Did you find yourself sweeter and kinder after Whole30 reintro?

[MeadowLily]

[MeadowLily]

THE WHOLE30-PLUS: EXTENDING YOUR PROGRAM FOR 45, 60, OR 90 DAYS

 

11 August, 2014

Whole30 participant Tabitha contacted us recently with a question about extending her Whole30. She asked:  

“I have some long-standing issues that I have a feeling will take longer than 30 days to truly turn around. Can you give me an idea of what a Whole60/90/120 would look like?”

 

Now, we could tell you what challenges we think one would face during an extended version of the Whole30 program (and we will), but we also wanted to get first-hand advice from folks who have been there, done that. So we asked our Whole30 Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter community what advice they would have for Tabitha, or anyone else hoping to tackle a Whole30-plus.

 

More days, please

But first, a quick note: why would anyone want to do a Whole30 plus some extra days? Generally speaking, if you have a long-standing medical issue, an autoimmune disease, or a history of tenacious cravings or food addictions, you’ll likely find 30 days isn’t enough to see the full potential of your results. We bet you’ll feel better after 30 days, and will probably see a reduction in symptoms and cravings, but you may be thinking, “I’m still not where I want to be.”  If that’s your context, consider extending your Whole30 to 45, 60, even 90 days to see if additional time on the program brings you the results you are looking for. 

 

One reason not to extend your program? Because you’re afraid to ride your own bike, making your own choices out there in the real world. (Read Chapter 20 in It Starts With Food to help you navigate your fear of Life After the Whole30. We’ve got you covered with a plan, promise.)

 

If you’ve made the decision to extend your Whole30, whether that’s up front before you start or when Day 30 rolls around, here are some success strategies for staying motivated, happy, and compliant for as long as you choose to stay on the program.

 

What trouble spots or challenges are you likely to face after the first 30 days?

 

Though you’ll likely be past many of the physical adjustments (lethargy, crankiness, and erratic hunger patterns) once you cross the day 30 line, you can expect to deal with some of the same mental challenges you encountered in the first 30 days—primarily boredom and that all-encompassing Fear of Missing Out.  You may also face more questions from folks who don’t understand why you’re still on this crazy diet.

Our advice:

• Keep a list of your favorite meals from Day 1 of your Whole30. Add to it as your program goes on, and when you’re stuck, fall back on an old favorite. We’re not bored when our taste buds are happy, and it’s okay to eat the same meals every week during your program if it keeps you stress-free.
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• Make a point to find one new and exciting recipe every week.  Make that meal an event—invite friends for dinner, set the table, break out the fancy glasses.  Looking forward to that meal will help you avoid feeling stuck in the same limited menu.
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• Prioritize social events!  Don’t avoid your friends and family during your extended Whole30, as that will only make you feel more isolated.  Plan non-food related get-togethers, have a go-to take-along meal for those times when eating is a part of the plan, and learn to socialize with a mocktail in your hand.
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• Write and rehearse a standard answer for those who ask, “Why are you (still) doing this?”  Be honest about your reasons, and make it personal—list the benefits you’re seeing, and your goals for the rest of the program. Most people will support you once they realize your purpose, and how happy you are with the results you are seeing.

From the community:

• “After the first 30 days, I needed to change up my menu. I had fallen in to some traps with eating a similar breakfast and lunch day-in and day-out, and I needed to get out of the boredom trap in order to make the lifestyle sustainable. I started a Pinterest board and began pinning recipes from all my favorite Whole 30/paleo blogs and vowed to try several new recipes a week. I began to spend a lot of time in the ethnic food aisle at my grocery store, exploring foods that had always seemed a little too exotic, but turned out to be delicious and Whole30-compliant! (Jessica H.)
• “I started feeling guilty because I was eating many of the same meals over and over. Then I realized, hey, this is keeping me sticking to the plan pretty easy! I’m not feeling bored, I’m still enjoying while I’m eating, and my meals in general had good variety, so why not? This worked for me for the entire 90 days, and it was more important to me to stay on track than have the stress of making a new recipe every day.”(Jessica H.)

What should I focus on to stay motivated and on track?

Finding motivation after day 30 can be challenging if you let yourself lose focus. Hannah P. says:

“I recently completed an autoimmune protocol Whole60. Since I had done several Whole30s before, by the time I was approaching Day 30 I felt like I should be almost done, and the first 10 days or so after Day 30 it was so hard to resist a conscious off-plan food choice. I resisted and stayed strong for 30 days, but it was mentally difficult to overcome the >30 hurdle. Once I got to day 40 it was easy to see the days ticking down, but days 30-40 were the hardest part.”

