Starting February 15, 2016

[Naz786]

Day 23 finished! I even got the chance to include an elliptical workout! I still did my shaun t workout after dinner but that is so laid back that it's not really getting me huffing and puffing so the elliptical helped me with that. 1 more week people!

[Naz786]

Hello ladies! I am still around. I just stopped posting because I had to start over on day 14 or 15? So currently I am back to day 8.

I am feeling much better! My energy has increased and today on my day off, I actually got dressed in regular clothes!! I know that doesn't sound like much but coming from someone whose depression rages at the thought of putting clothes on her fat body makes her crawl back into bed, that's huge!! Normally I just live in my scrubs.

I have also been using Instagram for my accountability as I am a huge visual person and so the pictures and colors appeal to me much more than a forum and helps keep me going. If you are not already, but want to follow me there my username is _a_glimpse_of_me_

Keep up the amazing work ladies!!

That's so great that you're moving forward! It's totally understandable how you don't want to wear regular clothes. I've been avoiding going out unless I have no choice because I feel embarrassed of what I've become. Now slowly, I'm getting more comfortable of myself and hopefully will have all of my confidence back. Good luck with your whole30!

[LIEvans]

Hey there, Day 24ers!

 

My interview with Mel Joulwan (author of the Well Fed cookbooks) is now live! Here's the link: http://bit.ly/1RA77Xq

[Naz786]

Day 24! We are getting so close to the finish line! Now this must seems like a normal routine. I don't feel deprived of anything and I'm actually enjoying my meals. I have way more energy than I did before. And get this. ..I used to have pretty bad constipation issues (sorry TMI) but now I'm so regular EVERYDAY around the same time! That blows my mind! I've never been like that ever in my life! I hope everyone else is doing OK. 6 more days to go!

[Naz786]

Hey there, Day 24ers!

 

My interview with Mel Joulwan (author of the Well Fed cookbooks) is now live! Here's the link: http://bit.ly/1RA77Xq

Hey thanks for asking my question! I feel so special!

[Karen0_0]

Day 24!!!! Still here and still going! Keep it up everyone, we are almost there.

[jkwo]

Still here....

 

Out of state wedding last weekend proved to be the toughest challenge yet, but I did my best.  It was hard passing up the sweets and some of the incredible looking cheeses, appetizers, and the grits bar everyone was raving about.  During our time on the road, I packed a cooler and had vinegar and oil as my go to's when stopping at restaurants along the way with the family.  I was shocked to look at the ingredient list at Panera to find out that sugar is in their chicken and turkey.  Sugar is in SO MUCH!  

 

Cravings:  They haven't gone away for me.    I feel like I'm barely making it to the end of these 30 days!  **For those of you whose cravings have gone (which seems to be most, if not all of you?), have you completely eliminated all snacking during your day and stick to only the 3 meals?**  I'm finding that really hard to do.  And of course the more I try to restrict, the more I mentally obsess and want to eat EVERYTHING!  Especially after dinner, after we've finally gotten the kids to bed is my most challenging time of the day (like tonight, I had an apple with some almond butter... but tonight was a different case b/c dinner was a total flop, so I was legitimately a little bit hungry.)  

[sarahAwright]

Day 25!!!

I'm still here but been having a crazy crazy few days - I've stuck to the plan despite this and I'm so pleased

I think that as I'm finding myself less hungry, I don't snack that often and generally so much calmer that when I'm in a situation that previously would hav been risky - it's no longer so bad. If I'm hungry ever I can wait for the right food, I make good choice when out for meals and not using food As a stress relief or reward. I'm not sure what I will do after day 30 but I think I'm carrying on to do a 60!!!!

My sleeps better not great but better and I do feel like I've more energy.. Not quite tigers blood but that's why I think I need more days to realy get my system better.

