to listen, really listen, to my body for the first time in, most likely, my entire life. By stripping out the foods that are commonly linked to allergies, etc., I got to really understand what made my body feel good and what I reacted to, which in turn made me feel insanely good inside and out. Realizing that what I eat really does have the power to make me feel healthy and strong, and that I am strong-willed enough to eat all of these delicious foods for 30 days, not just a meal here and there. That, to me, was completely empowering and eye-opening because I’d honestly never felt that before.

Since completing my first Whole30 challenge, I’ve started to re-introduce certain elements back into my daily diet, although I have to say, I’ve been really shocked with what my body reacts to now. I’ve learned that I feel better when most of the sensitivity-enducing foods are out of my diet, I feel a million times better than when I eat them.

In case anyone is curious as to what I ate, I’ve included my 30 day food plan below:

LAUREN’S WHOLE30 FOOD PLAN
DAY 1
Breakfast: Eggs
Lunch: Apples and Banana w/almond butter
Dinner: Rosemary Lemon Chicken. Recipe: http://laughingspatula.com/roasted-lemon-chicken-with-potatoes-and-rosemary/

DAY 2
Breakfast: Spinach and egg omelette w/ raspberries and coffee
Lunch: Leftover Rosemary Chicken and unsalted cashews
Snack: Smoothie w/ice, banana, apple, almond butter, spinach, almond milk
Dinner: Taco lettuce boats w/turkey meat: http://laughingspatula.com/fresh-and-easy-taco-meat/
* For the lettuce boats, we used butter lettuce
Dessert: Raspberries and apple with almond butter

DAY 3
Breakfast: Green shake w/banana and coffee
*My green shakes usually consist of 1 banana, frozen fruit (usually berries), spinach, almond milk. Sometimes I add almond butter to get an extra protein kick. Other times I’ve added cocoa for a kick of chocolate.
Snack: Apple
Lunch: Leftover Rosemary Chicken and potatoes
Snack: Unsalted cashews
Dinner: Omelette w/leftover turkey meat and sweet potato
Dessert: Apple w/almond butter

DAY 4
Breakfast: Green shake w/banana
Lunch: Leftover turkey meat and lettuce wraps
Snack: Celery w/almond butter
Dinner: Steak, green beans w/dates, raspberries

DAY 5
Breakfast: Eggs w/potatoes
Lunch: Leftover steak, green beans w/dates
Snack: Apple
Dinner: Salad w/chicken, snap peas and oranges.Approved balsamic dressing (Tessemae’s)

DAY 6
Breakfast: Spinach omelette w/banana and raspberries w/coffee.
Lunch: Chicken and mashed potatoes
Dinner: Korean BBQ pork, chicken, beef w/salad

DAY 7
Breakfast: Eggs, blueberries and tea
Lunch: Dates w/almond butter, fruit
Dinner: Rosemary chicken w/carrots and potatoes.
Dessert: Apples w/almond butter

DAY 8
Breakfast: Hard-boiled eggs, banana and tea
Lunch: Leftover rosemary chicken
Snack: Egg, grapes & strawberries
Dinner: Green shake w/pineapple, banana, almond butter, dates, coconut  milk

DAY 9
Breakfast: Green shake, tea
Lunch: Hamburger (no bun) w/lettuce, tomato, grilled onion (no sauce)
Dinner: Pulled pork w/hot sauce, salad w/broccoli and tomatoes
Dessert: Blueberries

DAY 10 – 1/3 of the way there!
Breakfast: Green shake
Lunch: Leftover pulled pork
Dinner: Green and berry shake

DAY 11
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs w/potato & sausage
Lunch: Leftover pork, clementines
Snack: Apple, deli-turkey
Dinner: Shepherd’s pie and salad

DAY 12
Breakfast: Green shake and coffee
Lunch: Salad w/turkey, tomato, celery, balsamic dressing
Dinner: Omelette w/pancetta and spinach
Dessert: Clementines and blueberries

DAY 13
Breakfast: Chicken omelette w/bananas and blueberries
Dinner: Meatballs w/spaghetti squash, salad: http://sleeploveeat.com/2010/03/15/mammas-meatballs-and-marinara-sauce/

DAY 14
Breakfast: Eggs, potatoes, bacon and fruit
Lunch: Salad w/turkey, cucumbers and tomato
Dinner: Buffalo chicken w/salad
Dessert: “Nice” cream, blueberries and raspberries: http://www.danielle-moss.com/blog/2016/1/4/faux-whole30-banana-almond-butter-ice-cream?rq=almond

DAY 15
Breakfast: Banana, Lara Bar
Lunch: Steak, veggies, mashed potatoes and shrimp
Dinner: Veggies, steak, mushroom and green beans

DAY 16
Breakfast: Hard-boiled eggs, coffee
Lunch: Salad w/chicken, broccoli, tomatoes
Dinner: Pork and asparagus

