July 15th Start Date: support and accountability a must

[Evonne]

Hi all~ I too started on July 15th.  I think I'm doing pretty well.  I had one mistake on day 2 of eating pasteurized butter thinking it was ok but it was only two meals so I decided to trudge on and just add a day at the end or reintroduce dairy last.  I'm really not minding the food choices as long as I can keep from being hungry.  So far I'm just eating meat, veggies and fats separately.  I have not ventured into ways of combining things but that is my goal.  I have not had too many bad symptoms so far and I'm starting to feel more energy.  I've already noticed an improvement in my skin and hair so I guess I'm doing something right!  Good luck to all of us. Love this forum since I don't get much support from family.  Not because they don't care but because they just don't get it.  

Evonne

[Natalie M.]

Yvonne, I like your attitude. I think when we mess up we shouldn't think if it as "starting over." We're just adding on days... Keep it up, it's hard enough without support at home.

[Natalie M.]

Hey friends,

 

I"m new to the forum but today is day 5 for me as well.  Doing okay, I feel great (been sick with a lingering respiratory infection for five weeks now and today I think it's gone), but I swear I've been starving for the last 24 hours. Meals aren't a problem whatsoever, but snacks are. I'm already sick of munching on carrots and handfuls of blueberries or almonds.  

 

Today I was at the grocery store and I swore the cookies caught my eye, and I don't even like sweets for the most part.  That was weird.  

 

Here's what I had today:

B:  2 scrambled eggs w/ homemade salsa, black coffee

L:  salad w/ mixed greens, blueberries, tomato, red cabbage, 3 oz grilled chicken, balsamic vinegar

D: grilled pork loin, roasted green beans and tomatoes, sauteed mushrooms and onions

 

It looks like you're not eating enough. I think you could add more fat at your meals. Maybe you could have bacon or avocado with your eggs, olive oil on your salad, etc. I'm nursing a baby so I need to have an extra meal, but I try to make sure each meal has adequate fat. I also sip coconut milk throughout the day. 

[bhcp]

It looks like you're not eating enough. I think you could add more fat at your meals. Maybe you could have bacon or avocado with your eggs, olive oil on your salad, etc. I'm nursing a baby so I need to have an extra meal, but I try to make sure each meal has adequate fat. I also sip coconut milk throughout the day. 

 

Maybe. I'm a long time veteran of Weight Watchers so I know that has me thinking of eating less, but your probably right. I had a great dinner last night and haven't been hungry since.  I cook a lot with EVOO and I do drizzle it on my salad.  Like I said, meals are fine, but we eat a late dinner so an afternoon snack is a must for me and I'm struggling with choices there.  

[redjasmin]

Maybe. I'm a long time veteran of Weight Watchers so I know that has me thinking of eating less, but your probably right. I had a great dinner last night and haven't been hungry since.  I cook a lot with EVOO and I do drizzle it on my salad.  Like I said, meals are fine, but we eat a late dinner so an afternoon snack is a must for me and I'm struggling with choices there.

Try this for snack ideas

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sarahramsden.com%2Fwhole-food-snacks%2F&h=0AQHb4DKB&s=1

[redjasmin]

Evonne, have you had a look at some of the resources like nom nom paleo - all her recipes are whole 30 compliant and there is an app for your phone or iPad, paleOMG has some amazing recipes - with a few tweaks because she uses honey and a few other non compliant ingredients. My first couple of days on my first whole 30 were a bit dull as I was so unsure of what to eat, and what went with what - but if this is going to change your life, you need to have a stack of recipes that you can use forever? There are plenty of recipes on Pinterest too, and I noticed the whole 30 Facebook page has been recommending Pinterest boards to follow. I try and cook up a few big meals at the weekend and store them in small containers in the freezer, then take them out and reheat them as a meal, I always try and make more than I will eat at any one meal so I can keep some leftovers in the fridge for either a meal or a mini-meal. Once you get into the swing of things you will discover some lovely recipes that you will be happy to eat long after your whole 30 has finished.

[CarrieTS]

I loved being able to get caught up on everyone's posts.  It seems like everyone is hanging in there despite a challenge or set back here or there. 