The key to this mental challenge? By concentrating on your goals and your progress instead of the countdown to day whatever, you’re more likely to stay the course.

Our advice:

• Focus on your personal why’s. Keep a symptom or “results” journal, and note the improvements you’re seeing every week. Use these, and share these, as motivation throughout the process.
• Take progress pictures of your skin conditions, your swollen joints, or the bags under your eyes. Seeing the steady improvement will help keep you focused on the benefits.
• Don’t focus on the calendar. Counting down the days in an extended Whole30 keeps you focused on how much time you have left, not the successes you see every day.
• Find other ways to reward your hard work and dedication—something other than food. Treat yourself to a new article of clothing, see a play, get a massage, or buy yourself a new fitness or outdoor “toy.”

From the community: 

• “I focused on the joy of how clean my body felt. I have two young kids, and so being able to wake up in the morning with them and not feel like crap was an absolute miracle for me. When my body feels clean, my whole life runs smoother. For me, this is worth it. On a more practical note, I also used a reward system for my first two rounds of Whole30. On day 1 I picked out an item of clothing that I really wanted but wouldn’t normally spend money on and told myself that as soon as I complete the program, I could go out and buy it guilt-free. It worked well.” (Joanna vdB.)
• “Focus on HOW YOU FEEL. I can’t emphasize this enough. It’s not about the numbers on the scale, the size of your pants. Do you wake up feeling energized and alive? Do you feel like you can make it through your day without an extra pot of coffee? The energy boost I got was worth any sacrifice I made in regards to eating choices. I could make it through a long day at work, exercise and still have energy to spare. I also began to sleep better than I had in my entire life. I fell asleep quickly, stayed asleep and woke up with my alarm clock or before it. All of those feelings are what drove me to continue, along with the relief I had gotten from nearly a decade of migraines. (Jessica H.)
• “To stay on track, I just remembered why I wanted to do it for 60 days. I remembered my blog followers that would be expecting Whole30 recipes, and I remembered my good friend who was doing her first ever Whole60 as a switch from SAD with me. I knew I couldn’t let her down and I would have to finish the 60 days.” (Hannah P.)

What can I do to make my Whole30+ as successful as possible?

While you can’t control every circumstance you encounter during your 45/60/90 days, there are certain steps you can take to create an environment of success for yourself.  Mental preparation, careful planning and a willingness to be flexible are key to surviving your extended Whole30. 

Our advice: 

 

• Get your head in the game before you start. List the various circumstances you might face during this time and come up with a plan for how to negotiate them. Include food options, how you might answer potential questions, and how you can get yourself out of the situation if you feel like you’re losing control.
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• Build a support system of people who know you well, and can help talk you through the tough times. They don’t have to be working the program with you, but they do need to understand how important this goal is to you. Take advantage of this often—don’t wait for a tough situation to reach out.
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• Know that there are going to be times when you just have to make it work. Give yourself permission to eat a meal made completely of disjointed ingredients, scope out some grab-and-go options at your local grocer for food on-the-fly, and don’t beat yourself up if a new recipe turns out to be a flop.

From the community:

• “Support. Support. Support: It helps so much to share the burden … with someone who actually cares about your journey. Plan meals: And if that’s too difficult, find at least three quick complete meals you can fall back on. Always keeps those ingredients in the house for the days that you “just can’t”. Because life continues to happen when you are on Whole30 and just like some days can be good days, some days are going to be bad days. Try to stay ahead of the game and have some good food ready to go.” (Mandi L.)
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• “I’ve led a few groups of people doing the Whole30 challenge and they have all said the same thing: that it’s so much easier to complete if you have friends and family doing it with you. We started a Facebook group for sharing recipes and leaving encouraging notes and tips for each other and it was very successful!” (Joanna)
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• “If you’re a parent, do not fear bringing your family in to the mix. My children often ate Whole 30 dinners without even realizing I had done anything different to prepare our food. My husband did his 30 days during my 80 and he has changed many of his eating habits permanently as a result of his experience. And reach out—there is a huge community online, ready and willing to answer your questions and speak from a place of experience.” (Jessica H)
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A final word about a Whole45/60/90 or more…

Finally, remember that there is no such thing as the perfect Whole30, so keep your end game in mind. It’s critical for your medical condition, cravings, or other goals that you to stick to Whole30 foods 100% during the entirety of your program. It’s less important that you never have a snack, always eat organic, eat protein three times a day, and don’t drink your calories.We make recommendations like these during your program to help you be successful, but if you’re able to stick to a Whole90 with some snacking, smoothies, ingredient meals, and breakfast repeats, you’re winning. Cut yourself some slack, and be proud of your hard work—we know it will pay off in the end, no matter what your end goal.

