For those just starting, from someone on Day 9 ... hang on!!

[MrsMcG]

I wanted to share this because my first several days of Whole30 were nothing like what the timeline described, and there were times I was sure I must be doing it wrong because I wasn't feeling like everyone else was at that point. I kept searching the forums for some reassurance that I wasn't the only one having a different experience, and at times I wanted to quit because I figured it wasn't working for me.

 

I'm now on Day 9 and things are smoothing out, so hopefully this helps those of you who feel a bit lost like I did!

 

Day 1 - I felt horrible. Came close to quitting several times because I couldn't imagine going through several MORE days feeling that gross. Headache, brain fog, crabby, exhausted. I was in bed by 7 pm and my husband and son were scared to come near me.  

 

Day 2 - felt great. I was surprised, and then started thinking maybe I'd inadvertently eaten something off plan, because why would I feel so good otherwise? Something must be wrong ...

 

Day 3 - still feeling great. No cravings, no headache, no brain fog, not feeling hungry. What gives? Still feeling like I'm probably doing it wrong because the timeline says I should feel horrible today. I noticed today that everything tastes sweeter to me. I put almond butter on my apple and panicked when I took a bite, because it was so sweet I was SURE I'd accidentally gotten the kind with added sugar. Checked the label ... nope, I was safe. Made my husband taste it - he looked at me strangely and said "That doesn't taste sweet AT ALL. You're weird." Tasted like dessert to me!

 

Day 4 & 5 - waiting for the KILL ALL THE THINGS stage to appear ... it never did. I still felt great. From day 2 on, I was sleeping through the night (something that hasn't happened in at least 10 years!) and not having my 3 p.m. crash. Why do I feel so good? What is happening??

 

Day 6 & 7 - food boredom setting in, but nothing I can't handle since I tend to eat the same foods every day anyway, even when I'm not practicing mindful eating. I decide that since I was a pretty healthy eater to begin with, I was just lucky enough to skip that whole intro/detox stage, and Whole30 is going to be a breeze! My taste buds are really changing; carrots are too sweet for me now and I can't eat them anymore. Sweet potato is also too sweet and makes me feel sick after just a few bites. I crave salty things instead of sweet things (a huge change for me, I have a terrible sugar dragon!) It was super hot and I'd been working in the yard, so I had a coconut water. It tasted as sweet as soda to me. My husband took a sip and said "what is the point of this? It's like water with a very vague hint of coconut ... it's pretty flavorless and bland." I could clearly taste the coconut and the sweetness ... to me it wasn't bland at all.

 

Day 8 - WHAT. THE. HECK. I tossed and turned all night, then woke up feeling sick to my stomach, headachy, and angry. I actually asked my husband to take care of my son and the dog so I could sneak an extra hour of sleep, skipping my workout. Dragged myself out of bed and felt so nauseous I could barely stand it. All day today, I had brain fog, headache, nausea, and just felt disgusting in general. I stayed on plan but wasn't able to follow the meal templates at all ... protein made me want to vomit. I subsisted on veggies, fruit, nuts, a bit of flaked coconut, lots of herbal tea, and finally managed a turkey burger for dinner. Also, this will be TMI, but after suffering constipation for several days I had quite the opposite experience today, and thought perhaps I was dying. My poor tummy.

 

Day 9 - Woke up feeling great again. My theory is that my body finally caught up to the timeline, realized that I had taken away all its favorite foods, and was completely rebelling. The timeline for days 8-9 talks about digestive issues and says constipation, diarrhea or both may occur ... I definitely experienced this. It was very uncomfortable, and it was the first time since day 1 that I considered quitting. I thought maybe Whole30 is just not for me and maybe my body needs grains to keep it happy. I came real close to eating an English muffin yesterday. But I didn't do it ... I did the best I could and powered through, and feeling wonderful today is the best reward!

 

So, I hope this helps some of you who may not be experiencing the "typical" Whole30 (if that even exists) and I hope that you will all keep up the great work and keep that commitment to give this a full 30 days, no matter how much you may want to give up. We can do this!!!

[heatherhactenus]

Thanks! I'm on Day 6 and will be preparing myself for the possibility of digestive turbulence in the days ahead (things are *changing* for me right now, but in a manageable/non-sickening way so far)... good to hear that you bounced back so quickly! (Also, I'm with you on your Day 6/7 food boredom. Going to spend some of my lunch hour today looking up recipes and planning my shopping list for my first W30 kitchen restock since I started last weekend!)

