bookworm05

I am not doing a Whole30 right now, but this is something I have experienced whether I am or not. Every summer, around this time, it seems, my weight starts to climb quite a bit for no apparent reason, other than that my seasonal allergies have kicked in. The bloating is worse than when I am on my period and nothing I do alleviates it. Has anyone experienced this? The only thing I can attribute it to is allergies given that it always seems to happen around the same time every year. Has anyone found any relief?

MeadowLilly - not sure if you mean T1 or T2 diabetes, but I have neither and no issues with blood sugar currently. A1C, fasting and random glucose are all normal, as are most of my labs, with the exception of my total cholesterol being a little high for someone in their 20s (my HDL is excellent, though). My HOMA-IR is also elevated. That's why I'm kind of unsure as to whether I need the AIP or not. I've considered the fact that possibly I did need to do it for longer, but honestly I was dying for it to be over. I just felt miserable the whole time. It was an uphill battle the entire time. AuntJane - That's true. Knowing I can stop at any time if I'm not feeling the results might take some of the pressure off. I totally agree that this type of program could be helpful, but it could also start you down a slippery slope which I really want to avoid.

I do remember posting and it was suggested it didn't seem like I was eating enough food, but I honestly couldn't have imagined eating any more with the way I felt. It would've been force feeding myself. That's the only advice that really stood out for me. I think (and I said this before) I could've been at peace with the minimal weight loss, understanding that other great things were happening and the weight loss would follow eventually, but I didn't feel like anything else good happened and weight loss was my most objective measure at that point. I do wonder if I was overdoing it on the fruit or sweet potato since I was training for a race at the time... Thanks for your input; everyone on here is so encouraging it always makes me feel like I should try again.

I did the Whole30 successfully (in that I completed it) over a year ago. I did not have a good experience. While I stayed off the scale, I was very disappointed in the little weight I lost by the end (2lbs) and how generally bad I felt the entire time. By about halfway through the idea of eating any sort of meat or eggs was enough to make me sick. I felt bloated and groggy and cranky and Tiger Blood never appeared. I didn't go off plan as far as I know and tried my best to follow the meal template set out in It Starts with Food. Nothing improved and for ages I had no desire to even contemplate doing this program again... And as someone who has struggled with disordered eating for many years, I actually found the notion of "perfection" to be quite triggering for me personally... But the more I see the testimonials the more I think I should give it a try...I have PCOS (and about 40lbs of excess fat to lose) and have always had difficulty losing weight but I feel like I must have done something wrong or screwed up somehow. I don't want to start triggering any ED behaviours, but I also want to feel like I gave the program a fair shot since it's been life changing for so many people... Is it worth trying again? What about doing the AIP? Has anyone with PCOS found that to be effective?

ReneeMB, I have PCOS and was so disappointed in my Whole30 experience (no energy, definitely no tiger blood, insane sugar cravings, etc) and weight loss results (none). Now I'm back on met and still not losing but this is making me wonder if met + Whole30 might be the magic combo...

Hey Everyone, So now that the forums are back up and running I figured I should update you. I'm retaining a crap load of water right now thanks to one night of drinking too much wine. Super frustrating it still hasn't gone away. But I do have good news! I saw the campus doctor on Friday October 4th, told her about how well I was eating and how much I work out. She probed me a little more about the exercise I do but agreed pretty quickly it wasn't normal how my body was responding. We did a physical exam and she gave me a blood test for thyroid and blood sugars among other things (I have PCOS). She asked if my thyroid came back normal would I consider going back on metformin and while I was definitely not a fan of taking drugs, if that's the little push I need to get me back where I want to be I'm willing to take it and hopefully come off it again in the future. I hate feeling so out of control with my weight. It was really refreshing to find a doctor so open to working with me. Hopefully this continues. Thanks for the support. I'm sorry I was so negative towards the end. I do love the principles of the Whole30 program and think it lays down a great framework for healthy eating. While this hasn't been a good week I definitely want to transition back into a whole30 way of eating after Thanksgiving and hopefully I will start seeing real progress after I follow up with the doctor on the 18th.

@GF Chris - Thanks! I know you're right, it's better than gaining. And completing a Whole30 was a big accomplishment. I'm sure things will look better in the morning. It's just frustrating when someone much thinner than that I know does it and loses 12lbs...or 17lbs even...doesnt seem fair. Also, I made an appointment at the clinic on campus this morning to get my hormone levels chest. My maternal grandmother is hypothyroid and I've "dieted" for a while and want to get my levels checked just to be sure nothing medical is going on.

