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Hello to all of the Whole30'ers out there. I started my journey on January 1, 2019. My husband was supportive and started with me, although he was reluctant to do so. Today is day 29 and we both have seen tremendous changes in our health, personal outlook and appearance. I think one of the biggest accomplishments I have seen in my husband is that he will now read a food label other than the price tag! He has come to understand the importance of knowing what is in his food. He has lost weight, he has more energy and he tells me when he uses the stairs at work he no longer gets winded. For me however, this journey has been life altering. I have lived my life on a diet since around the age of 8-10 years old. I have reduced intake, counted calories, fat, exercised to exhaustion and been an anorexic/bulimic. I have taken over-the-counter diet pills as well as doctor prescribed diet medication (amphetamines). I have weighed as little as 113 pounds (I am 5 ft 7 in) and I continued to perceive myself as obese and unattractive. We don't even need to discuss self-esteem because there was none. With all of the damage I've done to my body over the years from food restriction and excessive exercise I have several auto-immune diseases as well as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. I have been on medication for both form of arthritis since the age of 32 (currently 57). I have been on blood pressure medication since I was 26. Then along comes the Whole30. I read and researched for two months before I started my 30-day program. I wanted to make sure this was not some other "fad". After reading the book twice, looking at the forum comments I was ready to commit to the 30 days. I am now a self proclaimed Whole30 Guru. Even though I am still on my arthritis medication I am in more control than I have been since the age of 32! I'm even wondering if I can reduce the medication or come off of them. On the day I started my W30 my blood pressure was 149/96. I took my BP on day 27 and my BP was 117/74. That is an objective indicator of my success. I have not felt so well since I was in my late teens/early 20's. For the first time in my life have has self-esteem, confidence, and can look at my body and not feel discuss and disappointment. I assume I have lost weight, although I do not know as I have not been on a scale; I threw my scale away. However, my abdomen is totally flat. I do Pilates and Gyro exercise and my abdominal muscles can now be seen. I wish I would have take a before picture so I could see the actual difference but I did not due to how much I loathed my body. So really want to send a thank you to everyone out there who designed and wrote this program. I thank the people who produce and supply the compliant meats. Thank you to the organic farmers. Thank you to everyone to posts on the form, I have read a lot of you comment/concerns. I will embark on my phase 2, reintroduction on on Thursday January 31. I plan to take it very slow, there are many foods I do not want to reintroduce at all. I'll be back to let you know how things are going.

I've said this on the forum a few times now, but he honestly just needs to suck it up (man to man here/tough love). I drank a minimum of 60 oz of soda per day. It went down something like this: 44oz soda from the corner store in the morning to get me to lunch. Water or a 20oz soda at lunch. One or two 12 oz sodas at home in the evening. I took to Spindrift my first Whole30 and also found a compliant Spearmint Hot Tea to give me a bit of caffeine help. I had horrible headaches for a few days but then the SpinDrift and Water alone were fine. By the end of my first Whole30 I could no longer stand the tasted of diet soda. Now when I absolutely feel like I want one I'll oblige myself with one regular sugar soda but otherwise it's water, sparkling water or SpinDrift. During my current Whole30 I have had tea once or twice a week and drink at least 80 oz of regular water and (2) 12oz Sparkling Waters of various types a day. Yes it sucks, but it will likely change his perspective on those drinks. This is still one of my biggest NSVs of Whole30 and it has lasted over 6 months!

Remember that one of the rules is to not weigh yourself during your whole30. That rule is just as important as the other rules. (Rules are here if you want to review them: https://whole30.com/whole30-program-rules/)

Greetings Ryan! I'm on day 18 after being "gonna start" for probably a year myself. I'm loving it! Feel free to look up my Whole 30 Log in the Log section near the bottom of the forum for a (probably very boring) day by day of what I eat and how I feel lol. Don't be afraid to experiment, don't be afraid to ask, use the forum as the great source of info it is (hint: the search function isn't great, you're better to google "Whole 30 forum [query- i.e. can I have ______]" but sooooo many questions have already been asked and answered by the excellent mods here that it's easy to find info! There's also FB groups which are really interactive, the "Whole 30 Support Group" is a good one.

