kirbz

@Cmclean Did you know that days 10-11 are the days that folks are most likely to quit their Whole30 journey? It's true! So, you're certainly not alone in feeling what you're feeling! In fact, it's kinda a normal part of the process! From personal experience though, I can tell you that it is worth it to just push through. You came here for a reason! So remind yourself of those reasons, and know that you're oh-so close to feeling something great! Take note of even the smallest of victories in the meantime! And stay strong knowing that the biggest ones are coming soon! You can do this!

Also wanted to share an absolutely delicious meal I had last night! Here is the recipe: https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-salisbury-steak-meatballs-whole30/. My fiance cooks and eats Whole30 when we share meals, but not otherwise. He says this is hands-down his favorite Whole30 meal. Who knew Whole30 gravy could be so delicious!? I could eat that by the spoonful! Anyway, I paired it with the mashed potatoes from this recipe: https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-swedish-meatballs-whole30/. It was truly amazing and will become a part of the regular rotation for sure!

@wp3 That's great to hear you're feeling stronger and experience improve endurance! That's a huge NSV! How is everyone else doing? I almost gave up yesterday. It was my birthday and while I had always planned to push through Whole30 for that day, I actually went to the store and bought my favorite cake, fully planning on eating it! But I didn't! My commitment to the program definitely wanes as I get hungry. And, since I hadn't eaten by 12:00 pm after doing a 6.5 mile hike, I was hungry! But, even after buying the cake, I told myself I needed to eat a good Whole30 meal before eating it. After I did that, I didn't really need the cake anymore so I put it away. I definitely need to get my meal planning together. I'm skipping way to many meals due to poor planning, lack of appetite, and feelings of being overwhelmed.

@Hope4Overcomers I'm so sorry for your loss. I wish you and your boyfriend's family the very best. And congratulations on committing to a new start date. I truly believe this is a wonderful program, but sometimes life happens and I think it's perfectly acceptable to change your goals when that happens. But you should be oh-so-proud of yourself for getting right back on the bandwagon! You'll be great in this next round! @Elizabeth33 Aww, you didn't blow it! You made a choice, learned from it, and are back at it again! This program is already hard and I can't imagine doing it with the restrictions you have! So, don't be mad or disappointed with yourself. Just remind yourself of your goals and get back at it. We're all still here to support you and wish you the very, very best! I also struggled over the weekend. I stuck with it but I haven't eaten anything in the last 24 hours because I just don't feel like it. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm starving. But nothing sounds good and the amount of meal planning and prep is just straight-up overwhelming to me right now. I haven't given up (mostly due to a pep talk and my fiance refusing to allow me to eat non-compliant foods last night), but I also haven't worked up the energy to actually cook/eat as of late. This is definitely hard, but we can do it!

@adayinaz YES, add more fats to your meals! I don't see any fat in any of the meals you listed (cooking fats don't count). It is totally counter intuitive to eat fat to lose weight, but that's what you have to do! So add an avocado and perhaps even a blob of ghee to your meal. Then add some mayo and olives to your next meal. And then perhaps an oil-based dressing to your next one! Eat fat! You'll need it to become fat adapted and you'll need it for energy! Honestly, you've probably gained that extra weight over time. You may have even been at the weight you've been at for a while. This program is 30 days. Trust in it and see what happens. It's only 30 days. You won't be set back. Add those fats to every meal and then see your outcome. If it's not exactly what you want, then consider making changes. But don't change it at the start without giving it a chance to work first! As for exercise, here are a couple of my personal thoughts... First, don't underestimate the impact of walking. Commit to taking a walk for 30 minutes every single day. Try to make those 30 minutes not only about moving but about you. Find a pretty place to take a walk. Listen to a book on tape (join your local library and you get free audio books!). Or just self reflect. I know that totally sucks in 100 degree weather but it will make a significant difference. Second, try to make exercise fun. Rather than seek exercise, experiment, find a passion, and go out and do that! I hate exercise for the sake of exercise. But, after years of experimentation, I found my passion in outdoor activities. So now, I climb or bike or hike or paddle often and while I'm burning lots of calories and improving my physical fitness, I'm really just having fun. So go out and experiment. Try a local hike (perhaps you have groups in your area who you could join). Try a dance class. Try tennis. Just go out and try different things that can make exercise fun! And then do it often and the weight loss should come more naturally. I wish you the very best!

Wild Zora meat and veggie bars! I like the BBQ or Curry Turkey flavors the best! They’re soft with a nice texture and taste delicious! Very nutritious too! And they don’t set of my sugar dragon!

@wp3 It is indeed! I just eat chunks cold straight out of the package. Super tender and delicious! I'm so sorry to hear your about the challenges your facing at home! How awful to not have any water. However, your determination to stick with this is admirable! I wish you the very best of luck!!

