Nicole's First Whole30

[heyheynicolep]

Well, I'm really going for it! I've spent the last several years suffering through issues that no doctor can seem to help me with and I'm *sick* of it! I tried a juice fast for 5 days last year and that helped but it didn't really change my eating habits. I grew up in a household that indulged in dessert every night. If there was no ice cream someone was driving up to 7-11 to get some! This has left me with a sugar addiction, in addition to a lot of carb cravings. I've never been very good at eating my veggies, either. I was able to maintain a "healthy" weight for several years, but last year I turned 40 and bam! Suddenly the pounds just started creeping up on me. So... it's time for a change; a big, healthy, life change. 

 

Today is Day 3. I'm doing the program with my boyfriend, who's a much better eater than I am so I'm hopeful he'll help me figure out all the ins and outs. I actually know very little about nutrition so am in a learning phase. I don't expect to post here every day but I do like the idea of tracking my process through these next 30 days. 

 

So far I feel just ok. I have a headache today, which I know is normal. I'm a little hungry but after reading and posting in some other topics I have already learned that I need to eat more for breakfast (3-4 eggs! and more fat). I've also learned not to lean on nuts when I'm hungry. I plan to spend a lot time this weekend reading up on what types of things I should be eating more of and I'll plan out meals for Week 2, something I didn't do this week and probably should have. 

[Hutlifr]

Welcome to whole30. Enjoy the ride

[heyheynicolep]

Day 4

Well, that sucked. Day 3 started out with a headache and just got worse from there. I felt so gross by evening I didn't go to the pool, just made dinner and went to bed early. I think I'm squarely in the hangover phase. Up next is Kill All Things, so that should be fun.

 

Yesterday's food:

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, a big bowl of green beans

Snack: banana, cashews

Lunch: large Harris Teeter salad bar salad with homemade pulled pork

Snack: apple

Dinner: pad thai with sunshine sauce and spaghetti noodles, a mango for dessert

 

I've learned not to have fruit as my snack, which is a big change for me. The mango after dinner helped my lifetime "must have something sweet after dinner" craving, though. I have so much to learn about what to eat and when. Today I still have a headache and some general ickiness/malaise, but I'm hoping that once I figure out the right meals it will get easier. 

 

P.S. I forgot to mention that I had some crazy vivid dreams last night. In one dream I ate half a pint of ice cream, almost unconsciously. When I realized what I was doing I immediately put it down and then I thought "Oh, no! Should I start my Whole30 over? Should I confess to my boyfriend? (who's also doing it)" The desire for dessert even penetrates my dreams!

 

I also had some crazy dream about going to Church. It wasn't nearly as fun as eating ice cream. 

[shaxjo]

You can do it!

 

I'm on day 6 today, although I ate wayyyyy too much for lunch and kept getting up for more food (even though it was all compliant) and now I feel stuffed.

 

One thing I learned is that I really just like to have something to do, or to munch on, or something to preoccupy me. La Croix water has really helped me with this! I'm not much of a soda drinker or fizzy-water person, but I really like this stuff. The fizz gives me just enough excitement to keep me away from the snacks.

 

Hopefully your dreams will calm down and you'll be able to get some rest!

[megtastic]

I never had those crazy dreams!  I would've woke up feeling really guilty though and probably binged, so good for you for staying on it!!

[heyheynicolep]

Catching up....

 

Day 5 - Saturday

I spent a lot of time in the kitchen, which may be a good thing. I'm actually (sort of) learning to cook on this program! I made a really tasty omelette in the morning with sauteed kale and bacon and 3 eggs, which looked like too much food but was great to sustain me through a swim and a late lunch. For lunch I decided to put some compliant hot dogs on lettuce and that worked out pretty well. My boyfriend had made compliant mayo so it was good excuse to try it out. For dinners I've been putting together some leftovers with veggies, nothing fancy. Felt pretty good, though a little sleepy in the afternoon, but that's not unusual for me, esp after swimming. I even went out to see my friend's band play Saturday night and was happy to realize I wasn't craving a beer too much.