Hello all! I am on Day 31! I have not reintroduced anything yet, but here are my results: I weighed myself this morning and gained three pounds but I was slender to begin with so while I was slightly annoyed, my BMI is still under 21. (My BMI went from 20.4 to 20.8) I think I am actually going to permanently ditch the scale. I didn't miss it at all and have only weighed myself a few times this past year. I only did a pre-weigh and a post-weigh for the purpose of Whole30. My stomach is flatter and my waist is smaller. My skin looks amazing!!! My cheekbones are more pronounced. My teeth are whiter. I think this is because I am not snacking between meals, didn't drink red wine this month and drank less coffee. I might be hallucinating, but I seem to have less gray hair around my temples. I have better, steadier energy. I am sleeping well every night and waking up easily every morning. My biggest victory this month is really making healthy eating the most important priority for both me and my family. I am making healthier meals for my family and waking up a little earlier to make them good breakfasts & lunches everyday in addition to good dinners. We also talk more about healthy eating and how it makes us feel better than eating junk food. My 10 yer old son told me he had pizza and a soda at a student council meeting and immediately had a stomachache after eating. He said it wasn't worth feeling that way. He asked me to bring healthy food and water when it was his turn to bring in a snack. My 6 year old daughter told me that she asked for a sticker instead of a candy for a prize for behaving well in class. I don't "forbid" them from eating junk food but I never buy it for them. I want them to successfully learn how to make their own healthy choices by setting a good example and always having healthy food in the house.

This will be the first post of the day - because the day that everyone starts off thinking is never going to come has arrived for the 3 of us intrepid W30ers in my famjam!!! And I'm excited to report on everyone's progress. I'm so glad they both jumped in wholeheartedly to do this with me - it would have been really difficult to do this on my own. My hat is off to anyone who does it on their own without family support. Last night, Hubs and I sat down to chat through his experience since we're not otherwise going to see each other today. His sole goal was to drop 5 pounds which he did (he broke the rules and weighed himself Day24) and his clothes are fitting better. He's a tall (6'1"), thin (177 when we started) and doesn't really have too much in the way of health complaints - unlike his wife. So, he says he can't really tell if anything has changed for him - no tiger blood, no digestive improvements, no change in sleep or brain fog - nada. But those 5 lbs mean a lot to him. He and I were both obese and really sick at one point in our lives, (here's an article from Canada's National Newspaper about us https://tgam.ca/2SniHAM), and neither of us ever want to go back. SO - even though he doesn't feel any different, he wants to make major dietary changes - no more cheese, crackers, cereal, bread, white rice (he's fallen in love with cauiliflower rice) and NO MORE CANDY. I'd say the one thing that has changed is his sweet tooth - he was ALWAYS scouting around looking for something sweet after dinner and that has stopped. So, this morning, I'm doing the clean out the pantry for the Food Bank - there are going to be some carbs heading out!

I’m starting tomorrow and will be checking in daily. Good luck!!

I'm on Day 29 Today, Monday!! But, on Wednesday, I'm doing Day 1--another 30! I really recommend the Whole 30 Day by Day (book/journal). It's been really helping me stay focused. I just got another to start my second Whole 30. This is not easy, but it isn't as hard as you'd think. Within a few DAYS I had huge "non-scale" victories--better sleep, no nightly Pepsid, less brain fog. Keep yourself Accountable by putting your Health 1ST! Get through the first few days and you will not want to quit!! You really have to decide that you are worth taking care of YOU!

