Starting Whole30 today, 13/05/2013

[CorrieV]

After about 3 weeks of reading about the Whole30 program and trying to clear out the kitchen of all the "bad" food, we are finally ready to start with this "challenge". I have some digestive problems so hoping this would help me to deal with these problems without medication and dr appointments.

[BevP]

Congratulations Corrie (and family)! The decision to start a W30 is a big, scary one, like jumping off a diving board. And it can be a shock to the system, but it sounds like you've worked up to the starting line and this shouldn't be a complete 180 to your kitchen. Take it day by day, and do read the "What to Expect Day by Day" guide. I found journaling was very helpful; I just noted what I ate at what time of day and my feelings or thoughts if they stood out. Helped to go back and see what worked and what didn't. Tawanda!

[CorrieV]

Thank you for the encouragement. So far so good. I planned out all our meals and it works great. I prepare the next days meals the night before so there is no time to sit and ponder on having anything that is not whole 30.

Hubby is having a hard time with sweet cravings (he is a chocolate addict) and is constantly asking isnt there anything "sweet" he can eat. Any suggestions?

[awall1013]

I started on Monday as well and am enjoying the program so far. I was in a similar situation, Corrie, where I read up on Whole30 for a few weeks before finally deciding to give it a go. The hardest part for me is going to be eliminating cheese from my diet! But I'm looking forward to the challenge... As for sweets and sticking with Whole30 rules, I've found quite a few recipes on Pinterest. One is for almond brownie bites, which I'm planning to try tonight. They're made with dates instead of almond flour! So very Whole30! I'll get back to you on how they turn out and hopefully you can satisfy your hubby's sweet-tooth. =]

[Physibeth]

Almond brownie bites are not really ok with Whole30 rules. One of the rules is not paleofying foods. Ultimately it is up to you but changing your relationship with food is hard work. If you want to eat something sweet to satisfying a sweet craving than you won't get the full benefit of the program. Having a serving of fruit with a meal that follows the meal template is fine.

[awall1013]

I wondered about that -- is it "paleo-fying a dessert" if it is made of dates and almonds?

[Susan W]

I wondered about that -- is it "paleo-fying a dessert" if it is made of dates and almonds?

Yes. Anything outside of the meal template is not a good idea. Such recipes do nothing to strengthen your positive relationship with food.

[Susan W]

Just a Caveat. Because it is on Pinterest does not make it acceptable for W30.

[CorrieV]

Thank you for all the input, it is really helping so much. I would like to know if dried fruit will be acceptable for W30? Raisons is something we always have around and before I started we would have some raisons for a snack or when I feel like something sweet. I do not want to have anything that will have a "negative" effect of my W30 progress.

[Physibeth]

Thank you for all the input, it is really helping so much. I would like to know if dried fruit will be acceptable for W30? Raisons is something we always have around and before I started we would have some raisons for a snack or when I feel like something sweet. I do not want to have anything that will have a "negative" effect of my W30 progress.

Dry fruit is ok when used as part of a meal but not for snacking/dessert/I feel like something sweet.

[kiwihoney]

My husband and I started on the 13th as well. I'm feeling better already but my husband is still really struggling with energy, feeling flat, and cravings for fried orsweet foods.

I'm excited at how well I feel already, and I'm looking forward to what the next 25 days brings!

[Judy Villano]

I want to start tomorrow! What is your favorite breakfast?

[Shelda17]

I started on the 13th too, but my Whole30 Daily messages are one day late, so the one today was for the 4th day instead of the 5th. I guess I'm doing a Whole31 . But I'm really enjoying the emails. I find reading the daily message is one of the first things I want to do in the mornings.

I'd been doing about half-and-half paleo for the past month or so. I am lucky enough to have a local gym that is preparing paleo meals and delivering them weekly. They deliver 10 meals every Sunday evening, and with my low energy level and balance issues (I have multiple sclerosis), I don't seem to be able to cook for myself all that well. So for that month, I've been eating these lovely meals, and then for the rest of the week eating mostly non-compliant foods that I had in the pantry/freezer. I was planning to start the Whole30 on Saturday, 5/11, but I realized that I hadn't made a real plan and didn't have things worked out for the weekend. So I started Monday instead.

