My first Whole30...kind of scared!

[JBallinger86]

Let me first start off by introducing myself, my name is Jennifer and I'm from Walla Walla, WA. About 5 years ago, I dropped 80 lbs by exercising and eating healthy. But then I met my fiance and the weight started piling back on. I ended up gaining all the weight I lost plus an extra 20 lbs. I found out I have bipolar disorder and generalized anxiety disorder. Unfortunatly, my bipolar is so bad that it's actually disabled me from working so I spend all my time at home.

 

My fiance and I got engaged last September and that kicked me into gear, I lost 30 lbs from counting calories and exercising but then I just plateaued. My problem is even though I'm counting my calories, I'm still eating pure junk. If I have a spare 200 calories, I drink a soda instead of eating something healthier. I'm a bread, milk and cheese freak, I normally eat those everyday and in abundance. I wanted to try the Whole30 so I could get rid of my bad eating habits and replace them with healthier ones. But I'll admit this is a little bit daunting. I'm pretty much having to start over 100%. I've never liked vegetables so I'm going to have to train myself to enjoy them in some way. My fiance is going to go along with it as much as he can but there are things he's not willing to give up (mostly beer, he's such a beer snob lol) but I don't really mind it.

 

I wanted to put myself out here, on a forum, for accountability. To know that I will be talking to other people who have done or are doing the same thing I am. I'm hoping I make it to the 30 day mark. Today is day 1 and I'm doing well so far and I WILL do well the rest of it. Positive thinking, right?

[Bexstoth]

Welcome! I am on day 4 of my first one as well. I think you're going to see some pretty big changes! Good luck!

[MeadowLily]

There's nothing to be afraid, fearful or scared of.  Nothing.   Eating 3 meals aday used to be considered a very normal part of our everyday lives.   We are so far removed from cooking and eating 3 squares or  "3 hots and a cot" that for many it now seems foreign or bizarre.

 

No fear.   You've put it all out there and I can read that you want a real change.   It takes more than willpower.    Positive self-talk is good.   I've found it takes Want Power to make it to the 30 day mark.

[chezjulie]

Congratulations on your engagement! I know all about the "happy couple" weight. 

 

One thing that was really surprising to me was that the foods I thought I was going to miss the most were not the ones I ended up missing on the Whole30. So you might be surprised not to find yourself missing bread and cheese.

 

A good way to prepare vegetables to make them more tasty is roasting. Set the over to 400, drizzle a hearty amount of olive oil over asparagus, bell peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, or what have you, and cook them until they have a little char.

[JBallinger86]

That's a great idea about roasting them, I love roasted vegetables but it's been so long since I've had them that I forgot!

 

I already had a slip up I was eating some leftover steak from our bbq yesterday and I suddenly remembered they were marinated in something I'm sure had soy and added sugar. So day 1 was a no go but tomorrow is a new day and new start.

 

Thanks for the encouragement so far, it's nice to feel like I'm part of a group!

[JBallinger86]

I'm on Day 2 now and boy are my cravings out of control. I want all the bad things! I decided to make memphis style dry rubbed ribs for dinner, I just omitted the sugar in the rub recipe so it fit the rules. This is so hard because I really dislike vegetables so I've been eating a lot of fruit and mushrooms whenever I get a craving for something. I also found an unfiltered apple juice that's 100% juice and no added sugar so I can drink that when I'm tired of water. I'm actually pretty surprised I've lasted this long, I don't have any self control so I'm pretty darn proud I've made it to Day 2.

[init2winit]

I'm on Day 2 now and boy are my cravings out of control. I want all the bad things! I decided to make memphis style dry rubbed ribs for dinner, I just omitted the sugar in the rub recipe so it fit the rules. This is so hard because I really dislike vegetables so I've been eating a lot of fruit and mushrooms whenever I get a craving for something. I also found an unfiltered apple juice that's 100% juice and no added sugar so I can drink that when I'm tired of water. I'm actually pretty surprised I've lasted this long, I don't have any self control so I'm pretty darn proud I've made it to Day 2.

Nice job getting right back on the horse! Just a heads up that fruit juice should only be used sparingly as an ingredient in a recipe and should not be drunk on its own. Fruit in general is optional on the W30 and should be limited if consumed at all. It will keep that sugar dragon roaring!! Keep up the good work...you've got this! 

[ShannonM816]

I'm on Day 2 now and boy are my cravings out of control. I want all the bad things! I decided to make memphis style dry rubbed ribs for dinner, I just omitted the sugar in the rub recipe so it fit the rules. This is so hard because I really dislike vegetables so I've been eating a lot of fruit and mushrooms whenever I get a craving for something. I also found an unfiltered apple juice that's 100% juice and no added sugar so I can drink that when I'm tired of water. I'm actually pretty surprised I've lasted this long, I don't have any self control so I'm pretty darn proud I've made it to Day 2.

 

If you make your meals meet the meal template, you'll find the cravings go away. That will mean eating vegetables. Go get a bunch and roast them now. Really. Lots of them. Have them on hand and ready to go so you have no excuse not to eat them.  It may also mean eating more food than you think anyone ought to eat, and that's okay, really. Whole30 isn't about deprivation, it's about nourishing your body with good, healthy, nutritious, yummy food.

 

Every day, three times a day, starting within an hour of waking up, eat a meal. That meal should include 1-2 palm-sized portions of protein (that's the length, width, and depth of your palm); 1-2 thumb-size portions of fat (or a heaping handful of olives or coconut flakes, or 1/2 - 1 whole avocado, or a small handful of nut) -- don't count what you cook in, go ahead and add more; and then fill your plate up with vegetables -- like 2-3 cups, more if it's all raw leafy green stuff just because that tends to break down to nothing as you chew and ends up not being enough to keep you satisfied for long.

 

Vegetable recipes you might want to try:   Comfort Noodles, Belly Dance Beet Salad, Tricolore Salad, Sweet & Salty Broccoli Salad (if you can't find compliant bacon, look for prosciutto, and make these porkitos and substitute them instead), Sweet Potato Hash, Brussels Sprout Slaw with Asian Citrus Dressing, Cocoa Toasted Cauliflower. And of course you can always just roast whatever vegetables you think sound good. If you like to grill things, zucchini, yellow squash, and eggplant are all good grilled.

 

Also, quit telling yourself you don't like vegetables. Tell yourself you just haven't found the ones you really love yet, and then go into this with an open mind. Don't just take a bite of something and decide you don't like it and will never eat that vegetable again. How vegetables are prepared makes a huge difference in how they taste, and you may find you love something raw and don't really care for it cooked or vice versa, or you may love it roasted but not steamed. (And any time you steam vegetables, they're going to benefit from having some fat added while they're still warm -- drizzle with a good olive oil or sesame oil, or look for sauce recipes to put on them). When you truly don't like a dish, try to figure out what it is you don't like -- is it a texture thing? a spice you used? that you didn't use any spices? (I grew up with a mom who went low-salt due to high blood pressure when I was pretty young so she never salted as she cooked, and she didn't have much grasp of spices and herbs, so we ate some really, really bland vegetables. When I finally cooked some on my own, lo and behold, it's not that I didn't like the vegetables, it's that I didn't like them the way I'd had them before.)