Almost done with the 1st week

[GlenG]

Montezuma's revenge hit me yesterday. 2 Imodium AD's knocked it right out but today it's right back. Maybe no supper tonight, just water. I'm not hungry at all. No one else on the house has it including the two others on the 30 day plan with me, so it's me.

[GlenG]

Breakfast - mushroom and spinach omelette, 2 strips of bacon, cup of tea.

Lunch - 2 hamburger patties tossed salad with balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing.

Supper - very fragile stomach and not much of an appetite, small piece grilled chicken, some cantaloupe, blueberries, and coconut flakes.

I've been taking probiotics for a while. Should I stop for this?

[Mybeachhouse]

I started reading the book the first day of my Whole30. I'm on Day 22. The book really helped me to understand why the "rules" are what they are. And I think that has kept me on track. Like Glenn, I had not tried a lot of different veggies but I do like them. There are plenty of Whole30 recipes on Pinterest and just by googling "Whole 30 recipes". New things I've eaten: zucchini noodles, butternut squash, acorn squash, eggplant (in something other than parmigiana), sweet potatoes (in something other than baked with butter!), and turnips. Very surprised at how sweet they are once you've gotten the sugar out of your system. Good luck!

[GlenG]

we are going to try some other veggies. My wife tried a chicken recipe last night that was fantastic but the green bean recipe she found ended up having so much garlic we couldn't eat them.

My stomach is still jumpy this morning so no probiotic and no breakfast, just tea.

[GlenG]

So with a touchy stomach I had a banana around mid morning and for lunch, which is always later for me, I had a few grapes and a few pistachios. For supper I was feeling better so I had a grilled boneless pork chop, tossed salad, and mixed fruit.

After supper I modified a steak sauce recipe and it smells great! I can't wait to try it. if it works I'll share the recipe.

A huge step for me today is finally ordering a CPAP machine. I was diagnosed with sleep apnea over 5 years ago and I feel I'm just a couple of weeks away from really sleeping for the first time in probably close to 10 years. So between Whole 30 and the CPAP I truly can't fathom how positively my life is going to change.

[GlenG]

Breakfast- mushroom and spinach omelette, bacon, cup of tea.

Lunch- 2 ' steak-ums', egg, tossed salad.

Supper- coconut shrimp, tossed salad.

I'm not 100% but I'm feeling much better today. Again, no probiotic.

[GlenG]

b- mushroom and spinach omelette, cup of tea

l- coconut shrimp, banana, peach. We were out of veggies.

s- grilled beef, steamed broccoli, handful of pistachios.

Got a chance to use the steak sauce I made the other night. Very tasty! Eleven days down.

[GlenG]

b- eggs, bacon, pancakes, cup of tea.

l- chicken, broccoli.

s- Chipotle pork bowl, water melon, cantaloupe.

[missmary]

pancakes

 

pancakes? Glen, you might want to review the program rules. I'm not sure what these pancakes had in them, but no pancakes of any sort are allowed during the whole30.

 

Here's the reasoning:

 

Pancakes: No

Sometimes, we feel like if we have to have one more conversation about pancakes, we might explode. No, you can't have pancakes. Yes, even if they're just bananas and eggs. First, they are explicitly ruled out in the Whole30 program guidelines. This should be enough of a reason, but in case you're still wondering why (they're just bananas and eggs!)…

Pancakes in any form do not encourage success with the Whole30 program. Reaching your health goals depends on committing to both the rules and the spirit and intention of the program. The Whole30 is designed to change your relationship with food, first and foremost. And the psychological impact of eating pancakes as part of your healthy eating, life-changing plan cannot be ignored.

Eating eggs, a banana, and some olive oil is not the same as combining those ingredients into a pancake. There are studies that show that how your brain perceives the food influences satiation. This is often cited with liquid food (smoothies or shakes, as we reference in the back of It Starts With Food), but experientially we see this with whole foods as well, depending on how they are combined. Pancakes bring up a totally different psychological response than frying some eggs and eating a banana. And it's that psychological response that we are trying to target with the program.

You may not have an affinity for pancakes, but we find that most people who complete our program do best without any of these comfort/trigger/reminiscent-of-the-SAD-stuff-you-used-to-eat foods. So, because we need to create one program that applies to as many people as possible, we rule these Paleo recreations out. In our vast experience, this sets everyone up for the best Whole30success possible. And, of course, what you choose to do after your 30 days are up is entirely up to you.

