Starting Whole 30 on Oct. 1st! Anyone else?

[NazzaB]

Ouch! I suffer from chronic back pain also, and it can be the biggest mood killer. I'm always cranky when it flares up.

 

I know my back pain is not food or nutrition related at all, and I don't know about yours. But if you're already frustrated and cranky - giving in to any temptation won't make it better. You'll just end up kicking yourself for it.

 

Stay strong. x

[WunderHase]

What sort of back pain do you suffer from? Have you tried doing planks and glute bridges? Those have been nice to my back.

And yes, I can have animal fats! :-) I've been sticking to lean cuts, but then realized that hormone raised meat is banned in EU. Pulled pork and spare ribs, here I come!

[mamaellen]

I'm so sorry for all of you with back pain! Virtual hugs and hot compresses from me! Bummer! 

 

I am starting Day 21 tomorrow and so far, so good. I had a cold last week and tried to chill out. I'm sure the TIGER BLOOD was the reason my body was literally twitching on the couch, rebelling against such relaxation! Anyway, I'm better now - YAY! 

 

For Week 4 I ordered a few pre-made proteins from a paleo source near me. Salmon, beef stew and a chicken dish. I think it'll make a fun change. Also Well-Fed 2 should arrive any day now! Can't wait. 

 

I have decided to do a Whole45 for sure (not sure about the 57 - day before Tday - idea). So, if any of you are continuing on into November, we can start a new thread on Oct31 or just keep posting here .

 

I love this way of eating. I just hope I can "keep up with" the required prep. I am doing it now, but worry I'll get lazy. 

 

Onward to WEEK 4!!!

[kw 30]

Hey all! I'm all day 20 and feeling the tiger blood!  For the past week I have woken up between 5 and 5:15am like clockwork... and I am ready to seize the day.  Now I'm accomplishing little things in the morning BEFORE going to work (aside from working out) like reading for pleasure and cleaning out my closet.  Yesterday I put my tiger blood hands to work and made a beautiful fall wreath.  I think my biggest takeaway from the Whole30 so far is that I am fully embracing being morning person.

 

That is all the good.  The "bad" is that yesterday I had my first mindless eating episode in 19 days.  It was about 4 in the afternoon and I stood in the kitchen eating this butternut squash/apple casserole straight out of its glass storage container.  It was not a full-on binge, and after a couple of fork-fulls I realized I was eating without thinking, so I put it away. 

 

This morning as I write about this and I picture myself snacking on leftovers in my kitchen I cringe.   I wasn't just snacking on leftovers in my kitchen,  I was potentially slipping back into a lot of bad habits.  That is not who I've been for the past 19 days and it's not someone I want to be post Whole30.  I know I shouldn't kick myself over a few bites of butternut squash and I'm grateful that when mind/body told me to stop, I stopped.

 

Despite yesterday I'm excited and proud to have 20 days a great habits under my belt. Looking forward to my day 31 results. We are in the final stretch, people!!

[Noelle]

The pain is complicated. I have several things going on: arthritis, bulging discs, a probable injury during my son's birth, general fatigue from hauling my toddler girl around, stress... 

 

Diet alone won't fix my back, but I've known for years that I have more pain and stiffness when I eat certain (inflammatory) foods. January was the first time I realized that grains might be a problem. No grain = (almost) no pain.

 

Planks and glute bridges are part of my PT routine, WunderHase!

 

My back is much better today. The flare-up died down almost as quickly as it showed up, which is kind of miraculous. Usually when it flares up, I'm out of commission for a few days. So this is a huge improvement. I did a little mindless eating today though, because I got stuck in that hungry/tired/stressed feedback loop. But I'm not beating myself up about it, and I'm not going to worry. Decades-old habits are hard to break. Baby steps.

 

I'm getting another month to work on my emotional eating, because my partner is starting a Whole30 on Tuesday! He would start tomorrow, but he's donating blood and wants to eat a cookie afterward. He's hilarious.

 

He really resisted the idea of doing a Whole30, but he's gotten quite envious of my energy first thing in the morning. I'm going to stay the course and support him, so I'll end up doing a Whole52 this time around.

