Montanadays Whole 30

[montanadays]

Today is Day 8 of my first Whole30. I have been researching the program for almost a year now, but never felt like I could give up all grains/legumes/dairy/sugar for 30 days. I eat fairly well and cook most everything from scratch. We live on a small farm in Montana and grow our own veggies/berries and raise our own chickens (both for eggs and meat). My husband hunts deer and elk and we also have access to grass-fed beef. We also keep bees, so not eating honey feels a bit strange.There is really no good reason why it took me so long, but I am so glad to be on this journey!

 

My starting weight was 141.6 and my ultimate goal is around 125. I think that is a healthy weight for me (I'm 5'3") and I haven't been there since before I had my first child almost 7 years ago.

 

What I hope to achieve during the program is: reduction in anxiety, clearer skin, mental clarity, good sleep, joint pain reduction and overall general well-being.

[montanadays]

Day 15 - and technically to the half-way point. Since I last checked in, things have been going well. I had a few rough days over the weekend when I wanted to have some non-compliant food. However, I attribute that to the fact that I was very low on my produce staples and I was forced to be more creative (or rather haphazard) in my food prep. I now have a stocked fridge and am feeling good again!

I started my period on Saturday and aside from a slight (??) increase in moodiness, I didn't feel the physical symptoms that I typically do.

I already feel that my cravings have lessened and I am viewing food much differently. I decided to complete a Whole30 entirely before publicly sharing my thoughts/views on it - and before encouraging others to join. I wanted to have my own real results - physically, mentally, etc and know that the program works. However, people have already started seeing some differences and have asked what I'm doing. At that point I share

My stepmom agreed to do the program with me and is doing a fantastic job as well. In the past she has tried every diet/program under the sun but typically doesn't finish or doesn't see long-term results. I knew this would be very challenging for her, but she says that she wants to stay mostly compliant after the 30 days is over. She feels better and really enjoys eating this way.

[montanadays]

Today is Day 21. Yesterday was hard. For the first time in a LONG time, my husband and I were able to have a kidless day and went to Costco. It was both hard and successful at the same time - and I think the "hard" was due to the fact that it was lunchtime and I was hungry. I had hoped that they would be giving samples of produce, but it wasn't so. What made it easy was I was able to shop heavily in the produce section and skipped everything in boxes/packages except for some string cheese and organic milk for the kiddos.

Lunch was hard. We were short on time and didn't have any good options for lunch. What typically would be an enjoyable time with my husband (and quiet without the kids!) became a challenge to find anything suitable for lunch. I opted for a hamburger without the bun, cheese and condiments. My husband ate my fries. While the meal was good, I felt like some weird person who had no business eating out.

The day ended on a good note with a yummy elk chili dinner and a side of cauliflower rice.

It is interesting because as I wrote this I realized that I was more successful than I felt - but I remember yesterday feeling difficult. I was looking forward (to the first time) to being able to eat non-compliantly on occasion to avoid feeling like an outcast at restaurants. I still would have made substitutions but I would have felt like I could have accepted a few non-compliant foods and the experience would have been more enjoyable.

 

On that note, today has been wonderful! I had a delicious breakfast (as always) and now have a kitchen full of yummy food for the the week (and beyond!). And today I am not dreaming of Whole30 coming to an end. I may have a small thing of ice cream with my family and then plan on going back on plan.

[montanadays]

Today is Day 39. For me, the "completion" of Whole30 felt somewhat anti-climatic because by then I was so accustomed to eating compliant that I didn't feel the need to stop. There were times during the initial 30 days that I dreamed about what I would "challenge" the second the clock stopped, but when the time came, I didn't feel the same. It might be nice to try peanut butter again, but I worry that it would be a slippery slope - since I used to love peanut butter cookies (and imagine that I could rekindle the love quite quickly)! 

 

For whatever reason, I never took measurements and photos at the beginning, but did get a starting/ending weight. I lost 6.6 lbs and went from 141.6 to 135. My current goal is 125, so I am getting soooo close

 

I am very happy with the results that I got. My goals at the beginning was achieving better sleep, clearer skin, reduction in stomach discomfort, reduced anxiety and mental clarity. I can say that all of those areas have been completely successful - although I credit my anxiety to cutting out caffeine completely (I am a 1/2 and 1/2 with a tiny bit of honey type of girl - nothing else - so that habit went out the window!).

[GFChris]

Today is Day 39. For me, the "completion" of Whole30 felt somewhat anti-climatic because by then I was so accustomed to eating compliant that I didn't feel the need to stop. There were times during the initial 30 days that I dreamed about what I would "challenge" the second the clock stopped, but when the time came, I didn't feel the same. It might be nice to try peanut butter again, but I worry that it would be a slippery slope - since I used to love peanut butter cookies (and imagine that I could rekindle the love quite quickly)! 

 

For whatever reason, I never took measurements and photos at the beginning, but did get a starting/ending weight. I lost 6.6 lbs and went from 141.6 to 135. My current goal is 125, so I am getting soooo close

 

I am very happy with the results that I got. My goals at the beginning was achieving better sleep, clearer skin, reduction in stomach discomfort, reduced anxiety and mental clarity. I can say that all of those areas have been completely successful - although I credit my anxiety to cutting out caffeine completely (I am a 1/2 and 1/2 with a tiny bit of honey type of girl - nothing else - so that habit went out the window!).

Congrats! You should post this in the Success Stories forum also!