Eating Sensibly Over The Holidays

It's that time of year. Parties, social occasions, and festivities that all seem to tempt us with the same things.

Cookies, sugary drinks, tasty foods.

We eat and we indulge and we say to ourselves "I'll start over in January."

And that's fine for a lot of people.

But for me, I wanted to feel better now...not six weeks from now.

Since battling an autoimmune disorder for many years, I have noticed a real correlation between nutrition and my overall health. Sometimes, when I backslide and let a lot of sugars and processed foods into my daily routine, I will pay for it...not just in the pounds, but in the achy joints and in the fatigue.

So rather than put off good nutrition for 2018, I decided to continue with my elimination diet now. I'm following a lot of the principles in the Whole 30 plan.

I'm loading up on healthy fruits and vegetables, and cutting out ALL sugars from my diet. No more "faux brownies" or "fake cookies". Just real ingredients in their natural states.

I'm also giving up dairy during this period. I kicked the milk habit a while back, and I'm typically very selective in my cheese choices. But for a time, I'm going to see how my body responds without dairy.

Wheat, breads, rices, pastas and legumes are also off the menu. In their place, I'm enjoying spaghetti squash and sweet potatoes, cauliflower rice and butternut squash. Good things.

And added to this are a lot of lean proteins to round it out...fish, eggs, poultry, grass-fed beef, pork. Healthy fats like avocado, coconut and avocado oil, olive oil and clarified ghee. Nuts (no peanuts) and unsweetened coconut flakes.

And eggs. Did I mention the eggs? I LOVE eggs.

I've come up with some unusual and tasty combinations, too. Like this one.

Roasted sweet potato "toasts" with avocado and hard boiled egg. Yum!

And this one.

Sauteed spinach and egg topping a Brussels sprouts and butternut squash "hash". Delicious!

This sort of clean eating takes a lot of prep work. I'm cooking and cleaning all the time! It also takes a lot of grocery shopping, which can get pricey. I did a big stock up at Aldi last week, and I could barely fit another thing in the fridge and freezer!

I'm on week two, and I can tell you that I feel great! I stay hydrated (lots of water) and I'm getting exercise every day. But I also have a lot more energy. I sleep well at night, and I currently have no joint pain.

My husband, who follows his own plan, cannot understand why I cannot just eat "all things in moderation" the way he can. That works for him, and he's very good at it. But for me? I see a tray of cookies, and I become the cookie monster. NOM NOM NOM. Gone. I eat a bowl full of table side bread at the fancy restaurant, and I pay for it in more ways than one.

But I feel like I'm really slaying that Sugar Dragon these days. I even made a tray of brownies this week, and sent them all off as a gift. They did not tempt me, even a little. And that's good. Because I may like brownies, but they are no friend of mine.

Good food is fuel. And I want to run at optimum performance level.

So how am I surviving the holidays?

At the buffet, I bypass the dessert table completely and head straight for the good stuff. Veggies, fruits, meat.

I'm avoiding a lot of restaurant eating because I want to control what's on my plate. But a simple dish of eggs won't hurt me. Or maybe chicken or fish or steak with vegetables. I can manage.

Have you ever attempted a Whole 30 plan? If so, I'd love to hear about it!