[WunderHase]

When I was visiting a doctor about my back (it was a self-inflictied injury due to my own stupidity at the gym), she said that 80% of Finns suffer from some form of back pain (I'm guessing at some point in their lives, not all chronically). I guess that's pretty much the same in all developed nations. I'm not in any pain right now, but my back does pop now and again. Especially a week ago when I was in a Show Salsa class and there was a fair amount of swinging the hips. I felt so old :-)

 

I've got a week to go right now, except when I was planning my reintros I realized that I've got three weeks to go! Honestly, this has been a breeze, even though I will fully acknowledge that I haven't been eating enough or at the right times, and I do think that those are some rather critical parts of the program. So technically I have not done the Whole30 correctly. I will admit to that. Perhaps some day I will, but this time I'll just do it focusing on the right foods. I have been such a lazy cook, it's embarrassing. I had a long list of things I was supposed to make, and almost every day I've resorted to the same pattern of protein + raw veggies.

 

I'm definitely seeing changes in my body, so aesthetic goals have definitely been achieved. Well, I'm not yet where I want to be, but I have achieved what would be reasonable to expect in such a short time. I also really like this not weighing myself thing. It is so easy to start obsessing over numbers, and it's so stupid to do that.

 

What's more important than that though is that I find myself being really grateful and calm a lot of the time. Instead of thinking what I would want to have, but can't, I'm grateful that I have food to eat! There is no danger of me starving at any point and I can have foods that are good for me. I'm grateful for growing up in an era when eating proper food instead of highly processed foods and sugary drinks was the norm. Most of the time I've felt like being a kid again and eating how I'm supposed to eat (well, without the grains and dairy). I'm grateful for a lot of other things as well, and I'm grateful for being able to be grateful :-)

 

Good stuff.

[HopelessDreamer]

well, last night the family wanted to eat out. fortunately, I was able to get a great steak and cooked beets. delicious, filling, and I feel fine. no bad stuff.....I got the beets to avoid nightshades in salad (tomatoes, peppers).

feeling good, a little tired still, but not so much that nothing gets done. eating 3 meals, and some PWO meals on exercise days. the snacks are almost none - and I have been able to keep them to things like a chicken leg with an apple, so more like a mini-meal. (and yes, I make sure I am truly hungry). Good stuff happening!

I will be continuing as much as I can into November. I think I will start a re-intro at the beginning of Dec. to be finished before my trip. We'll see how that goes....

Week 3 - rock on.

[glitter]

I'm on day 22.

Feeling pretty good. Not super energetic (I had one day like that!) but pretty decent.
Today I'm tired, but then again, I had to wake up at 6:30 and went to bed late, so that makes sense.

 

Saturday was my first restaurant experience since starting and I felt like a freak ordering food, but they didn't seem to mind. I just hope they didn't put any butter in eggs per request.

 

Yesterday was my + bf's anniversary and we had salads for lunch (even asked for no dressing and used lemon instead) and then we wanted to do something else so we walked to a fresh juice place and pretended they were cocktails! ha.

 

I'm starting to feel like weekdays I can handle (go to work cafeteria, only eat from salad bar, go home, eat pre-made soup). The weekends are really hard so I'm kinda avoiding most social events unless it's a wedding/birthday.

 

I am so tired of cooking all the time! And I have never run my dishwasher this much before. I do feel like it gets easier after week 2.

 

 

[WunderHase]

Anyone else planned their reintros yet? :-) I've put them in my calendar, and have a vague idea what I'll try, but nothing concrete yet.

[chess]

I Started 10/3. First Whole 30!

[glitter]

Anyone else planned their reintros yet? :-) I've put them in my calendar, and have a vague idea what I'll try, but nothing concrete yet.

I have been thinking about that... but no plan. You?

Need to look up the rules for that again.

Mostly still worrying if I have enough food to last till I'm done and what I need to buy.

[amberino21]

I have been thinking about that... but no plan. You?

Need to look up the rules for that again.

Mostly still worrying if I have enough food to last till I'm done and what I need to buy.

Reintro involves including the reintroduced group at each meal of one day, followed by at least two days of compliant eating to gauge reactions. Two days is the minimum time between - you may need more days to recover from possible bad reactions before starting a new reintro.

You repeat the process with however many groups you want to reintroduce - only introduce those things you may want to include in your diet. If you've no interest in gluten grains, for example, don't do a reintro for them!

Once you've reintroed something, don't have it again until your reintro is over. Try to avoid combing groups as it can be impossible to know what actually caused reactions if you do it this way.

