It’s one thing to see a number getting smaller and smaller, but it’s another thing entirely when you can see the results in the mirror and feel them in your skin. Another morning with not only appreciable weight loss (another pound, down to 189.4 lbs) but also finally seeing it in my face. Today as I was shaving, I could see it, and it felt great. I haven’t looked at this face in a few years, actually.

Right after I went on my deployment, I injured my shoulder. That kept me out of the gym which in the past really helped me stay slim while eating right, and the resulting sadness over losing that outlet made me a little less diligent with my food choices. I didn’t go crazy, as I never got past 200 lbs, but I hovered in the high 190’s for the past two years.

Fast forward to January 2026. The shoulder still has pain (I’m seeing the specialist tomorrow, actually), but I finally decided enough was enough. The weight gain wasn’t due to lack of exercise, but a lack of restraint in what I was eating. Whole30 was needed in more ways than one.

Usually when I’m on my Paleo diet, I tend to be a little loose on the weekends. This causes a yo-yo with my weight: I gain about 2-2.5 lbs on the weekend and then lose it by the next weekend, only to start the process all over again.

While on Whole30, however, that doesn’t happen. As I stick to the plan, I don’t allow myself even the slightest wiggle room. In the long run, this is far better for me not only physically, but psychologically. It allows me to stay in the right mindset and honestly, it makes everything related to eating and my health easier.

I have drill later this month, and the only difficulty will be in finding Whole30 compatible foods. I know I can probably find some Mexican places for Fajitas, some steak places for steak and sweet potato, and all breakfast places will have bacon and eggs, but the bacon will be suspect as the vast majority of places use bacon with sugar. I might do some research and try to find some Whole30 compatible frozen meals I can buy when I’m in Austin and just have in my hotel room as necessary.

But this I know: I will feel great in my uniform, I already feel better in my civilian clothing, and when I look in the mirror, I get a jolt of motivation because the face looking back at me is no longer bloated from excess water weight or wearing the extra weight which was the result in a lack of discipline.