After four months of completely experiencing a new culture, I noticed my clothes weren’t fitting quite the same as they used to. I’m ok with this. I’ve enjoyed every new moment and the food that’s accompanied them.

I recently re-read French Women Don’t Get Fat, a book based on the premise that French women live life to the fullest and enjoy their food without gaining weight.

My favorite takeaways, and practices I’ve started using in my own life: Treat a meal as a sacred ritual. Eat at a table, without distractions. Use your best silver and china for each meal. Eat slowly to appreciate all the flavors of your food. Spend time at the market and in the kitchen so you are invested in the complete process of making your meal. Don’t eat food that doesn’t taste good. Indulge in treats and savor them; eat a little less of something else that day if you do indulge.

So, I now approach my meals with the kind of reverence and thoughtfulness of the French.

But I also realized I needed a little kick in my diet.

When I got back from Berlin, I read up on JJ Virgin and her eponymous diet. It’s an elimination diet, very similar to Paleo, but eggs are also off-limits. After 21 days of eliminating dairy, grains, sugar, processed foods, you then add those foods back in (one a week) to see if you have sensitivities to any of them.

I’ve been very conscious of my protein, fat, veggies, carbs ratio with each meal. I’m eating veggies on veggies on veggies. I start the day with hot lemon water and drink water constantly throughout the day. I’m eating chia seeds, flaxseeds, spinach and sauerkraut every day. All of the foods I buy are from local farms. Again, I wasn’t eating unhealthy before, I’m just eating more healthy now.

I’ve been very aware of my body over the last week and a half and how it’s reacting to eliminating these foods. While I’ve done Paleo in the past, I don’t think I ever paid close attention to how I really felt.

A few things I’ve noticed this time around:
-My skin looks great. Not something I would normally notice because I don’t have bad skin. But I really think it looks better.
-My energy level is consistent throughout the day
-My workouts are better
-I am sleeping better
-I am more…ahem…regular
-I feel mentally sharper

All of these things make me want to keep on trucking. I’ll admit, it’s A LOT of work. I feel like I’m always in the kitchen cooking. But it’s what I’m into right now, so I’m ok with it.

I’m excited to see how I feel when I experiment with adding these foods back in. But I’m feeling so great now, I might not try that for a while. I’m not kidding myself into thinking this will last forever. I know life will happen. And thank god for that, because life without indulgence would be so boring. For now, I’m enjoying this latest part of my journey with food.