- See more at: http://whole30.com/2014/08/whole30-plus/#sthash.Klyfnp0o.dpuf

[MeadowLily]

Find Your Mind

 

 

Our minds want to use the least resources possible to manage inputs, run our bodies and more. The smaller the effort, the more mental capacity we have for emergency processing -- like when that woolly mammoth charges us or when all heck breaks loose in our business.

 

The more we can respond out of habit or instinct, the less energy our mind has to use. We create habit after habit to allow our minds to have excess capacity for those all important moments. The challenge is that those instincts and habits often get in the way of our own best path.

[MeadowLily]

Find Your Mind

 

Our initial perceptions are formed in early childhood. Between the ages of 0-7, every single thing that happens in our world becomes a truth to our mind. We then build on those initial perceptions and they become like fly paper -- attracting more experiences that match the perception to make it true.

 

 

This is why there is always more and more to discover, why we never stop learning and expanding. It's the function of our mind to expand.

 

You  mind is the ruler of your reality. The more you learn about how to direct your mind, the more you take charge of your reality.

[MeadowLily]

How to keep your self-esteem and stay sane in a world obsessed with image

 

by Anastasia Boulais of Whole9 South Pacific

It’s an open secret that most people around us are insecure about their looks in one way or another. 8 out of 10 women are reportedly dissatisfied with their body. More than half of the girls aged 12 to 14 wear makeup most days and 17% refuse to leave the house without it. 80% of 10 year old girls have dieted at least once in an attempt to get thinner.

 

There is a misconception that your image anxiety (or as I prefer to call it, “selfie neuroticism”) has anything to do with what you actually look like. You can be overweight or stick thin, blonde or brunette, have crystal clear skin or suffer from acne. The debilitating thing about image obsession is that you are never “enough.” Never thin enough, or curvy enough, or tall enough, or have “enough” of some attribute that you and your society demand you should possess in order to be happy, valued and fulfilled.

This problem is increasingly recognised both in public consciousness and among mental health professionals.So what do we do to empower ourselves and shift the focus to our more meaningful qualities? The majority of advice seems to revolve around self-love message and positive affirmations.

 

I don’t think this is enough. When we give weight loss advice we recognise that there are strong environmental triggers and encourage people to remove those to maximise success: clean out their pantry of rubbish foods, avoid catching up with friends at the favourite bakery, or move away from the table full of tempting treats at a party. We recognise that willpower sometimes is not enough. Can we utilise similar strategies when trying to preserve your self-esteem?

 

Here are some ideas that you can try to implement in your everyday life.

 

1. Eat ALL THE (nutritious nourishing) FOOD.

Hunger is a potent anxiety inducer. The more you restrict, count and obsess, the less nutrition your body receives, the hungrier you get, the more you restrict, count and obsess. I know women who have been caught in that cycle for decades. It does not take one good filling meal to put a dampener on your chronic stress causing neuroticism. It takes weeks of nourishing your body to break the cycle of low level anxiety.

 

2. Get restorative sleep (a.k.a. don’t go bikini shopping tired).

When I go clothing shopping after working a late shift the night before, everything looks and feels “meh.” Lack of sleep makes you more susceptible to negative self-talk. The undercurrent of irritability brought on by lack of sleep might just explode into a tsunami of rage if your boyfriend inadvertently implies that maybe this piece of clothing does not suit your body type.

 

Note: if you are a guy and your significant other takes you out shopping after several nights with less than 8 hours of sleep, run. Or fake gastrointestinal distress requiring you to stay at home locked in a small room. Anything.

 

3.   Don’t buy women’s magazines.

You will save loads of money and your sanity. 50% of those mags are ads anyway. It’s like paying for cable and watching only the shopping channel. The other 50% are designed to make you feel inadequate, unfashionable, fat, unattractive, and not hip “enough” unless you buy the recommended $300 bag, the latest lip plumping serum, and a designer outfit resembling a brightly coloured hessian sack. If you are still in doubt, ask yourselfwhen was the last time you felt fantastic about yourself and your life after reading Cosmopolitan?