Good luck to all x

[DonnaB]

Cravings:  They haven't gone away for me.    I feel like I'm barely making it to the end of these 30 days!  **For those of you whose cravings have gone (which seems to be most, if not all of you?), have you completely eliminated all snacking during your day and stick to only the 3 meals?**  I'm finding that really hard to do.  And of course the more I try to restrict, the more I mentally obsess and want to eat EVERYTHING!  Especially after dinner, after we've finally gotten the kids to bed is my most challenging time of the day (like tonight, I had an apple with some almond butter... but tonight was a different case b/c dinner was a total flop, so I was legitimately a little bit hungry.)  

 

Hey, jkwo. I would recommend checking out the troubleshooting section of the forum, and possibly starting a thread listing a couple of days worth of meals so you can get some help with this. I know on my first W30 it really took some enforced self- discipline to avoid snacking, just because I like food. During the course I discovered that I needed to eat more at meals than I initially thought in order to stay full. Two to three cups of veggies at a meal is a lot! Also - getting those 2 tablespoons of fat at each meal is critical - and that doesn't include whatever fat you use for cooking, because it mostly stays in the pan - unless you intentionally pour it over your food. Now I keep olives, avocado, clarified butter, paleo bacon, home-made mayo, home-made ranch dressing, and EVOO in rotation to make sure I get my healthy fat at every meal.  The other major contributor for me is getting enough water. For quite awhile I couldn't easily distinguish between being hungry and being thirsty, so if I was thirsty I automatically interpreted it as hunger and ate something instead of drinking more water. Now I have a 16 oz stainless steel water bottle that I try to fill up at regular intervals, and if I notice a "hunger pang", I stop to make sure I've had enough water before assuming I'm hungry. Doing this has helped me differentiate between true "hunger pangs" and thirst. Hope this helps!   

[LIEvans]

Hey, jkwo. I would recommend checking out the troubleshooting section of the forum, and possibly starting a thread listing a couple of days worth of meals so you can get some help with this. I know on my first W30 it really took some enforced self- discipline to avoid snacking, just because I like food. During the course I discovered that I needed to eat more at meals than I initially thought in order to stay full. Two to three cups of veggies at a meal is a lot! Also - getting those 2 tablespoons of fat at each meal is critical - and that doesn't include whatever fat you use for cooking, because it mostly stays in the pan - unless you intentionally pour it over your food. Now I keep olives, avocado, clarified butter, paleo bacon, home-made mayo, home-made ranch dressing, and EVOO in rotation to make sure I get my healthy fat at every meal.  The other major contributor for me is getting enough water. For quite awhile I couldn't easily distinguish between being hungry and being thirsty, so if I was thirsty I automatically interpreted it as hunger and ate something instead of drinking more water. Now I have a 16 oz stainless steel water bottle that I try to fill up at regular intervals, and if I notice a "hunger pang", I stop to make sure I've had enough water before assuming I'm hungry. Doing this has helped me differentiate between true "hunger pangs" and thirst. Hope this helps!   

 

This is really great advice. Just wanted to give DonnaB props. 

[Ohiojill60]

Hi all, 

jkwo-I do sometimes have cravings, but the others advice is correct-the more you eat at meals, the less you want to snack.  I have found that the only times I feel the need to snack is if I go too light on a meal or it I'm really stressed.  I especially notice it when I don't get enough of the oils or veggies.

Got through my hardest challenge yet.  I had houseguests for the last 4 days, and Tuesday evening had a dinner party for 8.  Lots of wine tasting and appetizers that were not compliant.  It was very difficult, but I kept busy with meal preparation, and once we sat down to dinner, all was well. Dinner was Whole30 compliant.  Steaks with mocha rub, roasted veggies and new potatoes.  Dessert was not compliant, but I passed on that.  I probably drank two bottles of mineral water that night!  So proud of getting through it.  NSV-no alcohol meant my mind was clearer as I was getting the dinner on the table, so I wasn't as stressed about that as I usually am in the situation.   Also got through a restaurant meal-took my own dressing, asked some questions and all was well.  It's usually not as difficult as we imagine it will be.

