Just shut up and take my money, You are my spirit animal. I am about to finish…

Just shut up and take my money, melissa_hartwig! You are my spirit animal.
I am about to finish my 7th round of whole30. But even after all this time, I have a confession: I fall off the wagon every year. Like hard, ya’ll. I’ve noticed a pattern I’m not particularly proud of, and it goes a little something like this… January whole 30: super clean eating. Feeling and looking amazing! Full on tiger blood.
February-April: Pretty clean eating, although declining a bit with each month, especially around my birthday in April.
May: Oh crap. I need to look acceptable in a bathing suit soon. I better step it up a bit.
June-August: Sweet summer! Filled with active days, a break from teaching, abundant rest, super fresh garden produce, and grilling season. (I find it’s easiest for me to maintain balance in summer.) September-December: Good habits dwindling. Sweater weather. Weight gain. Lower self esteem. Thanksgiving and Christmas. Absolute free-for-all. Muffin top. OFF. THE. RAILS. Fully aware I’m out of control, but “oh well, I’ll just do a whole30 in January.” [Repeat every January]. That might sound familiar to a few of you. The truth is, it took me a few years to identify what was happening. 2019 is the year I break that unhealthy and exhausting cycle and focus on and finding sustainable balance, without saying “fudge it” for at least 4 months of every year. No more shame, obsessing, stressing, being mad at myself, habitually overindulging, or overcorrecting.
I’m only on page 5 and I can already tell this book is exactly what I need right now.