The end of June, the start of something new

Well, that's it. June is done. We've JERFed throughout June and we've made it to this point. I'm so proud of the efforts of everyone who has participated in JERF in June. Whether it's been sticking to a completely real food diet or just introducing more real foods into their family's meals. Well done everyone and thanks for joining in the ride. 

For me personally, JERF in June has been a challenge in more ways than one. First was making it through the cravings and sugar withdrawals in the first week, second was the sudden upswing in work that saw me working 10+ hour days, then the added interstate travel and finally the challenge of managing not only sticking to real food, but also blogging about it.

But, I made it through. And I'm happy to say that our family are much better for it. A and I are both, without a doubt feeling the positive effects of sticking to real food. 

We've both seen improvements in our digestive systems, my skin has cleared up and I've lost 2.5kgs, and we both have more energy day to day. The added bonus is that we've easily saved over $100 by taking our own snacks places, eating homemade and avoiding takeaway.

One of the things I noticed post week one was that my physical cravings for chocolate and junk had gone, but my mental cravings were still there. I am an emotional eater. Name an emotion and I'll eat for it. It has been a constant fight with myself this month to not eat my feelings. I think it will be a struggle that lasts a lot longer than this challenge. But by challenging myself I've been able to resist the urge to gorge myself on chocolate or placate myself with greasy food. This is a definite win for me.

So, June is over. What happens now? For us the JERF challenge continues and my family and I will continue to JERF in July. I'll also try to keep blogging (hopefully more voraciously now that the work crisis has been sorted) and sharing tips, ideas and recipes with you. 

What does post June look like for you in terms of JERF? I'd love it if some of my readers wanted to share your experiences with JERF in June and what happens now for you.

Thanks everyone. I look forward to continuing to JERF in July with you all. x