August 1st Group Thread

[AshAva]

Hi! My name is Ashley, I'm from Michigan, I'm a wife of 10 years and mom to 3 boys (8, 5 & 2). This will be my first whole 30. I have been working out consistently since March, but my eating has been all over the place. I am hoping to lose some weight, beat my sugar addiction, have clear skin and no more bloated upset stomach issues! I read the book and have been busy trying new recipes this week so I know what will work the best for myself and my family.

[leahcarn]

Those of you doing a low FODMAP whole30, which list are you using? I have the list the paleo mom posted a while back, and the whole30 low FODMAP shopping list, but they don't match exactly. I ended up not taking almond butter away with me because it appears on one of the lists. 

Hows everyone doing so far, I love thinking of everyone else out there doing the same thing (although as I was having my compliant breakfast this morning most of you might have been having your last treat meals lol)

Not snacking will be a tricky one for me. I fly out in a couple of hours, hopefully I have all the food I will need....

[mkay]

Hi my name is MK, and I just graduated college, moved to a new city, and started a new job. I am a triathlete and very passionate about living a healthy lifestyle as far as working out, but I am OBSESSED with sweets (just ask my housemate)! I am joining the Whole 30 because I want to have a healthier relationship to food and strip added sugar from my diet. I have attempted the Whole 30 several times, but I have never made it the whole 30 days!

My Three Goals:

1) Make it all 30 days!

2) Plans out my meals ahead of time

3) Log my meals in a journal (to help with planning)

[imdreaming]

I'm in

 

My name is Jenny, I'm 42, married with two boys, 10 and 14 and I live in Indiana.  I have gone through various stages of low carb and paleo style eating over the past 5 or so years and have learned a great deal about myself in the process.  The sugar demon is my biggest challenge, followed by wine.   

 

This will be my second Whole 30.  I did my first in January 2014.  I wasn't 100% perfect, but I think I did pretty good.  My biggest problem was reintroduction, and I returned to some unhealthy habits way too easily.  I discovered that I don't mind drinking my coffee black.  I know many of you are concerned about it, and I don't blame you!  My requirement is good quality coffee.  I buy online from La Columbe, and I prefer the single origin beans.  I also learned that I can live without cheese and yogurt.  The most important thing is to plan ahead and preferably cook ahead.  Work is exceptionally busy for me right now, so I know that I need to pay attention to my planning and not be caught unprepared.  I just made some hard boiled eggs, and I'm thinking ahead to what I will pack for lunch tomorrow.

 

I will follow this thread as best as I can, but it looks like it's going to be a busy one!  I know there are days where I will need to come read and gain some strength.

 

Have a great one everybody!

[Teresa C.]

OKAY I just made my clarified butter so I'll have it for tomorrow!  Is everybody ready??  I am drinking Ginger Ale and ate some Rolo's.  Ha! 

 

OH!  Does anyone know if we're allowed Bulletproof Coffee?  Essentially, butter and coconut oil blended into coffee.  It is creamy and delicious and compliant from ingredient standpoint...  Thanks and sleep well, all.

[Amy K.]

Hello everyone my name is Amy and I live in Indiana with my amazing husband for over 23 years.

I have 2 girls ages 23 & 15 and a son age 18.

For the first time in a very long time I am beginning this journey for myself and no one else! I am both excited and nervous about this challenge but hope that by joining my first ever forum the support of others may help to pull me through...

Any advise and tips for staying on track will be greatly appreciated!

[Kalbero]

Hello Everyone - I will be beginning this journey for the very first time tomorrow...I am no stranger to "diets" but when my dietician suggested it (and after some research) I decided I would give it a try - my goal: stick to is for 30 days!  I am hoping by reading some of the things others are going through and sharing my experiences it will make the next 30 days a lot easier.  Many of you have inspired me already!  I look forward to our discussions.  Best of luck to all!