A year ago today, I was physically miserable and fed up with myself. My feet, hips, back and shoulders ached nearly constantly. I had no real desire to exercise and was wiped out at the end of most days. I weighed nearly 255 pounds - probably the heaviest I have ever been in my life. It also was the day I took the first step toward trying to get control of my weight and health by jumping into the Whole 30 pool. Privately, I set a lofty goal of losing 50 pounds in a year, thinking I would be thrilled if I managed to lose half that - especially since I had set the same goal the previous year and lost 1 pound in 12 months. This morning, I weighed in at just under 195 pounds. I feel - and look - better than I have since I was in college. I am a professional communicator and words are my stock in trade, but in this case I fear that that my words won't do justice to the sense of accomplishment, pride, appreciation and gratitude I feel for what has happened to me over the past 365 days. Still, I'm going to give it a shot. For context, I am a 55-year-old man who has battled weight issues most of his life. For the better part of two decades I have consistently carried 30-40 pounds more than is healthy. It has contributed, I'm sure, to a laundry list of joint issues that have required surgery. I have launched more "get healthy" attempts than I care to admit, and my New Year's resolution for every year that I can remember has been to "lose (fill in the blank with some large number) pounds this year." To be honest, I'm not sure what was different about last year. Maybe it was the fact that I was approaching 55 and realized that I didn't have unlimited time to make lasting change. Mostly, I think it was that I finally got sick and tired and feeling kinda sick and tired. Whatever the motivation, I'm certain of the role Whole 30 played in helping me stick to a plan for once. I've detailed my progress at various times throughout the year, so you can read earlier posts for more, but the nearly immediate positive feedback my body provide to my new eating habits became infections. My joint inflammation receded to background noise within a couple of weeks. My energy level spiked. I dropped a meaningful amount of weight in the first month. And, most weirdly, I even had a fatty cyst at the base of my neck that was scheduled to be removed disappear about three weeks into my first month. My first Whole 30 month went so well that I actually had to force myself to do the food reintroductions (but do them - it's important to know what works and doesn't work for your body). And I can't stress this enough: If weight loss is an motivating factor for joining Whole 30, changing your eating habits isn't enough. I was lucky: my body felt so much better from Whole 30 that I wanted to be more active. The more I exercised, the more weight I lost and the more I wanted to exercise and eat right. It became a virtuous circle of healthy behaviors. Armed with knowledge about my body, food and exercise - and buoyed by the support of family and friends - I have seen my weight drop steadily, my body composition change dramatically and my health "stats" improve sharply. I am a few days away from finishing my third Whole 30 month and have completely changed my relationship with food. As important, I have fallen in love with being active. I'm at the gym three days a week, in the yoga studio another day or two each week. I have enjoyed challenging day hikes in the mountains of North and South Carolina and early this month began training for my first 5K race. My only regret, if I were to have one, would be that I didn't do this 10 or 15 years earlier. That said, I easily feel 10 or 15 years younger than I am, so I have truly just started looking at age as a number, not a statement on where I am in life. My challenge now is to figure out where to go from here. I still would like to lose another 10 pounds or so, but honestly I'd be fine to stay where I am as long as my fitness level stays high. Besides, while this started out as a way to lose weight it has become so much more. In many ways, this has been one of the most rewarding years of my life. To honor that experience, and to ensure that the past 12 months haven't just been a happy blip, I feel the need to find another big mountain to scale (probably not literally in my case). That's the challenge I have set for myself. If I figure it out, I'll be back to share with all of you who have been supportive of my efforts this year. For today, though, I am going to enjoy the moment. I've already said thanks to those closest to me, without whose support and love this doesn't happen. The same goes for everyone traveling their own journey to improve their health and their lives. I know as well as anyone that progress is rarely a straight line, but that fact that we're all out here trying has to count for something, right? Keep fighting the good fight - and thanks to all for helping me win this round. With appreciation, ML

Hi jenwestphal, I'm starting tomorrow, but can I join you? I need accountability, too! It's going to be doing without bread that will be my challenge! How has your first day been going?

