Leigh Anne

This 2nd Whole 30 is much easier than my first (May '16). Going to the grocery store is easy now. I skip the inner aisles most of the time, focusing on produce and meats. I have a couple of go-to recipes that I try to always have the ingredients for on hand. Melissa's Chicken Hash is great. I usually make it with Applegate Organic sausage (chicken and apple). The other day I grated 4 sweet potatoes in my food processor, so I have the most time-consuming part of that recipe done. I just listened to an interview with Gary Taubes, who wrote The Case Against Sugar. He compares it to cigarettes. It sure is addicting. Once I'm off it I feel so much better. But it tastes so good! But it makes me feel lousy. . . . . When my husband and I started this one we only planned to do a 21-day reset. He really misses bread and beer. I know that gluten messes me up, and had started experimenting with organic Einkorn flour. That is the only wheat I will even try to reintroduce, but I think I'll keep going for now. I made it this far, and feel good. What's one more week? My biggest challenge is sugar, and I am really afraid I will not be able to moderate my consumption. I'm thinking of making a rule that I'll live by for at least the first month post Whole30, which will be: I allow myself one small square of dark chocolate each day, and one dessert per week.

This is my 2nd Whole 30. My first was May 2016, and I learned so much from it. I had no idea that I had a gluten sensitivity, but I do! What a difference it has made to eliminate it! The joint pain that I thought was just aging is gone. Over Christmas I had a little gluten (as in, a bite or two on 3 consecutive days). The joint pain came back, along with general dragginess. My biggest issue is sugar. Once I started allowing myself to have a little, it quickly snowballed into a little after every meal. That's the main thing I need to regain control over. My first W30 was great. I did reintroductions carefully, and only had serious issues with gluten. I have reduced the dairy substantially, though, along with non-gluten grains and legumes. I just feel better when I'm eating this way. Mel Joulwan's Well Fed cookbooks are fantastic, if anyone is looking for more recipes. I'm looking forward to this reset. I've been mostly eating this way since last summer, but I was getting sloppy!

Yesterday a chocolate craving hit me pretty hard, too. I finished my W30 in June and am staying mostly compliant because I still have weight I want to lose and because I feel so much better eating this way. I stood in front of a mirror and gave myself a talking-to. "You can have chocolate, but if you eat the whole thing, what will that accomplish? You will feel ashamed of yourself. You will feel like you've sabotaged all your good effort to this point. Why would you do that? You've come this far--you can outlast this craving and add it to your list of successes." Etc. It worked! Looking in the mirror helped! Eye contact!

Stick with the eating plan! The weight will come off, but there are lots of adjustments going on, so be patient. I'm in the same boat, dealing with gradual weight gain and wanting it gone yesterday. When you think about it, 10 lbs in a year is less than 1 lb per month. I keep telling myself that if I lose it at the same rate I gained it, at least it's going in the right direction. The "stay off the scale" rule is a smart one. I've heard a few people say that they feel like their weight loss happened at the end of the 30 days. Slow and steady--probably not what you want to hear, but true!

I think the general recommendation is to try to avoid snacking during your Whole 30. The goal is to eat enough at each meal (see the Meal Template) so that you aren't hungry until time for the next meal. At the beginning, though, this can be difficult, as it takes a while for your body to recognize real hunger from cravings and habits. When you do need a snack, however, it's better to have one. The suggestion is to make it a mini-meal, with all the components of a meal--protein, veg, fat. Apple + almond butter might not be the greatest idea because it is so sweet. As someone with a sugar issue, I try to avoid snacking on fruit. Why are you planning to snack? If you're usually hungry at those times, try making your meals more substantial. A palm-sized portion of protein (or 2), and a couple of cups of vegetables, plus a thumb-sized portion of fat is the suggestion for a complete meal. It takes a while to get used to this, especially for non-breakfast eaters, but it works. Good luck!

I was away last week, "riding my own bike" out in the world. There was a little panic at first, and fears that I would revert to my old ways of eating. Since I was not cooking and could only choose from what was prepared, there were meals that had very few Whole30 options. I knew this going in, and had finished reintroductions, so just planned to do my best and try not to lose ground. It went pretty well. I was able to avoid most dairy, but I had some wheat, and my joints are a little achy. It's not terrible, but I am looking forward to getting back to better eating. The Well Fed cookbooks are what I'm using this week. They're full of good stuff!

Hi! We were both in the "Starting May 9" group, right? My reintros have been very eye-opening, too. Yogurt bothered me, but ice cream didn't. Non-gluten grains were OK, as were legumes. Yesterday I had a sandwich. Wow! Not good. I will not have gluten again any time soon. I still want to try dairy products again. I haven't had cheese yet. I got Mel Joulwan's cookbooks, Well Fed and Well Fed 2. She makes the point that her kitchen is 100% compliant. Only when she goes out does she have non-compliant foods, and of course, she knows how they will affect her and decides whether or not it's worth the consequences. Making it easy to stay compliant at home makes a lot of sense to me.

