A few months ago, just when I was starting this blog, the hubs and I undertook a 30 Day CrossFit Body Transformation Challenge. That’s a bit of a mouthful, so let’s just call it the ‘30 Day Challenge’. Round 1.
It involved a whole new way of eating and training for me, and was devised by the training experts at CrossFit Athletic, and nutritionist extraordinaire, Danielle Minnebo from Food to Nourish.
At the time, it seemed like an impossible task….
I was drinking wine most nights (ok, all nights), had at least two skim cappuccinos a day and snacked hourly, if not more often, on naughty, naughty packaged goods – chocolate bars, biscuits, cookies, muffins…. I could eat a whole bag of Natural Confectionary Company snakes between the supermarket and home. It’s a 3 minute drive. And I’m not even joking.
I had what I considered a healthy breakfast (oats, natural yoghurt, berries, milk), a proper delicious dinner (most likely a Bill Granger recipe) but I was terrible at lunch. I ate on the run, grabbing whatever I could and it would often be something processed or almost all carbs, there was not a lot of protein going on at lunchtime and hardly any greens. My bad.
So going from this to three very healthy meals, one or two snacks a day only, no coffee no alcohol, no processed anything, no gluten… you can see why I was scared, right? Massive change.
On the exercise front, I had been a regular member of a gym (for the first time in my life) for almost three years, doing a couple of weights sessions and maybe three spin classes a week, with a little running thrown in here and there. As part of the 30 Day Challenge, I would be training at the CrossFit Athletic gym in Brookvale. High octane, competitive, intense training is definitely not my thing (husband loves it, cannot get enough of it) so I joined the Female F.I.T program there. Same/similar movements but in a non-competitive supportive environment.
I’ve already written about the first 30 Day Challenge (I did weekly updates) and summarised what I learnt during the experience. So I don’t need to recap how it went as such.
But since then, around five months later, what’s changed?
Well I swapped out any ‘low fat’ milk, dairy, etc for full fat, now that I am better educated, nutritionally. Thanks, Danielle.
I also no longer buy packets of biscuits or cartons of cereal/muesli bars. I tend to make our own snacks and treats, so I know what’s in them. They are always refined-sugar free and usually gluten free and dairy free too. I still have a ridiculously sweet tooth, so lots of maple syrup and raw organic honey has been consumed. Lots.
My coffee consumption dropped to two or three a week after the challenge, but it’s crept back slowly to probably one a day (now a full fat latte).
And I definitely drink less alcohol – usually only on weekends (depending on what kind of day I’ve had haha).
Many of our meals are still from ‘The Plan’ that was provided as part of the original Challenge. The recipes were mostly by Danielle, with a couple from Jamie Oliver and Pete Evans. They’re so delicious and easy to prepare, and we know that they’re nutritionally balanced and good for our bodies.
And training? Well, I ended up joining CrossFit Athletic Brookvale, so I guess that tells you how much I enjoyed the program during that initial 30 days. I’ve done movements and used equipment that I’d never heard of before… torsonator rows, GHDs, Turkish get-ups, air dyne… and seriously, how many burpees can one girl do in a month???
I do two early morning sessions a week before the sun has risen, and a Saturday morning outdoors session. Funnily enough, I used to see the groups of people working out on the beach in the morning and scoff at them. I can’t believe I used to do that, but I did. And now I’m one of them. Not only that but it’s easily my favourite training of the week, haha, I’ve changed!
So as you can see, I’ve taken loads of really positive things from the original 30 Day Challenge and incorporated them into a real lifestyle change for me and my family. And I love that.
The children get treats but they have no refined sugar in them. We’ve all tried things we’ve never had before like cauliflower mash, quinoa salads and green smoothies. They’re just part of our weekly repertoire now. It’s also a given that whatever I make is ‘healthy’ (‘mummy, please can I have a healthy chocolate brownie?’ ‘mummy let’s have healthy pancakes for breakfast’ ‘oooh that roasted cauliflower salad is my new favourite, please can we have it again tomorrow?’).
I have to admit, however, that although my snacks are definitely a thousand per cent healthier, I still have too many of them. And maybe my portion control at mealtimes has become a little, umm, ‘generous’. And I’d definitely gotten back into the habit of dessert and finishing off the kids’ plates, regardless of whether I was actually hungry or not.
So it’s time to re-focus.
We’re going again.
The 2nd 30 Day Challenge starts tomorrow. I’ve done my shop (soooo many veggies!), I’ve got the meal plans and recipes. I kind of know what to expect this time, feeling a bit anxious about cutting out the snacks and the booze, but I know I can do it.
Ding ding, round two. Bring it on.