- See more at: http://whole30.com/2013/06/the-official-can-i-have-guide-to-the-whole30/#sthash.vlVqINQq.dpuf

[GlenG]

I didn't have any pancakes. Just wondering after three days of logging if anyone else was reading this or not. It's great to know you're still out there!

I'm in this for the long haul. My son is ending early because his girlfriend is coming to town and my wife is going off the plan next weekend, so it'll be just me to the finish line. Honestly, they were both doing it to support me, they don't need to lose weight, etc. I'm proud and thankful they've come as far as they have. They've learned and have made some diet changes for life I think, so it's been good for them too.

I'm sorta bummed today because it's a Saturday off and I have a pinched nerve in my lower back. I've spent most of the day in bed instead of the chores I had planned. I've really only eaten one meal today, steak, asparagus, cantaloupe, and a cup of tea. And that was not at one sitting. Glad I didn't have to grill today.

[Kmlynne]

I didn't have any pancakes. Just wondering after three days of logging if anyone else was reading this or not. It's great to know you're still out there!y.

I hadn't read your logs in a few days and almost jumped on the pancake comment too! Love it!

Just a suggestion for getting more vegies at breakfast - make soup. Stews are ok, but I really love puréed soups in the morning. Quick to heat up, tasty, and light on the stomach. If I'm not in the mood for eats as my protein, I crumble in some bacon or ground meat to my soup.

[GlenG]

Thanks! Certainly breakfast veggies are a challenge. Yesterday was 2 meals, brunch and supper. Brunch was streamed crab legs at Red Lobster with veggies and fruit afterwards. Supper was grilled pork with grilled pineapple. I had asparagus to heat up but was not hungry enough. My back is still killing me, I can't stand and cook, so this morning is just tea and a banana. Maybe someone can cook me some lunch later on. This back pain is driving me crazy, I don't have time for this.

[huango]

Hi,

I'm a newbie. This is my first W30 and I'm only on Day 7; going great!

I like your commitment and food log.

 

Want to share a food idea: I made egg salad w/ the Whole30 homemade mayo and ate it w/ a crunchy carrot.

I normally like egg salad on toast, so the carrot gave it the crunch I wanted.

 

Keep up the good job!

Amanda

[GlenG]

Thanks! My wife is going to make the mayo this week. Bought the ingredients yesterday and then we realized we don't have a blender anymore!

Pinched nerve in my back has thrown my day out of whack.

B- banana, cup of tea. I was running late and couldn't cook.
L- pork chop, asparagus, some pear.
S- chicken, tossed salad, banana.

Half way done today! Day 15! Woo hoo! Wish my back was normal so I could judge the way I feel better. I have stronger meds now so at least I'll sleep tonight. And tomorrow I get my CPAP machine!

[GlenG]

B- eggs, bacon, cup of tea.
L- pork chop, cantaloupe. I attempted a microwaved sweet potato but ended up with a cremated potato. Seriously, go check out my post in the 'Cooking' forum here for details and a graphic pic.

http://forum.whole9life.com/topic/19911-hot-potato/

S- chicken in pasta sauce over spaghetti squash 'noodles'., water melon.

Back is still killing me so I doubled my pain meds. Got the CPAP machine today and I'm wearing it now just watching tv to get used to it.

[GlenG]

Horrible night followed by a horrible day. Last week I was taking Imodium AD and today I'm taking laxatives. I just now ate some watermelon. That's it. Between pinched nerve in my spine and severe constipation I'm pretty miserable. The pain meds aren't working and the laxatives aren't either, to this point any way.

[missmary]

Glenn, I'm sorry to hear you are having so much trouble. Eating vegetables at every meal would help with constipation a bit. As would taking a magnesium supplement. Actually, depending on the source of your back pain, magnesium might help with that too.

 

I would try both of those.

[GlenG]

Well the good news is that the laxatives finally kicked in, albeit at 1am. The back pain is still the same and there's no way I could see a DR before Monday. The good news I'm not hungry so I'm going to cut back to just veggies and fruit, minimal if any protein, until I'm off these pain meds. I'll grab some magnesium first chance I get. Thanks.

