And so it begins! Day 1 of any endeavor is always an exciting time, I think. You don’t really know what to expect, but you can sense that change is on the horizon. You know that there will be challenging times, but for now they remain a mystery. And you can see yourself overcoming anything, sailing through full of enthusiasm and conviction. It does get hard at times, I know, but on Day 1 it’s all about the anticipation of an end result to be proud of.

Here’s what I ate today.

4:30am – Black coffee

7:30am – 2 eggs in 1/2 tsp. coconut oil, kale salad, 1/4 avocado, blueberries, vinaigrette

11:30am – Roasted broccoli, Cherries

1:30pm – Cauliflower salad with salmon, Cherries, Coffee

5:00pm – Snap peas

6:00pm – Grilled pork chop, Spicy Cauliflower Salad, Cherries

7:30pm – Hard boiled egg, Snap peas

A few notes…I didn’t intentionally eat cauliflower salad at both meals, and it wasn’t the same cauliflower salad either. I had a different plan to go with dinner but didn’t have all the ingredients so I had to switch on the fly. Turns out that it was one of those easy and tasty recipes that I’ll have to post as soon as I can.

The other thing is that I love cherries and right now they are so good and on sale and I can’t get enough of them. I like the gorgeous Rainier ones that are plump and not quite as sweet and I like the dark Bing cherries that are super sweet. It really doesn’t matter much and I try not to eat more than a handful at a time, but don’t judge me; they’ll come up a lot. I ate a little more fruit than I do typically, but it’s summertime so I can hardly resist.

I felt really hungry after dinner and realized that I didn’t have anything to eat after my workout this afternoon. There wasn’t any fat to speak of in my dinner either and when I drop my carbs, my body still needs fuel. I prefer to give it in the form of good fats like avocados and olive oil and nuts. I have to be careful with nuts though because I have a tendency to go a little crazy with them. If I don’t need them then I try to pass. I went for an egg and another handful of veggies, which worked out great.

Something to keep in mind when eating for your healthiest self is that it isn’t about starvation. This isn’t a diet. It’s about finding the right food for you, the best way to fuel your body in a sustainable, delicious, give-your-body-what-it-needs kind of way. The early days can have some cravings that might be difficult to decipher, but once you’re past those, it’s all about tuning in. In the beginning it can be a bit of an experiment to figure out how much you need to eat and when. And all that might change as your body adapts. So stick to your Paleo choices, do the best you can to eat for true, physical hunger rather than emotional/head hunger, and make a plan for the next day.

And remember to love your journey. It’s important!