stealthstitcher

I still exist! I just did a ton of heavy yardwork this past week and got to the point where I just staggered into the house, took a shower, and went to bed. No energy for posting. But I did complete the 30 days. Took May 31 off and had rice in my Chipotle - oh, the decadence! 
So now I return for Whole30, Part 2: The Quest for Not Feeling Like Two Dozen Cookies is a Reasonable Serving (the title's a bit awkward, I'll work on that). I feel like the cravings are going to hit harder this time around. May Whole30 was easy ... too easy.  

I have monster snacking and munching cravings. My original plan right now is to go into a 60 or 90 day depending on what my cravings look like and whether or not i can avoid going down a rabbit hole. I want to do a very slow reintroduction that will probably be over that time span anyway and then go into off road planning. So i fully anticipate being on it for the 90 days for the most part because i know how easy it is for me to fall back into the hole and I need to get that sugar dragon as small as possible. I think if you find that you can avoid your personal traps then you should be fine to come off. Make your healthy choices when possible and dont fall into the pit of despair of junkfood and trash. But if you are still battling your cravings, maybe do it as close as you can while avoiding those trigger foods like cookies and chocolate  

Im sticking with it very closely because reintroduction is an important part for me for inflammation and pain so i need to keep possible triggers out of my diet until i have a better idea. once i know ill rotate the foods i want back in but focus on not eating them every day and not eating all of them all the time lol. I bet getting to the end is always hard because it seems like a finish line and the reward should obviously be eat delicious! Thats why ive planned from the beginning to go past 30 or else there was a good chance at 31 id be like PIZZA TIME! so now i dont even know the end date im just counting - TAKE THAT BRAIN

@stealthstitcher @Blueautumn I'm with you both on the "its end of the 30 days what do I do now I just want to eat a cookie."  My plan is to go W30 for 40 days, then try a modified version of reintroductions.  I just know that it will be waaaay too easy to give in to all the good stuff total junk foods out there that will lead to unravelling all the work I've done so far.  But I have also learned through a few false W30 starts over the winter that I am able to bring myself back to my healthy habits without too much trouble.  Of course it was always after I spent days devouring all the junk.  
Off-roading is inevitable.  When it happens, I hope that you are both able to bring yourself back to where you want to be. I think that's a key point.  To get back on the wagon.  Life is too short to live W30 all the time.
Shadow

I was just thinking it was odd how easily this is going ... then today I'm having problems sticking with it for the first time since I started. Up to now I've had some mild cravings but nothing I couldn't ignore. Today I'm not so much having intense cravings as a lot of mild cravings and a desire to just quit. My brain keeps going "this is enough, might as well just stop now". 
There are only 4 days left to complete 30, so I can definitely hang in there that long. The problem is what follows. At this point, I know that if I abandon the plan I'll just go back to where I was. I'm definitely not to the point where I can occasionally indulge in a treat without problems - I still want to eat a whole package of cookies or bag of chocolate in a day, and the thought of being moderate sounds more unsatisfying than not having any. I know people do get there, but honestly it sounds nearly impossible to get to the point where I don't want ALL the sweets ... 
Is it better to go for a whole60 or 90 and then see where I am at that point, or better to have carefully planned off-roading? For example, if I go to visit my parents it would be very difficult to stick completely on plan. I'd need to bring almost all my food with me and they wouldn't have much room in the fridge or freezer for me to put things. If I help a friend move out of state, it would be hard to stay compliant for several days on the road with a limited food budget. I know people do manage to do these things, but it sounds like a huge amount of work. 