 

I haven't journaled for the past couple of days because of being very busy with family visiting.  My sister-in-law follows a gluten free diet so having her visit actually helped me get through some of challenges this week.  As I mentioned previously, the county fair is this week and we went several evening this week.  Thursday night, I actually had an internal dialogue with a funnel cake and fried oreo cookies.  I cannot remember now what was specifically said but it someting to the effect of them telling me to eat them and me struggling not to eat them because I was hungry.  I avoided the fat and sugar bomb and had a snack when I got home.  My sister-in-law not taking part in the sugar bomb that my husband and children were consuming helped.

 

Friday afternoon I was working from the local coffee shop with my sister-in-law.  They are the one location in town that I can drink a black iced coffee with out wanting to add cream.  Later that afternoon we took my girls to see a movie.  I made sure to pack cashews and strawberries as a snack.  Then Friday evening we went SeBree's, our favorite restaurant, that makes everything from scratch and uses local foods.  I went into the dinner feeling in control.  I ordered the pork roast, with sweet potato and fried apples.  It all tasted great and I felt good about my choices.  Then the family went for ice cream afterwords.  I refrained without any issue. 

 

BUT...I started having bloating that evening so some ingredient at dinner did not settle well.  I am going add an extra 6 days to my W30 to be able to ensure I adequately give my GI tract the 30 days.  I am not sure what caused the bloating and GI discomfort.  What was a great learning experience was that after not feeling any bloating or discomfort for about 3 days, Friday night's side effects felt that much more noticeable.  It solidified that I really DO NOT want to ever have that feeling again. 

 

Good luck to everyone on day 7!!!

[Islandgrrl]

Today is my Day 7. 

 

I've been doing okay so far. The food is NOT a problem at all. I'm eating well and I'm satisfied and aside from after dinner last night when i really wanted something sweet, I'm not craving anything. 

 

I have a cold, so I feel pretty gross. I'm NOT sleeping well. Up every two hours, usually  having a hot flash - yeah...I'm there. The stuffy head, runny nose and sore throat and sinus pain are driving me nuts and I've gone through an entire box of kleenex over the last couple of days. 

 

So I have a situation. TMI (perhaps) ahead. 

 

I'm scheduled to have a colonoscopy tomorrow and I've been doing the preparation for that, which up until this point in time has had me eating a low-residue diet over the last couple of days. I've adapted that just fine to the Whole30 (made some wicked good cream of chicken soup with coconut cream instead of anything dairy). But today starts the rough stuff. I have to drink a bottle of lemon flavored Magnesium Citrate. Ingredients as follows: (aside from the MgCitrate) Citric acid, lemon oil, polyethylene glycol, sodium bicarbonate, sodium sacchain, sucrose, water purified. In addition to that, I have to drink a tremendously disgusting electrolyte solution. Lots of it. Ingredients: Polyethylene glycol, sodium sulfate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride, potassium chloride. 

 

Will I need to restart my Whole30? 

[Speechie]

Hi all,

 

So good to read that you guys are having difficulty too!  I'm on day 7 and still really tired.  But, my reflux has disappeared.   (yay).  I am doing the autoimmune protocol and the biggest challenge that I am finding is breakfast.  Eggs have always been my go to meal if I am tired or lazy.  So, it has been a challenge.  I just found some compliant sausages, so at least these feel a little more breakfasty.  I have not eaten sausages in 3 years as they usually resulted in a huge gastric upset, but these are great!  My other challenge is that I don't eat meat on Fridays (and I hate seafood - makes me ill).  So Friday was difficult for food.  I made a great coconut curry soup for one meal, but I focussed on fat and veggies for my other meals.

[Sakrima]

I'm scheduled to have a colonoscopy tomorrow and I've been doing the preparation for that, which up until this point in time has had me eating a low-residue diet over the last couple of days. I've adapted that just fine to the Whole30 (made some wicked good cream of chicken soup with coconut cream instead of anything dairy). But today starts the rough stuff. I have to drink a bottle of lemon flavored Magnesium Citrate. Ingredients as follows: (aside from the MgCitrate) Citric acid, lemon oil, polyethylene glycol, sodium bicarbonate, sodium sacchain, sucrose, water purified. In addition to that, I have to drink a tremendously disgusting electrolyte solution. Lots of it. Ingredients: Polyethylene glycol, sodium sulfate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride, potassium chloride. 