4.   Take a selfie detox.

That means no selfie photos for at least one month. None. Who are you taking them for anyway? Your friends on InstaTwitFace know what you look like. They have seen your face probably more than you have seen your own. And let’s just be honest here, every shot you take is carefully designed and orchestrated to make you look in the best possible light. The sad thing is, your opinion of your best features might be drastically different from that of your friends.

 

I have a girlfriend whose selfie pose features a smouldering look and a significant pout. I’m sure she thinks it’s off the charts sexy. I happen to think that she looks drop dead gorgeous when she relaxes into a very distinct loud carefree roaring laughter, with her flushed face breaking into dozens of laugh lines and tears streaming down her cheeks.

 

5. Be wise with your compliments.

We all love being told how attractive, sexy and gorgeous we are. But when you are handing out compliments, be aware what beast you are feeding. Are you encouraging narcissistic behaviour by only ever commenting on someone’s appearance and neglecting their other qualities? When was the last time you left a comment on a friend’s Instagram telling them what a great eye for photography they have, or how you admire their original way of thinking? It’s all too easy to reduce our online and in-person compliments to somebody’s dress, their figure, their shoes or their new hairdo. You love your friends and family for more than just their looks. Don’t forget to tell them that.

 

6. Go au naturelle.

Yes, ladies. I know you are going to hate me for this one. To every woman who tells me that makeup means nothing to her and she only uses it as part of a feel good ritual I want to say: why then the paralysing fear of going without? Now, let’s not be silly. This is probably not the time to go cold turkey; nobody likes hearing an innocent inquiry from their work colleagues whether they are suffering a debilitating acute illness when they show up au naturelle one day. If your everyday makeup ritual resembles war paint application, you may need to take it slow. Make it into a game: how much can you omit without anyone noticing? Start with skipping a second coat of mascara, forget the lip liner the next day, and do you really need eye shadow for the office?

 

The barista at the local coffee shop will probably never notice if you are not wearing lipstick when you order your next espresso. In fact, I bet even your friends, family and your significant other would take no heed. The benefits of using less makeup and going fresh faced from time to time? You will save thousands of dollars each year (and won’t have to pretend to your significant other that all these products were acquired “on sale”). Your skin will improve, lips will soften, and eyelashes will get stronger. You’ll probably avoid exposure to some hormone-disrupting chemicals. And finally, you will realise that what you were hiding under the mask was beautiful in its own right.

7. Don’t be a slob.

This may sound like the exact opposite of what I just said but loving your body does not mean you let yourself go, neglect your hygiene or wear unflattering clothes. Teenage girls seem to struggle with getting that balance right and I frequently feel the urge to mention to some girls that red lipstick and greasy unwashed hair is not an attractive combination. Being able to walk into a room full of strangers with your head held up high requires a high degree of self-respect. Sure, we all have bad days when you would rather slouch in the corner and become completely invisible, but these are the days when you gotta pull out the old “fake it till you make it”. Dreading the necessary socialising at a party? Put on your most comfortable piece of clothing (not your onesie), pull your shoulders back, lift your chin up, and walk in with a lion tamer’s confidence.

 

 

Reduce Your Exposure to Toxic Influences

So be brave and give these strategies a go. Self-doubt can be paralysing and we all struggle with pressure put on us by the society’s impossible standards. Don’t just let yourself be swept away by the current of constant criticism telling you that you somehow you are not enough. Take an active stance and reduce your exposure to these toxic influences. Good luck!

[MeadowLily]

[MeadowLily]

You have to crack a few eggs to make some real changes in your life.

 

[MeadowLily]

Don’t be a slob.

 

This may sound like the exact opposite of what I just said but loving your body does not mean you let yourself go, neglect your hygiene or wear unflattering clothes. Teenage girls seem to struggle with getting that balance right and I frequently feel the urge to mention to some girls that red lipstick and greasy unwashed hair is not an attractive combination. Being able to walk into a room full of strangers with your head held up high requires a high degree of self-respect. Sure, we all have bad days when you would rather slouch in the corner and become completely invisible, but these are the days when you gotta pull out the old “fake it till you make it”. Dreading the necessary socialising at a party? Put on your most comfortable piece of clothing (not your onesie), pull your shoulders back, lift your chin up, and walk in with a lion tamer’s confidence.

 

Whatever the reason, I refuse to believe that lack of money is the main cause for dressing like slobs. If you can afford $17.99 pajama bottoms with the Budweiser logo on them, then you can afford the $11.99 jeans at Target. Or in my neck of the woods, if you have hundreds of dollars to drop on concert tickets, beer, and hotdogs, you have more than enough for a decent coat or jacket. 