First, WELCOME! I'm on day 27 of my first round, and I haven't felt this good in decades. I'm not even sure if I've lost weight (a welcome side effect if it happens, but not one of my reasons for doing this), but I definitely feel so much better in nearly every way, and I'm learning a lot about my habits and relationships regarding food. Some specific pointers that will hopefully help -- Start Simple It won't do you any good to go into this and immediately feel completely overwhelmed, and none of us is going to judge you for not making meals worthy of 5-star restaurants (in fact, I'd be supremely jealous if I started seeing that on any of my feeds! yikes!). In your shoes, one of my reasons for doing this would be specifically so I could gain confidence in the kitchen... which also won't happen if you try things that are too complicated. So simple is good, especially since you already acknowledge that you're practical and like simple things. This is maybe even more important if you're not cooking only for yourself, because the more you simplify things for yourself the less stress you're going to experience in the kitchen. Have a Plan The other ladies mentioned Meal Planning, but I want to touch on that also. Meal Planning isn't just about knowing what you want to make and when, it's also a way of making sure that you're shopping for what you need (and not feeling like you should buy a bunch of extra stuff that may end up going bad before you can use it) so that you're able to save time and money. The more fresh protein and produce you buy, the less time overall you have to be in the store because those don't have labels. There are still some things you'll undoubtedly get from the "middle" aisles, but over time it becomes easier to look over the label to make sure things are compliant. Meal Planning Tips See if your regular grocery store has a weekly ad that you can check online, and find out when their promotional week starts (for instance, Sprouts runs from Wednesday to Wednesday and has a day of overlap, but our Kroger runs from Wednesday to Tuesday). I review the ad(s) for whatever store(s) I want to consider, and use those as a source of inspiration for what to cook that week (i.e., if roast is on a good sale, plan to buy one and grab a recipe for preparing it; if romaine is marked down, plan for working salads into your days; if apples are on sale, find your recipes that incorporate apple into the main meal, like a pork roast with apples, onions, and cinnamon). For mine, I plan our weekly meals from Thursday to Wednesday, and shop on either Wednesday or Thursday; that lets me catch the sales and make sure I'm in there the day after the sales started, so less chance they've run out of what I'm wanting. Basic meal plans can be very simple, but it might take a little time to learn how you best like to do it. Planning for Leftovers / Continued Use As the others mentioned, making a big batch of something is a great way to reduce your everyday workload. My family is too big for me to do this effectively, but if it's just you or only a couple of people then it's extremely easy to have a casserole last several days or make a double batch of meatballs to carry over in lunches. There are a ton of "meal prep" recipes online, where you essentially roast a bunch of stuff on a sheet pan and then split it all up into containers to use for lunches all week (or dinner on nights you don't want to cook). Planning Ahead with Shopping If you have the space to store additional food when things are on a really good sale, and if your budget supports doing it, it can help SO MUCH. For instance, when pork loins are buy one get on free, we usually grab two. We'll turn one of them into pork chops and split the other into roasts (for my big family, that's basically 4 meals, but it's probably more like 6 or even 8 if you're cooking for only 1-2 people). Just toss the extras in freezer-safe bags to use within the next couple of months. I also buy extra cauliflower if it's on sale; then I rice it (in a food processor) and freeze it to use over the next month. Remember: if your meal plan includes only dinners (some plan out all their meals, some don't), please remember to buy things you'll want for breakfast and/or lunch, for days when a salad or leftovers aren't going to sound appealing. Preparing for your Safety You mentioned cutting yourself in the past, and I'd definitely suggest investing in a couple of things to help make that less likely. First would be some kind of hand/finger-guard to protect you from cuts during prep. Second, use a food processor if you need shredded or grated veggies; it'll be so much safer and since you won't be worried over your fingers, you'll lose less to waste. Third, having a good peeler and just going slowly with it, until you can get the rhythm and feel comfortable with it, also helps in keeping you safe while you prep your food. Third, you'll want a simple little kitchen timer that you can carry around (or an alarm app on your phone), to help you keep up with when you need to be in the kitchen even if you do have to walk away for a few minutes. Lastly, make sure a fire extinguisher is somewhere that's easily accessible in the kitchen (and that's a good idea for ALL of us). Recipe Collecting Some people love to collect recipes on paper (books, cards in a box, printed pages in a binder, etc.). I'm really not one of those people. I just want to SEE the recipe clearly while I'm trying to follow it, but I prefer to keep it all online where I can access it from anywhere on my phone. I use Copy Me That (https://www.copymethat.com/) to collect recipes I like from food blogs and to add my own; it's free to make an account and use it, and includes a recipe keeper (with complete editing ability and tags), meal plan section (which allows you to add recipes or just notes, so you can say "baked potatoes" if you'll have that but don't need a recipe for it), and even ability to add recipes to your grocery list (which can be edited as well). I highly suggest taking a look ...Just Breathe... Seriously, do it. You've got this. You are strong and courageous. You are taking a drastic step to improve your quality of life. You can do this, including everything in the kitchen, just take small steps and allow yourself to get familiar with your own flow and how things feel in the kitchen. Don't let your past experiences hold you back; use them instead to inform your path forward, and rejoice when you make even tiny bits of progress (especially when it's progress in areas where you know you have anxiety, like kitchen skills). If anything feels overwhelming, take a step back and look at the situation to see what you can remove to make it all more manageable, then move on from there. If you're the type that enjoys support groups, try to hook up with a few people who start roughtly at the time you do/did so you can be accountable and get some good moral support going -- and if you can't find any, please feel free to message me privately and I'll be happy to be an accountability buddy; I'm doing a slow-roll reintroduction, so I'll be mostly compliant through all of February. Ahem, and now I apologize for writing you a book I'm going to stop looking back over this now, so I'll stop adding in new thoughts!