 

Will I need to restart my Whole30? 

Islandgrrl, that doesn't sound nice at all! I'm so sorry for your health issues, and I hope that it is not anything serious. You have really been brave to keep going with whole30 when having a cold and sleeping restlessly having hot flashes. I am not able to answer your question, but maybe someone with more experience can? If you have to drink those bottles for your colonoscopy, then there is no choice. Maybe you can continue until whole 37, if you start to feel better? I hope you do start to experience that magic...

[mydisciprin]

The weekend started off well, I found some organic macadamia nut butter for the same price as the organic peanut butter I used to get, smaller bottle size but it's good stuff.

Then Sunday morning I had some mild diarrhea. I ate an early lunch and had a short nap, stomach was still upset after that and then it changed up gears... sorry if this is TMI but I don't recall the last time I had it gushing out of me like that. Again and again I had to keep going. I was thirsty and even taking a sip of water was setting me off. By the evening things had calmed down/emptied out. Then came some dry heaves (as there was nothing left in the tank), felt like hell during that. I went to bed early and slept okay. When I awoke, I still had an upset stomach. Where the content came from is anybody's guess.

I made it to work though, I'd even say it was the strongest ride of the last week.

I don't know what caused the stomach upset. Maybe I overdid the macadamia butter, maybe it's the diet, maybe just coincidence. However, I'm actually pleased it happened. I feel clean and purged now, and I'm keen to only ingest what's good for me. Well, once some sign of appetite reappears

 

I went for a walk in the forest nearby with my son, and it was so lovely! We picked wild forest blueberries, strawberries and rasberries, and my son even found some chantarellis mushroom. I feel so lucky with these supergood superfood we found!

 

mustikat.jpg

 

That sounds so awesome, I'm jealous!

[Islandgrrl]

Sakrima, thank you so much for the encouragement! The colonoscopy is the result of recently having been diagnosed with diverticulosis during a flare of diverticulitis. My hope is that in changing my diet through the Whole30 I will never have to experience another flare. It was honestly worse than childbirth. I don't think I'm particularly brave. I initially attributed the cold symptoms to seasonal allergies (another thing I'm hoping to be rid of soon!) and just feeling crappy for the first few days of Whole30. I'm not going to stop just because I feel icky, especially when I know the rewards are coming! As far as the hot flashes go? I cannot even begin to tell you how much I hope they will stop as a result of this program, but I will be overjoyed if they just decrease! Better sleep...that's coming. I just know it. Before hot flashes I NEVER had trouble sleeping. In fact I never have trouble getting to sleep. Ever.

Whole37 is somehow mentally much more comforting than "starting over." I guess it seems to validate the past week rather than screaming failure. I can live with that, because seriously, I'm happy with the food. I was a vegetarian for over 30 years...vegan for 10 of that. Ditching cheese (the only form of dairy I even like) has been okay. Even grains have not really been much missed. Hummus, though.....I really miss that. And freshly shelled peas from the garden. But it's just food. There are plenty of other things I love to eat.

[Natalie M.]

Try this for snack ideas

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sarahramsden.com%2Fwhole-food-snacks%2F&h=0AQHb4DKB&s=1

 

Thanks, those are really good ideas!

[jacmic]

Hey everyone. We made it through week 1!!! How are you feeling? Do you feel you are getting the hang of it a bit? 

Couldn't check in yesterday - we took my 7 year old daughter to her first overnight camp. She is gone through Friday and while I can send her a message, have no way of hearing from her. She was so excited but I cried like a baby when I dropped her off. Such a big step for both of us!  Then we headed over to my sister in law's for dinner to celebrate my father in laws birthday. She did grilled fish, salad and a fruit salad for us to have while they did some other dish. The fruit salad was so sweet to me that I actually asked her if she added sugar, which she had not of course. I love that my taste buds are waking back up!