 

Day 6 - Sunday

Had a little more trouble with food this day. I tried to make a pseudo eggs benedict but my "hollandaise" sauce was unappealing and I overcooked the asparagus. It was pretty unsatisfying. I went for a bike ride into town with a friend and we went to a food truck rodeo. It was definitely a test of my will power! Esp when I saw all the people enjoying a beer on such a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Neither of us found food there that we could/or wanted to eat (she's gluten free) so we went to our favorite restaurant where I got a cobb salad. It was... ok. A little boring. By the time I got home I felt hungry and distracted so I had a small scoop of cashews and a Lara bar (my first one). That kept me full until a late dinner at 8pm. I tossed some ground pork with peppers and onions in some leftover sunshine sauce and put it over lettuce with cauliflower rice. That was yummy, I have to make that again! I also did some prep for the week. 

 

Day 7 - Monday

I am feeling a little grumpy this morning, though I'm not sure why. I'm still full from last night's dinner and have my scotch egg to look forward to (with brussell sprouts!). I feel a little sick of thinking about food and planning what to eat. I feel... burnt out? Not sure. Maybe this is just another phase. I also feel kind of bloated. But no headache, no acid reflux, and my boyfriend keeps telling me my skin looks really good, so that's making me DELIGHTED!

 

Here's some samples of my recent meals:

[megtastic]

I feel a little sick of thinking about food and planning what to eat. I feel... burnt out? Not sure. Maybe this is just another phase.

 

I feel like all I do is think about food some days... I think it'll pass when this becomes more of the way of life and not so new.

 

Sounds like, despite the funk, things are going really well.   Glad to hear it.  

[Krista Billows Rodriguez]

Keep at it!  The food boredom comes and goes over these 30 days, totally normal.  Fix yourself some easy, compliant meals and distract yourself with a good book, or walk, or a show, whatever helps you zone out.

[heyheynicolep]

Day 8 

Yeah.... so that didn't go well. I was pretty irritable yesterday as well as being awfully sleepy. By the time I got home from work even my brain felt tired. I crashed on the couch and used it as excuse to finally watch the Gone Girl DVD I'd rented. Side note - that movie is whacked! I did make a nice dinner for myself of 2 hot dogs, bacon sauteed kale, sweet potatoes, and an avocado. I mashed the avocado with a little bit of the compliant mayo my bf made, which was pretty enjoyable (the mashing and the eating). Then I made some Whole30 approved ranch dressing. But boy, was I grumpy throughout.

 

This morning I got an upsetting email from a friend and it really turned me into an emotional mess. I keep checking the Whole30 timeline to see if this is all 'normal'. The "Hardest Days" are still ahead of me?! Good grief. 

 

Oh, and last night I had a nightmare, the kind of nightmare where you are trying to scream and nothing is coming out until you are actually screaming, in real life, and scaring the crap out of the cats that are lying next to you. That's not on the timeline! 

[Krista Billows Rodriguez]

Yikes!  Sounds like a rough day...and night!  I haven't seen that movie, I did read the book, and found it rather....disturbing.  

 

Good for you for getting through yesterday with compliant food.  I'm on day 10 and I have to say 8/9 were tough days for me.  More so than the first time I did this.  I'm not sure why....is there some planet retrograde thing we can blame?!  I've had to remind myself that some days just suck, W30 or no, but that eating real food does help me deal with the suckiness.

[heyheynicolep]

I'm on day 10 and I have to say 8/9 were tough days for me.  More so than the first time I did this.  I'm not sure why....is there some planet retrograde thing we can blame?!  I've had to remind myself that some days just suck, W30 or no, but that eating real food does help me deal with the suckiness.

I'm glad you got through the sucky days, Krista! I hope the coming days are easier and more cheerful 

 

Day 9

Woke up with a much better attitude this morning than I've had the last 2 days. It's still feeling really hard to wake up in the morning, but I think I'm sleeping more soundly at night (and no nightmares last night - phew!) So far the biggest (maybe only?) real change I've noticed is how my face looks - my skin looks clearer and smoother than I can ever recall seeing it. I've also started using a Lush face mask twice a week so that could be helping. Anyways, it's actually nice to look at myself in the mirror lately! So hooray for that.

