30 at 30

[kristananne]

Hi all.  I've named my log "30 at 30" because I just turned 30 the other day.  I'm officially starting on Aug 5 after a short trip.  I've decided to log some of my days leading up to my start date.

 

Pre 30

Day -7 (negative 7) - Monday July 29.  

I have been doing a paleo-esque way of eating for 8 days now.  No beans, no dairy, no grains.  I'm using up the ingredients I have in the house with added sugar (for example - deli meat and turkey bacon).  Also still consuming some artificial sweeteners.  Saturday 7/27 was the only day I had a cheat day - family birthday party.  Cheated with crackers & spinach dip and a slice of ice cream cake.  The cake was lame, didn't finish my piece.  Though I joked that it was “gateway cakeâ€...it led to snacking on the crackers and dip I had easily avoided before indulging in the lame cake.  Back to the present.  I feel encouraged, supported, motivated, excited for the day I start my Whole 30.  I wish I could start now, but travelling this weekend.  I want to start strong, so I'm starting on Monday Aug 5.  

 

Things to note one week into “paleo-esqueâ€:

- Skin seems clearer.  Still small blemishes, but they are healing as fast as they show up.  Skin feels softer even.

- Skin on upper arms seems a little better than normal, but still yucky looking. This is probably THE ONE THING I'm hoping the Whole30 will improve upon. I'd love to wear tank tops with confidence again. - Period started a few days early.  Cramps are present but not bothersome enough to take medication like usual.  Still as heavy as usual.

- Mood has improved.  Previous state of laziness/near-depressed fog seems to be lifting.  Feeling more energetic and optimistic.

- Has been easier than I expected to give up grains/dairy/legumes.  I haven't missed it yet.  Even the cheat from Saturday wasn't because I REALLY WANTED those things, but more mindless eating because it was there.

[kristananne]

Hey all!

Day 3 for me, since I started Aug 5.  Days 1 & 2 were good.  I'm learning that I need to make my meals bigger so I don't get snacky.  So far the "snack attacks" are just wanting a handful of fruit (berries or melon balls).  I think that means I just need to add more food to my plate at meal time, since I'm not hungry enough for a mini meal for a snack.  I'm going to make it my goal to stick to the suggestion of not snacking on fruit.

 

Another thing to note is that I not only started my Whole30 on Aug 5, but I got sick on Aug 5 as well.  I will see the doctor later today but I believe (from experience) that it is Strep.  Boo.  I'm also super dehydrated and can't seem to get enough water in me to counteract it.  Trying though!    It's kind of difficult to eat enough because I'm not very hungry and my throat hurts, but I'm trying.

 

What else...oh, I am sick of washing dishes!  Haha.  But it's worth it.  I'm learning how to streamline things so there's less chopping for subsequent meals, etc.  And I read the blog post about the new timeline.  I can't say I am typical for a day 3 person so far.  Though I was eating Paleo prior to starting AND I'm sick so maybe I just don't realize that the "headaches, fatigue, and general malaise" are part of the Whole30 and not my illness.  I do have swollen lymph nodes and a killer sore throat though, so I know I'm actually sick and not just in a Day 2-3 Hangover.

Here are my last couple of days, and the plan for today:

Day 1:

B: 3 eggs, 1 serving fruit (blueberries & melon balls)  <---missing veggies, I know!
L: Spaghetti squash sauteed in coconut oil with kale, mushrooms, homemade meatballs, side of tomatoes drizzled with olive oil

D: Aidell's chicken & apple sausage, sweet potatoes, red peppers

Snacked on a handful of blueberries and a couple melon balls

 

Day 2: 

B: 3 eggs, kale, leftover sausage/sweet potatoes/peppers, 1 serving fruit (blueberries, strawberries & melon balls)

 

 

L: 2 hard boiled eggs, raw red peppers with a thumb size amt of almond butter (ground fresh in store), half a large avocado, 1 serving melon balls <---could have used more protein here

D: Nom Nom Paleo's Slow Cooker Roast Chicken & Gravy, cauliflower-garlic mash, salad (lettuce, carrots, tomato, red peppers, mushrooms) with avocado and olive oil

 

 

Snacked on most of a Lara Bar (Cashew Cookie) after lunch.  Not sure if I was hungry or bored.  Probably bored.  Oops.  Learning!