[Walker7]

Hi, everyone! I will be starting my THIRD Whole 30 tomorrow and I am so thankful for this group! This is the perfect time for me to start because I feel terrible from the food choices I have been making and I know from past Whole 30 experiences that I will feel AMAZING when September 1 gets here. I have a lot of heart problems and also a lot of food allergies/intolerences. My food choices are even more limited than the W30 list because I am allergic to all tree nuts and I don't like any kind of seafood. But, I did it twice before and I know I can and will do it again.

 

I will look forward to hearing about all of your successes AND to having at least 30 days of success myself!

[Claire30]

Hi there, I'm Claire,

I got married last year and promptly, as if on a mission, gained 40 lbs. I regularly struggle with headaches, lethargy, and some IBS symptoms. I am a therapist with a specialty in addiction and anxiety so I fully understand our subconcsious urges to soothe ourselves with.. well, whatever we can find. But my addiction is food and I'm interested in researching more about food addiction and binge eating disorder.

 

To that end, I am challenging myself first to learn the struggle firsthand. I went off sugar, carbs, and dairy in Feb and lost 35 lbs. Now I've let some breading on my chicken, some cheese here and there, and a whole lotta wine sneak back into my diet so I'm here to reboot and reaffirm my commitment to myself.

 

My main goal is to more closely observe what I'm feeling when I'm craving and too honor my body with what it really needs instead of eating mindlessly. I am going to try to focus at least 10 minutes on meditation in the morning to set my intention for the day. I also hightly recommend reading The Compound Effect as it helps focus on setting goals, reaching for motivation, and maintaining momentum. I intend for this clean eating to last longer than 30 days although I will have a cheese and wine date on day 31!

 

Good luck everyone! Try not to punch anyone this week :-)

[Jagbug56]

Thanks so much for starting this forum. I'm June and I live in Jacksonville, Florida. I'm 58 yrs. young, and have 3 grown kids, and 6 grandkids. My hubby passed away over 11 yrs. ago of kidney cancer. It's just me and Shadow, my Sheltie in my house.

 

I'm a 2nd grade teacher and I start back to school, Tuesday, August 5th, with the kids returning Aug. 12th. I KNOW August is going to be hard to do this, but I want to see the results. 

 

I was introduced to Whole 30 three weeks ago, and made it to day 5. I had what I was told later was a sugar detox headache, and quit on day 5. What amazed me was how my stomach was becoming flatter, and the inflammation was GONE! I've always been what my Doctor calls, "a sweller". Now I believe it's grain/dairy related. SO---I'm going to do it this time. I'm beginning my Whole 30 August 1st!!!

 

I have been on and off Weight Watchers since I was 18. I should own stock in the company. And I have lost 62 pounds and kept it off. I do Simple Start on WW, which is whole foods. My biggest challenge is going to be the grains/dairy elimination. 

 

My 3 goals are:
1. Detox my body- be true to the Whole 30

2. Cook on Saturday's so I'm prepared for a super busy week

3. Drink more water and my coffee black

 

Stay strong, everyone! We deserve to do this for ourselves.

 

I June 

[Jancar]

My name is Jan. I am almost 50 and have done some paleo in the past but never a whole30! I have just been in binge mode for too long and I think this will help me detox and of course, lose weight. My main challenge will be staying away from dairy and artificial sweeteners (like in lemonade flavored drink mix to drink water). So I guess I will stock up on lemons and other fruit to put in water for flavor.

I have done green smoothies in the past but am thinking that is too much sugar from the fruit for a whole30... Thoughts? Not a big veggie lover so the smoothies were a great way for me to get in a huge amount (huge to me) of spinach or kale.

Just ran across the 1 August start date so I feel a little unprepared, but I think I can make it one day and then prep this weekend!

I look forward to getting to know you all!

[Wendyland]

Hi, I'd like to join, I'm another Midwesterner. I'm 36 and the mother to 3 daughters(15, 10, 7). I'm a computer programmer, but lucky enough to work at home. That makes meal prep so much easier.

