laodamaren Posted February 22, 2016 Share Posted February 22, 2016 Hey fellow whole30'ers! This would mark the first time I do a whole30 (even though it will turn out to be more of a whole60).I am currently a student at the Technical University of Delft, The Netherlands and I am working hard to get my degree in Mining Engineering. It's tough, challenging and totally worth the effort. Now - I have been hypothyroid for years due to an impaired gut and overall fatigue (had a burn-out, suffered from anxiety,..) and slowly it has stabilised, leaving me feeling happy and healthy right now. I've been eating a paleo diet for most of the time, given that it improved my gut so much, but the reason of going from there to a full Whole30 lifestyle is much more profound. Basically, 2 things.First of all, I am quitting my thyroid hormones (slowly, steadily) as my doctor recommended because my values are perfect right now and there's no reason for me to stay on hormonal treatment. YAY! To make this go as smoothly as possible, because obviously certain organs need to start waking up again, I think the Whole30 will keep me hormonally balanced the most.Secondly, I am a traveller at heart, but those months of physical illness didn't allow me to travel much. I have well compensated by now, but a few weeks ago I did something I had been dreaming of for years: I booked a flight to Kazakhstan, for a month of trekking through it as well as Uzbekistan. I am OVERLY excited and my adventurous spirit is very thankful for this decision I made (If you're curious, I also hold a travel blog where you can follow these adventures - huntingrarities.wordpress.com)I set a goal for myself, where I want to be medication-free and strong before I take off in July. This means: a COMPLETELY healed gut, no more skin rashes, feeling good about myself mentally (Backpacking alone in those countries requires good mental strength) and not fearing about food choices on the way. Healing my gut means partially getting rid of food sensitivities (of which I have a ton now..) so I can enjoy my travels without having to think about food in the first place. Today is day 2, and in the comments I will start logging from yesterday Cheers! Andrea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laodamaren Posted February 22, 2016 Author Share Posted February 22, 2016 Okay! Let's start with the log of day 2! FYI: Day 1 went marvellously and I don't particularly feel like elaborating on it now Breakfast: - leftover chicken with stir-fried veggies and an eggLunch: (Post-workout meal)- More chicken leftovers, steamed broccoli and sweet potato with stir-fried kale and an apple.Snack: Another apple (seriously replenishing glycogen haha)\Dinner:- Oven-baked salmon with leftover broccoli, fried onions, a poached egg, artichoke hearts- half an apple I eat so many apples oh my god! Mybe that's something I should work on, because I dont want to eat them because my body says "sugar sugar sugar"Workout was:Squats 5x5 , 55kgDumbell bench press 3x7 with 12kg in each handHanging leg raises 3x5 Box jumps 3x10push-ups: 3x10inverted rows: 3x6 (parallel to floor)Plank 3x90 secondsAnd this evening: 30 mins of relaxing yoga :3Good day, accomplished a lot! Did all financial administration, wrote down W30 goals, made all assignments for coming week (going to be chill), practiced German, cleaned my room,.. Happyface! Many more days like this :3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laodamaren Posted February 23, 2016 Author Share Posted February 23, 2016 Heya! Time for day 3!A challenge came my way today: Since its my birthday in 2 weeks (March 1st) my mother, who lives abroad, wants to come over for a day and take me out for dinner with my boyfriend in The Hague. Oops! What kind of restaurant do you guys recommend? It should be kinda festive and not a buffet of any kind. I really want my mother to feel like we aren't rushing her, she came all the way from abroad after all. I was thinking a nice fish restaurant? (Since its at the coast) or there is a Japanese place where they also give sushi-making workshops, which could be a fun activity to do before dinner! But that has a high risk of disrupting my whole30 I fear... Any suggestions? Always welcome!!!As for the log of today:Breakfast:2 eggs, scrambled with ghee and 2 W3 compliant bacon strips (OH YES, I FOUND THEM!)Lunch:Salad with spinach, romaine, cherry tomatoes, jambon d'Ardenne, Kalamata olives, toasted almonds, olive oil and Aceto di Modena1/2 appleSnack: (big) handful of cashewsDinner:-Leftover veggie scramble (broccoli, onion, sweet potato, kale) with a can of canned tuna1 appleCan honestly say I'm feeling nice and full, although I had a veeeeery weird feeling in my gut today, constantly aching and let's say my digestion seems a bit messed up right now D: Craved some dates (we have a big bowl of nice medjoul ones here sob sob sob) but could resist I fear I might be overcompensating with coffee though, so need to watch that a bit the following days.Tonight is some Power Yoga still and some hardcore Linear algebra, yihaa! Stay fierce and strong! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laodamaren Posted February 25, 2016 Author Share Posted February 25, 2016 So, day 4!I've been feeling pretty bad zero energy, but I suppose thats either because of the effects of my body adapting to fat again, or because of my thyroid hormone medication reduction. Other than that, I've been severely constipated for a few days now! (I used to go like 2 times a day, it's been 5 full days now...) and it's getting very annoying and even painful when I lie down... Aside of that, I'm feeling totally fine! I love finding nice ways to cook eggs in the morning and even though I've been eating them every morning for months on end, I'm still not bored Bought some prunes and flax seeds to incorporate in my meals in good hope of getting my digestion going again. I can't do rigorous physical activity right now! I miss the gym, but I'm doing some form of yoga (from restorative to ashtanga to power yoga) every day and that makes me feel good at least See y'all later today when I update about day 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators ladyshanny Posted February 26, 2016 Administrators Share Posted February 26, 2016 Other than that, I've been severely constipated for a few days now! (I used to go like 2 times a day, it's been 5 full days now...) and it's getting very annoying and even painful when I lie down... Hey! So for constipation there are a few things to look at, I hope you don't mind if I list them out and you can go through them and see if any of them could be a culprit...because not going for 5 days is not good and not really normal. Water - we recommend half an ounce per pound of bodyweight (160# person = 80 oz water) Raw veggies are hard to digest, if you are eating a lot of raw, switch over to all cooked Nuts are notoriously hard on the digestive system, if you are eating a lot of them (and nut butters), cut them out and see how it goes Overall lack of bulk - this is a common one, people undereat and because there is not enough volume to push the poo through, they end up constipated. Follow the meal template and make sure that you are eating at the high end of the template as far as veggies (ie, 2-3 cups per meal) Magnesium - basically all of us are magnesium depleted since our soil is depleted and most everyone should be supplementing magnesium. A magnesium supplement (like unflavoured Natural Calm) helps to draw water into the bowel to help with movement. It's also a great sleep aid if taken at night. You can use either a powder or you could take a magnesium citrate pill (check ingredients). If you are using the Natural Calm, start slow and build your way up until you get a nice, comfortable bowel movement. That all said, I've reviewed the log you have above and can say that you could use a general increase in veggies (especially at meal one the day you had eggs and bacon) and that overall you need to eat more if you are drawn to snack. You are also short changing yourself on meals on the days you work out; you're due a pre workout (protein and fat) and a post workout (starchy veggie & lean protein) that are in addition to the rest of your meals. You should also not be using apples because you are craving sugars. The only way to kill those sugar cravings is to starve them out. If you're legit hungry, you can eat protein and fat or even just fat. But do not give the sugar cravings sugar, even in the form of fruits or you can guarantee that on Day 31 any sugar cravings you may have been hoping to extinguish are burning bright. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michalann Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 I'm a week behind you and excited to follow your progress! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laodamaren Posted February 29, 2016 Author Share Posted February 29, 2016 Hey! So for constipation there are a few things to look at, I hope you don't mind if I list them out and you can go through them and see if any of them could be a culprit...because not going for 5 days is not good and not really normal. Water - we recommend half an ounce per pound of bodyweight (160# person = 80 oz water) Raw veggies are hard to digest, if you are eating a lot of raw, switch over to all cooked Nuts are notoriously hard on the digestive system, if you are eating a lot of them (and nut butters), cut them out and see how it goes Overall lack of bulk - this is a common one, people undereat and because there is not enough volume to push the poo through, they end up constipated. Follow the meal template and make sure that you are eating at the high end of the template as far as veggies (ie, 2-3 cups per meal) Magnesium - basically all of us are magnesium depleted since our soil is depleted and most everyone should be supplementing magnesium. A magnesium supplement (like unflavoured Natural Calm) helps to draw water into the bowel to help with movement. It's also a great sleep aid if taken at night. You