Overweight Vegetarian Theater Director Becomes Carnivore

[SaraK]

Hi Community, 

I'm Sara, a 35 year old theater director from the Northeastern US starting my Whole30 today!  

I've been a vegetarian or vegan for most of my adult life with a fairly healthy whole foods diet. Making the transition to eating meat is a huge change but one I am very excited about.

For my entire life, I have been varying degrees of 'plus sized', overweight or fat. I have been blessed with excellent health and always been active with yoga, hiking and swimming.  I am an advocate for body positivity at any size and have been happy and comfortable in my body until now.

Two years ago I moved out of Brooklyn and started freelancing  full time as a director and teaching artist.  I often work really long, late hours and spend a lot of time commuting in the car.  I have adopted some terrible habits as a result:  Skipping meals, eating dinner past 11pm or midnight, drinking way too much coffee and being way too sedentary. The past few years I have had some amazing professional opportunities but I have also experienced some substantial weight gain (60+ pounds). Since I was already heavy to begin with, this  has led to massive joint and mobility issues, low energy, fatigue and fogginess.  I just don't feel like myself and I find I lack the drive/will/motivation to do many of the things I love. A huge shake up was in order. When a friend introduced me to the Whole30, it instantly felt like a match that would inspire the profound lifestyle changes I need to make in order to be more present in my own life. I have never done a program like this before so I am really looking forward to the structure, accountability and the support of the Whole30 community. 

Thanks for listening and it is great to connect with you!

~Sara

[ArtFossil]

Greetings from a sister artist! And hooray for you for doing a Whole30! 

If you follow the meal template and the rules and recommendations, I think you'll be astounded by the benefits you experience. I did my Whole30 over a year ago and while Whole30 is not a weight loss diet, I really benefited by all the pounds I lost doing it, and they have been banished forever, never to return. And every pound lost takes a big burden off your joints.

Don't forget all the varieties of fish, seafood and fowl in addition to meat. For me, compliant tuna (I like Wild Planet's Skipjack tuna) and salmon filets (which I usually just grill) are mainstays of my diet.

The mindful eating aspect is the main reason I am doing a second Whole 30 starting January 5th. I'm still recovering from hip replacement surgery and I have a challenging spring ahead with teaching and studio work. I've done a Whole30 and a thorough reintroduction and don't need to do another Whole30, but I think that 30 days of structure will help ensure that I nourish my body and fuel my activities in the healthiest ways. In that sense, I'm going to use the Whole30 for 30 days to simplify my decision-making over food. I want to be wise and intentional with my food choices and get the biggest nutrional payoff.

Plus, I suck at drinking water so I'm viewing that as my biggest challenge. 

[SaraK]

Hi ArtFossil !Thanks for all your great thoughts and feedback! It's great to hear from a sister artist. 

Yes, drinking water is soooo important. I absolutely applaud what you said about being intentional with food choices and simplifying decision making. That resonates with me so much. As an artist, I always thrive when given a certain set of parameters so I think that idea can be applied to the Whole30 as well.  Thanks for the encouragement and tips! Best of luck to you and your adventure!