Plan for Day 3:
B: 3 eggs scrambled, kale, mushrooms, red peppers, 1 serving melon balls

L: Spaghetti squash sauteed in coconut oil with kale, mushrooms, leftover roast chicken, raw red peppers & carrots w/ almond butter

D: Pork chops, brussels sprouts, carrots, salad (lettuce, carrots, tomato, red peppers, mushrooms) with avocado and olive oil

Going to try for no snack today

[Darlene]

Sounds like you're doing really well!

 

Is your throat still sore?  Have you been able to avoid having to use antibiotics? 

 

I love the pictures.  Everything looks so good!

[kristananne]

Sounds like you're doing really well!

 

Is your throat still sore?  Have you been able to avoid having to use antibiotics? 

 

I love the pictures.  Everything looks so good!

 

Hi Darlene!  My throat is actually not sore at all anymore.  My lymph nodes were really swollen and now they're not.  I didn't take any medicine at all.  So since I felt better I didn't end up going to the doctor.  I feel really great today actually.  Not sure how that happened?  Could it be the Whole30 working it's magic already, or just a fluke?  Interesting to think about.  

[kristananne]

Day 3 went well!  I veered off plan slightly in that instead of carrots and salad at dinner, I had leftover cauliflower mash and gravy with my pork chop and brussels sprouts.  

 

 

And I didn't snack at all except one melon ball that I mindlessly popped into my mouth when I was fixing my son's snack.  It's interesting to think about how often I must have been mindlessly taking bites of food here and there.  That's something I will have to be more aware of.

 

Going by the timeline, Day 3 is typically a "hangover" day.  I felt icky in the morning because I was sick, or possibly being sick was my hangover?  Who knows.  I'm no longer sick and I feel physically great!  Though I did have a few hours yesterday afternoon where I caught myself being a little short on patience with my son (he's 2, that happens often!  haha).  It wasn't a "Kill All The Things" moment, but maybe it could have been if I weren't aware of it.  So glad that timeline is there to warn me ahead of time!  Haha.

 

Today is Day 4 and so far it doesn't feel like a "Kill All The Things" day...but it's only 8 AM so I guess the day is still young.

 

Day 4 Plan:

 

We have a playdate at McDonalds.  I know, evil.  But the indoor playground is perfect for our super hot weather here and this particular one is preschool-size-kid friendly.  I won't be eating anything.  We go there every Thursday morning and I haven't had anything but a bottle of water there for about a month now.  It won't be an issue.  Especially because I eat before hand and will have a Lara Bar in my bag for emergencies.  I am pretty confident that I won't need it because the thought of eating McD's actually really repulses me now.

 

B: Hash made from mushrooms, spinach, chopped up leftover pork chop, and an egg.  Side of tomatoes drizzled with olive oil, avocado, strawberries

 

 

L: Leftover roast chicken, cauliflower mash & gravy, brussels sprouts, raw peppers with almond butter.

D: Chicken thighs (still figuring out how I want to prepare them), carrots, salad with avocado & olive oil

 

I'll snack on hard boiled eggs and some raw veggie and a giant glass of water before heading out the door for McD's for insurance.

 

Bring it on Day 4!

[Darlene]

Hey Kristananne,

 

Good to hear you were able to avoid antibiotics! 

 

Again, your meals look amazing!  I think mine do too, actually.  I'm just not much of a photographer.  Anyway, if anyone were to think we're deprived, eating this way, those pics would certainly change their minds.