[WunderHase]

I have been thinking about that... but no plan. You?

Need to look up the rules for that again.

Mostly still worrying if I have enough food to last till I'm done and what I need to buy.

 

Are you going to stop eating after the 30 days? ;-) Just teasing. You will need to take into consideration the additional days in between the reintros. It was kind of a surprise to me as well, which is why I'm asking others if they've planned it. If you'll introduce four food groups and have two days Whole30 eating after each one, it'll be 12 additional days.

 

I don't have any food allergies nor any illnesses, though I can get inflammation from overconsumption. I also do get a bit bloated from some foods. I still really want to do the reintro properly, because it's my chance to see if and how different foods affect me.

 

I want to start with gluten containing grains and I'll have some pasta and bread. I'm also thinking of doing two different days of introducing dairy, because I want to see how I react to lactose and how I react to casein. Legumes are the least interesting to me, as they're not really a part of my regular eating anyway, but I'll probably introduce them anyway. I am planning on eating a variety of foods in the future, but trying to stay away from the processed stuff.

[HopelessDreamer]

Anyone else planned their reintros yet? :-) I've put them in my calendar, and have a vague idea what I'll try, but nothing concrete yet.

 I have been thinking about introducing nightshades first, since most are veggies and spices that I like, and do some good.. Unlike grains, which are mostly carbs and dont do anything for me. (The grains are pretty easy to avoid, except gluten, ironically!! I say this because people put BREADCRUMBS, or FLOUR in so many things to thicken or add a crust. And sometimes barley gets added to soups or stews, too. Maddening, but knowledge is power!)

Maybe seeds and nuts next, as again, many spices I like are seeds  (cumin! mustard! fennel! nutmeg!). (And I miss being able to grab a handful of nuts for times when I cant get anything else to eat. Needless to say, I am trying to be prepared for those times, but stuff happens, and I am just hungry for a while. Not a big deal thankfully. It makes me more grateful of all I have (FOOD! YAY!), and gratefulness is good, too.)

Then I will do chocolate. I am not craving it, but it would be nice to see if I can eat it sometimes.

Wow, this is longer than I meant, but you get the idea.

I dont do gluten, or milk, or legumes anyway. I might try cream and butter at some point, but I have gone years with no dairy so I am used to it. 

I should have mentioned I am trying to do AIP/Whole 30, so my time doing without things will be more like 3 months than 30 days

the nightshades are allowed on reg. Whole 30, so that's not relevant to most folks here.

forgot about eggs. I dont miss them, but it would be nice to use them as binder in some things. I'll try yolks and whites separately, though.

[HopelessDreamer]

speaking of nightshades, I think there was some red bell pepper in my beef broth today...I had a jar in my freezer, and some I made more recently without peppers or paprika, and I must have taken out the older jar. Oh well, I will see how it affects me. I just have to label my jars "AIP" so I'll know what I've made this week, and what has to be saved for another time.

As far as I can tell, I have not had anything non-whole/30, which is awesome!! I have finally gotten good at doing this after several tries. Knowing that I can keep going, and that I SHOULD keep going for a few months to do an AIP properly, means that any mistakes, like the beef broth today, are not cause for stress. I just keep going without those things longer.

[miniannotti]

Anyone else planned their reintros yet? :-) I've put them in my calendar, and have a vague idea what I'll try, but nothing concrete yet.

I have it all planned out. It will be Halloween, when most people Ugarit themselves out. For me, my "treat" will be dairy! I will have butter intimacy coffee, maybe a splash of heavy cream. For lunch I will go to Chipotle and have a salad with barbacoa and CHEESE. For dinner, I will make cauliflower pizza (crust) with a ton of cheese on top. If I have any dairy issues, this plan will make it appear! I'm hoping I don't, but going forward I will be cutting my dairy consumption even if I'm ok with it.

I'm always going to be gluten free so won't reintroduce that, and legumes aren't a part of my diet either, so affect days later I might test rice or corn, the non-gluten grains. My plan, if all goes well, is to continue riding my own bike by going more "primal" with the addition of dairy. Hope that I can!

[WunderHase]

miniannotti, you didn't happen to type that from an auto-correcting device? I can't stop laughing at "butter intimacy coffee" :-) If it's a real thing, then I apologize, and could I also please have one?

