It was early March 2011, and I was training for a couple of runs. Specifically, the Shamrock run near St. Patrick’s Day. I signed up for the 15K because that was the one that gave you a beer opener (the other races were a 5K and an 8K). My best friend, who lives all the way across the country, decided she would come visit then, and we could plan the trip around the race.

That sounded like a great idea, so we shared a workout calendar, and marked our runs together on Google Calendar. Training for this race would be fun!

For those of you who don’t run long distances, I am here to tell you, distance running makes you HUNGRY, and when you are capital-H hungry you overeat.

I was eating whole grain, low fat foods, and running four times a week. I should have been in the best shape of my life!

But I wasn’t. I stepped on the scale one day, and realized I had gained eleven pounds in three months.

Holy smokes.

Also! I was having some severe tummy trauma. As in “not pooping for seven days” trauma.

So, after the race, I wanted to do a cleanse. Somehow, I found myself on Whole 9′s website. They have a great voice. They say things like, “no you are wrong, this is not hard. It’s 30 days. What do you have to lose?”

I jumped in with both feet. Someone commented that if you only dabble in paleo, and you increase your fat intake without decreasing carbs, you will be sorry because you will end up fatter.

The eleven pounds came off before the Whole 30 program ended. I know because I cheated, and stepped on the scale too many times during that month.

Not only was I back to my old weight, I was pooping everyday too. Throwing out Miralax was one of the high points of 2011.

And now, here I am, over a year later, and it’s how I eat. The times where I’ve unintentionally slipped (oops that restaurant dish had soy sauce in it, didn’t it?) have resulted in tummy trauma.

It’s really not hard. Join me, will you?