[GlenG]

I haven't really had a chance to reflect on what I'm experiencing on the big picture scene up to this point. Here's the deal, I don't care how much weight I lose, how my skin looks, etc., I'm a food addict. I can't lose weight because I over eat and eat the wrong things. Weight and such are just symptoms of the real problem, food addiction. To that end I feel more than any other program or diet or whatever you want to call it, Whole 30 has done the most to address that addiction issue. If I fix the problem then those symptoms will go away. There are at least 2 sides to addiction, physical and mental. I am pretty tough mentally; the only thing I've ever quit in my life are diets. So it's the physical that's always tripped me up and I equate physical to food itself. Last week I had diarrhea for 3 days and never took any Pepto Bismal because it has some kind of sweetener in it. That goes against Whole 30. So I fought it off a program compliant way, it just took longer. I even miss cheese less now, day 18, than I did on day 3. I'm not saying I'll never eat cheese again but I'll be more careful about where that cheese came from and how often I eat it. I know at the end of 30 days I can't go back to pizzas all the time, Mexican food, etc. I'm spending way more on groceries but I'm not eating out that much either. I think my wife and I would like to take some cooking classes to up our game in the kitchen. It would be fun to do together too.

[GlenG]

B- a little bit of watermelon

S- chicken, sweet potato (not burned), mixed fruit

No lunch today. Probably no lunch for the next 2 days. My back and schedule don't permit it.

[GlenG]

B- mushroom, salsa, and bacon omelette, cup of tea

L- no lunch

S- steak, 2 eggs, broccoli, fruit salad

Saw a chiropractor first thing this morning and my back is on the mend. No pain meds since early this morning.

[CaGirl]

 Your not doing yourself any favors  not following the meal template.  Just saying. 

[Kmlynne]

Can you make double portions of breakfast and keep the second portion in the fridge for lunch? Then all you have to do is reheat it. It really helps with hunger and food cravings, not to mention giving your body the fuel it needs to heal. Follow the template!

[GlenG]

I really don't have hunger or food cravings. For over a week now my lower back has felt like electrical shocks and stabbing pain so I was on pain meds which I discovered carry the lovely side effect of constipation, so I've had plenty to focus on besides food!  But even in that misery I was not tempted to 'cheat'. Sure, I missed meals but I didn't grab a granola bar, etc. Much of the time I was in bed so I can't eat then. Also, I'm self employed, a music store/retail, and the one employee I have that can cover for me left on vacation Thursday, so I can't even get away from the counter for lunch. But she's back Tuesday so work should be normal from then on.

 

My wife is out of town at a scrap booking camp for 4 days so I've lost my #1 cook. For a week now if it's not on the top shelf of the refrigerator, I can't bend down to get it!  So, hopefully the back is on the mend, I get my wife back tomorrow, employee back Tuesday and life goes on.

 

On top of all this I'm trying to learn to sleep w/a CPAP machine. That's an adventure in itself.  Rolling all over the bed trying to get my back out of pain and moving that stupid hose every where all the time.

 

No, these have not been the most ideal conditions for a Whole30 but I've not eaten anything non compliant in 19 days so far and I see/feel some differences. I would say to this point the program has been a great success for me and my wife (who went off the program Thursday when she went to her scrap book camp). But she's already saying she'll go back to the program/Paleo when she gets back to stick out my 30 days. 

 

Another victory is my son, 19, for the first time ever ordered a salad, ate it, and enjoyed it. That happened yesterday; his Whole30 goal was to get to like veggies more and I can see that's working. But, he'll go off the program Thursday when his girlfriend comes to town for a week to visit. She's vegetarian so I guess he wants to enjoy more salads with her.   

So, I do my best to follow the template but sometimes life gets in the way. I don't snack, I don't cheat on the food restrictions, etc. Sometimes, for whatever reason, I can't eat 3 meals a day. To me that's not plan failure because I have not given ground on my discipline to be on this program. To this point, half the time I've been on this program I've had some physical abnormality that's affected my eating patterns but ultimately, who cares? Life is tough, work the plan the best you can and soldier on! This isn't about 30 days, it's about the rest of my life. I really, really appreciate the suggestions on menu options and different prep ideas. I'm looking forward to trying new things. 

[GlenG]

Eggs and bacon, cup of tea. We need more veggies.

Banana

Pork chop, sweet potato oven fries and chips, water melon.

So a discovery for me today is that I think we have an issue with spice control or I just don't like the amount of peppers we use. The chips tonight we're awesome but the fries had so much black pepper and paprika my mouth was tingling. I wanted the water melon just to cool it down. And I know it's me, my wife and son are fine with it.