Starting April 25. Anyone else?

[ElizabethG]

Last night a bit hard. Family (not doing whole 30) got take out from my favorite restaurant, an excellent but completely non-compliant Chinese place where they have a crispy fish with some amazing spices. If anyone has every heard of Peter Chang (elusive chef who at one point had a Facebook page dedicated to tracking him down because he avoided notoriety and just wanted to focus on the food) then you will know the dish I am talking about. 

 

Anyway, that dish, on the counter, top off and wafting aromatics, individual pieces that are the size of chicken nuggets and so plentiful no one would know the exact count... did I mention that i was alone in the kitchen with only the accusatory look of my Jack Russell Terrier. The Oscar Wilde line about best way to get rid of temptation is to satisfy it went through my head. Poor planning and life had me scramble to make something, and I was really kicking myself for not preparing more. 

 

I did not give in. I still got my chip and can stand be counted still in the April 25 club, but really felt tested. 

Great job! There are going to be things that continue to test you through this process, but try to take each one as a learning opportunity, even though I am sure you were feeling frustrated in the moment. What did you make yourself for dinner? Hopefully it as something satisfying.

[yelpats]

Day three started. 

Yesterday was good aside from the throbbing headache I had all day. 

[tammi2shoes]

I started Whole30 on Monday, and everything's been going pretty well so far. I'm very accustomed to meal prepping, and had success planning meals and practicing mindful eating in 2014 (I lost 73 lbs). That part was pretty easy.

 

HOWEVER - I feel like the W30 timeline is on fast track for me. I'm on day three and already feeling super lethargic. Monday I felt super chipper and peppy, and got a pretty good night's sleep (for the first time in MONTHS). Yesterday I was very cranky and wanted to kill everything and everyone in my path, but it only lasted the day. Today...I cannot keep my eyes open. It's crazy. I feel like I'm in a haze, and even wanted to pass out while eating my lunch.

 

I'm hoping that my experiences Monday and Tuesday mean that this phase won't last very long, but GEEZ! Whereas the book seems to break each of these experiences up into 2-3 day chunks, I'm already into days 7-10.

 

(I know they really emphasize that each person is different...but WOW! I didn't expect to hit this sleepy wall so quickly...and this is without working out. I decided to give workouts a break as they suggest in the book, and boy am I glad I did!)

[dayleenyoerger]

Today I definitely felt "The Hangover" as I had a headache that lasted until I ate my lunch. After that I felt totally fine. I actually slept really well last night! I was also able to stay strong during my mom's group today, even when they were eating Dunkin' Donuts! I wasn't even hungry and realized that I mindlessly eat during these groups all the time! Already seeing some more positive relationships with food forming! Boom!!

[tammi2shoes]

Day 3!

 

How is everyone feeling?

 

My sleep was so-so last night.....this is typical for me during the first few weeks. I fall asleep early and easily, but then I pop awake around 3:30 or 4 a.m. I stayed in bed until the alarm went off at 5:30 and I do feel energized and rested today. I see a nap in my future later today though Especially after Body Pump this morning. I've been struggling with eating within an hour of waking....I'm so busy getting my daughter and husband fed and out the door that I don't sit down to eat until after they've left. I need to work on that! 

 

I also popped awake last night, but I did get back to sleep within 45 minutes or so. It's typical for me to wake up in the middle of the night then stay awake until sunlight. I can tell that I'm getting much more restful sleep just after three days, but I was pretty sleepy all day as a result of waking in the middle of the night.

 

Hopefully we both get some sleep tonight!

[tammi2shoes]

I know it's day three and I'm just posting but I started on Monday too. I've done several whole30's in the past three years with great success. I was at 280 pounds when I started my first! Lost 60 pounds in 18 months.

Then I had a health crises (bloid clot) and lost my Dad and discovered that I am an emotional eater! Gained 20 pounds and felt like CRAP!!

I've lost 5 pounds but NEED to get my gut and my brain healthy again so I need a while30!

Love to cook but don't have a lot of time. Meal prep is my friend! I've been 'on target' days one and two! Looking forward to support and accountability!

 

I feel like we have similar stories. After successful weight loss over the past two years, I had a pretty traumatic loss and then some health issues that led to a 25 lbs weight gain. That said, I'm glad we're both recommitting to our health. Best of luck!

[eka610]

Roommate and I are doing well. We live in Alaska, where groceries are expensive, and are on Day 2. We've been cooking up recipes from the Whole30 book seven-day meal plan: vegetable frittata, spaghetti squash with tomato sauce and ground beef, green cabbage slaw and mexican tuna boats. I have beef brisket in the slow cooker for dinner. All very yummy. I've never taken the time to really learn how to cook, meal plan, and shop accordingly, so I'm looking forward to that aspect of personal growth. Call it Cook30. 