 

So I dreamed about cupcakes all night last night. I like cupcakes but there are not my go to sweet so it kind of made me laugh. The dreams were so vivid that I actually woke up upset until I realized it was just a dream. In my dream, I ate several by just stuffing them in my mouth. :-)

 

Ok - so I cheated a little and got on the scale this morning. I was SHOCKED to see that I lost 11 pounds in the first week. How is that even possible???? I know a LOT of it is water, especially doing this after coming back from a vacation where I ate and drank a lot. I know this will not continue but I was curious since my clothes are already starting to feel loser again, yay!
 

I joined IronTribe Fitness which is a cross fit type facility and today started our 4 week instructrional classes. It was fun and great to be in a group of newbies. The facility is how I found out about this program.

 

Did big grocery shopping and cooking over the weekend to prepare for the week. Love having my fridge stocked with fresh veggies and lots of eggs (even learning to like them a little).  I'm happy to be feeling better, stronger and more clear headed.

 

Have a great day everyone! Look forward to seeing your post!

[Natalie M.]

Happy weekiversary, everybody. I feel like I've hit my stride, and my husband, who is a pincher, feels the change in me, too. Very encouraging.  How do y'all feel?

[KelliS]

Yay for us surviving the first week! I'm definitely less overwhelmed and am slowly learning how to cook this much. Mental fog is gone and have more energy. Still having sugar cravings

 

The dreams! A couple of nights ago I dreamed I went to Whole Foods and they were out of fresh veggies and meat. Last night I dreamed I was going to cheat and bought a small V8 sized can of Lime-a-rita, but I couldn't even bring myself to drink it in my dream. I don't even like that stuff in real life (I do enjoy wine and expensive tequila) and I couldn't even indulge in a dream...

 

Yesterday, I accidentally ate a peanut and freaked out. The fam was watching TV and we had a bowl of mixed nuts, including raw almonds and raw cashews. By the light of the TV I picked out some almonds and cashews, but apparently got a peanut which I discovered after chewing. Good lesson in mindfulness.

 

Keep up the good efforts, everyone!!

[redjasmin]

Omg I'm so hungry today! I did a lot of exercise yesterday - cycled, ran and walked the dogs 6 miles - I had a post WO snack after my bike ride and I made sure to have some sweet potatoes for lunch - but today Ive just been hungry all day!

I'd made pork fillet for lunch with leftover cauliflower pilaf and an avocado for fat (I know weird combination a but stuff I had to hand!) I'd made enough pork for 2 portions - and ate the lot!

Just had an apple with almond butter because my chicken isn't cooking quick enough!

Hope this hunger goes tomorrow!

[Islandgrrl]

Day 8 in the bag!

After I survived my little medical procedure, I ate the food I had prepared and brought along. It ended up being a salad with mango, avocado and chicken...and some cashew bits tossed on top for good measure, and an almost hard boiled egg (missed the timing on those by just a little bit...good that way, though). I let them force me to drink apple juice after I inspected the label. No sugar. Organic even.

Dinner was....dang, I can't remember now. After effects of anesthesia, I guess. But it was all good stuff. Cashews and almonds were a snack sometime this afternoon, and I know I ate chicken and cherries at some point. Whether it was organized as a meal or I just grazed....couldn't tell you.

Meals for tomorrow at work are packed, and components for meals for the rest of the week are made and in the fridge. Sweet potatoes, spinach and an egg for post run breakfast and a salad similar to today's for lunch. Nectarine instead of mango...mangoes aren't ripe enough yet. Snack is cherries.

I probably shouldn't eat so much fruit, but in all honesty, it's not replacing sugar. I always eat fruit. Dinner tomorrow night will probably be cream of chicken and zucchini soup. I will throw some kale in there if there's enough ready in the garden.

So last night I dreamed about pizza. Thin crust, all the veggies except mushrooms (allergic), and no cheese. I swear I could smell it. And while I was sleeping off the anesthesia in the recovery room I dreamed about fish tacos and fajitas and, of all the weird things, Ben and Jerry's ice cream. I don't think I've ever actually eaten Ben and Jerry's ice cream. I'm a Starbucks Java Chip girl all the way and I haven't eaten that in years because it screws my guts up so badly.

