Well, here are the deets of how that has been going down if you are interested!

*This mini report is more geared towards my own thoughts and feedback as I am the one blogging ?

Why:

We all get busy. We have a lot on the go and sometimes taking care of ourselves can fall to the wayside. While I was in school for a couple years studying nutrition, I was also working full time (bad idea but I felt like I had too), which over time chipped away at my health. I was more stressed out than ever, my exercise always remained on point but my healthy eating started to sh*t the bed over time. The increase in stress only increased my fatigue and cravings for less than healthy food! I think I must have been SUCH a pleasure to be around ?

Eventually I became totally fried and burnt out. Adrenals = frazzled.

Since then, I have been picking up the pieces from those couples years of fairly intense stress and I’m working on getting myself much healthier! I finished my schooling nearly a couple years ago, started DEW and intentionally put my health/happiness as numero uno.

We eat pretty good, but there is always room for improvement. I find that we have vague goals a lot of the time – “ let’s eat healthier, let’s cut out the junk from our diet, let’s get more fit” … well I figured it’s time to dig into those goals a bit more and take intentional + inspired action over the course of this Fall.

Health first – that is the motto ? I am glad that my hubby is ‘sort of kind of on board’. He is not as much of a health/wellness keener as I am, but I know that he is seeing the results of eating better over time and taking a bit better care of himself. (Even his allergies have improved!)

The plan:

I wanted to set some clear concrete and actionable goals for myself. I don’t believe in diets or quick fixes. I believe in small changes, small action and gradual lifestyle changes. I organized our plan a bit like this:
* These are mostly my goals we’re talking about!

For 3 – 4 months (Sept, Oct, November and December)

• Avoiding processed/refined foods and low quality sugars
• Avoiding dairy and gluten containing foods (except the occasional feta goat cheese!)
• Eating more vegetables at each meal and focusing on plate ratio – 70% veggies on dat plate! Lots of healthy fats and protein (either plant based or high quality animal source)
• Eating regular meals, snacks and making sure to include healthy fats and more protein! (Protein is SO important for many reasons including the formation of neurotransmitters = mood health)
• Focusing on home cooked meals + eating REAL food always!
• If I crave sweet treats or savoury food, I try to make healthier options or buy healthier options
• If I eat out, trying to choose healthier options rich in veggies and whole foods. (Can someone pleeeaese open a plant based cafe or restaurant in our town soon! Just saying ? )
• Regular exercising (Piyo 3-4x/week or yoga and walking/hiking 4-5x/week) (Piyo = a mix of pilates and yoga videos that are a bit higher in intensity but not too crazy)
• Meditating every 2nd day and journalling regularly (my saviour)
• Drinking plenty of filtered water, warm tea (the occasional chai latte with almond milk.. A girl’s gotta get wild sometimes you know…)
• Monthly weigh in and measurements (just to have a reference point, but we honestly don’t get too caught up with this stuff)
• Daily use of my sun lamp (SAD lamp) to ward off the winter blues
• Take my supplements every day! (I take a lot right now but for good reason – probiotics, vitamin D drops, milk thistle for liver support, iron/B12 support, Essential fatty acids, sometimes thyroid/adrenal complex as well as aloe vera juice and magnesium)
• I also plan on doing some gut rebalancing and leaky gut support as I go along! (with foods and supplementation)

Noticing:

Well September was going awesome if I do say so myself. I finished my part time job and was focusing 100% on DEW.  I felt great especially from giving certain foods and sugars a break. Flatter stomach, less water retention, more energy and better mood!

Jordan lost weight right away (of course he did.. right? lol) Sometimes I think when he loses weight… I find it ?

But again, I don’t get caught up with scale numbers. I base results on how I feel, how my energy/mood and digestion feel and how my clothes fit. It’s weird because yoga stretch pants always fit great .. ha..okay okay.. the jeans feel fine too.

Energy was up, mood was up and digestion felt great!

Fall on face:

What’s life without some ups and downs and some falling on our face? We have our moments. We have our weaknesses. I didn’t get into the nutrition field because I was perfect. I was drawn to nutrition because I wanted to feel better. I felt like a pile of crap since I was a teenager. I had mad sugar cravings, headaches and tons of digestive issues (hello sexy bloating and food sensitivities).

I am MUCH better than I was years ago (woo hoo!), I’m getting better all the time – but I am not my best just yet. Especially after I beat up my health while in school those couple years ago.

So, late September and early October got busy. When stress goes up, so does my/our fatigue and we can slide off track.

Yes sometimes a not so great meal happens and yes sometimes yoghurt onion potato chips call my name like a long lost friend. And sometimes I eat them, and enjoy them and move on. Gasp!

And I think you should too! ?

Life is about moderation.. And while most times I try to choose healthy options, I think sometimes it is totally fine to have some junk and move on. Not everyone may feel the same but right now I believe in the 80/20 or the 80/10/10 approach – Try to eat pretty darn healthy 80% of the time and have healthy treat options the other 10% and whatever else for the remainder 10% of the time. ?

“Everything in moderation, including moderation” ~ Oscar Wilde

Everyone is different. Sometimes moderation is fine for people, while others need to quit certain foods cold turkey and avoid them all the time.

What do you find works for you??

So yes, there were times when I ate dairy and a bit of processed foods, and boy did I pay for it! While Jordan has an iron gut, I have a very sensitive stomach. So, I usually feel less than great for a while after. Not. Worth. It. Why. Did. I. Do. That. (shake head)

Back on the horse:

Dust myself off, and question why that speed bump occurred.

I ask myself questions such as: What is not working? Why isn’t it working? What worked really well? How can I do more of that?

Back in the day I would have beat myself up relentlessly for a long time. These days I know that will not get me very far and will do no good.

Carry on and plow forward I say!

Next Goal:

We are carrying forward with our goals here in late October/November and things are going pretty good. Here and there we do slip up, again Jordan is on his own journey and I don’t expect him to follow my plan to the tee (well yes I do.. But that never works lol!)

I have goals to keep up with my meal planning each week and setting aside time to prepare healthy meals full of whole ingredients and plenty of veggies! My exercise routine has been okay but I need to try and do PiYo more consistently so that is another goal that I have.

Stress reduction and mindfulness practices are a priority as well. I want to keep up with journaling and meditation which are going well along with morning positive affirmations (after a while they are just a habit!)

Let me know – what small changes do you want to make this Fall?

It’s a journey…

Even I have to remind myself, it’s truly a journey and things are not going to be perfect. I am not going to be perfect. I just want to be better than I was last week or last year. Forward momentum is key ?

Stay tuned:

We shall carry on and see how it goes. Again it’s a lifestyle not a diet so although we set 3 or 4 months to focus on making some specific changes, I am counting on this to be the kickstart of an overall lifestyle improvement! ?

Perhaps i’ll give you an update in the New Year if you like!

Cheers to wellness adventures ?