can use either a powder or you could take a magnesium citrate pill (check ingredients). If you are using the Natural Calm, start slow and build your way up until you get a nice, comfortable bowel movement. That all said, I've reviewed the log you have above and can say that you could use a general increase in veggies (especially at meal one the day you had eggs and bacon) and that overall you need to eat more if you are drawn to snack. You are also short changing yourself on meals on the days you work out; you're due a pre workout (protein and fat) and a post workout (starchy veggie & lean protein) that are in addition to the rest of your meals. You should also not be using apples because you are craving sugars. The only way to kill those sugar cravings is to starve them out. If you're legit hungry, you can eat protein and fat or even just fat. But do not give the sugar cravings sugar, even in the form of fruits or you can guarantee that on Day 31 any sugar cravings you may have been hoping to extinguish are burning bright. Thanks for the tips! Really appreciate them During meal times I am generally not hungry anymore after I eat, but it starts coming back a few hours later when I'm usually at university. I was also told that apples really help with constipation as well as prunes (which I eat now, but try to limit given their sugar content of course, I'd put them in a stew or something) It has gotten a lot better though, so I think now is the right time to really cut them out Thank you a lot! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laodamaren Posted February 29, 2016 Author Share Posted February 29, 2016 It's day 9 by now and I thought I'd better give a quick update - My constipation is not over, but it;s already getting better. YAY!- My energy is slowly coming back, I have to push myself less to get up and get things done- I don't see major consequences of my medication reduction and that's a HUUUUUGE relief (although I hope it stays this way)- Had a huge fight with my boyfriend, after which I managed not to eat my emotions (what I used to do before...) and I'm proud of that!- I've been hitting PR's in the gym :3 - Tomorrow is my birthday and Im going out for dinner with my boyfriend. Thought of an Argentinian place (grilled meat, veggies on the side?) If anyone has tips for restaurants or cuisines that are relatively whole30 compliant and need little modification, more than welcome :3 - Had a BBQ 2 days ago, didn't eat any of the marinated meat but brought my own instead and also made a nice salad to go with it for everyone! Overall you can say it's going pretty well! I hope I can keep it up this way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laodamaren Posted February 29, 2016 Author Share Posted February 29, 2016 So today was my last day as an 18-year old, yay! (I guess?) As for Whole30 compliance. I did well, despite sudden hunger striking in the middle of the day when there was no "healthy" food to be detected anywhere. I'm not talking cravings, I'm talking hunger! Yes, I was home but no, I wasn't smart enough to go grocery shopping before I ran out of emergency chicken and vegetables, lol. I had a banana and some almond butter and a few dates. I know this is a sugar boooombbb, but I'm not quitting the Whole30, or restartingm over again for this. For me, the Whole30 is a part of smoothing my medication reduction after years of hormone treatment. Losing weight or becoming completely insulin sensitive is not my primary goal. (Although I did work out hard, so I kinda needed to restore those levels anyway ). My meals were normal, very balanced and satisfying. (Note: I went grocery shopping soon after haha!) Did a veeeery very nice yoga session to close off this year and now writing down what I have achieved and what I want to achieve the next year :3Have a good one, all of you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laodamaren Posted March 2, 2016 Author Share Posted March 2, 2016 End of Day 11!Skipped the gym today as I am just super tired (and a big calculus test tomorrow, I'd feel rather guilty...) Yesterday I had my birthday dinner (1 out of 2) and managed to keep it well within whole30 guidelines Super happy about it! Nutrition-wise I'm currently cutting down on my fruit consumption as I fear I am trying to compensate a bit still. But okay, recognition is the first step and I'm sure I can get this straight soon! I don't know what the fuss is all about though, when people say they justdon't have time to cook a good meal. Like, pre-cooked shrimps + a bag of frozen stir-fry vegetables (that like, not even 2 euros together), 5 minutes in the pan with some nice oil and maybe some spices. Literally on your plate/in that tupperware within seven minutes. I REALLY don't get it! Anyway, I guess people want some variation too Looking forward to completing these 30 days, as I really did miss my birthday glass of wine yesterday D: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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