I need some suggestions. What to do with ripe bananas? They are past the point that I can eat them just the way they are - I like them when the skins are still a tiny bit green on the ends.

[Sakrima]

Islandgrrl, I would mix the ripe bananas and some eggs and fry in coconut oil. Maybe cinnamon or ginger on top?

Funny, I did not know that making your own ketchup is so easy! I couldn't find sugarfree in stores so I end up with home-made: tomato pure (100% tomatoes as ingredients), balsamic vinegar, salt and smoked paprika. That's it! We'll never ever buy ketchup again!

[zinniaseeds]

Morning. I traveled to my sons house in Bloomington IN. I  met up at Dana Carpenters home ( 500 Paleo recipie author)  for a cookout. Dr James E Carlson. and Jimmy Moore and his wife Christine were there. It was a very good day. The next day we kayaked with our son and his two young daughters.  

I had stopped having headaches after a week of Whole 30. Yesterday I added cream and greek yogurt. Big mistake.I woke up at 5 am with a screaming blood murder headache.  Dairy= auto immune= bad for Lynn. Nice to know what is causing them. I have had headaches daily for as long as I can remember. It only took a week for them to stop.

This week, I will continue on the whole 30 trip. Only it will become the Whole 365. Being on the whole 30 for a week and stopping major pain is a miracle...why introduce anything else? For myself, it makes all the sense in the world. Dairy is the only thing I was still eating that was not whole thirty. I had already ditched grain, sugar, processed food and beans.

 

Ahhhh...what a thrilling discovery.

 

By the way, I signed up for the daily . Paid the money and have not recieved one day of it.

 

Lynn

[zinniaseeds]

Sakrima....thanks for the ketchup recipe!

[GFChris]

By the way, I signed up for the daily . Paid the money and have not recieved one day of it.

 

Lynn

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Did you check your email's spam folder?

If that comes up with nothing, I would email [email protected] and notify them that this has occurred and request that they investigate.

[jacmic]

Hey all! 

 

Sakrima - thank you for that ketchup recipe, will def try it!

 

Day 8 was a good one - I feel like I'm starting to settle in to a pattern which is good. I am noticing some more energy. Today I am going to limit my water intake at night and try to get in a little more during the day. I'm up 3-4 times a night to potty and that needs to stop! I've always gotten up once, maybe twice, but 3-4 is seriously interupting my sleep. I actually got up before my final snooze on my alarm and was ready for the day. 

 

I had a weird dream last night about a former manager - he was trying to kiss me which really grosses me out. Not that he was not a handsome man but I didn't care for him as a person and barely liked being in the same room with him. Not sure where that one came from!

[Islandgrrl]

Good morning Day 9!

 

So, the inflammation in my knees seems to be gone. My right knee feels stable and not wonky anymore. W30 WIN!

 

I went for a 3.65  mile run/walk this morning. I run as much as I can and walk the big uphills (there are a couple of really big ones....one day I will run the whole thing). For the first time in years I ran without pain. And this is with a headcold that seems to have migrated into my vocal chords (I'm squeaky). I finished my run this morning and literally cried with gratitude. Nothing hurts. How is this even possible? Seriously, I can't wait to give my doctor a big fat neener-neener for telling me that my aching joints and muscles were due to aging.

 

Even with a cold I'm feeling more energetic than I do on most days when I'm not sick. How awesome is that? I can only imagine how great I'm going to feel when I'm totally healthy.

 

Breakfast post-run today: An almost hard boiled egg (starting to like them that way with the yolks all creamy), a serving each of steamed sweet potato and spinach.

 

I'll probably be back to update again later tonight.

[Islandgrrl]

Today I am going to limit my water intake at night and try to get in a little more during the day. I'm up 3-4 times a night to potty and that needs to stop! I've always gotten up once, maybe twice, but 3-4 is seriously interupting my sleep.

 

I should probably do the same thing. Getting up 3 or 4 times a night is an issue for me, too.