DAY 17
Breakfast: Coconut milk and chia seed pudding w/pomegranate seeds and banana
Lunch: Turkey, Clementines, Lara Bar
Dinner: Salad – no dressing

DAY 18
Breakfast: Hard-boiled eggs, blueberries
Lunch: Chicken and green beans
Snack: Clementines, Lara Bar
Dinner: Sweet potato w/beef & marinara, apples w/almond butter

DAY 19
Breakfast: Hard-boiled eggs, blueberries
Lunch: Beef, sweet potato and clementines
Snack: Coffee, Lara Bar
Dinner: Greek salad w/shrimp

DAY 20 – only 10 more days to go!
Breakfast: Eggs, banana
Lunch: Green shake
Dinner: Lemon and garlic chicken w/green beans: http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2014/10/lemon-garlic-dump-chicken-whats-dinner.html

DAY 21
Breakfast: Green shake
Lunch: Leftover lemon garlic chicken w/green beans and pistachios
Dinner: Steak and shrimp, green beans, broccoli and zucchini
Dessert: Watermelon

DAY 22
Breakfast: Egg, banana and blueberries
Lunch: Salad w/chicken, onions and potatoes
Snack: Lara Bar
Dinner: Beef and butternut squash stew: http://www.noshtastic.com/beef-and-butternut-squash-stew/

DAY 23
Breakfast: Eggs, potatoes and sausage
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Leftover beef and butternut squash stew, clementines
Dinner: Apple and onion pork chops w/salad: https://pragmaticallypaleo.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/easy-apple-onion-pork-chops/
Dessert: Nice cream

DAY 24
Breakfast: Lara Bar, banana, coffee
Lunch: Greek salad w/chicken
Dinner: Almond-crusted salmon and green beans: http://fashionablefoods.com/2015/10/16/almond-crusted-salmon-whole-30/

DAY 25
Breakfast: Green and berry shake
Lunch: Greek salad
Dinner: Chicken and sweet potato

DAY 26
Breakfast: Eggs w/sausage and potatoes
Lunch: Leftover almond-crusted salmon and green beans
Dinner: Steak, baked potato and salad

DAY 27
Breakfast: Green shake
Lunch: Lara Bar and fruit
Dinner: Shrimp w/asparagus and mushrooms

DAY 28
Breakfast: Green and berry shake
Lunch: Chicken w/potatoes, mushrooms and brussel sprouts
Dinner: Chicken and apple sausage, mixed fruit salad
Dessert: Nice cream

DAY 29
Breakfast: Lara Bar, banana
Lunch: Leftover chicken, potatoes, mushrooms and brussel sprouts
Snack: Mixed fruit salad
Dinner: Steak, onions, green beans, broccoli and cabbage

DAY 30- sweet, tiny baby Jesus, I made it!
Breakfast: Lara Bar, banana
Lunch: Salad w/turkey
Snack: Almonds and cherries
Dinner: Quick and spicy shrimp, asparagus and fruit: http://www.peanutblossom.com/blog/2012/06/quick-and-spicy-shrimp.html/
Dessert: Nice cream

My biggest learning that Whole30 helped me to realize is that I’m a strong woman, who can be in complete control of her body. I don’t have to rely on the train of thought that “…well, everyone’s just not meant to truly feel comfortable in their own skin all the time, so just deal with what you’ve got.” No. No no no. I am strong, and I am beautiful because I am not a clone. I am me, and I am real– curves and all. The first step for me to personally feel good about myself is to ensure that I’m making smart, healthy choices about the fuel I put in my body.

Healthy is beautiful. Strong is beautiful. I am beautiful.

“Somebody’s Getting Married…”

I can say without a doubt that 5 months ago, I experienced the best day of my life (thus far). I married an amazing man, someone who I am beyond elated and honored to call my husband. While that day was incredible, it took a LOT of work to get there…. a lot. Kevin and I mostly planned the entire shindig ourselves and from that, here are our learnings:

Figure out what type of event you want. Do you want a big wedding? Do you want a conventional wedding? Do you want to have a wedding party and wear a white dress? The answers of which, by the way, can absolutely be a big, fat, “no”.

We felt very lucky that from pretty early on, we knew the type of event we wanted our wedding to be. We didn’t want anything huge and flashy, but something that was more intimate and really reflected us, which brings me to my next point.

Once you know the type of event you want, figure out what your must-haves are. Has it always been a dream of yours to get married in the house of worship you grew up on? Do you have to get married outdoors? Really think about and focus on what is truly important to each of you individually, and yourselves as a couple. Your friends, family and co-workers will give you input, whether you ask for it or not, but at the end of the day, remember that it’s about the two of you and no one else.

Must-Have #1: Location. For us, one of our must-haves was to get married where we went to college, Syracuse University. It’s where we met, and really where our life has a couple began all those years ago. Personally for me, I really wanted to get married within the chapel on campus, not only because of how stunning it is, but because it welcomes all faiths. It was very important to me that no one in our families felt uncomfortable, because we have a few different religions throughout.