 

Managed a run last night after work but felt really sluggish. It's so hard to tell if things are due to the new eating or just my normal state of being. I was always tired, but I felt sort of out of gas. By the time I got to making dinner I was ravenous. Made chicken zucchini poppers with guacamole and sweet potatoes. That was tasty but I ate too fast. Was really full after and am still full at 8am the next day. Hoping my mood stays a bit brighter today and my alertness starts to improve. 

[heyheynicolep]

Day 10! Hello double digits! 

 

Was very tired last night after 60 minutes on the stationary bike, but that could also be due to donating blood yesterday afternoon. Made sure I got a lot of iron for dinner by eating a steak, sauteed kale, and asparagus. I still felt hungry though so had a small apple. Still struggling with sugar cravings, though, so have cut back on how much fruit I'm eating. That apple really did feel like a treat.

 

Woke up with a headache today and realized it's a high pollen count day. It's time for the trees to start flowering. I'm curious to see if this program has any effect on my environmental allergies. 

 

I'm in an all day staff meeting today so brought a lot of food with me to make sure I stay compliant. Here's what I've had and what I plan to have today:

 

- 3 egg omelette with kale sauteed in bacon

- salad from salad bar in work cafeteria with one scotch egg

- beef lettuce wraps 

- salami and celery for a snack, if needed

 

One small victory - I fit into a pair of jeans that have been uncomfortably snug for the last few months! 

- 

[livwel]

Hi Nicole,

I am on Day 9 and still have sugar cravings.  Also I am cranky which doesn't really fit into the fact that I am a 3rd grade teacher.  I feel good about clothes fitting better and tightening my belt another notch.  Still it seems that this is difficult.  There are many sugar foods at school all day.  Also I feel terribly helpless when I go out to dinner or to the grocery store.  My mantra is,"I can do anything for 30 days".  Stay with it.  The rewards are worth the work.  This will be life changing!

Larry

[heyheynicolep]

Hi Nicole,

I am on Day 9 and still have sugar cravings.  Also I am cranky which doesn't really fit into the fact that I am a 3rd grade teacher.  I feel good about clothes fitting better and tightening my belt another notch.  Still it seems that this is difficult.  There are many sugar foods at school all day.  Also I feel terribly helpless when I go out to dinner or to the grocery store.  My mantra is,"I can do anything for 30 days".  Stay with it.  The rewards are worth the work.  This will be life changing!

Larry

 

I totally sympathize, livwel! I still get sugar cravings after every meal and it's hard not to just grab a piece of fruit to satisfy it. This is much more of a mental challenge than I expected, but I just keep focusing on the end game - a healthy lifestyle free of my food addictions and hopefully minus some aches and pains! Good luck!

 

Day 11

I can't seem to shake this tiredness. Yesterday I felt pretty good throughout the day but when I went for a run after work I felt absolutely dead. I couldn't run much because I felt empty. My bf suggested I eat a small meal later in the afternoon before a workout. I did have some slices of salami and half of an avocado around 2pm but didn't run until 6 so maybe I need to try to eat a snack a little closer to the workout time. By the time I got home after the run I was ravenous. Made some beef lettuces wraps. Even after eating a full meal I still felt like snacking though. My brain is really messing with me! Had a terrible night sleep, tossed and turned a lot and even had another screaming until you wake up episode. It was really hard to get out of bed this morning. But... onward and forward!

[megtastic]

It is such a mental challenge!  You're doing great, Nicole.  There's nothing more powerful than overcoming our own brains.

 

1/3 of the way!!  

[heyheynicolep]

Catching up after the weekend...

 

Day 12 - Saturday

Saturday was busy. We had a party to go to so spent most of the afternoon prepping some veggies, ranch dip, and guacamole eggs to take with me. The party was actually a bourbon tasting, and it wasn't so much that I wanted to drink as it was I felt bummed I couldn't try all the new and rare bourbons that were there. It felt like a special (missed) opportunity. But we resisted! I thought we'd just nibble and leave early to have dinner at home but we ended up staying until 11pm and boy was I cranky when we finally left. That was a big mistake, I should have planned to take a complete meal. I ended up having a Lara bar, I figured it was emergency enough! 