Sleep is great, except for night when I drank so much water!!

I'm feeling so great that I'm apprehensive about reintroduction.  I don't want to feel bad, but I would like to have a bit more flexibility when I'm out, so I definitely want to know which foods might cause issues.

[Jesssa01]

Hey Everyone we are in the home stretch!! Keep up the good work.

 

Im still feeling relatively good. This week I am just plain exhausted which sucks because I felt SO awesome over the weekend. I have a bit of a feeling the weather has something to do with its been really gloomy here which effects my mood and sleep.

 

I am still feeling lighter and just all around better. Its nice not to always have an upset stomach.

 

I have acne and today I saw a coworker who I hadn't seen in and the first things out of her mouth when we sat down to chat was "OMG your skin looks awesome what have you been doing?" That felt really nice as I am always self conscious about my skin. I credited Whole30 for my newly cleared up skin!

 

Keep up the great work everyone! 5 days to go!

[Naz786]

Day 25!

 

5 more days! Today I looked into the process of sprouting lentils. I've always been a HUGE fan of lentils and when I found out that the way we eat them is actually bad for us disappointed me. I think lentils will always be a part of my diet. Maybe not as frequent now as before but once in a while would be nice.  And now when I do have them, I'll make sure to make them go through the sprouting process. But that's still a while away. I've got more research and sprouted lentil recipes to look into.  Have any of  you ever tried sprouting legumes/lentils? I would LOVE some tips!

 

Good luck with the last couple days!!!

[DarDar]

Hi everyone! Almost there!

 

Regarding the acid reflux issue I was having earlier - turns out it was that my stomach didn't have enough acid to process all the food I was eating. Started drinking apple cider vinegar in the morning and it went away in about two days. Hasn't come back!

 

The last few days I had been feeling really down. I was about to give up. I have my best friend's birthday this weekend and we're all going out for dinner and drinks..... i decided to weigh myself to be the tell all (so bad I know). I told myself that I had only lost 5 lbs that I'd have fun this weekend and do the full dinner and drinks, but if it was more that I'd stick to it....I've lost 13lbs!!! Definitely the motivation I needed to get to the full 30 without a mistep this weekend and I have the full support of all my friends that will be there. Will definitely continue this past this first Whole30 as well. The results are just too good!!

[Naz786]

Hi everyone! Almost there!

 

but if it was more that I'd stick to it....I've lost 13lbs!!! Definitely the motivation I needed to get to the full 30 without a mistep this weekend and I have the full support of all my friends that will be there. Will definitely continue this past this first Whole30 as well. The results are just too good!!

Wow that is amazing! 13 pounds is a LOT! That's awesome! So glad that you're still gonna go to the end!

[Naz786]

Hello everyoneveryone!! Tonight was that family birthday party I was so worried about and I made it through! The appetizers weren't while 30 compliant so I skipped those and just fed my boys. In dinner, I piled my plate with plenty of salad and went straight for the chicken seekh kababs. I took some of my Asian vinaigrette with me so it was perfect! And I gotta tell you guys I didn't feel like I was being deprived from anything! I didn't have any biryani or any of the curries bit I didn't miss a thing! Not even any of the desserts. This is mind blowing for me because before I would always want to try a little bit of everything that I like and I would overeat and feel stuffed. Tonight I felt satisfied! I really think I could get used to this!

Almost there you guys!

[LIEvans]

FOUR MORE DAYS!

 

You know, when I first read the Whole 30 Timeline, I thought What kind of nutcase would quit just a few days before? (Day 28), and now I totally get it. This has been an invaluable experience and I'm so ready to be done!

 

I still plan on eating clean after this, and don't want to seem ungrateful because I'm the opposite. 

 

The best analogy I can come up with is when I was pregnant with my first baby. By about week 35 I was like "This baby has cooked long enough, I'm sure it'd be fine if I had it now, and I really want this part to be over" but the reality was that it wouldn't have been fine if I'd had the baby that early and I still had a bit more work to do.

