Curlyj's Post-Whole30 Log

[curlyj88]

Hello!

So for a quick introduction.. I recently finished my first Whole30 and am continuing with a Whole60 without stopping. You can find my past log here: http://forum.whole9life.com/topic/2506-curly-js-whole30-log/ Although some of my issues improved (sleep, energy somewhat), I'm still struggling with others (severe eczema, acne, oily skin).

Changes this time around:

- no nuts (except for almond butter on occasion)

- drink minimum one lululemon bottle of water (28oz) per day (never been a water drinker, this is hard for me) and ideally working up to 2

- running 3x a week with C25K

Day 31

Breakfast - coconut scrambled eggs with pulled pork; grapes

Snack before run - little bit of pulled pork and spoonful of coconut butter

Lunch - shepherds pie (defrosted from freezer); apple slices with cinnamon (didn't feel well after lunch, lasted all evening)

Dinner - Asian beef and broccoli

*Water: 28 oz

*Completed C25K W1D1

Day 32

Breakfast - coconut scrambled eggs with leftover Asian beef and broccoli

Lunch - leftover Asian beef and broccoli with mashed sweet potatoes

Snack - grapes and coconut butter

Dinner - Thai green curry

*Water: 28 oz

*Good sleep last night. Woke up feeling energetic and awake. I don't know if it's because today is important (part A of a job interview) or that I got exercise yesterday finally .

- Curlyj

[Derval]

Welcome to the post-side

[Laura B]

Fingers crossed on the job interview!

[curlyj88]

Day 33

Breakfast - fried eggs, roasted butternut squash, and turkey breakfast sausage

Lunch - leftover thai green curry and butternut squash

Snack before run - turkey breakfast sausage

Dinner - morning mix with ground turkey

*Water: 28 oz

*C25K week 1 day 2

*Ok sleep last night, other than the cats bothering each other on the bed

*Energy good today once I got out of the house. Morning was slow.

*Got frustrated after meeting a possible new family doctor. For some reason I expected she would be different but she just said the same old things... steroid cream is the only remedy for eczema...botox is the only solution for my hand.. and after waiting an HOUR to see her, she rushed me out after 5 minutes.

*Frustrated, I came home and was almost tempted to find some place to go out and eat with hubby to rid stress but my smart self spoke up and said that doing something silly like that after all this hard work would simply not be worth it! I tied up my running shoes, went for my run (was great!), and then came home and made dinner.

*Eczema on my hands is healing but is slow. I bought La Roche Cicaplast (thankyou Derval for sharing this!!) and started using it tonight.

- Curlyj

[Derval]

A good hard run is a great stress buster I find. Good luck with the new cream.

[curlyj88]

Day 34

Breakfast - leftover morning mix, roasted butternut squash, fried egg, handful of blackberries

Lunch - salmon patty, mashed sweet potatoes, and apple with almond butter

Dinner - salad with veggies, grilled chicken, and olive oil and balsamic* (read below)

About half way through water, so 14ish oz

12 oz tea

Few sips water with dinner

*Good sleep last night.

*We went to Boston Pizza for dinner tonight (hubby wanted pizza). I checked with a waitress before we were seated about food for me. This was the first time out for food (for me anyways, not him ) since I started Whole30 and it was a little scary ordering but I tried to have faith! I ordered a salad with chopped veggies and grilled chicken. I made sure the chicken was grilled without oils or anything added. I was told the house balsamic vinaigrette had added sugar so the waitress brought individual jars of olive oil and balsamic (bonus!). It was pretty good, the chicken was moist and the veggies were good. I don't know if it was a fluke but my leg started getting itchy halfway through and one my hands is a bit itchy now... maybe the balsamic had added sugar? Or something else in it?

*Hands are improved since yesterday a bit, the cream seems to be helping . I also used it on a zit on my face that just wouldn't go away and already it's looking much better!

*I started reading The Paleo Solution... really interesting read so far!! I really enjoyed reading through his story of how he came upon the paleo style of eating. Hubby and I had some good back and forth discussion about it on the way to dinner .

*Found myself a little hungrier overall today, especially after lunch and dinner. Maybe because I've started running?

**Has anyone heard of or tried Giddy Yoyo raw chocolate? Here is the link: http://www.giddyyoyo.com/ I came across an ad for it in a health magazine and was curious for when I start reintroduction at some point.

Ingredients are listed as: stone ground cacao, sun dried cane juice, cacao butter, and organic essential oils, essences, and spices.

Or do you know of other healthy chocolate bars companies? Made in Canada is even better! **

- Curly

[Laura B]

*I started reading The Paleo Solution... really interesting read so far!! I really enjoyed reading through his story of how he came upon the paleo style of eating. Hubby and I had some good back and forth discussion about it on the way to dinner .