[MeadowLily]

[MeadowLily]

Clean Your Closet

 

 

Clutter’s Impact on Your Brain

 

Whether it be your closet or office desk, excess things in your surroundings can have a negative impact on your ability to focus and process information. That’s exactly what neuroscientists at Princeton University found when they looked at people’s task performance in an organized versus disorganized environment. The results of the study showed that physical clutter in your surroundings competes for your attention, resulting in decreased performance and increased stress.

[MeadowLily]

How To Clean Your Closet

Declutter Your Brain

 

 

Take everything out of your closet

 

 

Make three piles.  One for..... Yes     No     Maybe

 

Keep the Beat.    Go with first decision.

 

If stumped for more than 5 seconds, it is a Maybe

 

Yes  if you cannot live without that item

 

No pile.    No longer fits, never fit, ripped or torn.

 

No pile.    In denial, pretending you'll wear someday.

 

No pile.    Just looking at it...gives you a pinch.

 

 

Throw the no pile immediately into bags, close.

 

Take bags to goodwill.  No bags left in house.

 

No closet cleaning remorse.

[MeadowLily]

[MeadowLily]

Whole9 Moderator/First Whole30 May 2010

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• LocationAlpharetta, Georgia, USA

The success you are achieving with your Whole30 is money in the bank that you need to spend on additional improvements. You know how to use food as a safe haven, but have you learned how to apply other skills to achieve a safe haven? - Walking away from destructive situations. Enlisting appropriate help. Emotional self-soothing. A lot of us need to spend a few years in a counseling or therapy relationship to develop these skills. Our families did not teach us how to manage our lives in a healthy fashion. You can't learn it from a book or develop it from watching functional families on TV. We need face to face relationships with people who can help us develop skills that were missing where we got our start in life. Like a lot of things, it starts with food, but there is more work to do. You really can do it. 

 

[MeadowLily]

[MeadowLily]

Melissa @ Whole9 says

 

April 6, 2011 at 2:09 pm

It may take a week or two… it may take a month or two. Depends on how bad your sugar demons are, and how you treat them during your Whole30. Dallas likes to say you can’t kill the sugar dragon with willpower, you have to STARVE it. So don’t give in to those cravings during your Whole30 by using fruit as a crutch… stick it out and it will get better.

Best of luck to you!

Melissa

[MeadowLily]

 

1. Melissa @ Whole9 says

    

   August 19, 2010 at 5:34 pm

   You don’t have to throw out all the sweet or savory stuff, but I do think you’re smart to realize you’re giving into the sugar demons with your sunflower seeds and raisins. If you’re craving sugar, don’t give your body sugar! Eat a high fat snack instead, with a little bit of protein, and tough it out. Break those cravings once and for all and you can go back to enjoying the occasional dried fruit and nut snack without worrying that it’s going to send you running for the nearest Krispy Kreme.

   Best,

   Melissa

[MeadowLily]

Dallas @ Whole9 says

 

August 4, 2010 at 8:02 pm

If you’re craving carbs (read: SUGAR!), eat fat and protein. Giving yourself sugar is NOT the route to go. But also, adding 1/2 & 1/2 to your coffee won’t make you feel better. We’ve observed in (literally) hundreds of people that “falling off the wagon” with things like pizza and cake only lead to more “falling off”. Get back on the Good Food Train.

[MeadowLily]

Here’s what we typically see. People coming off a traditional “American” diet for the first time tend to rely heavily on fruit, nuts and nut butters in their first attempt at the Whole30. While they are much better food choices than you old sweet treats, obviously we’d encourage you to work your way towards better food choices, the further along you are in the program. So as you notice that you’re hitting the nut butters too hard, for example, perhaps pull back and try to add fat in the form of other good sources (coconut milk, avocado, olive oil, etc.). You’ll naturally become more aware of your food choices, the further along you go, and naturally develop a healthier, happier relationship with ALL foods.

Just know it’ll take longer than 30 days for that to happen! It’s really a life-long pursuit – breaking those old emotional ties to food and developing a new, healthier relationship. Just stick with it and continue to be honest with yourself about your food choices, cravings and habits, and the time WILL come when you can enjoy that chocolate bar and then jump right back on the Good Food Train.

Thanks to all for contributing!

