WHY am I doing this again?

[lcs75]

Hi All,

 

I am ashamed about my food choices last night, but there is nothing I can do to change yesterday. I can see some consequences today already and the food didn't taste nice in the first place and didn't feel to great...

 

I am really struggeling with the program right now. My life seems to be so regulated. I have to do an hour of physio every day to keep me going and having the food restriction on top just made me mad yesterday. I am a fit, lean, healthy individual, yes I do suffer from IBS and a genetic tissue disorder, but in general I am ok.

 

I think I just forgot why I started at all I am sorry to be on the "I feel sorry for myself" trip, but I just struggle, IBS and EDS-3 were only diagnosed last year and I am still getting used to the new way of life

 

 

 

 

[EmilyK]

Why are you doing it?

[ladyshanny]

It might help to sit down for awhile and reframe "food restriction" to "incredible bounty of nutrient dense deliciousness".  Think about what you can have vs what you are turning down for the next 30 days.

 

In all seriousness though, if you are doing it under a negative cloud to start with you are probably going to have a worse time when things get rough.

 

While you're sitting down figuring out the food, you might consider why your brain thought it was alright to get mad and then punish yourself by ending your Whole30, breaking your committment to yourself and ultimately giving yourself an upset stomach (or whatever your symptoms are).  Getting mad is totally fine....punishing yourself, less so.

[Carlaccini]

I recently discovered as well that I needed to follow an IBS/low fodmap protocol.

 

I wasn't happy about it - no sir-ee.  However I AM happy that this is probably the solution to many long term problems that I was suffering from.  (regular Whole 30 had cleared up many health issues but there were still some unresolved outstanding ones)

 

And why would I want to eat things that made me less healthy anyways?

 

Try to reframe it - I know it seems restrictive - but you are working on getting your health back.  And that's what's important.

[lcs75]

Thank you for your replies.

 

I spent the weekend trying to realise what went wrong and remembering why I started.

 

I think I just got bored of my food choices. Which is silly, because it is my choice not to make a meal plan and not to investigate new recipes - so I will take more care to bring veriety in the game.

 

I made a little poster with my reasons why and Carlaccini I have now embraced your comment and applied that not only to my food but also my physio exercises. You are correct, there are many benefits I enjoyed when following through and this is what I want to keep in mind from now on:

 

• My IBS was getting better
• I actually genuinly enjoyed tastes, like apples tasted so much better all of the sudden
• I loved looking at pretty food
• I enjoyed not being focused on calories or weight
• I had less cravings

I am also working through the feeling of failure when making poor food choices, this does not make me a failure, it is ok to try again.

 

Thanks for your support xoxo

 

[evaq]

Great job using your experience (notice I didn't say fail!) to re-frame, recharge and anchor your health going forward! You may have slipped off-template but you've learned something invaluable, something every whole 30er strives to achieve: a better understanding of what your (+ and -) triggers are and how to embrace a healthier, happier version of you.

 

Congratulations on successfully navigating a bump on your journey.

[lcs75]

I am on Day 2 now and working through restlessness and cravings. And my portion sizes are all over the place.

 

Great is, that I never had dairy cravings - even during the weekend. I think - if it is not one of my triggers - I will reintroduce dairy only with dairy I truly love: crafted cheese - I grew up in Switzerland and most dairy / cheese available mainstream in Australia is substandard (sorry to all Aussies, but this is how I feel). So I will eat only cheese from farmers or a little local cheese shop that has a great selection. As fresh milk from the farm is illegal here (???) I will probably even give up milk for good. I used to make milk shakes with whey, nuts and fruit for a quick brekkie, that is probably the only thing I am missing - now a quick brekkie is a couple of hand ful of nuts - yeah I know it is not enough, but better than stopping at the bakery.

 

I am not missing oats or pseudo food like pancakes - I did not really eat any grains apart from oats before. I had some plain nachos with cheese on the weekend and did not like them much.

 

I was missing variety, but am now looking more into planning my meals - this is common for me, as we grow our own veg, there is an abundance when certain veg are in season and after a while I just don't want to eat them anymore... Looking forward to the winter crop at the moment, cauli and broccoli have gone in a few weeks back and it is finally cool enough to have some stews again, to use up last springs veg like cabbage, that I still have heaps of in the freeser. I used to bring in variety by picking some food up on the way home, normally after a long day at work, but now I will try to cook. Lol, last night's attempt ended up in us having dinner at 8:45pm, so I need to ensure to have some quick meals on hand

 

And I am, funnily enough, craving sugar. I had a bowl of ice cream on the weekend, chocolate and cheesecake - I think it is really essential to slay the sugar dragon. I say funnily enough, because I do not really have what people call a sweet tooth.

 

Ok, so far for my update. Feeling happier again and more positive that I can do this

[ladyshanny]

I am on Day 2 now and working through restlessness and cravings. And my portion sizes are all over the place.

 

 that is probably the only thing I am missing - now a quick brekkie is a couple of hand ful of nuts - yeah I know it is not enough, but better than stopping at the bakery.

 

Cravings are best dealt with by following our Meal Template (linked in my signature below) for all three meals including your breakfast.  Protein, fat and veggies.

 

You also may like to be cognizant of the fact that nuts, while compliant, are best eaten in limited quantities with other meals for a few reasons.  First, they are extremely calorically dense and are often a food with no brakes which means it is way too easy to overeat them.  Second, they are unbalanced as far as Omega 6 which is not necessarily ideal when eaten in large quantities.  And finally, they can be quite disruptive to one's gut.

 

Eating a proper breakfast within an hour of waking is your best bet to achieve optimal results as far as balancing hormones, becoming fat adapted, balancing blood sugars etc.