I have a lot of health problems that I shouldn't have at my age, mostly due to my weight. I've done at least 4 whole30s to completion. I had many other false starts. I have been very successful at overcoming sugar addiction, but keep going back to the wheat and dairy(and potato chips!) I don't eat them daily, but enough to keep me from healing and losing weight.

I find it best if I keep things very simple in the beginning. Eggs and meat for breakfast, maybe with some veggies. Meat and salad for lunch with maybe a small amount if sweet potato. Meat and cooked veggies for dinner. I eat more fruit the first week, but taper off as the month goes on. I also try my recipes on the weekend when I have more time.

[Fernandes]

Hi all. food challenging today.  Breakfast too late, lunch too early and some picking in between.  Feeling rather anxious about all this.  Coming home to an empty place doesn't help either, as I'm feeling rather lonely with no one around, this is when the food thoughts come.  The mind games and the endless conversations with myself "should I, shouldn't I', rather draining and time consuming.  Well today is done and I survived, so another day tomorrow.  My goals for tomorrow are only to eat at mealtimes with no picking in between.  Good luck everyone.

[Wendyland]

Jan, I've also been drinking green smoothies lately. I think smoothies are out for whole30, but maybe someone else can comment. I haven't brushed up on the rules yet. Maybe you can do more of a shot with less fruit. Just enough to make it palatable. I used to not be a big veggie person, either. I like them more and more. I really like them roasted or stir fried.

[Jancar]

Wendy- I heard that the more you drink green smoothies the more you can decrease the fruit and still enjoy them. Maybe just experimenting more we can find something we like!

[Roussa57]

This week I tried cold soup for breakfast, instead of coffee/thee in my mug I took homemade courgette soup. Wonderful and filling. May be you can try that?

Succes everyone. Day 1 just started here.

[LeahinTexas]

My name is Leah, I live in Texas with my husband, three kids (ages 20, 18 and 16 -- oldest one returning to college in August, middle one starting college in August), and our pets. I help my mom, too.

 

I did Whole30 starting on May 8th and followed it for 38 days. I registered here, and started a log, but was not good at keeping up with it. I'm following Whole30 more loosely now, but think getting back to it strictly will help keep me on track.

 

My challenges will be getting back to the meal pattern (not the what to eat, but the how--meals, and not much snacking) . Also, I am in a running program, so I will have to figure out how to eat for energy. I have found that if I don't have something like sweet potato or pumpkin, I don't the same energy to run the next day. Another challenge is that I don't like eating so much meat, poultry and fish.

 

Goals: just to get back to the stricter version of Whole30, and maybe do a better job of testing food items when it is over. For example, I think legumes are okay for me, but I'd like to know for sure. ETA: I would also like to know if the pain at the base of my thumb truly did go away during my first Whole 30, or if I am just thinking that it did.

[Portlandgal]

Hey everyone!

This will be my second whole 30 this year! So in love with the way I felt during And after my first one, I can't wait to see how this month goes. The way I think about food has changed drastically, and I've started to love cooking!! Coming from a fast food family, this is a big change indeed!

I'm a single mom of a toddler, so I don't get much emotional support with diet changes! I've never joined a forum before but I'm interested in what y'all have to say!! Looking forward to Tomorrow and the beginning of a wonderful month of animal protein, healthy fats and veggies!!

My goals are to

1) have more consistent energy thought the day

2) not be emotionally strung along on whatever path my sugary food chooses for me

3) find different activities to keep me busy instead of constant snacking!! (I'm looking at you larabars and apple chips!)

.

[drtracyb]

Wow, August is the month! 

 

I am Tracy and I live in Los Angeles.  I completed my first Whole30 in September 2013 and had such a wonderful improvement (i.e., gone) in my fibromyalgia pain that I have for the most part stayed paleo since then.  I completed another whole30 in January 2014.  I join in the monthly groups to keep me on the straight and narrow as I have a stressful job which is conducive to eating poorly (I am a graveyard shift emergency veterinarian).  My kids both have severe ADHD which has responded to whole30 eating - the only thing I do differently for them is to permit them to eat paleo muffins.

