My weight on Monday morning: 193.7 lbs. My weight this morning: 188.2 lbs. My goal for this Whole30: 175 lbs. (I know, I KNOW! You’re not supposed to weigh yourself on a Whole30. Well, I break that rule because I log my process, and I monitor closely how different foods affect my body. Yes, even Whole30 compliant foods affect my body differently, and I like to know the cause/effect of those different foods).

I was doing IF (Intermittent Fasting) prior to this Whole30. I am not doing that now and have resumed eating my two eggs and two slices of bacon breakfast that I ate for three years. Why? Because this formula worked for me in the past three Whole30’s, and I’m not going to mess with a recipe that has been successful three times in a row.

How is it possible that I lost 5 lbs in three days? Well, the majority of that weight was bloating due to the increased carb and alcohol intake this past weekend. I’d guess about 3-4 lbs of it was just water weight. I am expecting another 5 lbs by the end of the month, but realistically, I should be able to see 2.5 lbs a week on average over the next four weeks (as I did the last three times we did this).

Challenges coming up for me: my wife will be out of town next week on a business trip. That will leave me to fend for myself. She’s been the foundation upon which my Whole30’s rested (and the reason I was successful). Now I will have to try to figure out the food part myself. I’m up for the challenge, and I have some ideas. More on this later.

Annual Training (AT) in the National Guard. I have a two-week AT coming up in June. The last two weeks of my Whole30, in fact, will be during AT. AT is a stressful time and five days of that will be in the field at Fort Hood. I’ll have to carry all my food with me (Epic bars, RXBars, and nuts) and I’ll have to make sure I drink a lot of water and stick to just my own food. I’ve done this before in 2017. I even lost a little weight in the field. I’m hoping for a repeat of that success this year.

I’m still feeling a bit of the flu-like symptoms this morning, but nothing like yesterday. Yesterday was brutal. Sherry and I are expecting more of the symptoms this weekend, so we will try to do things to keep busy and to keep our minds off of the discomfort and any hunger. I remember the hunger part took a week or so to subside last time. At least I know it’s normal and I know what to expect next.

Whole30’s aren’t easy. Many people don’t succeed their first, second, or even their third times around. Sherry and I were fortunate in that we had each other to lean on, and that we made it through them before. I have new challenges this time, but I think now that I’m a veteran of three prior Whole30’s, I can do this. I must do this.

Oh, and running? I haven’t run since last week. The trip to Austin coupled with a bunch of things to do after work Tuesday kept me from getting out there and stretching my legs. I will do that this afternoon after work. If I can’t run outside, I’ll run on our treadmill. One way or the other, it’s going to get done.