Best,

Melissa

[MeadowLily]

Melissa @ Whole9 says

 

May 28, 2010 at 3:21 pm

While it is an interesting topic, all we are doing is encouraging people to do the best they can, within their own individual guidelines and means. That’s going to look a bit differently for everyone, but in our Workshops, we stress making good food CHOICES and focusing on quality if and when you have mental and financial capacity. For me personally, I’m going to eat as healthily as I can, even if that means giving up other things to support my Good Food habit. (We also have no cable TV, don’t do much in terms of outside entertainment like movies or concerts, and happily curb material purchases to be able to eat the way we know is best for our health and fitness.)

 

To everyone: We support your efforts to do the best YOU can, via whatever guidelines and moral/ethical codes you’ve chosen, and within whatever mental, financial and lifestyle constraints that you may be dealing with, whatever that may look like. If you’re choosing to do the best you can by participating our Whole30 program, we’re here to support and help you as much as we can along the way.

 

Here’s how I’d spin it. If you told me, “I LOVE my pasta. I’m a pasta addict – I eat it every day! So I’ll give up my pasta, but replace it with Paleo pasta instead!” I’d perhaps suggest you think long and hard about the choices you’re making, and what you are doing to curb your self-described unhealthy pasta addiction via your psuedo-pasta food choices. Since that’s NOT the case, I’m great with your Paleo-fied meal! We do a spaghetti squash/ground beef/tomato sauce version ourselves, and it’s super delicious and very filling.

 

We’re just cautioning people to pay attention to the food choices they’re making, to ensure they’re not just using “Paleo” as a get out of jail free card with respect to changing patterns, habits and unhealthy behaviors. If you take a long, honest look at your food choices, you’ll be able to tell for yourself what’s behind those choices.

 

Here’s what we typically see. People coming off a traditional “American” diet for the first time tend to rely heavily on fruit, nuts and nut butters in their first attempt at the Whole30. While they are much better food choices than you old sweet treats, obviously we’d encourage you to work your way towards better food choices, the further along you are in the program. So as you notice that you’re hitting the nut butters too hard, for example, perhaps pull back and try to add fat in the form of other good sources (coconut milk, avocado, olive oil, etc.). You’ll naturally become more aware of your food choices, the further along you go, and naturally develop a healthier, happier relationship with ALL foods.

 

Just know it’ll take longer than 30 days for that to happen! It’s really a life-long pursuit – breaking those old emotional ties to food and developing a new, healthier relationship. Just stick with it and continue to be honest with yourself about your food choices, cravings and habits, and the time WILL come when you can enjoy that chocolate bar and then jump right back on the Good Food Train.

 

Thanks to all for contributing!

Best,

Melissa

[MeadowLily]

Give your sugar tantrums a time-out

 

We like to take some comments on the site “Main Page”, if we feel there’s a good question, commentary or lesson to be learned.  And yesterday, we received a comment from Susan that hit home – and spoke to one of the most important reasons why we created and continue to promote the Whole30 program as a way to “change your life in 30 days”.  The comment is as follows:

 

24 May, 2010 at 10:35 pm

I can handle cutting out a lot of not so healthy foods, but I’ll admit that i have a serious sweet tooth (and I’m great at making gourmet sweets. Salted caramels? Chocolate truffles? gelato to die for? You name it.) I love ice cream, and summer is around the corner, meaning I could easily find an excuse to eat ice cream everyday.

 

I recently came across the following recipe (for “Paleo” ice cream) and thought it was genius. It’s surprisingly creamy and delicious, and I’m assuming you can actually eat it every day on the Whole30 plan. It only has one ingredient- frozen bananas, but you can also add almond or sun-nut butter or cinnamon to mix it up a bit.  Seriously, this kicks the sweet treat cravings in a pretty awesome way.

Susan wasn’t the first to wonder about “Paleo” substitutions.  We’ve received questions about Fudge Babies, Paleo Pancakes and other typically sub-optimal food choices which have been re-tooled with Whole3o-approved ingredients.  But bless your heart, Susan… you are missing the bus entirely with this “Paleo” ice cream.

 

For those of you new to the Whole30, please don’t skip over the foundations of the program and proceed straight to the “approved” food list.  One of the most important and life-changing goals of the Whole30 is to change your tastes, change your habits, and break your emotional and habitual connections with craving sugar and giving your body sugar. Trying to satisfy your old sweet tooth habit with shiny new “Paleo” treats isn’t going to do you any good whatsoever in the long term. Your brain doesn’t know the difference between Breyer’s Mint Chip and Paleo banana ice cream.  All your brain knows is that it threw a sugar tantrum, and you gave it sugar.  So what do you think is going to happen an hour from now, a day from now, a week from now, a year from now?  More cravings and uglier tantrums, as frustratingly impossible to ignore as a two year old at Disney, because you keep giving it what it wants.