 

I'm hungry. 

 

Sounds like you're doing well.  I'll be curious as to how you feel at McDonald's.  I've been fine around food I can't eat.  So far.  The Lara Bar sounds like a good idea. 

 

Keep up the good work! 

[riverwaters]

You're breakfasts do look all kinds of yummy.  I pinned that Slow Cooker recipe and I'll have to give it a try for dinner sometime next week.

 

Looks like you're catching yourself with the mindless eating (that's my downfall too) and I think it will get easier for us as the month goes on. 

 

Keep it up!

[kristananne]

Hey Kristananne,

 

Good to hear you were able to avoid antibiotics! 

 

Again, your meals look amazing!  I think mine do too, actually.  I'm just not much of a photographer.  Anyway, if anyone were to think we're deprived, eating this way, those pics would certainly change their minds.

 

I'm hungry. 

 

Sounds like you're doing well.  I'll be curious as to how you feel at McDonald's.  I've been fine around food I can't eat.  So far.  The Lara Bar sounds like a good idea. 

 

Keep up the good work! 

 

 

Thanks Darlene!  McDonald's went fine, I didn't even eat the Lara Bar (or the snack I had planned before hand - wasn't at all hungry for it).  Had my bottle of water and enjoyed the adult time with my mommy friend.

 

 

You're breakfasts do look all kinds of yummy.  I pinned that Slow Cooker recipe and I'll have to give it a try for dinner sometime next week.

 

Looks like you're catching yourself with the mindless eating (that's my downfall too) and I think it will get easier for us as the month goes on. 

 

Keep it up!

 

I hope you love the chicken recipe as much as we did here!  Just a note, next time I make it, I'll probably use more onions, because my chicken gave off so much liquid that the gravy wasn't thick enough (I ended up reducing it by half by boiling on the stove).  It still made a TON of gravy.

[kristananne]

Day 4 was great!  The playdate at McD's was fine, didn't eat the Lara Bar or anything.  Changed dinner from chicken to chili over salad.  Yum!  

 

 

Things I'm noticing:
-Not really hungry at all.  It's hard to eat enough because I just don't want it.  I'm not sure what I need to do about that.

-TONS of energy.  I cleaned my entire house this morning in less than two hours (including deep cleaning/scrubbing things).

-Vast improvement in general mood.  I feel like I'm coming out of a fog that I must have been in.

-Not constantly thinking about what and when I can eat next.  Not missing foods that aren't compliant.  

-Both salty and sweet tastebuds are super sensitive now.  Fruit is amazingly sweet.  The past few dinners I've made have been trial and error with the amount of salt...I'm down to using a quarter what I used to use in my cooking.

 

Plan for Day 5:

 

Breakfast: 3 eggs, scrambled with mushrooms & spinach, topped with chopped tomatoes and drizzled with olive oil.  Side of strawberries and blueberries.  English breakfast tea (black) and water.

 

 

Lunch: Leftover chili over salad, drizzled with olive oil, topped with Wholly Guacamole 100 cal pack (because I didn't feel like cutting up an avocado, in a hurry because of an appointment)

 

Dinner: Leftover pork chops and whatever fresh veggies need to get cooked up.  Probably carrots and or kale as well.

 

Going to the gym in a couple of hours.  Just cardio, but I have hard boiled eggs and carrots/peppers/almond butter available.

 

We have plans to go to the movies tonight after dinner to see Planes.  I am not worried about the popcorn.  I don't really want it and it hasn't been an issue the last few times I've taken my son.  We are also going to Chuck E Cheese tomorrow.  We'll go when it's not a meal time so I won't be hungry and I'll bring some olive oil & vinegar in my purse just in case (they have a salad bar).  I'll also have that trusty Lara Bar in my bag for both occasions.  Just knowing it's there seems to be all I need.

[joolie]

Your food pictures are amazing. I need to start working on some new meals!