I was just thinking it was odd how easily this is going ... then today I'm having problems sticking with it for the first time since I started. Up to now I've had some mild cravings but nothing I couldn't ignore. Today I'm not so much having intense cravings as a lot of mild cravings and a desire to just quit. My brain keeps going "this is enough, might as well just stop now". 
There are only 4 days left to complete 30, so I can definitely hang in there that long. The problem is what follows. At this point, I know that if I abandon the plan I'll just go back to where I was. I'm definitely not to the point where I can occasionally indulge in a treat without problems - I still want to eat a whole package of cookies or bag of chocolate in a day, and the thought of being moderate sounds more unsatisfying than not having any. I know people do get there, but honestly it sounds nearly impossible to get to the point where I don't want ALL the sweets ... 
Is it better to go for a whole60 or 90 and then see where I am at that point, or better to have carefully planned off-roading? For example, if I go to visit my parents it would be very difficult to stick completely on plan. I'd need to bring almost all my food with me and they wouldn't have much room in the fridge or freezer for me to put things. If I help a friend move out of state, it would be hard to stay compliant for several days on the road with a limited food budget. I know people do manage to do these things, but it sounds like a huge amount of work. 

I 1000% believe that if I had a montage I would have been done by now :)

 

Day ... what day is today? Day 22. Things are still proceeding just fine. I feel a little disturbed by how easily this is going this time ... 
I did have dreams about eating chocolate the last two nights. In the dream I had last night, I thought, "Oh no, I shouldn't eat this!" and then thought "No, wait, this is just a dream, might as well enjoy it ..." and did! Dream chocolate was oddly satisfying ...
I do find the results I get from Whole30 both good and disappointing. On the one hand, I have steadier energy, fewer headaches and joint paint, probably losing some weight that needs to come off, skin tends to be a bit clearer ... but on the other hand, my energy isn't through the roof, I still have occasional headaches, don't lose a ton of weight, skin is not perfect ... It's not like I'm unhappy with my results, just sometimes a little part of me sighs over the lack of unrealistically spectacular results. Sadly, it is not possible to achieve results in a four minute montage with Eye of the TIger playing in the background. Things take time and patience. If I don't do anything, then a few months from now I will be in the same place or worse. If I make healthy changes, in a few months I will have noticeable results and will be glad I did it. 

Day ... what day is today? Day 22. Things are still proceeding just fine. I feel a little disturbed by how easily this is going this time ... 
I did have dreams about eating chocolate the last two nights. In the dream I had last night, I thought, "Oh no, I shouldn't eat this!" and then thought "No, wait, this is just a dream, might as well enjoy it ..." and did! Dream chocolate was oddly satisfying ...
I do find the results I get from Whole30 both good and disappointing. On the one hand, I have steadier energy, fewer headaches and joint paint, probably losing some weight that needs to come off, skin tends to be a bit clearer ... but on the other hand, my energy isn't through the roof, I still have occasional headaches, don't lose a ton of weight, skin is not perfect ... It's not like I'm unhappy with my results, just sometimes a little part of me sighs over the lack of unrealistically spectacular results. Sadly, it is not possible to achieve results in a four minute montage with Eye of the TIger playing in the background. Things take time and patience. If I don't do anything, then a few months from now I will be in the same place or worse. If I make healthy changes, in a few months I will have noticeable results and will be glad I did it. 

Day 17, Sunday May 17
M1: potato egg salad topped with fresh chives, side of green beans 
M2: romaine, spinach, avocado, green onions & celery chicken salad tossed w/ green goddess dressing, topped with red grapes
Snack: a small piece of leftover steak
M3: leftover burger on a lettuce bun, green side salad
NSV: I was out of bed shortly after 7am. I’ve been having trouble getting up in the morning so am happy with this victory today
NSV: I realize that I haven’t had a Sunday afternoon nap in a few weeks, not since I started W30
NSV: family had take-out burgers tonight, but I had a homemade burger and felt happier about that than having to eat a salty burger on a white bun. I also watched them eat their fries and onion rings while I enjoyed my side salad, and again, I felt happier with my choice rather than theirs
Plan for tomorrow: it’s a long weekend, I plan to just enjoy the nice weather and eat well
I’m slightly concerned that I’m eating too much food but I don’t want to start monitoring the amount I’m eating, at least not yet. The last time I did that on a W30, I crashed and quit because I was too hungry to cook after a busy day.  I’m going to continue to focus on eating W30, nourishing my body, learning to cook new recipes and enjoying healthy meals. 

