Finished my first Whole 30

[cmeese]

I finished my first Whole 30 on May 7.  Aside from massive headaches on Days 2 and 3 and fatigue the entire first week, the program went well for me.  There was no tiger blood, but there was an increase in energy levels.  On Day 31, I weighed myself.  There was a 3.5 lb weight loss.  This may not have been real weight loss since the week before the Whole 30, I said goodbye to junk by eating more of it than I usually do, and my clothes didn't fit any differently than they did at the start.  Now, I am not a 20-something athlete, but a rather overweight middle-aged woman.  While slighly disappointed, I figured:  1) The program is about health and not weight loss; 2) My skin cleared up; 3) There was an increase in energy levels; 4) Facial puffiness decreased; 5) How can you not feel good about eating 1-2 cups of vegetables with each meal; and 6) I hadn't had an attack of interstitial cystitis throughout the 30 days, even though I was eating small amounts of food that previously had started a flareup. 

 

On Day 31, I ate 3 chicken wings while over at friend's house.  An hour later, I felt ill.   Hooray, I thought.  This means my system has gotten used to healthy foods and won't tolerate junk.  On Day 32, I weighed myself, I was down another 1.5 lbs for a total loss of 5 lbs. For some reason, 5 lbs seems significant, while 3.5 doesnt.  On Day 32, I tried a coconut danish.  I didn't feel ill, but my face puffed up that day. After those brief reintroductions I thought it would be good to do another Whole 30, so i started again on May 11.  The scale has been put away again and my thoughts are if I can continue to avoid interstitial cystitis flares, get more energy and continue to have nice skin again, it's worth foregoing dairy (which is really the only thing I miss while doing the Whole 30). 

 

I'm now on Day 5 of my second Whole 30.  While I felt there was minor success earlier, I felt it was certainly nothing to boast about on this forum.  However, I recently got lab results back from my doc.  Homocysteine levels are down (hooray!) and thyroid function has worsened.  While the thyroid part is bad, I'm excited that during the first Whole 30, I managed to lose some weight and experience increased energey, despite the sluggish thyroid.  While my results from the first Whole 30 aren't as noticeable as other success stories in the forum, I'm excited that I feel as good as I do, despite the hypothyroidism.

[ultrarunnergirl]

Wonderful!! Kudos for your successful Whole30. I bet you'll see continued results as you Whole30 on!

[AuntJane]

Congratulations on successfully completing your Whole30!  I think your results are great, especially the improvements in your skin, energy, and interstitial cystitis.  And it sounds like your attitude toward food and health have changed for the better, which is one of the main points of the program, yes?  You should be very proud of yourself! 

[WholeMama623]

Wonderful!!!

 

Just wondering, are you on meds for the hypothyroid?

 

I did my first whole30 before being diagnosed, and only lost 4 lbs. I was so bummed.

 

However, when I got on thyroid meds, I lost 11 lbs nearly instantly once my thyroid was being supported again. Just letting you know that it may help if you aren't already on meds!

[cmeese]

Thanks for the very nice comments and encouragement, Ultrarunnergirl, AuntJane and WholeMama623!  I just started thyroid meds 3 days ago. The scale has been put away (I'm on Day 11 of my second Whole30) so I won't know about weight loss from the thyroid drugs for a while.  But, I continue to feel good eating this way (no afternoon crashes) and a much less puffy face. 

[moozerb]

It's so funny how I didn't realize that my face had been puffy until I did the Whole30!  Non-puffy face is the best.  

 

Congrats on your continued success!