[mamaellen]

I think I'm going to do a 45. I have not vanquished my sugar dragon. I run, so my homemade almond/date balls may be the culprit. I also enjoy plantains. Other than that, I don't eat much fruit. I will be taking those out for the final 15 days of the 45. Anyone else doing 45?

[miniannotti]

miniannotti, you didn't happen to type that from an auto-correcting device? I can't stop laughing at "butter intimacy coffee" :-) If it's a real thing, then I apologize, and could I also please have one?

Oh GEEZ! I hate it when that happens!

Butter in my coffee!

[miniannotti]

Day 24 and I'd kill to get on the scale! I'll hold off....but I am hoping for a major drop. My clothes are loose, my belt down a notch. 6 more days...I hope it sticks!

[patriciaar]

Halfway through and already thinking of the end. Does anyone do shorter stints of W30 (after the first)? I'd like to take a week to enjoy a Paleo treat and then to test dairy...but then get back to something more regimented before Thanksgiving. I've done the 21 Day Sugar Detox before but am really enjoying my sweet potato! Does anyone every do a modified W30 after themed figured out their issues and know what they can safely eat?

I am planning on continue until Thanksgiving. I will take a break on Thanksgiving and I will enjoy dessert I will make for that day, I am planning on continue eating like Whole30 after next day and until my birthday December 5th, so I can make some of my favorite paleo dark chocolate cake. Then, back to whole30 or whatever number it will be until Christmas dinner and then also new year. So, I will continue eating like this with the exception of those 4 dates. My goal is to begin the year with good habits and probably reintroduce some cheese here and there.

[patriciaar]

I think I'm going to do a 45. I have not vanquished my sugar dragon. I run, so my homemade almond/date balls may be the culprit. I also enjoy plantains. Other than that, I don't eat much fruit. I will be taking those out for the final 15 days of the 45. Anyone else doing 45?

I'll join you mamaellen, I will do it until Thanksgiving, take that day off and resume next day.

[patriciaar]

I am actually planning on doing a Whole90.  I feel like this is really sustainable and I feel so good that I don't want it to stop. If I feel this good, this satisfied, this energized... I don't see why I would stop eating this way.  The holidays will be challenge, but I think if I plan I can get through.

 

I am with you hope4! why stop when I am feeling the best! I will continue on after day 30 and my goal is to finish the year eating clean, but...yes there is a but, I will take a break on 4 different dates, Thanksgiving, my birthday December 5th, Christmas and New year! in between it will be whole30. Sounds crazy but I think it is doable. I've been paleo/primal for over two years, so it shouldn't be too hard right? well, that is what I want to believe! ha

[trixie923]

Day 25! I can't believe I have lasted this long. So proud of myself! 

 

I went away for a 4 day weekend last weekend. I actually stayed on plan! It was hard and I had to pack a lot of food and I annoyed my friend probably...but I did it. Well, except for the vegetable oil I saw the omelet bar cook putting in my omelet. Oh well.

 

As for how I feel, I feel pretty good. I feel like the weight is just falling off. I don't have that much to lose but that is a nice side effect. I don't obsess about food as much as when I started, and the cravings are virtually gone. Feel more like I eat to live and not that I live to eat. I feel more in control. My skin is also the clearest it has been in years and my moods seem definitely more stable. I don't know about my energy - haven't noticed that much of a difference, but I have not been getting much sleep this week either.

 

BUT I am very very sick of cooking, and sick of thinking about what to make, and sick of it being hard, making sure I avoid everything. I went to my parent's house for dinner and it would have been really nice to just have a bowl of the chili my mom made, instead of having her bake me a chicken breast. You know?

 

So I am very much looking forward to next week!

[WunderHase]

Since I started on 28th, I have two more days to go (plus the 12+ days of reintro). I am starting to notice the problem with the "project mindset". It's sort of silly to think "OK, two more days", when I'm not exactly suffering. Everything is fine, and even though I'm not eating as much as I should be according to the plan, I'm not lacking energy or feeling depressed (which would be the signs for me that something is wrong). So the idea of being on a diet is all in my head, and I'm actively trying to get rid of that way of thinking. Because if I don't, then there's the danger of facing the flipside of that same coin: "I'm not on any diet right now, so I should probably eat a bunch of candy and potato chips when I can, and then I can go on another diet again."