Kim's October2012

[KimSilverton]

I've decided to keep a log here because I'd love some feedback on my ups and downs as I make my way through my 1st Whole30.

A little background:

I'm in my 40s and lost ~40 lbs the past couple of years and am working to keep it off. I have IBS, and would like to get to the point where I don't have a tummy ache so much of the time. More importantly I've had a totally unhealthy relationship with sweets and junk snacks.

I happen to have 3 different autoimmune diseases diagnosed ~15yrs ago (Addison's adrenal insufficiency, Hashimoto's hypothyroid, Premature Ovarian Failure), have had my gall bladder removed, and have some kidney damage from my childhood. However, none of these things are usually on my mind, and I *think* I'm healthy.

Before finding Whole30, I ate Paleo when convenient - no commitment. I sort of tried the Autoimmune protocol and low FODMAPs diets in conjunction with Paleo, but have never been organized or committed enough. For October, I decided to try a month without sugar or grains. I've never in my life lasted on any sort of restrictive diet for more than a couple of days ... and my initial October effort was no different. Oct 3rd Ginger cookie was so delicious, but horrible stomach ache afterwards.

I found Whole30 on Oct 5th and signed up for the Daily emails immediately. Thanks to those emails and immersing myself into all things Whole30, Paleo and Well Fed, today is Day 11 without sugar or grains.

But, I have had a couple of (minor?) exceptions - all to do with bad oils. In the first few days I had decided that a small amount of salad dressing and canola mayo was no big deal. I also ate some store-bought sweet potato and carrot chips - big mistake. Despite these, I've decided to continue with Whole30 rather than starting over. Mostly because it would be psychologically difficult to start over, and my priorities are slaying the sugar dragon and abstaining from grains.

[KimSilverton]

Days 1-8: A lot less physically energetic than I usually am. I seem to have the 'carb flu' even though I think I'm eating plenty of carbs.

Day 9: A full day of cooking, possibly the most cooking I've ever done ever (my hubby usually cooks for us, but he's out of town). I feel so accomplished and optimistic!

Day 10: I snacked on cashews in a big way, knowing my digestive system doesn't deal with nuts very well. It was just a bad snacking habit getting to me - as close to junk food as I could get.

Day 11: Still have a tummy ache from last night, still regretting those cashews. Glad they are out of the house now. Forced myself to exercise a little an am so surprised at how weak I feel! I need to get re-energized and make sure that my diet is sufficient and balanced. I need to break out of this fog! I have a feeling that getting up and away from this computer screen is exactly what I need to do :-)

[KimSilverton]

Food today:

breakfast:

raw zucchini and red bell pepper spears

guacamole

[mostly because the guac was going to go bad if I didn't hurry up and finish it]

3 cubes of stewed meat in bone broth

[bleh - not yummy]

snack:

banana

lunch:

sugar snap peas

guacamole [finished it off]

2 beef-spinach-egg muffins from Well Fed

[Tom Denham]

It looks like you need to up the amount of protein you are eating. The standard is protein at every meal that is at least as big as the size of your palm. And with stomach issues, it often helps to eat cooked veggies as they digest easier.

[KimSilverton]

Thanks Tom. I was considering eating a chicken thigh, but thought I'd already eaten too much. On the other hand, I have 5 cords of wood to stack, which is going slowly.

[KimSilverton]

Whoa - so very foggy-headed and tired today even though I've been getting 9+hrs solid sleep/night (probably too much). Actually I have been tired for most of my Whole30, but it got worse today. Instead of my usual jog, I've been slowly walking my dog and getting in a couple of brief slow jogs - the whole thing shorter than usual (sad dog). In the afternoon I felt so light-headed and had to take extra meds to increase my blood pressure.

Things got back psychologically when I put on a pair of pants that are usually on the tight side - they were loose. Then ... I got out the evil scale and the results sent me into a tailspin (7lbs in 12 days). So, I got an appt with the doc to get bloodwork done to make sure nothing is seriously wrong with me. And I drank a bunch of water. I was pretty close to going for chocolate and ice cream. But, I felt too weak for that much driving. And, if something is wrong, I definitely won't be doing myself any favors by going that route. I hope that my body is just having a time adjusting to lower carbs and I've lost more water weight than should be expected. And I should eat more ... and put the scale away again. I will go to the doc just in case though.

last night's dinner:

czech pork meatballs from Well Fed

Steamed broccoli

berries with coconut cream [my son desperately wanted dessert]

breakfast:

4 czech meatballs

raw sugar snap peas (snacked as I did errands)

lunch:

4 beef-spinach "muffins" from Well Fed

snacks:

apple, 2 kiwis

dinner:

ground beef stir fry with onions, bell peppers, spinach and cauliflower rice

[Tom Denham]

I don't think you are eating enough yet. The guideline is to eat a serving of protein as big as the palm of your hand, cook your veggies with a measure of fat as big as your thumb, and to fill the rest of your plate with veggies. Repeat this meal at least 3 times per day. If you are hungry, you can eat two servings of protein as big as your palm at each meal or you could have one or two extra meals. And if you are exercising, you should eat a pre-workout and a post-workout snack. It sounds like a lot of food and it is. But if you make good food choices and follow these guidelines, you will improve your health and body composition.

