rach728 Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 Hey all, Yesterday was day 30 of my first whole 30 and I finished on a high note, feeling strong, confident and in control. I had a great workout last evening and went to bed planning to make today pretty much the same as the last 30 but just adding a glass of wine while out tonight with some friends in celebration. About midday today, however, I basically lost sight of all my hard work, threw caution to the wind, and dove headfirst back into non-whole30 foods. I had no desire to eat my baked chicken breast, roasted veggies and avocado again and had a cream-based soup for lunch, a huge chocolate chip cookie and then came home from work and had bread slathered with almond butter and jam. Now I of course feel miserable, bloated, headachy and depressed, like I ruined everything I worked so hard for. I've struggled with emotional eating for years and am trying to be kind to myself and remember that years of disordered eating can't be completely fixed in 30 days, but WHAT HAPPENED? Why did I suddenly want to eat ALL THE THINGS?! I did well on the whole30, enjoyed the strict parameters and felt strong and confident in saying no to non-compliant foods and honestly had little to no cravings. I never really had the desire to quit all 30 days but then one day off and BOOM I'm totally out of control. Has anyone else experienced this?! Please tell me I'm not the only one! I know I'm also dealing with loneliness; I broke up with someone shortly before starting and think that the regimented whole30 was a good distraction for me. It gave me something to pour my energy into and now that it's over I think I just felt this whole flood of emotions that I had been putting on the back burner. I also truthfully was disappointed that the scale barely budged ( I don't have a ton of weight to lose but wouldn't mind seeing a few pounds disappear) so I think I had this moment of, if eating that well for 30 days didn't make a difference why will it matter if i eat this junk?? It should be noted that I did definitely notice other non-scale victories such as better sleep, more energy, pants fitting better, stronger workouts, and more control over binge eating and mindless snacking. So it was certainly a productive 30 days for me in other ways, but just not exactly what I'd pictured at the outset. I didn't mean for this to get so long and rambling! It's just nice to have a space to vent - I did the whole30 alone and while my friends and family were supportive it's different when you don't have someone to talk about it with who understands it all. Does anyone have any similar experience? Words of wisdom? I would start over and do another 15 or 30 days, but I have a long-planned trip coming up this weekend that I'd like to enjoy and (sanely) indulge during so realistically I don't think I'm ready to commit to that just yet. Open to any and all suggestions/tough love/commiserating. Thanks everyone!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlennR Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 Vent away. And no, you're definitely not the only one. Google "Whole30 binge" and you'll get half a dozen stories of people with the same experiences. Don't discount your successes. These are your words: "I did definitely notice other non-scale victories such as better sleep, more energy, pants fitting better, stronger workouts, and more control over binge eating and mindless snacking. So it was certainly a productive 30 days for me." I just removed all the qualifiers to let you see it in all its glory. This is a lot! Focus on these, and do get back on the horse as soon as you can. This stumble is a lesson learned. Next time, you'll be more aware and forewarned. One concrete suggestion: after you've done a Whole7 or Whole14 tune-up, do a strict reintroduction protocol. This might help you transition from Whole30 to riding your own bike (whose wheels stay on ). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoJo09 Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 Can you try and figure out what the trigger was? Ie. was it someone offering you a specific food that you "gave in to" and then went cray-cray? Or was it an "I deserve a treat after 30 days"? Or was it a bit more "I made it 30 days and I'm still lonely/sad/heartbroken. Clearly it wasn't worth it so I'll just eat whatever I can get my hands on"? And then work on taking food out of the equation for next time you feel that way. Either way, you haven't ruined anything. You've had 30 days of great eating, and eating a bit of crap for one day doesn't mean that you have to continue eating crap for the rest of your life. Don't worry about the weekend away, just focus on one meal at a time - you've got maybe 6 meals between now and the weekend when you can make choices that are good for you . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeadowLily Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
healthyAbby Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 My relationship with food was/is like that handsome boyfriend you want to show off to all of your girlfriends. You know he's a cheater when you're not looking. He even hits on your girlfriends but you just can't give him up because he's such a temptation. Then one day you look at him (food) and no longer want to be the rug. The next time the creepy ex-boyfriend (food) is winking at you..another big come on, you're strong enough to stare him down until he runs. He never bothers you again. I love this metaphor. It's basically my reasoning behind doing the whole30. I was sick of my sugar cravings controlling me. And so I did it and I felt better, but a year later here I am again resetting because I don't like how I'd been gaining weight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlennR Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 And then, having found your own strength, you find the guy who's smart, strong, kind, and funny (and not bad looking either!), and you realize, he's the one who will last, who will be good to you forever. You've found the real thing. Good food instead of the self-centered-boyfriend bad food. I mean, if you're going to use this rom-com metaphor, you need to give yourself a happy ending! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeadowLily Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlenG Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 I'm 10 days away from being done and I wonder sometimes what that 31st day will be, but I think that will be the first day in a long time I'm going to really PLAN that day what I'll eat. It's either going to be cheese or a tortilla. You did great, don't let day 31 slip into the rest of your life. Get back to basics and focus on the wonderful things you did over the past 30 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peg541 Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 If I ever decide to do a day 31 I think it'll never be permanently adding what I've eliminated. I hope it'll be a bit here and there. But not a forever thing. I don't miss anything that much except the mouth feel of dry toast. (I'm boring. LOL!). Maybe a bit of wine now and then. The rest I can do without. I hope I'm not fooling myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaGirl Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 I'd love to go out to an East Indian dinner after reintroduction. I watch a program out of the bay area (glennR) Check please bay area?) ever catch it? its kinda silly to watch because it makes your mouth water for non compliant things but its fun sometimes. Its three people that critic each others favorite restaurants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlennR Posted June 23, 2014 Share Posted June 23, 2014 I'd love to go out to an East Indian dinner after reintroduction. I watch a program out of the bay area (glennR) Check please bay area?) ever catch it? its kinda silly to watch because it makes your mouth water for non compliant things but its fun sometimes. Its three people that critic each others favorite restaurants. NPR, yeah. I hear it over the radio (don't have a TV). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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