Hello, my name is Rachel, and I am a food addict.

[FoodAddict]

Day One- Already feeling urge to quite.  Don't worry I'm not going to, but wow does food have a hold on me. 

 

I come from a family of large overeaters.  I think I've been overweight since birth, and am now at an all-time high of 338lbs at 32 years old.  When I first went away to college I actually lost weight while everyone else gained the freshman 15 and was at my healthiest adult weight ever when I was 21.  The secret back then was eating on my own schedule instead of that of my family, eating mostly salads because it was easy and I didn't want to take the time to cook.  Mostly though, I think it was that about 4 nights a week we would slam back a bunch of shots and then go dance at the bar for about 4 hours straight.  My body had never experienced that level of fitness!    Of course then I got a boyfriend, became more serious about studying, gained it all back and haven't really stopped gaining since. 

 

I am a fairly logical person, so the idea of a diet never made sense to me because they usually don't actually sound very healthy (nothing but grapefruit for how many days?) or just plain stupid (I'm not going to eat something because cavemen didn't?  Well maybe if they had fire they would have!), and what happens when you stop dieting anyways? 

 

So instead, I would read tons of nutritional information in books and online, and then make non-committal proclamations about how I would "try" to eat less of certain foods, or I would "reduce" the frequency of eating out, or "limit" by heavy carbs.  Of course this never worked because if you don't set specific boundaries, it's really easy to break them.  Before long I was once again putting whatever tastes good in my mouth without giving it too much thought, and eating until it hurt.   

 

Now I am at a point where I weight twice as much as a healthy person, I am tired all the time, have limited focus and motivation, plantar fasciitis, chronic ear aches and allergies, low-back pain, and lymphedema (severe swelling in the legs and feet due to circulation issues).  My husband and I are talking about starting a family soon, so I know that now is the time to take action to improve my health and habits.   

 

I am 100% committed to this nutrition plan, unlike any other attempt at change I've ever made, and yet... like I said, it's 9:30pm on day 1 and I'm dreading having to go in the kitchen in a minute to prep food for tomorrow.  All I want to do is eat ice cream in front of the TV and stop for a bagel on the way to work in the morning instead of prepping a stir fry and eggs tonight like I planned.  It really shouldn't be hard, but I've had to admit to myself that I really am addicted to sugar, to pastries, to grains, and to coffee.  So like any addiction, the only real way to beat it is to go cold turkey.  (I wonder where that saying came from)

 

Hello, my name is Rachel, and I am a food addict.  I'm hoping that if I keep reminding myself, that it will help keep me on course.  Day 1 is almost over.  I can do this.  

[SugarcubeOD]

Welcome Rachel!

You are in absolutely the best place you can be! I'm so glad you found your way here and I really encourage you to stick through it... I lost near 100 pounds with the Whole30 over the course of around a year and I know you can too.

There are definitely going to be uncomfortable moments (as you're already experiencing) but you're a strong woman and I know you can get through them with other coping techniques...

The key to your success in not feeling deprived and helping beat cravings is the meal template. Please don't think that if the meal template is good then hacking it to be less food is better... that will not work in your favor and will in fact do the opposite... you need to eat to lose weight... you need to fuel your body to allow it to heal itself... fat is a huge part of that as is eating balanced template meals three times a day.

Please also remember that your body may prioritize healing over dropping weight right away and that's okay... that's actually a wonderful thing... our bodies know how to take care of us if we just treat them properly and fuel them accordingly.

If you have any questions or concerns or need a pep talk, reach out to the forums here and let us help you!

[Hannlib]

Hi Rachel!

I've been saying this way for almost 2 years now but I can't think of much worse than having to go into the kitchen at 9.30pm to prep food for the next day. UGH. By that time I want to be sat on the sofa in my pjs with a herbal tea.

I don't know your schedule but would another time work better? Get in the kitchen when you get home from work? Do some extra prep while doing dinner? A huge weekend batch cook?

[FoodAddict]

Thank you for the messages. I am feeling much better today in spirit.  I just need to take this one day at a time, one meal at a time.  I didn't expect it to be easy to detox from coffee, sugar, carbs and dairy all at once, but unfortunately knowing something in your mind and feeling my body twitching out are very different things.  I will succeed, I will succeed, I will succeed.  Deep breaths. 

[cessi0909]

Good for you for starting and sticking it through! Welcome and I look forward to reading about your journey and wish you the best 

[NoMoreCrunchyCravings]

FoodAddict, how are you doing?? I loved reading the honestly and committment in your original post. So much of what you said rings true for me as well. I'd love to hear where you are in your better eating journey.

[FoodAddict]

FoodAddict, how are you doing?? I loved reading the honestly and committment in your original post. So much of what you said rings true for me as well. I'd love to hear where you are in your better eating journey.

 

Thank you for asking.  I have kept writing about my experience every few days in the log section... not expecting anyone to read it, just that I find it helps me stay focused on my goals, admit my sins along the way, and deal with the hard parts.  I think this program has sort of become my new "religion" haha... you know how some people go to their church and read the "good book" when they are facing a challenge?  I seem to find comfort in coming to the forums, recording my thoughts, and reading the Hartwig's book when I'm having trouble.  Anyway, feel free to go here to read more about my journey so far: http://forum.whole30.com/topic/35984-life-without-carbs-coffee-and-chocolate/ except full disclosure haha... I did end up keeping coffee, but only one cup after breakfast with creamy coconut milk.   yum.