And that is not what we want for you.

 

We want you to break that connection once and for all.  We want you to learn that you don’t need sugar as a pick-me-up, an emotional comfort, a reward for good behavior.  And to learn that, you need to break that pattern of crave sugar, get sugar.  So, Susan, while your frozen banana treats are Whole30 ingredient approved, the dessert itself is OUT.  Skip the Paleo sweet substitutes and focus on breaking that connection your brain has to sugar.  Craving sweets?  Eat a small amount of fat instead.  Fat is satiating – it tells your brain that it’s full and happy.  A few almonds or a quarter of an avocado goes a long way in satisfying hunger cravings without giving your brain the sugar it’s telling you it needs.  Tough it out, because changing this pattern and breaking this pattern will prove to be one of the healthiest, most rewarding, most freeing experience of your life.

 

From a science-y perspective, a bowl full of frozen bananas every day, while a better food choice, is just as counteractive to restoring insulin sensitivity and breaking those sugar connections as any other form of sugar out there.   In fact, while we’ll never tell you bananas are “bad”, they are one of the least desirable fruits from our perspective – a ton of starch (sugars), and little nutrition compared to, say, richly colored cherries or berries.  When including fruit in your Whole30 plan, we’d want you to maximize nutrient density, and choose fruits that allow you to have more of them in a single serving!  You can have an entire cup of blueberries for the same sugar content as a small banana.  And that cup of blueberries goes a long way towards both giving you lots of naturally occurring vitamins and minerals, and making you feel satisfied with the amount of food on your plate.

Susan – please don’t let this scare you off.  We’re tough loving you because if you’re going to make the effort of giving up foods you enjoy, we want it to COUNT.  Think about what we’re asking you to do, and why, and how you can best accomplish the goals of both changing the way you eat and changing the way you think about the foods you eat.  Start today, post often, and let us know how things are going.  And thanks for your contributions, because we’re betting you’re not the only one who is struggling with sugar cravings and how to break those connections.

Got any words of inspiration for Susan?  Post.  Share.  Motivate.  Inspire.  And then go buy some cherries at your local grocery store or farmer’s market, because they’re in season right now, and they’re delicious.

 

 

[MeadowLily]

Melissa @Whole9 says

 

October 31, 2012 at 8:24 am

... and once you cross that line, sister, it’s a multiple-year journey to get back to sane and normal.

 

The brain will ALWAYS want to go back to what makes it feel good – what rewards it. That’s what that little voice inside your head is telling you – I miss the stress, I miss how it gave me a buzz, let’s go back there, shall we? You’ve got to override and remind yourself that you have other ways of feeling good and rewarded now – healthier ways.

 

I think your point is solid – we’ve been dieting, exercising, berating ourselves for not working hard enough all our lives, practically. It can be hard to give ourselves permission to slow down! Sometimes, taking a voluntary rest day is the most bad-ass example we can set.

 

I’m sorry that you’re feeling at the end of your rope. We’ve got a two-part series on stress junkies linked in the above that might help you get started – part two has some tips for getting out of the cycle. First and foremost is trying to identify your “trigger” behaviors, and working on those. If you know that getting out of bed and checking email first thing in the morning winds you up like crazy, then set a rule that you aren’t on your computer until you’ve eaten breakfast and read for a 1/2 hour. If the spin class you take spins you into competitive overdrive, stop doing the class (ASAP) and try something else, like yoga or walking. (And not that hard-core heated power yoga, either.) If you’re drinking coffee or taking in other forms of caffeine, stop. Cold-turkey. 100%. For a really, really long time. Eliminate any areas of stress you can, in any form you can think of… and get some help from a professional. Talking through this can make a world of difference right away, even if you don’t solve all your problems in one sitting. Best of luck to you.

 

Thanks for your observations. This kind of behavior is common with a lot of Type-A perfectionists, and there does seem to be a number of those in our community, for one reason or another.

 

We’ve addressed this more than a few times, on the blog and in great detail in It Starts With Food (http://bit.ly/wholeiswf). Relying on the comfort of the Whole30 rules for 30 days is, I think, a safe place from which to build new habits and reshape old patterns. But you’ve gotta kick the training wheels off and test your new skills in the real world eventually – even if you do fall face-first into a plate of birthday cake. That’s not failure – that’s expected! And you’ll always have the Whole30 to get you back on track. I often use the Whole30 for just a few days or a week at a time, to remind me what it’s like to feel good and eat healthy – and that’s enough to keep temptations at bay and keep my decisions on track. This is a life-long process, and I have no doubts you’ll find your way.