So far it's going well, but I've been really really tired all week. I'm not sure this is Whole30 related, but I'm hoping to emerge out of the fog soon. So far I'm feeling pretty good. Have felt well-nourished, and satisfied. Not having many (or even any) cravings at the moment. We'll see how that goes.

[gingerrox]

I started on the 13th too, and @Shelda17 I have been fighting fatigue all week, though I seem to be emerging from it now - I don't know exactly what causes it but it is a sign of the body adjusting to the new foods.

If you're fighting a sweet tooth, really one of the worst things to do is try to made Whole30-friendly "desserts" or snack on sweet things. You need to fight the pattern (ie. "Slay the Sugar Dragon"). I have the worst sweet tooth, especially after meals, so I absolutely will not eat fruit after meal times or as a snack (especially dried fruit - yeek). Dried fruit I'll allow if it's part of a recipe, and moderate amounts of fresh fruit with a fat- and protein-rich meal that isn't heavy on other carbs, like sweet potatoes.

If I have to snack on something I choose a small handful of nuts, olives or a mix of olives and cucumber slices, or browned coconut chips with a little salt and cinnamon (SO YUM). These are very effective at satisfying that "snacky" need without giving in to the sweet tooth - go to theclothesmakethegirl.com post-haste for great recipe and snack ideas. Good luck!

[gingerrox]

And, believe me, until recently I was in love with the idea of paleo desserts - the best of both worlds! But now I understand these are once-in-a-while treats - if you want to bring something to a party or the in-laws are coming over. NOT as a daily staple and REALLY not during your Whole30.

[gingerrox]

@Judy I am on day five and I've had five different wonderful breakfasts! A couple of things I've noticed this week is that I need breakfast to be a BIG meal, heavy on the fat, or else my energy lags in a few hours. My favorite? Probably the one I just had - a fritatta made with some leftover beef hash I made (onion, garlic, bell pepper, sweet potato), cherry tomatoes and fresh parsley, steamed swiss chard, 1/2 avocado, kiwi and blueberries. A close second would be ground turkey hash with onion, chopped apple, cinnamon and nutmeg with two eggs and sauteed greens. Another fun discovery is that if I don't have some sort of leafy greens at breakfast I crave them later!

[Shelda17]

One of my favorite breakfasts was hash made with ground turkey, onions, cubed roasted sweet potato, and a fried egg on top of it. Some spinach would have been a nice addition, either in the hash or on the side. Tomorrow I'm planning to try the "Morning Mix": ground turkey, apple, cinnamon and nutmeg. I'll probably add some onions (love me some onions!).

I've been kind of surprised at how much I've enjoyed having breakfast be something other than what I would ordinarily think of as breakfast food. I thought that would be kinda hard, but not at all thus far. And I haven't been even thinking about food until about lunch time, which is new for me. I usually started thinking about lunch about 10am, and/or a snack.

[bep0819]

Hi Everyone!

I started on Monday too. I've been having steamed spinach (big fan!!) with eggs and strawberries with a drizzle of coconut milk and coconut flakes. I love fruit! At lunch I've had a ground beef patty made with ground almonds and cauliflower/carrot mash made with coconut oil. I've also had sugar free applesauce but realize I need to cut that out. I'm going to add an half avacodo for lunch. Four days a week I eat the same thing for lunch (we prep on Sunday). I'm OK with it due to cost and it's easy to eat at work.

I'm nervous about it being the weekend. We are going to a brunch with my daughters running group today. I've planned out my menu and feel confident. Tomorrow our in-laws are coming over for breakfast - I'm not sure how we got caught in a breakfast theme this weekend! I've been just fine skipping any nighttime snacks (my downfall). I'm hopeful the weekend does not set off any triggers. I have books to read and a dog to walk if it does!

Hope everyone has a great 8th day and wonderful weekend!

[bep0819]

Meant 6th day...