I will definitely review it, Physibeth. I didn't take body measurements but my clothes fit exactly the same. I think I'm too sensitive right now to kind of process everything. 2lbs is not tragic, but I feel like I keep losing and gaining the same two pounds whether I'm eating Whole30, paleo, or whatever I feel like and watching my calories. So it's a situation where the input doesn't match the output and that's a bit of a letdown. While I know weight is not the only part of the equation, I have weight to lose so I hoped to see some progress in that direction. Obviously I felt negative right now since my hopes were kind of shattered this morning. I'm hoping after I sleep I'll have some perspective. I did introduce dairy today so we'll see how that goes.

Helgahelga - I wish that was my problem. I'm about 20lbs overweight and 30lbs heavier than I would like to be...so it's not "vanity pounds" or anything like that. I definitely have excess body fat and weight to lose. So Day 31. Disappointed in my results. Couldn't sleep at all last night because I was nervous I wouldn't see anything on the scale (and since I haven't had any really majorly positive changes I was clinging to hope the scale might show something). I lost two measly pounds. I ended up at a lower weight the last time I attempted this when I went on a five day binge-fest during days 15 - 20. I feel like I did a good job with this one, though there's always room for improvement, but yeah. Not really feeling any whole30 love today. I hope everyone's results are better than mine!

@LauraP - That does help take the pressure off. I have no intention to reintroduce certain things. I think the idea of just having to "perfect" for any longer than 30 days is exhausting. I don't want to totally go hog wild...I just want the odd chocolate or glass of wine. I will try that and see how I do. 2.5 hours left in my (official) Whole30. I am soooo nervous to weigh in and see those results. I know I shouldn't be. I know it's not all about weight loss and today was actually a day I felt good. I hope tomorrow is the same and I at least have some results I can take away from this.

Okay, I need some tough love/words of wisdom. I feel blah and have not been experiencing any magic. I'm actually kind of terrified to weigh in (yes, I know it's not all about weight, but my clothes don't fit better and I'm not any smaller). I'm also really excited to eat some chocolate. Really excited. I feel like my sugar cravings have been under control. Usually post dinner is the worst but I've been fine not having anything and have felt no strong urge to pull my hair out...but I still really want chocolate tomorrow. ANd maybe some wine. So does really wanting chocolate mean I need to extend my whole30? The thought of continuing it just sounds exhausting, but maybe that's what I need to do? Should I proceed with reintro? Should I eat a little chocolate and have some wine over the next few days and then get back on whole30 again? Thoughts?

So in honour of Day 29 let's talk post-whole30 plans? What's everyone doing? What are you going to eat? Spill! I will be eating chocolate Wednesday night. And maybe some greek yogurt with breakfast. And some cheese with lunch. Sticking with the dairy-reintro initially to see how I feel. Friday is my roommate's surprise party (that I am coordinating) so I'll be baking cupcakes and trying my best to stick to reintro protocol. I will definitely have some wine then but I'll try and stay away from the cupcakes. I don't want to eat one just to say I ate one, you know? I'm trying to be methodical in my reintro because I don't want the next three days to turn into "let's eat everything I haven't eaten in a month as fast as humanly possible".

Twooooo days. Just over twooooo days. How's everyone doing?

Hmmm okay, thanks amberino. I will keep this in mind. It's not that I'm not eating because I want to lose fat...it's just I"m not hungry and my workout usually lands right before I eat my meal 3. I'll see if I can play with my schedule a bit. Thanks!

I haven't been feeling that hungry upon waking so I haven't had much desire to eat in the mornings. Last time I attempted this I was lightly hungry every night before bed but I'm just not this time around. It's odd. In terms of dinner fats I do aim for about a tablespoon and I try and tip any leftover fat from the pan onto my plate. I usually use the oil to cook my veggies in as well. I was eating a lot of raw stuff but have switched to cooked in a lot of ways. I'm eating much fewer salads this time around . I usually plan my workouts so the end are right before or right after a meal (to minimize the need for a snack). So I'll eat a later lunch, go to the gym, have a post workout snack if I need it and then have dinner. If there's a starch post-workout it's included in my dinner. There's also the possibility that this is all in my head and it's some compensatory, anxiety response to not weighing in for 30 days. I do find I feel better if I take Natural Calm before bed but I haven't done that the last couple of nights. I will do it tonight and see what happens. Thanks for your input!