 

Some headaches, but they're minor. I tried to eat clean before this, so this detox-phase wouldn't be too painful. 

 

My biggest concern is cost savings. Any advice or recipes? I saw someone earlier espouse the virtues of frozen veggies. 

[Lisa Doorenbos]

I feel like we have similar stories. After successful weight loss over the past two years, I had a pretty traumatic loss and then some health issues that led to a 25 lbs weight gain. That said, I'm glad we're both recommitting to our health. Best of luck!

Best of luck to you too!!! It will be great having a kindred soul in the group!!

[SusieA]

Well! This group has really got off the ground since Monday!!!  It's great that we're all in it together. 

My biggest challenge this time, and last time, is breakfast. I am fairly happy with eggs in any shape or form, but sometimes I do not want a "cooked" breakfast.  My breakfast always used to be cereals with milk, or porridge and I do miss that a little!  I boiled some potatoes yesterday and cut them up so that I could sautee them in coconut oil this morning with some mushrooms and tomatoes.  It was nice I guess but not my first choice for breakfast.  However, if that is my only niggle, (and I think it is) then that's not a biggie.  I have seen some of the recipes for breakfasts and I must get more inventive!!

 

I just want to wish all of us a huge success with this Whole 30.  We can support each other on here, and that's what it's all about.   I did a whole 30 in February and I can truthfully say that it has changed my eating habits forever.  Not only did I lose 10 lbs I just felt so much better in every way. My sleep improved dramatically. It has been years since I slept through the night and had the alarm wake me up!  That's a huge success, right there.

 

Keep posting.

 

Sue x

[DiGill]

Good morning W30ers! I too started on Mon, 25th. The hubs and I planned to start on May 1 however we'd been in practice for weeks since reading the book. Day 4 today and I can already tell the bloat has gone down. Over the last month I've cooked many W30 meals and they're all super yummy! Praying all of us have a great month!! Hang tough!

[ElizabethG]

Roommate and I are doing well. We live in Alaska, where groceries are expensive, and are on Day 2. We've been cooking up recipes from the Whole30 book seven-day meal plan: vegetable frittata, spaghetti squash with tomato sauce and ground beef, green cabbage slaw and mexican tuna boats. I have beef brisket in the slow cooker for dinner. All very yummy. I've never taken the time to really learn how to cook, meal plan, and shop accordingly, so I'm looking forward to that aspect of personal growth. Call it Cook30. 

 

Some headaches, but they're minor. I tried to eat clean before this, so this detox-phase wouldn't be too painful. 

 

My biggest concern is cost savings. Any advice or recipes? I saw someone earlier espouse the virtues of frozen veggies. 

Hi eka610,

 

Whole30 can bring an increase in food costs, especially if you are used to eating things like rice and beans, which are cheaper. However, here are a few things I learned the first time around and recommend:

 

• Only cook meat 2-3 nights a week, I usually try to stick to 2 nights, which has really helped bring my costs back to normal. On the other nights I utilize canned fish and eggs
• Find recipes that stretch your 1lb of meat into more than 4 servings. This is where the crockpot can be super helpful making large patches of soups, chili, etc. that use a ton of vegetables and can easily create 5-6 servings
• Prioritize more expensive items based on your personal tastes. For example, I have never bought "fancy" cooking fats other than coconut oil and ghee because that is what I like, no need to spend the money on avocado oil if I can do with out it
• Scrutinize each recipe...do you really need the coconut aminos? Or will oil oil do? Sometimes an ingredient is essential to a recipe and sometimes its not
• Frozen veggies!!!!! I buy a ton of bags when they go on sale
• Keep it simple - while sometimes it is necessary to make a more extravagant meal to get out of a food rut, most of the time I try to stick to meals with basic ingredients that take less than a hour to cook. Most dinners are a form of baked/pan cooked protein with roasted veggies and an easy fat source (avocado slices, olive oil, mayo)

 

Hope this helps!

[Emily1989]

I'm on Day 3 now. Day 2 was better in terms of staying full (added an extra egg and coconut milk at breakfast), and I was able to socialize without being tempted to snack or drink. I did have a headache for most of the day, although it was pretty mild.

