Newbie: June 1 start

[Ndgrad98]

Hi, I'm Lori and I am starting my first on June 1!  

 

Due to medical issues I had been eating fairly well for the last 4-5 years.  Then over the last year, my medical issues began to subside, so poor eating habits began to creep in.  Fast food, caffeine, breads etc.  Then in March my husband had surgery that put him down for the count until just recently. I was taking care of him, our 2 young kids, working full time and keeping the household going pretty much on my own.  All the stress caused me to fall deeper into my poor eating habits.  I have gained weight. I'm eating things I swore I wouldn't eat.  Some of my medical symptoms have started coming back.

 

So I am pressing reset! I really hope that this 30 day plan gets me back on track!!

 

My issues will be SUGAR!! I love me some dessert.

 

Also, due to my medical issues, I am low/no sodium.  I've seen a ton of different medical issues addressed  with Whole30 on different webpages, but none of them address my issues.  I can't eat jerky or bacon or sausage or other high sodium foods.  And actually, I am surprised that these types of foods are encouraged, as they are not very heart healthy. I guess it balances out with the rest of the diet?  So anyways, that will be another challenge for me, as grains (rice, pasta, oatmeal) were a big part of my diet since they don't have sodium.

 

Looking forward to meeting others going through this journey!

[jent103]

Welcome!

 

Re: the sodium - the products you listed definitely don't have to be a part of a Whole30 (I haven't eaten jerky in years!), and the Whole9 team doesn't necessarily encourage bacon - they actually wrote a whole manifesto about it! The Whole30 plan in general is a lot lower in sodium than eating a typical American diet, mainly because there's so little processed food. For example, it's hard to find compliant sausage (most has sugar or additives), but if you make your own from ground pork or chicken, it's easy to control the salt amount as well as the other flavors. Other than occasional bacon, most of the sodium I eat on Whole30 is the salt that I add myself. So for most people, this plan is already "low sodium" compared to what they've been eating, though that may not hold true for you.

[Tom Denham]

People who are concerned about sodium sometimes have problems when they do a Whole30 because they don't get enough salt in their diet. Because whole, fresh, unprocessed foods come without salt, if you don't add it, there won't be any. Having too little sodium in your diet can cause problems, so you may need to monitor this. 

[GlennR]

 

 

 I can't eat jerky or bacon or sausage or other high sodium foods.  And actually, I am surprised that these types of foods are encouraged, as they are not very heart healthy. I guess it balances out with the rest of the diet?  

 

Welcome!

 

Bacon actually isn't encouraged. It is permitted only under certain conditions (pasture-raised, organic, sugar-free, nitrite-free). Sausage has similar caveats (pasture-raised strongly encouraged). To be clear, though, the fat content in these things is not the main problem; Whole30 encourages a healthy amount of fat in each meal. The problem with these is that most bacon and sausages in groceries are made from factory-farmed pork, which is loaded with toxins that are concentrated in the fat. Thus, the requirement that we look for the best quality sources when it comes to bacon (and to a certain extent, sausages).

 

Jerky is okay if the ingredients in it are compliant.

 

Good luck on your Whole30!

[GFChris]

 

 

Bacon actually isn't encouraged. It is permitted only under certain conditions (pasture-raised, organic, sugar-free, nitrite-free). Sausage has similar caveats (pasture-raised strongly encouraged). To be clear, though, the fat content in these things is not the main problem; Whole30 encourages a healthy amount of fat in each meal. The problem with these is that most bacon and sausages in groceries are made from factory-farmed pork, which is loaded with toxins that are concentrated in the fat. Thus, the requirement that we look for the best quality sources when it comes to bacon (and to a certain extent, sausages).

 

Jerky is okay if the ingredients in it are compliant.

 

Good luck on your Whole30!

Just to clarify, sugar-free (plus no other non-compliant ingredients) is the only must with bacon on a Whole30, from a rules perspective. The remaining qualities GlennR listed are highly desirable, but not required for Whole30 compliance.

[devon_marie]

I am a newbie to the Whole30 as well.  I am mostly a clean eater - except for the M&M's before bed.  I am very excited to start my journey to healthy eating the correct way!!  Would love all the support I can get since the kids and husband will not be on board 100%.  They will contine with a clean eating - weekend cheat -  eating style. 

[Ndgrad98]

Thanks everyone!! I don't eat any deli meat, jerky, bacon, sausage now, and won't start because of my W30 anyway, but thanks for the tips!!  It is good to understand the reasoning behind it all.  

 

Until the last couple months, as I mentioned, I've eaten pretty clean (IMO), so I'm  hoping that the W30 won't be too much of a shock to my system.  Several years ago when I was first diagnosed with Meniere's Disease, at times I was eating < 100mg of sodium a day!  So I haven't been on the SAD for several years.  Processed foods aren't a huge part of my diet.

 

@Devon_Marie, good luck with your new journey too!!  My hubs is definitely not on board (for himself), though I have told him what I'm doing and he said he'll be supportive!  I've also enlisted my 7yo son to get on board.  He won't be fully compliant, but I'm trying to instill some better eating habits in him as well.  I'm hoping to at least feed them all W30 dinners (whether they realize it or not!! LOL)

[Ndgrad98]

Oh, and @Tom, I have to thank you for the recipes on your blog!! They have been a great initial inspiration for me, and I have built several of them into my first week's meal plan rotation!  They are simple and sound yummy.  Can't wait to try them out.