 

Can anyone relate? 

[khughes17]

FOUR MORE DAYS!

You know, when I first read the Whole 30 Timeline, I thought What kind of nutcase would quit just a few days before? (Day 28), and now I totally get it. This has been an invaluable experience and I'm so ready to be done!

I still plan on eating clean after this, and don't want to seem ungrateful because I'm the opposite.

The best analogy I can come up with is when I was pregnant with my first baby. By about week 35 I was like "This baby has cooked long enough, I'm sure it'd be fine if I had it now, and I really want this part to be over" but the reality was that it wouldn't have been fine if I'd had the baby that early and I still had a bit more work to do.

Can anyone relate?

Yes! Totally with you. We ran errands this morning and I just couldn't get into eating my breakfast before we left so I was starving by 11! I was so close to saying screw it and just eat a donut but I didn't.

Im so tired of cooking and washing dishes and I'm running out of ideas on what to cook. I'm glad the end is near but I'm still going to continue to eat clean.

I think I just need a break from cooking every single meal. I had a salad from Chipotle today and it was delicious. Tonight we might try to go out for dinner also so this day is great since I don't have to cook for the rest of the day.

[Ohiojill60]

FOUR MORE DAYS!

 

You know, when I first read the Whole 30 Timeline, I thought What kind of nutcase would quit just a few days before? (Day 28), and now I totally get it. This has been an invaluable experience and I'm so ready to be done!

 

I still plan on eating clean after this, and don't want to seem ungrateful because I'm the opposite. 

 

The best analogy I can come up with is when I was pregnant with my first baby. By about week 35 I was like "This baby has cooked long enough, I'm sure it'd be fine if I had it now, and I really want this part to be over" but the reality was that it wouldn't have been fine if I'd had the baby that early and I still had a bit more work to do.

 

Can anyone relate? 

yes, I feel like this too.  Also plan to keep eating clean, but am also ready to perhaps eat a meal and not stressing about all the ingredients. (except those that I know cause problems!)  You're right in that there is still a bit more work to do.  I've not been sleeping well the last few nights, have a tummy ache & bloating today and the eye rash issue that I was hoping was resolved is trying to make it's appearance known again.  I have some clues as to what it might be (onions, bell peppers,fish) but it is still disheartening.  I just want to feel great like I did last week.  So, I'll keep working through, eliminating those foods and reintroducing them again sometime.  I want to be feeling great again before I start reintroducing other foods.  At this time I'm not planning on extending the program formally, but I will be following it pretty strictly while I reintroduce foods.  

[LuvFlyGirl]

You guys are all doing great! I'm glad I decided to start with you instead of waiting until March 1st! 

 

Today was my first day back at work since I started the W30.  I packed my food bag, like I always do, but only with W30 compliant items.

It was really tough because I had to be at the airport at 0600.  Hard for me to eat at 0500!  I worked 3 flights and all were busy.  I never really had time to sit

and eat a real meal.  I rarely have time when I'm at work!

 

I finally grabbed a couple of egg and veggie muffins and some celery with almond and sun butter.  Later I had to scarf down a Larabar.  That was it for my 11 hour day.  I ate when I got to my room.

 

Now I'm going to sleep because I have to be up at 0300 to get back to the airport and do it again tomorrow!  It's not the best scenario but it's the best I can do

under the circumstances.  I will then be off for the remainder of the W30!

 

The great news NSV....I'm wearing a size smaller pair of work pants today!  Yeah me!

 

Also the good news, I was never tempted to eat the snacks on the plane!  Normally I would grab a bag of peanuts to hold me over. 

 

We are almost there!

[Naz786]

You guys are all doing great! I'm glad I decided to start with you instead of waiting until March 1st! 

 

Today was my first day back at work since I started the W30.  I packed my food bag, like I always do, but only with W30 compliant items.