I feel your roommate in my soul!  I love condiments.  And yes EVERYTHING has corn syrup or soy or both.  I have a kiddo that has 12 different food allergies including corn and soy.  I get probably a little too angry when a sauce or condiments that we use gets canceled at our local grocers.  
As far as the reward my brain aspect I can come up with hundreds of ideas that would be compliant ingredients and totally satisfying (thanks to my son’s allergies) but then I don’t trust myself ... am I making this healthy treat to enjoy it for what it is, or am I making it in replacement for other things and do I really need it... I have a tendency to over think these things.  So learning where “healthy treats” fits into my food freedom is a goal I have.  I lean more towards denial of treats due to years of diet mindsets so trying to find a balance is a challenge to be sure.

I feel this in my soul lol. I have conditioned my brain to treat food as treats and rewards and essentially the answer to everything. Im really trying to figure out another option at this point that wont make me just dream about all the junk ill def want to eat. Sorry about your roommate- that can be frustrating on both ends though in the end. Fingers crossed and happy thoughts for it working out

 

Fun fact - my roommate has a collection about about 25 - 30 various sauces and marinades she uses for cooking. The entire door of our fridge is her sauces. We went through them and literally the only thing that was Whole30 compatible was mustard. So much corn syrup! I understand some things have a sweet-and-savory taste, like barbecue sauce or teriyaki sauce, but why does EVERYTHING contain corn syrup? 
Sadly, my roommate got very frustrated about not being able to use any of her favorite seasonings. I could tell she was very annoyed that I was making cooking so difficult, even though I've said we can just have separate meals or I can get some compliant sauces. It's hard to convince someone when they see no reason for Whole30 in the first place.  And of course, I'm fine with just salt and pepper whereas she likes a lot of complex flavor. Honestly, I'd rather just cook my own meals but that would hurt her feelings quite a bit. But this is just one of the difficulties when sharing a space with someone. 
Still hanging in there, but today was the first day I've had trouble with wanting SNACKS. And no, not mini meals. I just want SNACKS. I added a banana and almond butter after lunch to try to quell the cravings - not sure if it helped or made it worse. I don't even crave anything specific, just nothing healthy. 
I've thought before about how difficult it is while eating healthily to give yourself something your brain recognizes as a treat. A candy bar or a cookie is cheap and fast, and my brain is conditioned to recognize that as "yay, treat!" Getting a special fruit or vegetable or even cooking a favorite dish doesn't have that same impact. Buying a book or other item is often too expensive, and suggestions I've seen such as, do yoga or take a walk, at this point in my life feel like "sigh ... exercise". I guess what I'm saying is that there's a lot of retraining the brain that has to happen. It's very much like learning to like a new food. You just have to keep giving it a try until your taste buds start recognizing it as a familiar and good thing. (Still working on sweet potatoes and squash ... I want to like them, but I just don't.)   

Congrats on making to the half way point.  I had read in FFF that the rounds after the first round are harder because of the yeah I’ve already done this mentality so this won’t be hard.  It can be a little trickier to navigate the thoughts and feelings, but you are rocking your whole 30.  
Something that might assist your roommate when she cooks for the both of you is to mark the condiments and spices  that are whole 30 friendly with a W.  I did this for myself so I didn’t feel like I had to check every single time.  I used a sharpie and just made a big W on the label or cap.  It gave me a lot more confidence in the kitchen my first round.