 

Made a pork shoulder in the slow cooker for dinner last night, which will last me for days. I added some to my eggs this morning. It was delicious! Here's the recipe if anyone is interested... http://whole30.com/2016/03/whole30-slow-cooker-recipes-part-three/ 

[MT254]

Hello! Yes, I started on the 25th. Just joined the forum today. Glad to see this post. This is my first Whole 30. I live in Montana. Before starting this my diet mainly consisted of soda, carbs, dairy, fast food. I have not been a fan of fruit or veggies. I am now paying for that lifestyle and am looking forward to resetting myself. Also a bit terrified before I started as to how hard it would be stopping drinking soda, etc. Today is day 4 and while it is very early on I have been in good spirits so far and while this is very time consuming I am enjoying the change. I am surprised at how many veggies I am already liking in the recipes I am trying.  Good job everyone for taking on this commitment. 

[ctgraham]

Felt pretty good the past 3 days, but today I feel extremely tired! I think I've noticed (you know, when you wonder if you're making stuff up or just paying attention?) less joint achiness (I often get stiff when sitting a while) overall. I do Zumba 3-4 times a week and I'm eager to see if Whole30 makes me feel more energized during that workout. Any impact yet for folks on working out? And I'm excited to try coconut oil in my coffee. Had cashew milk in it for the first time this morning... not bad. I'm guessing it will get even better as time goes on (since I love it sweet and creamy!).

 

Let's keep going strong. We're off to a great start!!!

[momsteroc]

On day five and I had a slight headache yesterday but nothing to be alarmed about. Sometimes I get sinus headaches before a storm hits but nothing like draining or pounding. I made turkey taco salad and I wanted to put some sour cream on and cheddar cheese but I couldn't and then I was like I can put some salsa on but it had sugar in it. But I put extra onions, peppers, and tomatoes on top and it was delicious.

[MT254]

Good Chili Recipe if you are interested http://meatified.com/super-bowl-crock-pot-chili/  

 

To keep costs down I bought the spices I didn't already have from our local Good Food Store which has a great bulk food spice section so you can buy how much you need and not full bottles of everything. This is great for a program like this. I also cut the recipe in half due to the size of my crock pot and that I am one person. This also gives me several meals which is a bonus and time saver later. 

 

A couple of notes:

Beef stock - I had made the beef stock recipe in the Whole 30 book previously so I had the stock from that. Otherwise that was a hard item to find in our location of the country without sugar or honey. 

 

Is this spicy? It surprisingly is not. I should state I did make two substitutions. We didn't have any hot yellow peppers in the stores here right now so I used Anaheim peppers. Also, since I already had plenty of orange bell peppers I used that instead of green bell peppers which I imagine they wanted. However, this chili did not turn out spicy. I really thought it would but it was not. It was just plain yummy! 

 

This is just a great way to get in a lot of good veggies. I just am not great about eating a lot of veggies happily. I am getting better but when I look at this ingredient list it is not my fav. So I used my Ninja Chopper to really chop down the veggies and I bought a can of roasted crushed tomatoes. The veggies are now not chunks in the chili, they just disappeared into it and if i didn't know they were there I wouldn't know I was eating all of this healthy food. 

[mrscapermom]

I just found this forum today and I also started April 25, . So today is day 4 and everything is going well. Had some major heartburn the first two days but fine today and yesterday. Don't mind the black coffee as that's how I drink mine ... It's a little tricky in the evenings because my husband had esophagus surgery in the fall and has to eat often and usually has his icecream and popcorn , chips, snacks ,etc. But I am determined and have my water and try to keep busy....A challenge but as they say other issues in life are harder !

 

[mikebinkley]

Also started on Monday...feeling a little tired, but otherwise okay. 

 

My vice is not sweets or chips-it's beer and wine. Trying to figure out a way to navigate around my husband's birthday this weekend and his desire to spend it at breweries and cook his favorite pasta dish (which has wine in it). I can avoid the pasta, but adore craft beer. Any suggestions for navigating celebrations? Haven't gotten to that chapter in Whole30 yet, but it will help if I mull things over beforehand. 

[CharDoll]

I feel like we have similar stories. After successful weight loss over the past two years, I had a pretty traumatic loss and then some health issues that led to a 25 lbs weight gain. That said, I'm glad we're both recommitting to our health. Best of luck!

I thought the same when I read both of your stories! I lost 80lbs between July 2013-July 2014. But got pregnant Dec 2014, and the end of pregnancy and then breastfeeding hormones and returning to work anxiety made a lot of weight creep back on. I'm so looking forward to what this next year will bring. We got this, ladies.

[CharDoll]

Also started on Monday...feeling a little tired, but otherwise okay.

My vice is not sweets or chips-it's beer and wine. Trying to figure out a way to navigate around my husband's birthday this weekend and his desire to spend it at breweries and cook his favorite pasta dish (which has wine in it). I can avoid the pasta, but adore craft beer. Any suggestions for navigating celebrations? Haven't gotten to that chapter in Whole30 yet, but it will help if I mull things over beforehand.