 

I’m impressed with the awareness that many of you are demonstrating – it took me years to realize that my behaviors were unhealthy, and even then, it was mostly Dallas pointing out the problems (patiently and endlessly) that brought the situation to light. Keep up the good work and keep reminding yourself that the little voice in your head telling you to do more/go harder/be better isn’t telling you the truth about who you are, and what you should actually be focusing on.

 

Well done! Sounds like you may have just averted what could have been a crisis stress situation. Taking a break before starting any new projects is a great idea, but don’t be surprised if it’s hard to slow down after spinning so fast for so long. It may take a few weeks for you to settle down, but be persistent and stick to your “taking time for me” guns!

 

Best,
Melissa

 

[MeadowLily]

Anorexia

"Food With Brakes"

 

For the anorexic...there's no such thing as "Food With Brakes".

 

This disordered thinking will destroy you.

 

I know an anorexic relative who lives on fruit.   Fruit is "Food With Brakes" for her.

 

She doesn't eat anything but fruit.   At  5'8"...she tries to hover around 108 lbs.

I think her unspoken goal is to dial that down to 98 lbs.  She's been to the best clinics all over the nation.   She's stripping all of her family's resources for her treatment.   It's taking away college funds from other siblings  and leaving her entire family unit in shambles.

 

Yet, she continues to be very deceptive and manipulative with herself, medical profession and family.

 

She has feigned to have every ailment to avoid detection of the root problem....anorexia.   She has simulated bowel blockages, pretended to have severe stomach cramps - anything she can to take the focus of off her disordered thinking.

 

She is willing to take trips in an ambulance to keep the ruse going.  Medical professionals have given her multiple medical procedures and tests...just short of opening her up for exploratory purposes.

 

They can find nothing physically the matter with her.  No intestinal diseases or blockages that prevent her from eating.  She goes on and on about how stuffed she is after eating a piece of fruit.   It's more than she can handle.  She wouldn't dare touch a piece of meat.   Vegetarianism suits her lifestyle.

 

At a recent gathering of relatives, I watched her order only a side dish of mashed potatoes.   She pretended to eat a bite and played with the rest.   She washed the micro-bite down with a diet soda.   

 

If you're anorexic....there's no such thing as "Food With Brakes".   

 

 

 

 

 

[MeadowLily]

[MeadowLily]

 

 

 

 

Full name: Picabo Street 
Gender: Female 
Height: 5-6.5 (170 cm) 
Weight: 163 lbs (74 kg)

 

 

Picabo Street is considered the greatest female power and speed skiier in American history. She first joined the U.S. Ski Team in 1989, at the age of 17. In 1993 she broke through at the World Championships, winning a silver medal in the Alpine combined. In 1994, she won her first World Cup downhill in addition to her Olympic silver medal. Her greatest years were 1995-96. In 1995 she won six World Cup downhills and the overall World Cup downhill title. She repeated the overal downhill title in 1996, winning another two World Cup downhills that year, and added a gold medal in the downhill at the World Championships and won a bronze in the Super-G at the Worlds. She did not win any World Cup races in 1997-98 but surprised by winning the Super-G at the Nagano Olympics. Shortly thereafter she sustained a very serious crash at a race in Switzerland, breaking her left femur and tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee. After two years of rehab she returned to the ski circuit and raced again at the 2002 Winter Olympics before retiring. She has since worked as a commercial spokeperson for various companies. Growing up as a skiier in Sun Valley, a run was named after her, with the former “Plaza” run re-named as “Picabo’s Street.” Street was inducted into the US Ski Hall of Fame in 2005.

 

 

[MeadowLily]

"The next time you look into the mirror I want you to realize that you are looking at your BEST friend. You might think that someone else is your best friend...but they aren't! Nobody supports you or wants you to succeed more than the person staring back at you. The person staring back is the one that you have said horrible things to, thought horrible things about, treated terribly.......things you would have never done to the person you think is your best friend.......if you had, your "best friend" would have left you. But the BEST friend in the mirror is still there. That friend is already at the weight you want to be.....but has been kind enough to carry YOU ....and not complain. That friend is more than ready to assist you, encourage you, and smile back at you as you move through this program and get healthier. Realize your BEST friend and watch your life and health change!"

 

By dcducks