And here are some more of my favorite Whole30 products: Tessemae's BBQ sauce Tessemae's Ketchup Tessemae's Buffalo Sauce (both hot and regular) Primal Kitchen Chipotle Lime Mayo Primal Kitchen Ceasar Dressing Primal Kitchen Ranch Dressing Primal Kitchen Green Goddess Dressing The New Primal Classic Marinade (wonderful for stir fry) The New Primal Citrus & Herb Marinade The New Primal Class BBQ Sauce The New Primal Mustard BBQ Sauce Thrive Market Organic Tuscan Pepper Pasta Sauce I buy much of this stuff online on Thrive Market (except they don't sell Tessemae's). Note that I strongly prefer Primal Kitchen dressings over Tessemae's dressings because the use avocado or olive oil rather than sunflower oil (which is recommended to be limited). If you're interested in more products, check out the @Whole30Approved Instagram feed. They exclusively feature Whole30-compliant products you can buy in stores...

@Rebecca2 Okay, I'll provide you with two lists. :-) First, if you're a Costco person, I've found Costco to be an absolutely goldmine when it comes to compliant Whole30 products. I live in California so things are expensive. Being able to by compliant products at Costco saves me a TON of money. Costco Shopping List: Kirkland Signature Smoked Pulled Pork (just boil the package for 12-15 minutes and it's ready to go) Aidells Chicken and Apple Smoked Chicken Sausage Parma Prosciutto di Parma Farmhouse Culture Classic Caraway Kraut True Story Organic Oven Roasted Turkey Breast Snack Packs (can you say post-workout meal anyone?) True Story Organic Chicken Breast (they're chunks of chicken breasts that are great pre- or post-workout, or I've even created a meal with them when in a rush) Organic Cauliflower Rice (just add some ghee, sautee it up, and you're good to go) Grillo's Pickles Dill Spears Kirkland Signature Organic No-Salt Seasoning Wholly Guacamole Organic Minis (mini guacamole cups that are perfect for a meal or on the go)

I liked the texture of a stir fry I made using arrowroot and I didn’t feel like it changed the taste much, if it all. I definitely recommend trying that or tapioca starch! My favorite Paleo blogger also appears to use one of the two in gravy recipes...

That's wonderful news! As for photography, they say the best camera is the one you can afford. I've seen some pretty incredible photographers produce some pretty incredible photos from an iPhone. So don't let cost be a deterrent to you! Buy what you can afford, learn and go from there! Life is short!

@wp3 I'm not even a huge watermelon person but I thought so too! How delicious and refreshing would that be out on the trail!? :-) And you should definitely get into hiking! It's such a wonderful activity. Mountains and rivers are my favorite places in the whole world.

My new dehydrator arrived today! To say I am excited is an understatement! I'm so happy I can start creating healthy, freeze dried meals and dog treats that don't cost a small fortune! YAY! My biggest hurdle is going to be a two-night backpacking trip coming up on August 28. My traditional backpacking snacks and meals are not Whole30 compliant and so far I have not been excited about what I'll be taking on the trail with me. In fact, I had given myself an out and said I just wouldn't finish my Whole30 and wouldn't bother to be compliant. But, I want to do this and I want to learn how to take healthy foods on the trail. So, with some research and effort, hopefully I learn a lot and find some good recipes so that that my attitude changes! Does anyone else in the group hike or backpack? I'm really excited about this new website (she is not Whole30 affiliated in any way and most of her recipes are not compliant but there are some gems in there): https://www.musthikemusteat.com/recipe/.

@Rebecca2 I recommend keeping your meals simple. When I first tried Whole30, I signed up for RealPlans and came up with an awesome, amazing set of recipes for each week. It didn't work. At all. I don't have the time or mental energy to be trying new recipes all the time. So I keep it simple. Chicken pan-cooked with avocado oil and some store-purchased BBQ sauce with a huge portion of steamed carrots and some store-purchased guacamole. So simple, but still delicious for me! I save trying new recipes for the weekends. Also, if you can afford it, there are a LOT of Whole30-compliant products available in the U.S. Being able to buy (rather than cook) your sauces, condiments, and dressings really makes life easier and much more tasty. If you'd like me to share some of my favorites, let me know and I'd be happy to do so. Be warned though, they are expensive (like $8.99 for a 12 oz jar of BBQ sauce). I'm grateful that I'm privileged enough to be able to buy these things because I know that not everyone is.

@wp3 Whole30 has an entirely different perspective on health and nutrition than you have likely heard about your whole life. I can't answer your questions about fat and heart health, because I no longer remember. I do recall that becoming fat adapted, by eating fat, should aid in your quest to lose weight (it's totally counter-intuitive but you need to eat fat to lose it). I strongly recommend reading It Starts with Food. It explains the science and rationale behind the program, explaining why it's structured the way it is and why the rules are the rules. It's so, so helpful to really understanding what this program is about and why it's good for you. And it's actually a fairly easy read, despite all the science. I have every single Whole30 book every published and this is far and away my favorite! I cannot tell you how much it strengthened my commitment to this program and I cannot recommend it enough if you have those sorts of questions. Or, if you're just someone who wants to understand the why behind what we're being asked to do.