I read this during my W30, was very inspiring. I love the parts where he talked about how Americans buy more crap to fill their houses to add more stress. Inspired me to purge my closet. I try to keep that at the back of my mind (not having too much excess stuff) so I don't buy lots of stuff. I am getting better at buying just 1 pair of jeans or 1 pair of work pants instead of feeling like I need 3

[curlyj88]

Hi! Just wanted to give you a little update just to let you know I haven't fallen off the bandwagon! I've stopped keeping track of my daily food. After 40+ days eating this way now, it is starting to feel like a habit and I don't feel like I need to keep track right now. Yes, there are days when I wish I could easily just grab something quick or something my hubby's eating (i.e. pizza), but once I prepare and make something healthy, the urge disappears and I'm happy with my full (but not bloated) tummy .

I'm still having a hard time with my eczema. Really hard actually. I went to the doctor on Thursday because it was so bad and even he said I have it "quite severe". I was LOVING going for my runs, I felt so strong and confident, but I had to stop because it was overtaking my arms . My hands are the worst though - I don't even know how to describe it. I can't knit/crochet, I can't work, I have to drive with the tips of my fingers because its so painful. My doctor gave me a new cream (steroid obviously) and told me to use it 2x a day for 2 weeks and then come back to see him. I really didn't want to get it filled but I had to. I'm on day 3 and I'm still in a lot of pain but it is beginning to scab over, although I still can't do much other than sit on the couch and read. Not only is it painful but it also feels like it's sucking the energy out of me and I just feel blahhhhh. I feel embarrassed and insecure... I just want to have this gone. I have an allergy test booked so maybe that will show something.

On a positive note, my sister convinced me to try GT's Kombucha... omg... LOVE!!! I bought the citrus and the ginger flavours and omg, it's a perfect treat when I want a break from water. Hubby and I are also going out to a store my sister found that sells sugar free nitrate free turkey salami and a bunch of other goodies so I'm pretty stoked about that.

As much as I want to have a good, soy lecithin, "healthy" chocolate bar... I'm going to try sticking eating as Whole30 clean as possible until my eczema clears up. My face is absolutely loving it... it has been completely clear of pimples for days now so at least I have that really really positive result. And then after that maybe I'll try reintroducing some things although I'm not really having any cravings. Chocolate - yes. Milk, cheese, yogurt, rice, bread - big fat NO.

Soooo until another update... hope everyone is doing well!

- Curlyj

[Renee Kosowan]

I am glad to hear your skin (face) is nice and clear.

Sorry to hear about your painful hands. I was really cheering for them to get better.

How is your scalp? has that started to feel better allowing you to sleep through the night?

Maybe the steroid cream will be good, get you back to healthy skin and then it will have a chance to restart and come back new again.

[curlyj88]

I kinda miss posting on here everyday! It's hard though with so many things to do each day .

Sooo... still battling eczema (not super bad right now because I've been using steroid cream from my doctor to keep it at bay) buttt I did go to a walk in clinic doctor recently who told me something I haven't heard before. He said eczema is a type of auto immune disease! Ok ok so it does kinda make sense, maybe obvious to some, but I hadn't come across this before.

Soooo... ideas for boosting my immune system??? I've read that eating lots of fruits and veggies, getting 20 minutes of exercise each day, cutting out processed foods, and eating lots of fish are all good things to do... but any other ideas?? Since I had to stop running (was aggravating eczema really bad because of sweat), I've recently starting swimming at the local pool (I'm doing 20 laps 3x a week). I thought chlorine would have a negative effect on eczema but I read some sources that said it can actually be good for it because it kills the bacteria on the skin! Yay!

I'm still eating really good... it's been almost 2 months now since I started Whole30! I've been eating Paleo for about a week now. I started incorporating little bits of sugar (maple syrup, raw honey) and some paleofied foods (waffles, pancakes, yam fries, etc) but still no dairy, grains, legumes, etc. I've seen a few negative effects (had a few pimples) so I know to keep the sugar really limited.

But back to my main question... ideas for boosting immune system!?

[Laura B]

I recently started taking fermented cod liver oil + butter oil. It has Vitamins A, D & K2 which are supposed to be really good for your skin. I heard about it in a Balanced Bites Podcast. Liz at Cave Girl Eats explains much better than I. I don't know if it would really help your eczema, but I thought to share just in case!

http://cavegirleats.com/2012/01/25/superfood-giveaway-cod-liverbutter-oil-blend/

As far as autoimmune, I know that Whole 30 is supposed to help but isn't necessarily the solution. I would suggest to continue eating this way as it could just take a lot longer.