It was really tough because I had to be at the airport at 0600.  Hard for me to eat at 0500!  I worked 3 flights and all were busy.  I never really had time to sit

and eat a real meal.  I rarely have time when I'm at work!

 

I finally grabbed a couple of egg and veggie muffins and some celery with almond and sun butter.  Later I had to scarf down a Larabar.  That was it for my 11 hour day.  I ate when I got to my room.

 

Now I'm going to sleep because I have to be up at 0300 to get back to the airport and do it again tomorrow!  It's not the best scenario but it's the best I can do

under the circumstances.  I will then be off for the remainder of the W30!

 

The great news NSV....I'm wearing a size smaller pair of work pants today!  Yeah me!

 

Also the good news, I was never tempted to eat the snacks on the plane!  Normally I would grab a bag of peanuts to hold me over. 

 

We are almost there!

Wow that's rough! And kudos to still sticking to the plan! And congrats on the smaller size! Woo hoo!

[Naz786]

Can you believe that today was day 27?!? Tuesday is day 30!! We are almost there! I know this has been difficult but so many of you got through it this far. Just hang in there! Tomorrow I have to do some prep work but hopefully it won't be too bad. My workouts are still going well. Today was a rest day so tomorrow I'll start a new routine.

Good luck on these last couple days!

[LIEvans]

DAY 28 ... AND I'M STILL HERE!!!

 

Seriously, I am more than amazed that I've managed to do this. To paraphrase Rita Rudner:  I don't even like to do things that feel good for 28 days. 

 

Just kidding. The feeling good part has definitely been what's kept me moving forward.

 

So, yesterday was a really interesting challenge. In addition to the whole I am so ready to be done part I mentioned in my previous post, we moved house yesterday. Now, it wasn't our main house. More like a secondary home (long story and not interesting or pertinent to this discussion.) But still, we did the whole schlepping furniture, no food in the fridge thing. Oh, and ALSO it was the first day of my period. Do you know how sorely tempted I was  to go off program? Possibly the most sorely of this entire experience. Because we didn't have food in the kitchen, and ordering a pizza is totally what you do at the end of moving day, right? 

 

But, no, we didn't. We went and got dinner at Chipotle (only my 3rd time eating out this entire time) and then went shopping at Whole Foods. I'm now sitting in our new apartment with a fridge full of compliant food and no desire to go off program right now.

 

So ... BIG TIME NSV for yours truly!

[Naz786]

DAY 28 ... AND I'M STILL HERE!!!

 

Seriously, I am more than amazed that I've managed to do this. To paraphrase Rita Rudner:  I don't even like to do things that feel good for 28 days. 

 

Just kidding. The feeling good part has definitely been what's kept me moving forward.

 

So, yesterday was a really interesting challenge. In addition to the whole I am so ready to be done part I mentioned in my previous post, we moved house yesterday. Now, it wasn't our main house. More like a secondary home (long story and not interesting or pertinent to this discussion.) But still, we did the whole schlepping furniture, no food in the fridge thing. Oh, and ALSO it was the first day of my period. Do you know how sorely tempted I was  to go off program? Possibly the most sorely of this entire experience. Because we didn't have food in the kitchen, and ordering a pizza is totally what you do at the end of moving day, right? 

 

But, no, we didn't. We went and got dinner at Chipotle (only my 3rd time eating out this entire time) and then went shopping at Whole Foods. I'm now sitting in our new apartment with a fridge full of compliant food and no desire to go off program right now.

 

So ... BIG TIME NSV for yours truly!

The feeling good part is the best! I don't think I've ever felt so good while trying to get in shape! I would be miserable, hungry ALL the time. And now I know it's because I wouldn't have much of a breakfast and skip lunch too.

Oh wow! That was such a difficult situation and you still made it!

[Naz786]

Day 28! I did my prep work today! It didn't take that long and then I got my workout in too before dinner! Before I could never have done that after a day's work! My next goal is to be able to do a push up. I've never been able to do one. Any tips? Good luck everyone!