 

Day 13 - Sunday

Finally had the eggs Benedict I'd been dreaming of since my bf made delicious hollandaise sauce. I cooked up some asparagus and poached some eggs and voila! Then we went for a run and again I really struggled. I just felt weak and tired and had to walk as much as I ran. I'm a bit concerned about it but am hoping that I'm still in an adjustment phase and it will get easier. 

 

Day 14 - today (Monday)

Last night I made some eggs in a nest and was pretty disappointed in how they turned out. They look pretty but the potato/apple next is soggy and the egg has a weird firm texture to it. Not my favorite.

 

 

But overall I feel pretty good. Went to be too late but slept well and don't feel like I'm totally dragging. And again I keep hearing compliments on how nice my skin is looking, so that makes me pretty happy. I just read a blog post about Tiger Blood and how not everyone experiences it. I sure hope I get some sort of energy boost soon because I have so much to do! 

 

P.s dinner Friday, because it was pretty  

 

[Krista Billows Rodriguez]

oooh lots of pretty veggies on Friday!  So nice that you're getting compliments on your skin!  I've heard that running performance can suffer at the beginning of the W30, since it's often a major departure from the previous fueling methods.  Be patient with yourself, I'm sure you'll get back there!

[heyheynicolep]

Day 15

 

Well, I'm officially half way through the program. I half expected (and fully hoped) to wake up happy and excited today, but instead I woke up with a headache and a terrible attitude. 

 

I've been having quite vivid dreams the last few nights and I think that's causing me to clench my jaw during the night. I notice my jaw is sore in the morning and my head has been achey. Usually the headache dissipates once I get up and get going but this morning I just felt awful. I felt like I could barely open my eyes and the idea of going to work seemed unbearable. As I was getting dressed I hopefully put on my "old" (pre-weight gain) work pants only to find they are still tight. Ugh. Add the dreaded "I hate getting dressed" feeling to my already sour mood and bam - there goes my morning. 

 

I think today is just a mental challenge. I know in my head that this program is NOT about weight loss, but I just can't stop hoping I'll drop some weight. I turned 40 last summer and ever since then my weight has just crept up and up despite exercise and calorie counting. It feels so frustrating and hopeless some days. I see all my nice work clothes, some fairly new, and it seemed like one day I just couldn't fit into them anymore. I'd maintained the same size for years, even through surgery and injury related down time. I just don't know what's going on and what I need to do to drop the extra pounds. 

 

Jeez do I sound like a whiner! Anyways, I need to remind myself of the positive changes I've seen these last 15 days - clearer skin, no acid reflux, and no migraines. 

 

OH, and last night I made eggroll in a bowl for the first time. That was a highlight

[Krista Billows Rodriguez]

Sounds so familiar, I turned 40 last July. I tell my husband I have to do twice the work for half the results. It is frustrating.

[heyheynicolep]

Sounds so familiar, I turned 40 last July. I tell my husband I have to do twice the work for half the results. It is frustrating.

 

It's so frustrating! It feels like my body turned 40 and just said "Yep, I'm gonna mail it in from here on out". Good for you for doing twice the work, though! I can't say I've done that... I keep doing the same amount of work and hoping it will magically be enough. It's probably time I learn that lesson. Good luck to you, Krista! 

[Krista Billows Rodriguez]

Hubby got me the best birthday present he's ever gotten in 15 years....a personal trainer even with that though I've seen a lot of strength increase I hadn't seen much change on the scale. Hence the w30

[heyheynicolep]

Day 16

 

I'm really starting to feel discouraged. I'm also in a Whole30 Facebook group and I keep seeing posts from people that are having such HUGE changes from this program. One lady just posted that she lost 20 lbs, stop her allergy meds, and cured her plantar fascitiis! The only thing I've really noticed is my skin looking better and some jeans fitting a bit better. Most of my clothes still don't fit, my foot feels painful most days, I am still taking my allergy meds twice a day, and I feel so god awful tired all the time. I haven't been able to run because my legs feel like they're made out of lead. Maybe this process will just take longer for me than it does for others. I don't know. I'm going to stick with it and hope for the best.