Hello all, I’ve haven’t checked in for a while, but am progressing right along. My energy is good until right after lunch and the I really, really need a nap. 20 minutes later and I’m off and running. Anyone else experiencing odd energy ups and downs? I last wrote about my exasperated hot flushes I am pleased to say that these have abated! Also, I started Whole30’s in hoping to alleviate my achy joints. It started quite suddenly about 1 and a half years ago. My doctor tested for inflammatory markers and found none. So unexplained pain. My only relief came from last summer’s 18 day passage sailing from Osaka, Japan to Dutch Harbor, Alaska. No alcohol, constant movement, a very small appetite and lots of stress. My break from joint pain lasted about a month (full of unhealthy eating and drinking). Now almost four weeks into Whole30’s and only a slight decrease in joint pain. Kind of bummed, but I plan to continue well beyond 30 days. I am also interested in following those of you who are planning a slow re-introduction of foods.

Who is a first timer starting (today) for February?! Me. Me. Me. Me

Technically I am on my own now - Hubs and Gee are done with the W30 for this round although both are committed to do it again the minute they think it's necessary. Hubs had some catering prepared chciken and his first beer last night at a work event - he was really shocked that he could only tolerate half the beer before setting it aside and, to use his words, "I feel like sh** today. I really have to take this seriously!" Likely that catering chicken was sugar, soy and God knows what else. Anyway, I'm still on the W30 for 10 more days. I'll be checking in with Gee in a few days to see what's happening with her. To weigh in or not to weigh in? That is the question. I'm one of those people who has a scale problem. When I'm heavy, I avoid it like the shame inducing plague I believe it to be. When I am thin, I'm on that thing 3 times a day. I TOTALLY agree with Melissa that we should not be letting a bit of $20 plastic, (well, $150 bit of chrome and glass for me but we're quibbling here), rule how we feel about ourselves. But that statement holds true whether we're on it or not. Avoiding it isn't any better than getting on it - dealing with the emotion it brings up is what's important. My therapist is chuffed with pride right now. So, I decided to weigh in. I lost 10 lbs. I'm really surprised and not at all surprised because I know how my clothes feel on me and my face couldn't make a double chin if I retracted it back to my spinal cord. I feel no emotion whatsoever about the number which is the weirdest thing of all. This program has helped solidify all those therapy sessions into a happy part of my brain. I've never felt more emotionally balanced in my adult life and my reaction to getting on that scale solidifies that. Just for some perspective though - the last time I was successfully on WW (2017, lost 12lbs), I was sticking to their points system and never ate my extra points. I was probably between 900 - 1200 calories per day. I was working out every day - running, cycling, strength training, yoga. It took me 5 months to lose 12 pounds - I was hungry all the time and, it wasn't sustainable. On W30, I haven't been to the gym once - sidelined by recovery, I decided to work on diet and inflammation before heading back to the gym this month. I eat large amounts of delicious food, I am never hungry and, in 30 days, I lost 10lbs. So. Okay then. Day 31 indeed... I

Monita, I finished my first Whole30 on January 31. Like you, I considered doing a Whole30 plus a drink here or there - but decided not to. I LOVE wine, and love me a good IPA. I am SO glad that I did. I almost caved on day 10 - but then Sweet Melissa popped up on my Facebook feed telling me that most people, if they are going to quit, quit on Day 10 or 11. She convinced me to push through. It was hard. I had cravings. But sometimes, I would just have a little bit of compliant Kombucha in a wine glass or a cup of herbal tea. And guess what? The cravings got to be less and less. By about the two week mark, cravings were gone. The most noticeable thing was that I slept better than I had in a long time, and woke up feeling refreshed and happy. Anyway, I am going to encourage you to give this 100% for 30 days. If you don't, not gonna judge, but I encourage you because I want everyone to experience feeling the way I do now, and for me I KNOW that it wouldn't have been possible with alcohol. Also, are you eating enough carbs? Maybe have fruit earlier in the day, sweet potatoes, and regular potatoes? Good luck, whatever you decide to do!

