Fall is in Full Swing (Whole30, Day 12)

I've finally started running again. I feel like death tripping over LEGOs but I'm out and moving and whatever again, so yay me.

I've also rewritten my calendar in terms of WholeSomethings for the end of the year. More on that in a moment.

I found over the last few weeks that, even though I was sticking to the eating plan, I was regaining a lot of weight and pudge at what felt like an alarming rate. A few things should be noted:

• I was not exercising
• I was very likely going overboard on things like potatoes and more sugary fruits, which are not necessarily unwholesome but which tend to hang up my weight loss efforts
• I was extremely tired, stressed out, and depressed from a number of factors, not the least of which were work and money and the whole world dying in a dumpster fire of chaos

I tend to take comfort in things I can control. I hate feeling impotent or helpless. The serenity prayer has been recommended to me a hundred jillion times, and I can see the wisdom in it, although it doesn't help me much in that I am 1. a devout atheist and 2. very un-accepting of shitty things outside of my control. An old therapist of mine (I can't remember if I've blogged about this before) pointed out that I would go into full-on crying panic mode about things completely outside of my control, while ignoring things *within* my control, like my eating and exercise habits, my money, etc.

So these past couple of weeks I've tried to wrench a few things back into place, as much as my mind and heart (and especially my body) were reluctant to do so. 

I signed up for the Turkey Trot again (10K, same one as last year), which kind of forced me to get back into running training. I'm very behind on this but (as I've told myself many times in the last couple of days) at least I'm doing it now, and that's better than nothing. 

I planned more meals and batch-cooked again, this time focusing on vegetables other than potatoes and even sweet potatoes (I love both of these beautiful starches but I'm really hoping to lose a little of my puffiness at the moment...I feel like I'm allergic to something and my whole body is having a weird histamine reaction.) Today's lunch consisted of braised kale and carrots, and sausage and peppers (I roasted onions and peppers in the oven and ...why have I not been doing that for years, it's so freaking good). Dinner will be spaghetti squash with spicy sauce, on the way to rehearsal.

I restarted (in fits and spurts, but I started) my 5K to 10K running program. Lately my favorite running playlist has been a mix of different swing standards, and swing covers of contemporary songs. Swing Republic is awesome. It makes me wish I knew how to Charleston, and conjures images of awesome vintage costumes and makeup.

I've been better about making lists, particularly involving a morning and evening routine, and:

I rewrote my calendar for the last few months of the year to include shorter WholeSomethings and shorter periods off-plan, in the hopes of finding a better balance. For example, at the end of this Whole30 I will have one day off to celebrate my friend's birthday by touring a few dairies and sampling different gourmet cheeses, then it's back on for a Whole25.

A few cool things have happened in theatre news, as well: My lovely friend Jennifer and I went on our second semiannual trip to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and saw the remainder of their 11-show season. It was splendid and I can't wait for next year (I reupped, and upgraded, my membership to take advantage of their presale again). I was cast in another show for early 2018, which (if you include Inspecting Carol) books me from now through early May. More details on the new show to come soon. And we've started rehearsals for IC, which opens late this month and which I think will be really fun--if we can survive the rehearsal process with that many people in the tiny Gilroy Center for the Arts. :-)

I guess that's it for today. Still learning. Always learning.