 

Yesterday I had to leave work at 2pm. I just felt so tired and out of it so I went home and laid down for few hours and then went for a long walk and made dinner of garlic shrimp over zucchini noodles. Dinner tasted great! But then I got really super nauseous. I did some googling and I'm wondering if I have a zucchini allergy. Apparently people with tree and hay allergies can be prone to some food allergies. It was pretty awful. Woke up feeling better though still not energetic. Had some eggs in a nest over sauteed kale for breakfast and cup of black tea. 

[Krista Billows Rodriguez]

Sorry your allergies are still kicking your rear, my husband has them bad and this month he's up to twice daily doses as well. I know how hard it is to see others posting about what seems like miracle changes but remember they may be starting at a significantly different body point and have much more to lose.

[Chocoholic382]

Day 16

 

I'm really starting to feel discouraged. I'm also in a Whole30 Facebook group and I keep seeing posts from people that are having such HUGE changes from this program. One lady just posted that she lost 20 lbs, stop her allergy meds, and cured her plantar fascitiis! The only thing I've really noticed is my skin looking better and some jeans fitting a bit better. Most of my clothes still don't fit, my foot feels painful most days, I am still taking my allergy meds twice a day, and I feel so god awful tired all the time. I haven't been able to run because my legs feel like they're made out of lead. Maybe this process will just take longer for me than it does for others. I don't know. I'm going to stick with it and hope for the best.

 

Yesterday I had to leave work at 2pm. I just felt so tired and out of it so I went home and laid down for few hours and then went for a long walk and made dinner of garlic shrimp over zucchini noodles. Dinner tasted great! But then I got really super nauseous. I did some googling and I'm wondering if I have a zucchini allergy. Apparently people with tree and hay allergies can be prone to some food allergies. It was pretty awful. Woke up feeling better though still not energetic. Had some eggs in a nest over sauteed kale for breakfast and cup of black tea. 

 

On my first Whole30, I didn't feel any major differences. In fact, I felt a little crummy. I took 2 weeks of "pretty paleo" and jumped back into a second W30, and by THAT Whole30's Day 12, I was REALLY feeling a difference. I read a forum yesterday where someone said it took her until Day 40 to start feeling great. I know that sounds like a long time, but it's worth it. For me, I don't really do "Tiger Blood". Not yet. But I know with every fiber of me that I'm healing things on the inside, slowly, with every Whole30. (This is my 6th.) And I know the good will come, even if I'm only improving in baby steps where others are improving in leaps and bounds. Keep doing them, and keep logging. Then one day hopefully you'll be like me, and you'll look back at your first Whole30 and go, "Holy crap, more has changed than I thought!"

[heyheynicolep]

And I know the good will come, even if I'm only improving in baby steps where others are improving in leaps and bounds. Keep doing them, and keep logging. Then one day hopefully you'll be like me, and you'll look back at your first Whole30 and go, "Holy crap, more has changed than I thought!"

 

Thanks so much for the words of encouragement, Chocoholic and Krista! It was good to read that. It is hard to see others talk about how awesome they are feeling when I'm feeling so blah. But I plan to keep going! 

 

Today is Day 18 and things are pretty much the same. Still very low energy and feeling a bit burnt out. Mostly it's all the shopping, cooking, and cleaning. It just seems like an endless cycle. A friend of mine who's not even doing Whole30 but sort of following some of the principles texted me that she's down a pant size! I'm happy for her, really, It's just hard not to be envious. 

 

So here's a small success - I tried both kombucha (sp?) and sauerkraut for the first time, and surprisingly I liked them both! So I am adding that to my meals. Did a lot of reading about healthy guts. Sometimes I think, maybe I wasn't as healthy to begin with as I thought I was. I was eating a grapefruit this morning and remembering how when I was a kid we always sprinkled sugar on them. Maybe a lifetime of habits like that really do take a month (or more) to correct. I hope to stay mostly to this type of eating when I complete the 30 days. I know in my head it's really good for me. But boy, I could sure go for a glass of bourbon right now.....