Starting May 19th.

[gswh2]

I feel like May 19th is really far away but that is the best time for me to start. I am attending weddings May 17th and June 28th. By starting on the 19th, I will have made it through the entire 30 days before I am forced to face such a strong pull to cheat. 

 

A good thing about starting that far in the future is it will give me a lot of time to prepare. I have ordered It Starts With Food as well as a book of make-and-freeze meals. I will spend the next month reading those book and trying to make many meal plans, shopping lists and prepare and freeze as many meals as possible. 

 

I am also going to try to find a buddy to share the journey with me. I have heard it is easier to stick to it when you have someone to share in the ups and downs of the process. Does anyone here want to be my Whole 30 buddy? 

 

Kristy

[erinkella]

Hi Kristy!

 

I've decided to start May 19th as well. It does seem far away, but I have social functions on the 11th and the 18th that I'd like to get out of the way first so I can commit to this without the threat of cheating. Until the 19th, I'm going to try to do a "Mostly Whole" diet to prepare for the Whole 30. I also just bought the "It Starts With Food" and plan to start reading that tonight.  I'll be your Whole 30 Buddy! 

 

-Erin

[gswh2]

Yay! I am looking forward to starting. I am both scared and excited. 

 

Next weekend I am going to spend a day making and freezing Whole30 meals so the most convenient options will be Whole30 compliant. 

[katapple81]

I'm planning to start on May 19th too!   I'm really, really excited about this!  I'm looking forward to sharing this journey with you all.

[gswh2]

I am using this time to try to come up with ways to stay motivated throughout the whole 30 days. I have already made a list of all the reasons I am doing Whole30.  Now I am trying to come up with some non-food rewards that I can work towards. Unfortunately, I have a hard time getting excited about the typical ideas of new clothes or make-up. 

 

Do you guys have any ideas? How else do you plan to stay motivated? I will take all the help and advice I can get. 

[erinkella]

I think that's a great idea to list all the reasons you're doing Whole 30--I'm going to do that too. I also need to take a day to prepare Whole 30 meals--lack of preparation is usually how I fall off when I'm trying to stick to healthy eating. I have an idea that has worked for me in the past, but it's mostly psychological....basically, you countdown the 30 days in some visual format. Some ideas:

 

1. Basic calendar, cross off the days as they pass

2. Get two jars, fill one up with 30 marbles (or rocks or whatever). With each passing day, take a marble from that jar and put it in the empty jar.

3. Take 30 post-its, number them from 1-30, and put them on a wall somewhere where you'll see it often (I'd suggest somewhere in the kitchen). After you've made it through that day, you take the post-it down.

 

The idea behind it is if you can see how far you've come, you're more likely to stick with it. Also, it's the same idea behind having a "To-do" list and the psychological benefit of being able to cross things off. It gives a sense of accomplishment.

 

I'm going to try and think of other ways to stay motivated. I will definitely need them!

[Shelly_vernell]

I'm starting on May 19 too!  I just wanted to wait until after Hubby's next paycheck so I would have plenty of money to buy the high quality food I will need for the 30 days.  Is anyone else doing it alone in a house full of others that are not changing eating habits? I have a husband and 2 daughters.  My daughters are only 4 and 1 so I'm pretty sure they would be okay with it if I implemented it for the whole house, but I'm fairly certain that Hubby wouldn't be happy about it.  I'm kind of worried about how it will all work out having to cook my food separately... I may find a few Whole30 recipes that are really good and introduce it to him that way.  He is a REALLY picky eater though... doesn't like too many veggies so it would be hard....

[krabbycow1110]

A good friend convinced me to read this book and start this next week after our brunch date, so the 19th is my start date too.

 

She just finished the program and is reintroducing foods back into her diet.  Her tip for me is that I start weaning yourself off of the items I'll miss the most from the 30 days.  She suggested sugar since it's probably what I'll miss most.  This will help with the headaches, and other withdrawal symptoms that will inevitably occur during the first week.  

 

I'm counting on her to provide me with a bunch of support during this process.  I think I lucked out that I have a friend who JUST finished this and knows all the obstacles before I hit them.

[erinkella]

Hi Shelly and KrabbyCow!

 

Shelly--I am going to try and get my fiance to get on board with it as well, which I don't think will be a problem. What WILL be a problem is he tends to be a bad influence on any sort of diet plan. We'll be good for a week or two and then, out of the blue, he'll suggest something like "want to get a pizza?" and I cave in the face of temptation! I will need to be strong if he does that. 

 

Krabby--that's great that you have a friend to support you through this! She will definitely be a good resource for you. I have been trying to wean myself off items ahead of time too, I'm hoping it'll help make the change a tad more bearable!