[MeghanK07]

Thank you for posting this!! I am on Day 2 and not feeling anything at all like the timeline described!! I think I have more energy today than I did yesterday. Hoping it continues this way!

[Carlaccini]

Keep in mind results will vary from person to person  - especially if you are coming off of a SAD.

 

I know for me personally my first whole 30 I was 10 days behind the timeline.  That is why I added days onto the end to make my first whole 30 a whole 45.  I wanted to feel the best I could possibly feel.  

 

Now if I chose to do a whole 30 I am pretty much to the letter of the timeline.....

[doublemom]

Thank you!!  I'm on Day 3 and doing really well (minus feeling like an elephant stepped on my belly from monthly cramps).  Before Whole30 I had already cut out 98% of grains, so that part has not been hard for me, and I'm a huge fruit/veggie/nut person normally.  But I do carry a very large and persistent DARK CHOCOLATE DRAGON around with me   I also only drink unsweetened tea or water, so no diet soda detox issues for me either.  I'm not feeling at all icky, foggy, tired, etc. so I think I'm going to go thorugh this with a slightly different timeline than the majority of people as well, like you are.  I appreciate your post, makes me realize that every single body is different, and though there's a general "norm", every person will go through this process differently. 

[MrsMcG]

Day 10 today ... I am a little nervous just because the timeline shows day 10 & 11 are when people are most likely to quit. Hopefully I don't become one of those who are tempted!! I did notice this morning that my jeans were TIGHT! Even though I knew this was to be expected, I still felt like crying ... never a good feeling to work so hard at something and feel like you're taking steps backward. Hopefully this passes soon.

 

Hope you all are still hanging in there! Happy Friday!

[Susie1276]

I'm passing through Day 12 and I too haven't experienced a lot of what was on the timeline.  I'm becoming a bit of an advocate around the office and people are really interested.  I haven't lapsed at all and the longer I do this and see the results the more convinced I am that this is the last thing I'll ever have to do.  I was wary of the Day 10 warning too, I can see why people would jump off.  It's tiring as hell to work all day and then figure out what's for dinner!  My husband and adult son (who's is just passing through, I hope) still ask me what's for dinner - and this is at breakfast!  Preparation is so key, today I finished my fruit with breakfast and ended up having bacon and eggs for lunch, which was pretty darn good!  I am not hungry.  The only thing I ever look at longingly is the V8 in my fridge.  The digestive system could kick things up a bit more, I have never ingested more fruit and vegetables in my life and yet I'm still not "regular".  My biggest thrill was looking at the ingredients in Chipotle guacamole and it is totally compliant!  I bought my department lunch from there yesterday and for once I didn't have to prepare everything for my own lunch!  A nice steak salad with a guacamole topper hit the spot.  I will definitely keep that in mind when I just don't feel like cooking. I feel like I've become less "swollen" if that makes sense to anyone, it even looks like the bags under my eyes are disappearing.  My jeans fit perfectly, I have tons of energy and sleep like the dead.  I also added a Magnesium supplement and find my mood is much more even - the small things don't set me off!  Tomorrow will be my first challenge, family is in town and we're going out for the day.  I am going to put my Tessemae's Balsamic Vinegar in my purse and salad out!  Then it's on to July, which is a month of travel for work so reintroduction will be very slow and I try to maintain as much as I can on the Whole30.

[Rebekah L]

Thanks for sharing how your whole 30 was different from the timeline. I'm only on day 4 and have been totally fine besides a couple headaches. I keep looking at the timeline waiting for it to catch up with me. It's good to hear from someone farther along about how theirs was also different.

[MrsMcG]

Susie1276 I feel the same way!!! It gets easier every day and I feel SO good that I am telling everyone about it and people are interested in starting a Whole30 themselves!

 

My next goal after I finish this Whole30 is to transition my son and my husband slowly to this way of eating as well. My 8 year old eats very healthy, loves fruits and veggies, but also is a little sugar fiend. So that will be the first thing I start taking out of his diet.

 

My husband ... well, he had an aortic dissection in January of this year and almost died ... at the age of 35. No prior health problems, but definitely life changing for us now. I worry constantly about his heart health now that he's lived through an emergency open heart surgery, and the doctors keep pushing a low fat, low calorie diet with plenty of "heart healthy grains" on him, which after reading "It Starts With Food" scares the daylights out of me. Luckily, he's seeing how amazing I've felt on the Whole30 and wants to try it with me.