Day 15 - the halfway point! Latest on the list of unusual cravings, oatmeal. Apparently it's grains I'm desiring more than sugar this time around? Weird.
Roommate cooked dinner for the first time since I've started Whole30. I was a little nervous since she's not much of a label reader and I didn't want to be too intense on the interrogation about ingredients, but she made a chicken, tomato, and pepper stir fry with no seasonings because she was afraid she'd use the wrong one, so all was well. Just me doing this is stressing her out - can't even imagine how stressed she'd be if she attempted it. I feel like a lot of people see Whole30 as you subjecting yourself to some kind of torture or punishment because you've been "bad" about food. It's not always the easiest thing, but it really doesn't feel like a punishment. I guess it depends on with what mindset you go into it. If you're thinking you have to do this and you're not allowed to have all your favorite foods it wouldn't be a very positive experience.
Speaking of positive experiences, I need to start thinking about how exactly I want to continue after 30 days. Despite the lack of sugar cravings, I think if I don't continue to exclude sweets I could very easily get back to the point where half a package of cookies is a light snack before bed. It's not like I want to just go back to where I was, either, but it's going to be an uphill battle against friends and family to continue healthy eating in the future. I suppose they'll get used to it eventually, but friends are worried I'm going to be no fun and we won't be able to go out together because of my "weird diet" and family members are either annoyed by the need to try to figure out the oh-so-complicated rules or (in the case of my parents) worried that this can't be healthy! You need low fat dairy and whole grains to be healthy!
I'm not actually all that down about it - my personal experience is very positive and I'm not that worried about what other people think or say. It's just something that needs to be considered so I'm prepared when I have to deal with it.

Day 15 - the halfway point! Latest on the list of unusual cravings, oatmeal. Apparently it's grains I'm desiring more than sugar this time around? Weird.
Roommate cooked dinner for the first time since I've started Whole30. I was a little nervous since she's not much of a label reader and I didn't want to be too intense on the interrogation about ingredients, but she made a chicken, tomato, and pepper stir fry with no seasonings because she was afraid she'd use the wrong one, so all was well. Just me doing this is stressing her out - can't even imagine how stressed she'd be if she attempted it. I feel like a lot of people see Whole30 as you subjecting yourself to some kind of torture or punishment because you've been "bad" about food. It's not always the easiest thing, but it really doesn't feel like a punishment. I guess it depends on with what mindset you go into it. If you're thinking you have to do this and you're not allowed to have all your favorite foods it wouldn't be a very positive experience.
Speaking of positive experiences, I need to start thinking about how exactly I want to continue after 30 days. Despite the lack of sugar cravings, I think if I don't continue to exclude sweets I could very easily get back to the point where half a package of cookies is a light snack before bed. It's not like I want to just go back to where I was, either, but it's going to be an uphill battle against friends and family to continue healthy eating in the future. I suppose they'll get used to it eventually, but friends are worried I'm going to be no fun and we won't be able to go out together because of my "weird diet" and family members are either annoyed by the need to try to figure out the oh-so-complicated rules or (in the case of my parents) worried that this can't be healthy! You need low fat dairy and whole grains to be healthy!
I'm not actually all that down about it - my personal experience is very positive and I'm not that worried about what other people think or say. It's just something that needs to be considered so I'm prepared when I have to deal with it.

Day 11 done, onto day 12. Not much to say really. Meal planning with my roommate is going well - I'm a little surprised about that as we have such different tastes. I've been doing all the cooking, which I prefer because then I have control and she still seems pretty confused about what is and is not part of whole30, but I feel a little badly about that because she does like to cook. However, it's not like I'm stopping her from making her own meals if she prefers. 
Two mild frustrations - people keep telling me that whole30 is "too complicated" to figure out. I feel like it's actually really simple, especially compared to some weight loss diets where different foods have different points or you only eat certain things on certain days of the week or something. I feel like "meat and eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts" is not that hard to understand. But people have a lot of confusion about what certain foods are (legumes and corn are vegetables, eggs are dairy) and confuse whole30 with atkins, keto, etc. But the fifth time someone says, "Your diet is so complicated, I can't even understand it" it gets tiring.
And then two, the assumption that I'm doing this in a very temporary way and good for me, but soon it will be over and I can go back to "normal" eating. My roommate was definitely picturing day 31 as a no-holds-barred junk food feast with donuts and pizza flowing like water, and she was very disappointed when I disabused her of that notion. It's a bit frustrating when you're surrounded by people whose attitude is "When will you be done with eating healthily so you can go back to eating lots of junk and having joint pain and headaches and digestive upsets like a NORMAL person?!?"
Oh well, such is life.