 

August may be really hard for me to do a whole30, as we have to live in a hotel for the next six weeks due to some smoke damage from our fireplace flue being closed all winter (hubbie, not me) and our house being repainted and flooring redone.  We'll see if I can succeed in eating whole30 when I am ordering out for almost every meal.

[Ellie_G]

1) Who you are, your interests

My name's Ellie. I live in London (UK). I work for a non-profit. In my spare time I like hiking, lifting heavy, cooking and spending time with friends and family.
 

2) Why you are joining the Whole 30
I've been eating paleo-ish for a couple of years, but over the last 6 months have been exercising hard which has increased my need for calories hugely, so increasing amounts of gluten-free processed foods (like bread and pasta) and sugar have crept into my diet. I'm happy with my weight currently - body composition could be improved slightly.

 

I caught a bad chest infection recently (still lingering) and I have a mild joint issue for which I'm currently getting physiotherapy - I'm now thinking less-than-great nutrition may be/have been a factor here.
 

3) What your greatest challenges are
Social events. I hate drawing attention to how I eat. I hate making other people uncomfortable and I hate dealing with questions about why I make certain choices. (Yes, I have a lot of very nosey, foodie friends!)
 

The main way I prepared for the next 30 days is to think about all the social events I have coming up and think about how I'm going to handle them.
 

4) List at least 3 goals you hope to accomplish during August
a) See if completely cutting sugar, alcohol and other refined carbs for 4 weeks improves my general health and joints. (I feel like the answer to this is going to be 'Duh'!)
Perform better in the gym
c) Get comfortable making good choices in social situations

[Misty Moreno]

My name is Misty Moreno.  I am an Airman and reside in Valdosta, GA. 

 

I was just diagnosed with Barrett's Esophagus and a Hiatal Hernia.  I've had the worst stomach aches for about a year now.  I have finally decided to give this Whole 30 a real go.  No cheating. Full commitment. 

 

Day 0 taught me a lot.  The biggest thing:  READ THE INGREDIENT LIST.  Did you know that canned tuna has soy and vegetable broth in it????  Wow!!!  Everything has hidden sugar too.  Crazy!

 

I don't care about losing weight.  I just want to be able to live without stomach aches.

[unnur]

Hi everyone,

 

My name is Unnur and I live in Iceland with my husband and our dog. I work in IT and he is an electrician. This is our second time doing the W30. The first time was last January and we both felt amazing, but since then we have slipped a bit into old eating habits since then so we want to sharpen our focus.  

 

We started this morning with eggs, spinach and a bit of shredded sweet potato – I’d love to get some breakfast ideas… I always seem to end up with some variation of spinach & eggs for breakfast  

 

I'm in the process now of going through the kitchen and picking out all the stuff that is not W30 compliant. Out of sight, out of mind! 

 

Best of luck! 

[leahcarn]

Day 1 is over for me, I was compliant and not much in the way of cravings, although I did have a dream about paleo moms spinach brownie last night LOL. I had a small snack at 6.30pm in the shuttle because my dinner was packed away, but that was the only snack. 29 to go. How's everyone else doing?

[Lulubelle]

Well - that was a learning experience!!!! Last night, I had champagne and chocolate and woke up feeling terrible! Bad headache (wine never bothered me before), and didn't sleep well - glad I got that "out of my system" - won't do that again!

Ready to start clean today for my second Whole30! : )

[Ellie_G]

Well - that was a learning experience!!!! Last night, I had champagne and chocolate and woke up feeling terrible! Bad headache (wine never bothered me before), and didn't sleep well - glad I got that "out of my system" - won't do that again!

Ready to start clean today for my second Whole30! : )

 

I poured a 1/4 of a bottle of wine down the sink last night, rather than finish it and wake up feeling bad this morning! Hope your day gets better.