We are traveling next week and it will be difficult to avoid gluten, so I'm testing small amounts this week to see how it goes. I'm also giving dairy another small try. One thing I've learned--if I have a small dessert after a meal it's OK. Eating sugar on an empty stomach is bad! I just added exercise in this week. Last summer I built up to 30 minutes on my rowing machine, but lost it somewhere along the way. I've decided to alternate walking and rowing. I'm going to do a 30-day plan again, since it worked so well with food. Nothing crazy, but something to get me moving again.

Cattle grape, you said you've been so good, and trying so hard, and exercising and pretty much doing everything right. Then you said it's discouraging to see not much progress. The first sentence you said is HUGE progress, is it not? I felt the exact same way when I first stepped on the scale on day 31. Disappointed. And yet, I had no sugar for 30 days! When I first heard about W30 I thought, "I could never do that, because I could never go 30 days without sweets." But I did it! It's not just about losing weight. It's about making choices that result in better health for the rest of my life. I'm sure that if someone else had written your post, you would have encouraged them with all the positive changes they were making, right? We are so hard on ourselves! You are doing great things for your body, and they will overflow into the rest of your life. That, my friend, is progress! You deserve a big pat on the back! Keep up the good work!

. . . they actually USE their spiralizer . . . they get 10 bags of unsweetened coconut flakes at a time--on Amazon--because the grocery store doesn't have flakes, or unsweetened.

So far so good on the reintroductions. I've had a little sugar, and I know that the Sugar Dragon is not dead. He's asleep with one eye open. I have got to be really, really careful, although I do want to have dessert now and then. We are having dinner at someone's house tonight, so I don't know what will be served. Unless it's pasta-based, I should be OK. I made macaroons for dessert. Aside from the sugar, and the fact that they're cookies, they're OK. I'm kind of nervous about introducing gluten. Corn and oats were fine, though. I got both of the Well Fed cookbooks from the library yesterday and am looking forward to trying some of those recipes. For the summer I like the idea of less-complicated meal plans. Just meat on the grill and a big plate of vegetables. Last night, for something different, I sauteed yellow pepper, green onion, asparagus, and carrots in coconut oil. I had the leftovers this morning in my eggs. I'm looking forward to a big trip to Whole Foods tomorrow and doing meal prep for the week over the weekend.

Oh, and one other thing: I think when folks start W30 after years of dieting of various stripes, they have a tendency to go through a re-feed period. Our bodies are clamoring for real nutrition! So, even when we have weight to lose, it comes off slowly at first, and that's actually a good thing. As you ease in and the body grows accustomed to being properly nourished, it won't clamor as much for food. I think you hit the nail on the head with this comment, LadyM! My Whole30 was May 9- June 8, and I was a little discouraged to have "only" lost 7 lbs. But only now, after more than a month of really feeding myself well, am I beginning to realize that I could stop eating just a bit sooner. Prior to W30 I was eating way too many sugary, junky, bad-carb foods. And I was constantly hungry. I didn't realize that I would stay hungry until I fed my body what it really needed. Now that I'm truly satisfied after a meal, and am becoming fat-adapted, I don't have that crazy "hangry" feeling all the time. What a relief!

I'm going to try non-gluten grains today, too. Oatmeal is one thing I have really missed. However, I'll have to have eggs, too, because I know oatmeal won't keep me satisfied all morning. Dang you, Whole 30! You've spoiled me!

Hi! I just finished my Whole30 and am in the midst of reintroductions. I tried legumes first with no issues. Yesterday I tried dairy. I had a plain, whole-milk yogurt, and my head felt congested for a couple of hours. I've never had (or noticed) an issue with dairy before. It is spring, and the pollen is bad here, so maybe. . . I had a small dessert (GF apple crisp with a small scoop of ice cream) and I felt so awful afterwards! I could feel the sugar rush and then the crash. I can't believe until a month ago I was doing that to myself every day! Now that I'm paying attention to how my food makes me feel, I will be much more careful. I feel fine today, so I'm glad there were no lingering effects. I plan to introduce grains this week. I miss oatmeal, although I know it won't fill me up like eggs do. It is so valuable to reintroduce food groups one at a time. Then I will know whether something is worth it or not. My primary goals in doing W30 were increased energy and weight loss. My energy is amazing--I am so happy about the difference. I lost 7 lbs in the 30 days. I really want to go down a size. I don't care about the number on the scale as much as the number on my clothes' tags.

Well, if it's any comfort, stories like this are what's keeping me on the straight and narrow. Yesterday I introduced legumes and had a tiny, tiny piece of dark chocolate. (Way better than a g&t to me.) Then I went back to W30 compliance for the next 2 days. But boy, that chocolate has looked into my eyes and he's calling my name.