[KimSilverton]

Day 13

OK - so I think I broke out of the fog. I got up a lot earlier, ate more and got roiling mad at my son for getting in trouble at school. The only prob is my constant stomach ache and IBS-D, but I'll tackle that next.

Breakfast:

leftover meat-spinach-egg muffins (oh so easy to heat up and go to work)

Lunch:

leftover ground beef w/ onions, cauliflower, lots of bell peppers and spinach - 2 big servings - likely source of my continued stomach ache

Snack:

meat-spinach-egg muffins again (finished them off)

Dinner:

school fundraiser - kabobs with chicken and veggies; some beef stew. A couple bites of potato - I know - bad! But, they were yummy and my absolutes are sugar and grains. Unfortunately, I have a pretty bad stomach ache right now.

I felt really full after each meal today. I also didn't exercise at all other than walking a few blocks to work and a few more blocks with the dog. Not nearly as foggy and tired as yesterday. I did yell at my 9yr old pretty harshly and had to give myself a timeout because I was soooo mad at him (he was sent to the principal's office for cutting up in class - 3rd day in a row!). Maybe I should actually thank him for boosting me out of the tired-foggy-headed doldrums.

I still think about "forbidden" foods quite a bit. Luckily I live in a very small town with very few temptations (not a single chain in our whole county and our only bakery is closed for a month!). Also the gals at our tiny grocery store know that I gave up sugar - I'm sure they would at least give me a knowing look if I bought any contraband.

Saturday I'm going to the doc - which means traveling over 2 mountain passes to the land of bakeries and delicious eateries. I will pack ahead and on my way back stop at a ranch that is our source of grassfed and finished beef and 'whey good pork' - pork fed with whey from their cheese making operation from cows that only eat grass. They also have organic veggies and eggs and beef jerky .... Yes, I will keep focused on James Ranch to get me through the land of temptation.

[KimSilverton]

Back to Day 0. Here's how it all went down :-(

Yesterday morning I woke up after very little sleep. The worst stomach pains from gas/bloating that I've had in a long, long time (like a year or so). I was bummed about the IBS flare-up and even more bummed that the Whole30 diet isn't working (at least not the way I've been doing it - at least not yet). Even worse was the realization that I need to change my diet even further and give up things like raw veggies and perhaps eggs, avocados, nightshades, ... I was overwhelmed!

So, time to relax and reassess things. I drove with my 9yr old to hot springs about 45min away - beautiful drive. BUT, it was closed for their annual maintenance! We could deal - we got our Vitamin D in the park and played. For a "treat" we ordered a paleo meal at a restaurant - my first eating out for ~3 weeks. Grilled avocado with shrimp and veggies on a bed of greens. BUT, the chef had changed and so had the sauce and just about everything else. The sauce was heavy and sweet and drowned everything. It tasted alright. My son ended up with some chicken strips even though he had ordered a burger. Then I hit the nail on the coffin of my first Whole30: I decided to chow on one of his chicken strips. Ugghh.

Ominously a breeze blew in and blew our paper napkins up in the air. I stood up on the foot rest of my high stool, and WHAM! I fell hard onto a wrought iron bar with my hand and back. I was stunned! I thought I might have broken my hand and a rib. I was in real pain.

Thankfully, after lots of ice, and a good night's rest I realize that I'm fine. I woke up to the Day15 email and realized that I've been a bit lax about this Whole30 thing and it might do me good to have a fresh start. I went to my doc appointment (yes, on a saturday :-). Got lots of bloodwork done to make sure that the ~10 lbs I've lost in the past month isn't due to something bad going on with me. Found out that I should probably be taking more of my meds for my Addison's disease - yes, that usually solves just about everything anyway.

So.... back home (2 more mountain passes) to get things organized and cleaned up and ready for Day 1 tomorrow. I may make some sort of desserty thing, but I'm trying to not give in to the What the Hell syndrome .... but it is oh so tempting!

[Emily]

Hang in there. Making big changes involves... making big changes.

I woke up to the Day15 email and realized that I've been a bit lax about this Whole30 thing and it might do me good to have a fresh start.

This seems good. Also, give yourself time. Lots of changes happen with Whole30s... weight loss, weight gain, changes in intake and all kinds of output, changes in the amount and kind of energy. Stay off that scale for 30 days. Hide it (or have someone else hide it if you need to).

This is only for 30 days. I'm not saying it's easy, but it's worth it. You can do it.

[KimSilverton]

Thanks Emily! I know ... I definitely need to get rid of the scale!

[KimSilverton]

I'm back! I gave up on my October Whole30 - especially after getting blood test results and finding out that I had low kidney function. I thought I was guzzling tons of water, but my results also indicated that I was dehydrated. So ... I immediately spent loads of time reading up on kidney disease and worrying that I was eating too much protein.

The 'good' news is that I simply needed to take more of my meds for my Addison's disease and drink more water. I feel much, much better now and ready to start a new attempt at the Whole30.

The big question is whether I'll make it a low FODMAP and Autoimmune protocol Whole30. I know I need to do this, but am having such a hard time committing to it! Our kitchen is entirely Whole30 compliant at this moment, but I'm not sure if it makes any sense to drag my family along into the no eggs, no nightshades, no nuts, no onions, no cruciferous veggies, no, no, no, no .... I do have a wonderfully supportive husband though :-)