Finding Food Freedom Forever

So, Beth...you've been talking about this "food freedom" thing forever now.  What is it?

I'm so glad you asked.  I can't wait to tell you!

Since completing my very first Whole30 in November of 2014, there have been many resources released since then for the program.  All I had was the book It Starts With Food to go from for my first round.  It offered me the guidelines of the program and a few recipes.  But I was mainly on my own, trying to figure out what to eat.  Now, there are four total books that have been released by the co-creators of the program.

The most recent of the four was released last fall.  I knew that I wanted to read it, but I still wasn't sure I wanted to give Whole30 another try.  If you watched my story, you know that it took about 6 months or so before I was completely ready to get my nutrition on track and fight my binge eating.  I dilly-dallied around until then.  I was fighting my excuses.  I was fighting the thoughts in my head.  Ultimately, I was fighting Satan.

But in October, I gave Whole30 a shot for the fifth time.  It was hard, but I completed it.  I felt empowered by the end of the 30 days.  But then I went on a cruise, my birthday happened, and the holidays were busy.  I maintained a level of healthy eating, but I probably had more treats than I should have.  So in January, I gave Whole30 yet another shot.  But this time, I decided to read Food Freedom Forever.

You guys.  It rocked my world.  Seriously.  I hadn't even made it out of the Author's Note before I got my highlighter out and started marking it up.  This book was exactly what I needed to read!  I had been wondering if I was a "chronic Whole30'er," if that's even a term.  I had wondered why I was doing so many rounds.

Did I forget something while doing the program?
Have I not learned what I've needed to learn?
Is it just because I can't get my act together around food?
Am I really being that controlled by sweets?

To some extent, I felt like a fraud.  I had been singing Whole30's praises, but why did I have to do so many rounds?  Why couldn't I just eat this way forever?

And then....I read this book.  In my head, Melissa and I are best friends and she wrote this book to me because she knew what I was dealing with.  Here's what she said:

"No short-term dietary intervention--not even the Whole30--has the power to completely and permanently overwrite decades of less-than-stellar health habits and a dysfunctional relationship with food. And even if it did, when stress enters the picture, those cravings, bad habits, and dependence on comfort foods inevitably return with a vengeance."

Oh my goodness gracious!  YES!! Thank you, Melissa!  And THEN, she says this:

"So yes, part of the Food Freedom plan includes you falling off the wagon, because you will, and I want to prepare you for that."

Okay...so I'm not a fraud.  I'm normal.  It happens.  It's part of the process. Thank goodness!! Honestly, there were parts of this book where I literally wanted to cry because I felt that she was speaking right into my soul.  It was like she knew where I had been and where I want to go.  She wrote this book so that I could have a plan for my food journey.  Okay, so maybe she didn't, but it sure felt like it.

So what's the plan?

1. The first step in the plan is to do a reset.  This is a 30-day structured reset.  You know exactly what you'll be eating and what you won't be eating.  You can choose the Whole30 or you can design your own.  I will probably always choose Whole30 because I'm so familiar with it.
   
2. The next step is the reintroduction phase.  This phase is deliberate and may take a while.  You have to reintroduce the foods that you took out while doing your reset.  This allows you to figure out how your body reacts to them.  Then you can plan your food freedom plan after that.
   
3. What foods do you have a negative reaction to?  Will you keep them out of your meal plan? Will they be "worth it" to have as a treat every once in a while?  You have to figure that out for yourself.  Each of us is different.  We might not tolerate the same foods.  This is something you have to really decide on your own.  But nothing is off limits.  You just have to work through questioning yourself if it's going to be worth it.  And have a plan...get right back to your meal plan after that.
   
4. Live in your food freedom.  Own every decision you make.

That is truly an overview of the plan.  She goes into more detail in the book, which I would highly suggest reading if you struggle with your relationship with food!  But one question she does address in the book that I think is definitely worth highlighting here is about moderation.

Can't you just eat in moderation?  She says:

That's nice in theory...but if that concept actually worked for most people, we'd all be happy, healthy, lean, and fit, because we've all been trying to moderate for decades.

  So in short, it really takes a while to undo all the bad habits that we've picked up along our life journey.  It takes a while to better our relationship with food.  For me?  I'm still learning.