[kristananne]

Your food pictures are amazing. I need to start working on some new meals!

 

Thanks so much!  

[kristananne]

I've been slacking on updating here, but I'm still hanging in there!  Day 9 for me.  Days 5-8 were good.  We ate out TWICE on Saturday.  First was Jason's Deli for lunch.  I had a salad with greens, spinach, cucumber, peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, mushrooms, 3 hard boiled eggs, and little bit of almonds.  Dressed with oil & vinegar.  It was good and filling.  Oh and one strawberry I stole from my husband's plate.  

Then we took our son to Chuck E Cheese.  We weren't going to eat, but hubby ordered me a salad bar anyways "just in case".  I didn't really trust the salad bar there (who knows if they add junk to the smashed up hard boiled eggs for filler!) and their oil looked way too clear to be actual EVOO so I just put some cantelope and strawberries on my plate.  I ate a few bites, but that place grosses me out, so that was the end of that.  Hahaha!

 

Man, EVERYTHING in the grocery store has added sugar in it (stating the obvious to us!).  I could not find a brand of broth or stock that didn't have sugar in it, except the store brand of organic full sodium vegetable broth.  I didn't even need broth, but I thought it would be good to have on hand.  I need to just make my own I guess!

 

I have not had any desire to eat lately.  I guess that's part of the timeline, but I'm there early!  This started on day 6 with the Chuck E Cheese thing, and it's still happening.  I haven't been interested in finishing my meals at all.  I have to remind myself to make something and sit down to eat.  This is also wreaking havoc on my desire to plan meals, which could spell disaster if I'm not careful.  Gotta get it together!

 

Here was dinner for Day 7:

 

Grass fed NY strip, shredded brussels sprouts sauteed in coconut oil with onions and garlic, baked sweet potato, plain.

 

 

Here was breakfast for today, Day 9:

 

Hash made from homemade breakfast sausage (1 lb 90% lean natural ground pork, 1 tsp each of kosher salt, rubbed sage, paprika, 3/4 tsp ground black pepper), half a sweet potato, red peppers, mushrooms & spinach with two eggs on top.

 

[riverwaters]

I'm with you on the not feeling very hungry.  My husband and I were talking about this last night when we were trying to figure out dinner but didn't really want to eat anything. 

 

Good job with eating out!!!!

[kristananne]

Day 13!  Time for a little update I guess.

 

I can't believe I'm almost two weeks into this.  It's going a lot easier (overall) than I thought it would.  Sure there are moments when I want to eat candy (even just a bite!) or have something to drink that is not water (sweet tea please!), but I know this is more important than any of that.

 

I don't have a scale, but I can tell I'm losing weight.  I look thinner in the mirror.  In fact, I really like how I look in the mirror.  And even typing that here moves me to tears because after a lifetime of having terrible body image, I can finally say "I really like how I look in the mirror".  So thank you, Whole9, for that.  

 

I'm falling into an egg slump...I'm getting really sick of eggs.  But it's such an easy, fast, and inexpensive protein!  It's mostly eggs for breakfast that bug me lately.  So I think I'll use them for lunch and have dinner leftover for breakfast to break up the morning monotony.

 

I've discovered coconut butter (Maranatha brand).  It's compliant, but I'm going to put it away for a while.  I've "treated myself" with it a couple of times (coconut butter on strawberries = OMG).  I can see it being a gateway food!

 

In the mood area, I'm still having moments of no patience.  It's mostly with my son, and I feel so terrible and guilty about that.  It very well could just be his age and have nothing to do with doing the Whole30.  

 

I think the severe dry skin on my upper arms is starting to get better.  The skin feels smoother and it's not as itchy, which means I'm not scratching and causing more issues.

 

Also, I'm OBSESSED with roasted chicken.  That's all I want to eat, all day long.  Roasted chicken leg quarters.  RAWR.  Next grocery run will include lots of chicken so I can have roast chicken ready to go.