[MrsMcG]

I should note here that Day 12 (yesterday) was my hardest day yet. I was SO HUNGRY all day. I couldn't get enough food. I probably ate too many nuts but I was trying to eat more fat to feel satisfied. I also drank two coconut waters (I try to only have coconut water once or twice a week) because I felt so shaky and sometimes the electrolytes in coconut water seem to help me. I felt lightheaded, weak and hungry all day long,  but by bedtime I had that uncomfortable full feeling that I haven't experienced since I started Whole30, so I knew I overdid it.

 

BUT, I never ate anything off plan. So I feel like I learned something from it, that even eating the right foods it's still very possible to overeat. I'm doing my best not to beat myself up for it. Moving on and back on track with the meal templates today and feeling in control again.

[ladyshanny]

 My biggest thrill was looking at the ingredients in Chipotle guacamole and it is totally compliant!  I bought my department lunch from there yesterday and for once I didn't have to prepare everything for my own lunch!  A nice steak salad with a guacamole topper hit the spot.  

Ermmm...the steak at Chipotle is not compliant as it contains rice bran oil.  I believe the only compliant meat is the carnitas.

 

https://chipotle.com/ingredient-statement

 

Edit: or maybe you made your own steak salad and just used the Chipotle guac??

[Katie529]

I'm so glad I'm not alone! I have been searching all over the internet for people like me who have NOT gone through sugar detox! I expected headaches, bitchiness, weakness, cravings- hell basically as I am a candy fiend. I even marked the timeline and the expected feelings on my home calendar. I am on day 13 and breezed right through my most likely to quit days. I do think I have been a bit more fatigued the last few days. But other than that, I have had no physical detoxification symptoms. Is this normal? The replies I have read on this thread seem to be filed with people like me, still in the midst of this but going through a dissimilar experience than the book describes. I realize I still have half way to go, but my biggest worry is that I won't experience the tiger blood or life changing goodness because I didn't go through the pain of detox, so the awesomeness won't be as awesome because I have had no real misery to come back from.

 

Has anyone gone through a similar "easy" experience in the beginning and come out the other end feeling good, really good, tiger blood? And I have been following all the rules religiously, so I am not worried I am doing it wrong. Any advice, encouragement, or thoughts would be appreciated! Thanks

[monee2000]

@Katie529 - I was the same way - no headaches, good sleep, no depression, etc. I had a little food boredom, but because I'm a single person eating 3-4 things for the entire week, that was to be expected. I haven't had sodas in years, and I'm not a coffee addict, so I didn't expect the withdrawal from those, but I did expect to have some effects from walking away from sugar because my sugar demon is an ugly beast! I had also reduced my dairy intake pretty dramatically because I have already experienced some bad reactions, but would never let go of cheese (and it didn't affect me as much).

 

Maybe my body just didn't have as many adjustments to make.

 

I haven't experienced the major benefits yet, although I definitely feel better and can make it through the day without wanting a nap. As for sleep, I'm dreaming, so I wake up thinking I haven't slept well, yet my fitbit and an app I use on my phone tell a different story (very few restless or awake moments). Who knows...

 

But you're definitely not alone!

[Kbart64]

Its great to see that the time line doesn't hold true for everyone. . My sister and I did our first whole30 together.. while she suffered sleeplessness, anger, frustration, depression, hunger and the occasional urge to tackle anyone she saw with a donut.. I had no symptoms what so ever .. infact other than one moment that I attribute more to pms than to lack of french fries...I loved every moment!

Im just going to stay away from my sister during our next 30... for fear of my life!

[vegasnine]

My timeline wasn't at all like described either. I'm on day 23 and never had "kill all the things" never had "the hangover" never had "boundless energy". My experience has been completely different and I still don't have "tiger blood"....

 

It's great to see all these experiences. 

[Rehoo]

I just started Whole 30 today. After my breakfast I was full and couldn't eat until dinner. Now, at 3:00 a.m. I am having difficulty getting to sleep. I'm excited about this journey and I need my sleep. I'm just not tired right now and that is unusual for me. I'm determined to hang in there. My daughter has just started her second 30 and she raves about this program!