[Shelda17]

I'm kind of amazed today to realize that we've already been at this a week, us 13-May folks! A whole week already in the bag.

I had two friends come over today and help me do the rest of the freezer clean-out. We'd done the pantry some time ago. And I felt relentless and in charge. Look at the label, and toss it if it's non-compliant. No hesitation. The friends went home with some nice goodies, and I have a clean slate. I need to get better at using things in my freezer. Bad habit of buying too much, and then using the freezer and pantry as a sort of "black hole." Food goes in there, and never comes out again.

How's everybody else doing? I'm very pleased thus far.

Shelda

[whitershade]

Hello! First of all, congrats to all of us! You are doing great (and so do I, I guess:-))

I started with you, and it is a week now that I'm free from heartburn (I've taken anti acids for years, and this week of freedom feels like magic!). I started without fruit on the first four days, except for half a apple and some citrus in mixed salads, because I've always been a great fruit eater and I would like to control my sugar cravings, but on Friday night a friend gave me a basket of fresh cherries as a gift. I love cherries (and in this part of the world -Italy- , at this point of the year, they are also very expensive, so I couldn't refuse them) but I'm trying to eat very few of them (10 -15 per meal), just once or twice a day, with breakfast and lunch. The problem is that, since I've started putting them in my meal plan, I'm experimenting a little hunger two hours after the meal. It's not cravings, because I do not crave sugar at all since I've started the Whole30 (and I was a real sugaraholic before!), it's real hunger pangs!

I'm eating the same things I was eating before Friday, meat, seafood, eggs, healthy fats, and a lot of non starchy vegetables (I have starch vegetables just once a day), but still.

Should I stop eating cherries and see how it goes? Or do you have any advice in order to eat them with something that lowers their impact on my hunger? Thank you!

[Shelda17]

That's really interesting about the cherries, whitershade. I'm very very fond of fruit as well, and berries are abundantly available right now in the US. I'm limiting my fruit consumption to meals, and haven't noticed any particular effect. I do notice that I would ordinarily grab some fruit on its own, and I'm not letting myself do that. I wouldn't even call it cravings, more like a habitual response that I notice.

I had a Larabar last night with dinner, and felt guilty about it. Not maybe the best choice, but an approved one. I hadn't had Larabars before, so I just had to try one. I only bought two, which is good, because I can see how they could be a little addictive

And I was a little concerned that I had headed down a sugar monster path, but so far it doesn't seem so. I ate it, it was tasty, but then I moved on, and haven't been having any more cravings than before.

I'm excited to be starting week 2.

[bep0819]

^{I'm actually doing realy well! It's day 8 and I feel realy good. Cautious because I'm still new.}

[whitershade]

Maybe it's just my response to fruit, or maybe I should have eaten more veggies at the last meals (I checked and I had just lettuce, that is not as much filling as cabbage, or broccoli, or cauliflower!). We don't have Larabars here :-) but I think I could make it homemade for the worse moments, just in case... :-)

Anyway, I'm excited too for week 2!

[gingerrox]

I have a bad sugar-dragon so I've been careful not to snack, and especially not on fruit or at night. But one breakfast in week one I had quite a lot of fruit - a whole banana plus some raspberries - and no added fat. Afterwards I felt bloated, I call it "sugar-bombed," but not full or satisfied. Then on the way to work I had a terrible craving for leafy greens! So since then I try to have quite a lot of fat and some leafy greens at breakfast, and occasionally SMALL amounts of fruit (like one small kiwi with a few blueberries, or a closed handful of mixed berries) with either meal one or meal two, 2-3 times a week, no more than once a day, and never after lunchtime. I'm avoiding bananas all together because it's too hard to eat half a banana - what do you do with the other half?? But berries and kiwi work well for me because they aren't too sweet.

So that's a long way of suggesting that @winterwhite be sure you are having your fruit in small portions with a fat- and protein-rich meal so you are sure to be full and not get hunger pangs, and I'd suggest cutting it down to a few times a week, not daily. If you're afraid the cherries will go bad before you eat them all, either share them with friends or freeze them!