 

My husband asked me last night what I was going to do when my 30 days are up.  I told him I was probably not going to change much.  I don't even know if I want to formally re-introduce non-compliant foods.  I don't miss anything enough to try to fit it back into my life.  A few days after my official 30 days are up are my son's birthday and our 6 year wedding anniversary.  I don't think I'll have a problem avoiding the cake at the party (because it's probably going to be pretty crappy Chuck E Cheese cake to be honest).  Our anniversary dinner will be at our favorite upscale steakheouse, so I don't think I'll have to work TOO hard to get compliant foods there.  Basically what I'm saying is that I'm confident that our upcoming special occasions won't turn into an excuse for a free-for-all of junk.  I like the idea of indulging in foods that are of the highest quality and super special (imagine that!).

 

So that's my update.  I'm super happy I decided to do this, and I can't wait to see what happens when my 30 days are up, and beyond.  Thanks for reading!

[joolie]

Great stuff here! We sound like we are on such a similar path! Although I'm struggling a bit with how I'm going to proceed after the 30 days, I too feel like my palate has changed and rather than wanting anything and everything, I also just crave an indulgence of small portions of high quality specialty meals.

[kristananne]

Day 18!

Still chugging along.  I've hit the weird food dream phase.  I've been dreaming about foods I didn't ever really care about before - ravioli, pizza, cereal.  The pizza dream was funny because I woke up when I realized I was eating pizza because I was so panicked that I was ruining my Whole30.  Then I was like dang, I could have enjoyed that pizza in my dream and tried to fall back asleep to keep dream-eating it.  Haha so weird.  The dreams seem to be affecting my quality of sleep as well, since I am waking up dead tired after 8+ hrs.

 

I am feeling like I'm in a rut with food.  I'm sick of cooking, sick of cleaning the dishes, sick of going to the store.  I'm just tired.  So sick of vegetables.  I can't seem to make them desirable.  I did buy some beets today, so that should be interesting.  I like canned beets on my salads, so I'm looking forward to making these.

 

My clothes are falling off of me.  So that's a nice benefit.  I am not sure if I want to weigh myself when I'm done or not.  I don't have a healthy relationship with the scale, and I'm starting to realize that how much I weigh is so arbitrary.  I mean, I'm totally curious, but I think it'd be best to just ignore it.  I already know I need to have my favorite jeans taken in and buy a lot of new bottoms, which makes me happy.

 

I guess that's all for now.  Hopefully I'll get some of that tiger blood soon.  

[amberino21]

I had the same feeling during my weird food dreams!! I was mortified that I was eating non compliant food, and really upset at myself (in my dream)

Sounds like you're having a lot of success in the shrinking department must be a good feeling to see that happening, even when it's not associated with a number.

With your vegies, can you try new ones or prepare them in different ways? We've been eating broccoli roasted the past few days - different to steamed! Yummy with mayo on it

Beetroot is nice raw, or bake it whole, wrapped in foil with a bit of water.

[kristananne]

With your vegies, can you try new ones or prepare them in different ways? We've been eating broccoli roasted the past few days - different to steamed! Yummy with mayo on it

 

 

I actually went this weekend and got some new-to-me veggies to try out and prepared some old stand-bys differently.  So I think I may be digging out of my veggie rut.  

[kristananne]

Day 22!  

 

Still happy, still loving this Whole30 thing, still obsessed with roasted chicken.  

 

I feel really good.  People are starting to say things like "You look really great!" so that's an awesome feeling.

 

Things I'm noticing:  

-Skin is pretty consistently clear of blemishes.

-My hair is staying cleaner longer, where before, it would get very oily by the end of the day.  Now I can go a day or two without washing.

-Dry skin on arms is a lot better (smoother, softer, not itchy), but still needs improvement in appearance.

-Will be needing a new wardrobe of smaller clothes after this.