Today was a bit of a struggle. Headache is back, although that may have more to do with how crowded the grocery store was, and the glare on the computer screen. Roommate got herself a fancy cookie sampler and while I don't feel tempted to actually eat any, they do look good ... 
Meals are on track. Made a very attractive chicken shepherd's pie (though chickens are rarely herded) out of left-overs. The meat situation at the store was not as dire as some people painted, although there was a two package limit on beef. But that's plenty to sustain one person some time. 
Trying to stay strong on not snacking. As in, not having an apple and almond butter just because it sounds good, when I'm not genuinely hungry. 

I know a lot of people love instant pots, but for me the crock pot is the star of Whole30.  (Though that may be because I've never used an instant pot.) Pop meat in in the morning, possibly with root vegetables, have perfectly cooked supper at the end of the day. Roast chicken awaits me this evening.
Continued on track yesterday. Went wild with all fresh veggies in my stir fry. Usually I just toss in frozen vegetables since they're convenient but yesterday I got home from work early and took the time to chop up fresh. It really does make a difference in the texture, especially. 
One thing I'm relearning is that it is okay to feel hungry. Sometimes I feel almost panicked when I start getting hungry, like I have to deal with that immediately with a snack (usually an unhealthy one like candy or chips), even if I'm going to eat a meal shortly. The last few days I have to keep reminding myself that it's perfectly normal to feel hungry when it's about time for a meal, and that another 20 minutes while it cooks isn't going to do me any harm. That hunger is not some kind of emergency but rather my body metaphorically tapping me on the shoulder and saying "Hey, when you get a chance, I'm about ready for some more nourishment."

Day 13, Wednesday May 13
M1: potato-egg salad topped with fresh chives, 1 small English banger sausage, lots of green beans
M2: romaine & spinach salad tossed with green goddess dressing and topped with diced tomatoes and chicken
Snack: 1 devilled egg (2 halves), small handful of pecans & walnuts, one orange 
M3: homemade meatballs au jus, mashed potatoes, roasted cauliflower, carrots, green beans and red cabbage, applesauce
NSV: the hives on my face have cleared up
NSV: I ate very well all day, everything was compliant
NSV: I shopped at Costco and didn’t buy anything that wasn’t compliant, and I bought a 2-pack of veggie grill pans for the bbq that I’m looking forward to using
NSV: I didn’t have any cravings today
Hack to Habit: keep frozen green beans on hand (green beans are my favourite veg).  I didn’t realize until I plated my breakfast that I totally forgot about a non- starchy veg, but luckily I had some fresh green beans that I cooked up quickly and ate after finishing the rest of M1. I won’t always have fresh green beans though, so I’ll pick up some frozen
Plan for tomorrow: plan. those. meals
Reflection: although I started this W30 with a long list of changes I am hoping for, I decided today to re-focus. I am only going to focus on eating well, and trying new foods and recipes. My goal for the end of this W30 is to be on auto pilot when it comes to my food choices, to choose healthy food over junk, and that it’s always easy for me to put together a healthy meal. I like how I feel right now, I enjoy the taste of real food and I don’t crave junk. 

I used left-over chicken with left-over chicken and onion gravy, carrots, and green peas (which I'm super excited are now allowed, but you could use any kind of vegetable you liked - celery, green beans, probably even spinach or kale ... I feel like broccoli might get soggy, though), and then left-over mashed potatoes whipped with ghee on top. Or you could use mashed root vegetables or cauliflower, if you wanted to go easy on the potatoes. 
You probably have, but have you checked out some of the paleo cooking websites? Sometimes you have to modify a bit if the recipes have honey or something in them, but I love looking at recipes on nom nom paleo because of all the pretty pictures.