Seltzer. Lots of seltzer. Seltzer with lemons and limes. Seltzer with mint. But just keep your glass filled. You get the fizzy taste and helps you feel included. Seltzer is your friend.

[jmcbn]

Also started on Monday...feeling a little tired, but otherwise okay. 

 

My vice is not sweets or chips-it's beer and wine. Trying to figure out a way to navigate around my husband's birthday this weekend and his desire to spend it at breweries and cook his favorite pasta dish (which has wine in it). I can avoid the pasta, but adore craft beer. Any suggestions for navigating celebrations? Haven't gotten to that chapter in Whole30 yet, but it will help if I mull things over beforehand. 

How about Kombucha - it has the colour, the fizz, and a good strong flavour - so much so that it feel like a treat...

[DiGill]

Good morning W30ers!  Today is day 5 and I have to say I can really feel the changes happening in my body this morning.  The bloat is no longer there, the stiffness/soreness in the mornings after having just woke up or after having sat for a  little while are not there.  Both of my arms have been really really sore for months now like I pulled muscles but the pain from that is almost gone.  I know every body is different but I'm experiencing two things that I've not been reading about in the forum but it's definitely happening to me.  I'm just the opposite of sleeping well.  In fact, I'm wide awake when I go to bed; I flip and flop and just cannot sleep.  The second thing is I get up to go pee at least two times during the night.  I typically do not.  I drink at least 80 oz of water a day but typically that's done by 5-6:00 in the eve, way before bed.  I know it's a good thing, I just find it odd that I've not seen anyone post that.  Anywho, I am very much looking forward to this weekend to get a lot of prepping out of the way.  I plan to get my meat grinded for meals over the next few weeks and make a couple batches of chili as that's my hub's favorite.  I gotta admit, I LOVE that W30 chili don't affect HIM the way it used to .  Have a great week everyone and please let me know if you share these side affects with me. 

 

Digi

[Michele West]

Good morning W30ers!  Today is day 5 and I have to say I can really feel the changes happening in my body this morning.  The bloat is no longer there, the stiffness/soreness in the mornings after having just woke up or after having sat for a  little while are not there.  Both of my arms have been really really sore for months now like I pulled muscles but the pain from that is almost gone.  I know every body is different but I'm experiencing two things that I've not been reading about in the forum but it's definitely happening to me.  I'm just the opposite of sleeping well.  In fact, I'm wide awake when I go to bed; I flip and flop and just cannot sleep.  The second thing is I get up to go pee at least two times during the night.  I typically do not.  I drink at least 80 oz of water a day but typically that's done by 5-6:00 in the eve, way before bed.  I know it's a good thing, I just find it odd that I've not seen anyone post that.  Anywho, I am very much looking forward to this weekend to get a lot of prepping out of the way.  I plan to get my meat grinded for meals over the next few weeks and make a couple batches of chili as that's my hub's favorite.  I gotta admit, I LOVE that W30 chili don't affect HIM the way it used to .  Have a great week everyone and please let me know if you share these side affects with me. 

 

Digi

 

I'm also struggling with sleep albeit a little differently. I have no problem falling asleep, but I don't stay asleep. I toss and turn and pop awake several hours before my alarm is due to go off. This experience is normal for me as I've gone through it every time I start a Whole 30. It usually takes me a few weeks to get into a solid sleep pattern. It hasn't helped that my husband has either been watching TV or on the computer in bed As far as the bathroom goes, I'm exactly the same. I've always drank A LOT of water, but I think I drink even more now and it's the additional vegetables that I'm consuming that is forcing me to get up one or two times per night. So, you aren't alone! Happy Day 5!

[Smurph10132]

I started Monday too! So happy to see there are so many others out there doing it with me! I've had some good and bad days so far. Bad days (bloat, feeling the cravings, etc.) were day 2 and 4 but I'm feeling great today!  

[DiGill]

I'm also struggling with sleep albeit a little differently. I have no problem falling asleep, but I don't stay asleep. I toss and turn and pop awake several hours before my alarm is due to go off. This experience is normal for me as I've gone through it every time I start a Whole 30. It usually takes me a few weeks to get into a solid sleep pattern. It hasn't helped that my husband has either been watching TV or on the computer in bed As far as the bathroom goes, I'm exactly the same. I've always drank A LOT of water, but I think I drink even more now and it's the additional vegetables that I'm consuming that is forcing me to get up one or two times per night. So, you aren't alone! Happy Day 5!