 

A victory I'd love to brag about here, because this is huge for me...  I went to a party, and was offered food and alcohol multiple times, and each time politely declined.  I had a wonderful time at the party and didn't feel the need to stuff my face.  Did not have one bite of food (since I didn't want to nitpick the hostess on how she prepared it, but nothing looked like it'd be W30 compliant anyways).  I've never done this before.  Ever.

 

Also, I solidified my decision to never weigh myself again.  I told the people close to me that I don't want to know because it does not matter what the number is.  I look and feel good, and that's only getting better as time goes on.  

 

So there we are.  8 official days to go.  

[kristananne]

Day 27.

 

I'm having a hard time.  My mood is low, my appetite is down, I'm kind of bored with this and sick of the food I can eat.  I've been changing it up to keep things interesting but it like I just don't care anymore.  For the first time in this Whole30, I just WANT crappy food.  Cookies, frosting, cookies with frosting on them.  Just crap.

 

Hanging in there though, but I am honestly over this.  *sigh*

[kristananne]

Day 30!!

 

Having lunch with a friend today at Jason's Deli.  Easy enough.

 

Don't know about dinner tonight.  Probably some kind of chili since I have ground meats thawed in the fridge.

 

I've been thinking a lot about reintroducing foods.  I'm fine with not having grains or legumes for a long time.  I have no interest in them anymore.  Dairy is a maybe.  So that's probably the first thing I'll reintroduce, but I don't plan on doing it right away.  Probably in a week or so depending on my situation, but I'm not going to formally reintroduce it.

 

I will be introducing natural sugars like honey and pure maple syrup.  And I'm looking into sugars in bacon and other foods.  I'd like to avoid all refined sugar of course.  But having some honey in my tea or maple syrup on some occasional paleo pancakes should be okay I think.  I know I prefer the natural sugars in fruit to candy now though.  Amazing to think that I've broken my candy addiction!  Wow, I thought that'd never happen.

 

Speaking of SWYPO foods, I am going to allow those types of things when the occasion calls for it.  I do a monthly Keno night where we bring and app or dessert.  I'm going to bring some meatballs this time, but I think I'll experiment with paleo versions of deserty things like brownies.  We'll see!

 

On to day 31!

[Physibeth]

Congratulations on making it to the end! I would strongly encourage you to do formal re-introductions. I didn't start with W30 but with a meal plan from Practical Paleo. I reintroduced dairy formally and then just decided to let the rest come as it did. I then had an intense reaction to a food truck meal that had multiple variants as to the culprit and I didn't know what it was. After my W30 I did some careful re-introductions and feel pretty confident now about what doesn't cause a reaction for me so when I do have a reaction my suspects are much narrower. Just my 2 cents based on my own experience.

[kristananne]

Congratulations on making it to the end! I would strongly encourage you to do formal re-introductions. I didn't start with W30 but with a meal plan from Practical Paleo. I reintroduced dairy formally and then just decided to let the rest come as it did. I then had an intense reaction to a food truck meal that had multiple variants as to the culprit and I didn't know what it was. After my W30 I did some careful re-introductions and feel pretty confident now about what doesn't cause a reaction for me so when I do have a reaction my suspects are much narrower. Just my 2 cents based on my own experience.

 

Thanks for the feedback!  

[kristananne]

Day 31!

 

Results are in!  I'm not weighing myself anymore, but I did check my body fat.  I went down 3%!  I've moved from "average" to "ideal" according the chart that came with my calipers.  I'm going to have my husband double check my results when he comes home from work, but I did it like 6 time with the same reading, so I think it's right.  I'm so pleased with this!

 

The skin on my arms is very smooth now.  It doesn't itch.  It still looks horrible from years and years of scratching and picking at it, but I suspect it will need a lot more than 30 days to fix that, if it's fixable.  I'm happy with these results!

 

I finally got my "tiger blood" at the end.  Lots of energy, happy, motivated, great mood, etc.