I was so tired this morning when the alarm went off. All I wanted was to roll over and go to back to sleep. Fridays are early – I work at the gym at 5am and I went to bed just a little bit later than usual last night because I was reading and snuggling with my son. Totally worth it, but I feel it when I’m twenty minutes on the other side of my normal bedtime. That being said, it could also be the fact that I’m five days in to this Whole45 and my body is working hard to make the adjustments necessary to switch from using a constant supply of carbohydrates for energy to using fat stores instead. Either way, 4am came especially early today.

On the flip side, once I was up and showered and moving, I can tell that my mood is starting to shift. I’m a naturally cheerful person generally, which I’m really grateful for. Most of the time, my moods are pretty even. However, when I’m eating right and exercising and treating myself well, it always shines through. My best friend in California notices it every time. We don’t see each other often but we talk on the phone regularly, and when I’m in a good place with eating and exercise, she comments on it without fail. I am not sure what it is exactly, but it feels like a sense of lightness and I simply approach life and conversations with that brighter approach. I might not notice it if she didn’t comment on it or if, like today, I weren’t being more vigilant about changes that I’m experiencing in order to share them throughout this journey. So anyway, I feel bubbly, which may or may not be annoying to those around me, and also like I could take a nap at any moment.

On top of that, we are going to a concert tonight and we were invited to be in an executive suite. That usually means there will be food and drinks and things I generally don’t want to eat. The concert also starts nearly at my bedtime (like 8! I know…) so there will be some coffee in my life today. I’m looking forward to the evening and I don’t feel worried about what there will be to eat…yet. Mostly I just need to have a plan.

Since it does start a little later, I will be sure to have something to eat before arriving and I am taking an RxBar for an emergency snack. I think I will also pack some fruit and snap peas and maybe a hard boiled egg in a cooler for the drive home in case I need a snack to keep me awake, which is highly likely. Anyway, I’ll let you know how it all goes tomorrow.

A couple notes on my eating on Day 5. I could not get full today. I didn’t have any plantains or sweet potato or other starchy carb available at breakfast so I added an extra egg. And at lunch, I just kept feeling hungry. So I ate more protein than usual, added an extra piece of fruit, had some extra broccoli, and finally had a small handful of macadamia nuts. I am not sure if it’s the lack of starchy carbs or because it is Day 5 and my body is looking for excess carbs and there aren’t any. I have had this same thing happen in previous Whole30s so I am not too worried about it. I just listened to my body, ate more, stayed within my eating guidelines, and am waiting for the shift to occur. I’m imagining that by sometime next week, I will have switched over to being more fat-adapted rather than cruising for carbs and it will all settle down.

I hope you have an amazing rest of your day! Be sure to let me know in the comments if you have any thoughts, questions or things you want to share.

Shine Bright! xo

What did I eat today?

Breakfast – 3 eggs, cabbage, avocado stuffed bell pepper slices

Post workout snack – the rest of the Perfect bar from the other day

Lunch – Slaw with shredded beef, sweet onion, beets, avocado, peaches, mint and white balsamic vinegar (Strange combo but really tasty. I heated the beef and cabbage together so the slaw was wilted.) / Roasted broccoli / Apricot / About 4 raw macadamia nuts

Dinner – No idea. I will have to report back. I’ll be taking some things to eat with me in the car but I don’t know what to expect.

Update – Concert was great. No food was available that I could eat though so instead…

Snack before leaving (about 3pm) – Spaghetti squash and turkey casserole

Snack in car (about 6pm) – Snap peas

Snack in car (about 11pm) – HB egg and broccoli, a few blueberries

How did I move?

HIIT (high-intensity) workout and yoga. I feel like my energy is coming back for workouts so I’m grateful for that and ready for more.