Let me weigh in here. I'm a wine connoisseur with extensive education in wine. I have a dedicated cellar in my home with some pretty special bottles. I really, really, REALLY love wine. Initially we thought we would do a Whole30 plus wine thing but then we decided that, if we were going to do this, we were going to do it all in. 100%. The first few weeks were really tough. Lots of headaches and brain fog. I agree with taking some tylenol and getting over the sugar withdrawal ASAP. By Friday night, I could hear bottles calling me by name. It was so tempting and so, so hard. It was, in fact, the only thing I craved. But, now on Day 31, I am so glad we did Whole 30 as designed. In fact, I am so convinced of the benefits of the program, that I committed to an additional 10 days so I don't muddy the waters of re-introduction with serious jetlag (travel from Toronto to Adelaide jetlag). That means a Whole 40 without wine AND I'm travelling to South Australia where some of the best shiraz and reislings in the world are made. Even I can't believe it -40 days without wine. I don't think wine causes me any problems. Despite my love of it, I don't drink to access and didn't have any kind of withdrawal from it besides sadness and missing it. But, something has been messing with me because, after 31 days - I feel amazing. The best I ever have in, literally, decades. I am really looking forward to reintroducing it in 9 days - because, I don't think it's causing any problems but, I won't know that for sure for 9 more days. That's how this works afterall If I find out wine causes me problems, I'll have choices and decisions to make. I'll cross that bridge in 9 days. If it's fine, I'll carry on with Paleo plus wne. I encourage you to choose to have this whole experience - 100%. It's been an absolutely phenomenal for me and my 2 famjam members who did this with me. Good luck however you decide.

Yes- putting the words into action! I have an autoimmune disease & my endocrinologist really recommends giving this a shot. I have been mostly dairy free (minus chocolate mostly...) I'm excited to break some nasty habits... I love to snack throughout my work day! So, I'm excited to have much more control on what I'm eating / snacking on instead of whatever I grab that is easy... Two days down!! Where abouts are you? I'm in Michigan!

You can drink and follow all the other principles of the Whole30 but you would not be doing a Whole30, you would be doing your own program. If now's not a good time for you to give up drinking, that's totally fine and we're not here to judge but rather support you when you're ready. There are lots of discussions around how to navigate not drinking on Whole30 even with a richly scheduled social calendar but again, the final decision is up to you. As far as the headaches, if it is sugar withdrawl, feeding yourself more sugar in the form of fruit isn't going to be a great solution. You'd be better off to take the tylenol and kick the sugar withdrawls rather than dragging them out by giving yourself that bit of sugar every night. It's likely you wouldn't find many stories of someone doing Whole30 with alcohol and then reporting their experience on a Whole30 platform because we keep the topics around the successes of Whole30 on topic to those who have completed them within the rules. You do raise a good point tho, for yourself, you're never going to know what the difference is between doing it with alcohol and doing it without until you do both - we have no way of knowing how much or little alcohol affects your system, your cravings, your willpower, your energy, headaches, bloating etc...

Omg, let me tell you, it was so unpleasant! Honestly I don't drink many lattes, it's a very infrequent treat. I do LOVE ice cream, yogurt, and cheese though! I think I'll still try yogurt as a separate reintro because it's generally a lot lower in lactose and good for your gut. I think dairy will just have to be something I eat rarely and with Lactaid pills! I usually buy almond milk, but I'm not sure how much of that I'll be using since now I don't really eat cereal for breakfast and I don't drink it straight out of the glass. It'll just have to be around for cooking. Icing will definitely still be consumed on special occasions, but gone are the days of eating it from the tub (I can't be the only one who does that!). I've made a deal with myself about sugar: I can have a sugary treat once a week if I feel like it's worth the consequences, but no more than that. It's not going to be a reward or a crutch anymore. I'm not the dragon's pawn I am the Mother of Dragons! (please tell me someone gets that) In terms of my continued reaction from yesterday's reintro, it's gotten better, but not resolved. In the middle of the night I woke up and my stomach was like a balloon! I didn't sleep well, although I hadn't been sleeping well anyway. I still feel some bloat, but not as bad. I'm curious what I'll weigh and what my waist measurement will be in a couple of days. How long are the effects going to last? Today I'm back to W30 foods so I had a compliant breakfast, brought dinner leftovers for lunch, and indulged in a chai tea with nutpods creamer for a morning pick-me-up!