Must-Have #2: Reception/Party Space. Another piece of our wedding that we felt was important to reflect us, was our reception space. Kevin and I are very lucky to have the wonderful friends that we do, and many of them have gotten married over the past few years, which had given us lots of different scenarios of locations to keep in mind for our reception. We knew that getting married in Syracuse would be tricky because the weather there is never consistent; there’s always a 95% chance it’s snowing- even in the Spring.

Our reception can’t be outdoors- check.

We would really prefer it not be in a reception hall ballroom- check.

All options we kept coming up with included a ballroom, which we didn’t like. Nothing against ballrooms, we just didn’t feel it reflected us. We kept thinking about where our favorite places were in the city and what was meaningful to us, which eventually led us to where we had our reception, the always-delicious Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. Dino easily has the best food in the city, and was absolutely perfect for what we wanted. They have an upstairs event space with a separate entrance from the main restaurant downstairs, which includes a bar, 2 large seating areas, dancing space, and an outside balcony. This was perfect because it made sure we kept our numbers on the smaller end, which we’d wanted anyway, and it came with a relaxed vibe and good food- very us. We brought some pictures and re-purposed the wedding party bouquets on the tables, which gave it just the right amount of “dress” for us.

Must-Have #3: Kick-Ass Photographer. The next must-have on my list, was our photographer; we’d decided against any videography from very early on, just knowing that we probably would never watch it, and including it would jack up the price.

My best friend had gotten married a few months prior, and having been her Maid Of Honor, I’d been in the thick of it all with her. At her wedding, she’d had the most wonderful photographer, Hendrick Moy Photography,  and I knew after seeing the photos from her wedding, that whenever it was time for Kevin and I to tie the knot, I wanted to have this gentleman be our photog. Here’s his post from our wedding.

Must-Have #4: Kick-Ass Hairdresser. Lauren at Front Row Center Salon literally saved me when my prior hairdresser canceled on me. She and another salon staff member came to the bridal suite day-of and took care of my hair, as well as my bridal party and some family members last-minute and were completely wonderful. I feel indebted to her, not only because she did such an amazing job, but because without her, my hair probably would’ve looked like a big ‘ol birds nest.

Tip: Don’t be afraid to use Thumbtack – it’s how I found her and I highly, highly recommend it!

What do you feel is actually worth spending the big bucks on? With shows like “Say Yes To The Dress”, “David Tutera”, and “Bridezillas”, it makes sense why people feel they HAVE to spend x-amount on everything. My biggest point of advice to you is that you DON’T. Spend your good, hard-earned money on the things that mean the most to you.

My dress was absolutely beautiful and I felt like freaking royalty in it, but I didn’t break the bank to purchase it. I found my dress from David’s Bridal, and it was perfect. I didn’t want any floral overload because I’m asthmatic and it would’ve been a huge bummer if I’d had an attack during the ceremony. For flowers, we really only had the wedding party bouquets, which we re-purposed for the reception tables, and some flowers within the chapel space, but nothing major. For anyone in the Syracuse area, Whistle Stop Florist was who we used, and they were fantastic! Most of the decor inside our reception space at Dino was a DIY (centerpieces, card box), which helped to keep the overall budget healthy – those little details can really add up!

Tip: Make sure to budget for stamps, as well as your invites, thank-you’s, etc. Those can add up quickly and can be a bit of a shock if you don’t plan for that extra cost.

In addition to our photographer, it was important to us to spend money on a really great DJ. Music is such an important part of our lives, and important part of us as a couple, that we wanted that to come through during our reception.Our DJ, the beyond fabulous Ormond Entertainment also acted as our MC for the evening we couldn’t have asked for anyone better – thank you, Cindy!

Delegate, Delegate, Delegate! On the day-of, you and your soon-to-be-hubby/wife, are going to be all over the place, so ahead of time, delegate certain tasks out to members of your wedding party. Both our Best Man and MOH knew pretty much every single family member, aside from Kevin’s Best Man being his brother, so for day-of requests from family, we asked them to handle those. I’d asked another Bridesmaid to help field any requests that came from additional folks, etc. It might sound silly, but it completely worked. Throughout the entire morning, even with a million people coming in and out from the bridal suite, I was incredibly mellow and just excited. Delegate as a favor to yourself and your sanity – you’ll be SO happy you did later on in the day!

Have fun! Kevin and I were told multiple times before our wedding that on the day-of, to remember to take the time and look around and take everything in. Look at all of your family and closest friends who have come out to spend time and celebrate you as a couple. After you do that, have fun, dance and let loose! Unexpected things will come up, but do your best to roll with it; your “new” life together is starting and it’s ridiculously exciting.

Love, it’s a wonderful thing.