Day 3.
I can't wait to start sleeping better, the last few nights have been rough though that's because I've had work stress, not because of W30. W30 usually really tones down my anxiety though, so I'm looking forward to that kicking in.
I'm really liking almond milk in my coffee, I'm finding!
Otherwise nothing to report, so on with the menu:
Meal 1: 2 x poached eggs on ratatoullie with kalamata olives and a generous dollop of fennel pepita pesto
Meal 2: Slow cooked pork chops in mushroom gravy, roasted veggie medley and mashed pumpkin.

The pressure that others put on us to eat “normal foods” again is tiresome.  Good for you for journaling about it (and bringing it to mind for all of us who are feeling the same way). When you look back on your notes and realize that you overcame what others expected from you, for your own good, you will have gained real strength, the kind of strength that others notice about you but can’t really figure out what it is that makes you so sure of yourself. You’ve got this, keep on going... 
 
Shadow

Day 12, Tuesday May 12
M1: green cabbage, spinach and green onion fried in ghee, topped with pine nuts and 2 fried eggs
M2: romaine, spinach, green onion & avocado salad tossed with green goddess dressing and topped with chicken breast 
Snack: carrot while preparing dinner
M3: cauli-rice with onions and sweet peppers, 1/2 chicken breast, coconut aminos
NSV: I tried a new seasoning - coconut aminos - yum!
NSV: I didn’t have any cravings today, even when my family was having dessert after dinner! Big win :-)
Hacks to Habit: keep some small-diced or spiralized sweet potatoes in the fridge, ready to cook up quickly when I want some starch and sweetness
Plan for tomorrow: I need to plan out the menus for this week.  For the family’s menus I can just cut and paste from six or seven weeks ago, but for my meals I really want to try some new recipes. I’m afraid I will get bored or tired of the foods I’ve been eating, which will lead to a huge temptation to give up. Stealthstitcher if you read this, what did you put in your shepherds pie with chicken?
I also want to make ghee, boil some eggs, prep some more devilled eggs, chop up a sweet potato or spiralize some with my new spiralizer, and make a potato- egg salad with that delicious mayo I finally made yesterday. 

Day 11 and still here. At the moment I'm still kind of cruising through without any major issues. It doesn't have the exciting new discovery feeling of the first time doing Whole30, but I think I have a better mindset than the second time I attempted it and failed. The first time I tried a second Whole30, I had the attitude that since I knew what I was doing it would 1. be easy and 2. be okay to cheat a little. Neither of which was true. So this time around I'm doing it for real, no cheats. 
That said, I gave into the lure of Larabars yesterday and had one with breakfast. Which is not exactly the end of the world, but also not a good trend to start since sugar is one of my biggest dietary problems. 
I'm not having any problems with food boredom, but I am having problems with boredom-boredom. The weather teased us with spring and then took it away again, and we're back to cold and gray. Having trouble focusing on work or on things I need to get done at home. Books and tv don't sound interesting, but I also don't have anyplace I'd want to go if I could. I think it's just the weather. 
On the plus side my skin seems to be clearing up, which is nice. 

Day 4 has come to an end.  I feel like the 3 eggs instead of 2 with breakfast held me over much better to lunch today.  I'm sure with time that 2 will be more than enough but for now I may stick with 3.  I had a snack again in the afternoon around 3 or so (small apple, banana, with almond butter) and I was still getting a headache and pretty hungry as I got home in the evening.  Ended up having another banana as I waited for dinner to cook and then my dinner (enchilada stuffed sweet potato and side salad) helped.  Took some Advil for the headache.  Didn't really feel- "kill all the things" today but maybe because that is because I spent most of the day to myself.  Still very tired.  But also very proud of myself and my commitment to the plan and my health.  This weekend will be a 3 and a half day one for me and then lead into a day working from home.  So- I'm gonna have to come up with ways to keep myself from not focusing on eating.  Have to mull it over more tomorrow.  'night