Me too! I gave up consistent coffee about 2 years ago. Not for the Whole30. I had other reasons at the time. I was drinking about 4-6 cups a day. It was my "happy juice." I never felt buzzed or even energized after drinking coffee. I would just be "normal." I could literally drink a huge cup (think like 24 oz) of coffee and then go to bed. I did drink them black, so I did not think it was such a big deal. Boy was I wrong. I had only given up coffee once before and both time weeks of headaches and nausea ensued. Cut to months later. I had a coffee while out to eat at breakfast and wow. I felt the caffeine with just one cup of coffee. I do miss the taste. I love coffee. To this day I try not to drink coffee more than 2 days in a row (even decaf), because if I do, I am "hooked" again. No it won't be weeks of headaches. Maybe just one or two days. It is crazy how we can be addicted to something and not even notice it or be addicted to something and it is just socially acceptable (kinda like sugar.) Good luck skipping coffee! Hopefully your symptoms will not be too bad!

I think I finally got tiger blood on Sunday! I felt great all day and it carried over into Monday. This morning I woke up more tired and I've had a slight headache and queasiness all day. I'm definitely excited for this to be over, but I also intend to carry over a lot of it, especially the mindfulness. I'm a snacker, I've always been a snacker, but I haven't been needing snacks for most of this program. I've been eating enough filling and nutritional food that I don't get hungry two hours later. That's a huge step! Sugar is definitely something I'll have to be careful about reintroducing. The term "sugar dragon" couldn't be more accurate to describe my personal sugar habit. I did fine staying away from fried foods, soy, even dairy, but I struggled with sugar. I've considered switching to xylitol in the past just to tame it, but I'm glad I didn't get hooked on an artificial sweetener either. Whole30 did so much more than divert the craving. In terms of NSVs, I have some seriously loose work pants I'm going to have to do something about. Health and bloating victory, yes, wallet victory, maybe not! I've also gone from being a 5-year vegetarian to being able to tolerate all kinds of meats. I don't think I quite ate the W30 recommended amount with each meal, but just eating animal proteins at all was a big struggle. I'm so proud of all of us for getting this far! With only one day left, I know we'll all make it!

Welcome @KimG74 I'm on Day 26 of my first W30 (and yes, there will be another one as needed) Find the Your Whole30 Log page and post everyday - I found keeping tabs on the day to day experience very helpful and fun to look back on. Plus, sometimes people comment so you feel like you've made a connection. I've relied heavily on my Instant Pot which I bought specifically for doing the W30. Knowing I could stick a seasoned chicken, some veg and a cup of water in the pot when I got home and have dinner ready in 45 minutes from start to finish has been very helpful. I think I'm really fortunate because I can't imagine a time when I would get sick of eggs - I love them. Boil a dozen and keep them handy - I just bring the pot to a boil, turn the heat off and leave them in the water until it's all cold - nothing special there. I prepped a ton of veggies ahead on time - put 4 onions into my food processor, chopped them all then into an airtight container in the fridge. Did the same with garlic but covered it in oil. Everytime I wanted to cook, those things were ready for me. I also have a local organic grocer that sells things like chopped kale - a little more expensive but amazing in a time crunch. I put chopped kale into everything! All in all, enjoy this amazing process - it's probably the most interesting and educational thing I've done during my 40 year battle with my weight. I actually feel like W30 is a truce! Best wishes for a successful W30!!

Jenwestphal, I am starting today, too!!! I am also concerned about giving up sugar. I also eat a lot of dairy, specifically cheese! I am excited and very nervous, but my meals are planned. I have a lot of food prep to do today to get ready for the week.

We are only concerned with what people eat on this program so if you're not eating it then you're good

They're essentially chips. It's a crunchy, bag-to-hand-to-mouth food. So, something else to think about with these: Serving size. On the back of the peach bag, it says that each bag has 2 peaches in it. I'm presuming the apple says the same. If you're going to sit down and have some fruit, are you going to sit down to tuck into 2 whole apples or 2 whole peaches? Probably not. But in a little bag of sweet crunchy yumminess, 2 apples goes down pretty dang easy.