Gin's Experiment

[ginsinnot]

Re-introduction started today with dairy.

There were two things during the Whole30 I thought I missed: cheese and alcohol.

So I'm starting with dairy. I went close to 7 years without any dairy and only started eating it again in the last year.

Started the day with about a tablespoon of Cabot Cheddar on my eggs. Tasted really rich and pretty tasty. About an hour later, had a feeling almost like heartburn. Otherwise had black coffee with my eggs and some prosciutto.

Lunch was dairy free: pork shoulder, roasted cauliflower in coconut oil, 1/2 and apple and some cashew butter.

Dinner (big rivalry college football game): Nacho Salad. Grass fed beef with homemade taco spice. Greens. Tomato. Red peppers. Onion. Light sprinkle of cheddar cheese. A very small dollop of sour cream and a store bought guacamole.

Just ate that. Ambivalent about the sour cream. Liked the hint of cheese. My stomach feels bloated. I also, as I was eating, didn't really enjoy the texture. It's the dairy, because I've been loving the nacho salad throughout my Whole30.

Dairy may be reserved for special things like the occasional cake or cheesecake. I don't think other items are going to be on the list. But I'll keep going today and tomorrow. I am planning on trying some Hagen Daz (sp?) tonight.

Tomorrow: heavy cream in the coffee, something with regular butter.

[ginsinnot]

Day 2 of dairy experiment. Some heavy cream in my coffee to start. Going to breakfast with my guy, local place with really great food sourcing, everything labeled as to what's in it and where it's from. Thinking about an omelette:)

Woke up stuffy nosed with a headache. Thinking its the dairy, may be reserved for treats.

Plan to do today, then eat clean the rest if the week because we have a big party next weekend and I want to feel and look my best.

[ginsinnot]

Breakfast was a chorizo scrambled egg dish with mole verde and queso fresco and lime wedges, coffee with cream. Don't really love the cream in my coffee! Think I'm converted to black coffee:)

Had a stuffy nose and post nasal drip after breakfast.

Lunch was just a smidge of cheese on my salad.

Dinner was cabbage, onion sautéed with leftover pork shoulder. And to end the dairy experiment: 1/4 cup of rum raisin ice cream.

My stomach hurts tonight, off and on since yesterday really. And I've felt bloated.

Thoughts on dairy: occasional treat only in the form of a really good hard cheese, cheesecake or in other desserts. Not a daily food.

[ginsinnot]

I didn't sleep all that well last night and my stomach is sort of "meh" this morning so far. Dairy seems to interfere with my intestines handling of fats, and I know from my Whole30 that the fat is not the problem. And of course, 1 zit along the chinline came to visit this morning. I feel that I've read somewhere that chinline breakouts are often hormonally driven in adult women. And it's not "that time" of the month. So I blame dairy.

So ended the dairy experiment. There will be occasional desserts in my future with dairy. And perhaps some quality cheese, perhaps.

I'm really looking forward to the next week of clean eating to get back to feeling all wonderful.

[Natalie.s.a]

Don't really love the cream in my coffee! Think I'm converted to black coffee:)

Isn't it awesome? Black coffee is so good and I only realized it a few days ago.

And thanks for posting your reintroductions. I can't wait to have some dairy again (cheese more than anything), but I'm too scared my body wouldn't handle it now...

[ginsinnot]

Yesterday was all Whole30 eating: pork shoulder and an apple for breakfast (mistakenly, I'd cooked a good cabbage breakfast and grabbed the wrong container, but still filling). Lunch was scrambled eggs with the cabbage veg mix on top, that was super filling. Almost too full feeling after lunch. Had to stay late at work, so had a half an apple. Came home and attempted a new exercise routine for glutes and thighs but got only 1/2 way through, will work on building those muscles up I guess:) Dinner was an attempt at a shrimp salad modeled on po-boy filling over mixed greens. The seasoning mix I used was waaaaay too salty. I ended up rinsing the shrimp and red pepper onion mixture off with water and leaving it in the strainer in the fridge. But I didn't snack on anything else.

I haven't really had any cravings since re-instroducing dairy. But I did notice that the last 3 nights have included feeling genuinely hungry some time after 8:30 or so. I didn't eat again and I think it was the dairy-blood sugar deal.

Up at 4 am this morning It's been suddenly a little warmer in Michigan the last week and a half and I think my house is a little warmer than ideal for my sleep. I feel like I'm warming up and my body is saying, time to get up. But it's happening at like 4 am.

Or it's run of the mill marital stress. My brain likes to work through things while I'm sleeping, then wake me up when I can't figure things out apparently. So, hopefully it will cool down to appropriate cold fall temps and I'll solve the mystery that is the brain of the male.

Breakfast was some delish compliant pork sausage we found recently over a sweet potato with a few spoonfuls of coconut milk and black coffee, which was decaf. I'm going to work on more decaf (I only drink a mug daily, which is about 1-2 cups of coffee) with the goal of possibly going on a caffeine hiatus in the next few months. I'm all about better cortisol control as I learn more (was on steroids for a few years and wonder how much they mess up hormones like cortisol long term).

Oh, I was still feeling some of the effects of dairy yesterday, even only 2 days with small amounts of dairy. Still a little bloated yesterday and a little sniffly. Also, felt a little more tired yesterday. But theres also the sleep problem and waking up.

[ginsinnot]

all whole30 food yesterday and today, back to feeling great. Took 2 days to get past the dairy feeling!

[ginsinnot]

Last night ended up involving a small glass of wine at dinner. That was delicious. But it lead to a small (about a 1/4 cup) of Haagen Daaz (how is that spelled???) when I got home. So I woke up this morning with a (warning yuck factor) mucus factory for a nose and a small stomach ache.

Lesson learned: I still love alcohol. Dairy should be occasional and I need to not have ice cream in the freezer (it was a pint I bought for the re-introduction last weekend but didn't finish because I actually ate small servings).

Positive: I eat way smaller quantities of sweet than I would have before. I always used to think "who eats a 1/2 cup of any dessert, really?" and I've been satisfied by more like a 1/4 cup serving. That's awesome. And I'm not having any desire to eat more or snack outside of that treat time.

[ginsinnot]

This weekend: gluten grains.... ominous music inserted here.

At 2, sampled half a ginger pumpkin cupcake (my sister is a baker). Yum.

But, within about an hour and a half, got super hungry! Grains + sugar may be powerful stuff, and not in a good way!

We're having a Halloween Party. With the exception of cupcakes, everything is clean Whole30 food. Oh, alcohol is on the menu but I had no problems mid-week with that.

Party menu: Hot wings, Sausage stuffed mushrooms, Bacon wrapped figs and dates, Veggie Trays with ISWF Avocado dressing. And 2 kinds of cupcakes.

Let the gluten experiment begin!

* all meals not otherwise specified are Whole30 compliant *

[kb0426]

Wish I lived closer!

Enjoy the experimentation, and thank you for sharing your reintroduction experience!

[ginsinnot]

Early data (unpleasant digestive distress, use your imagination) suggests gluten grains may be non-negotiable and out. But the experiment will continue tomorrow, maybe.....

[ginsinnot]

So last night I ate 4 cupcakes at our party and the were sooooo good. And this morning I had pumpkin pancakes also pretty tasty.

But, since having gluten grains over this weekend, I've had gas and other GI upsets.

I miss my meat-veggie-fats and my happy stomach. So, lessons learned: possibly the occasional cake or breakfast bread type deal but not an everyday or even weekly food group.

I also think its just too easy to get caught up with processed grain foods and let them take the place of things I should be eating. Things that I not only enjoy but that also make me feel to the bone good, Whole30 style.

[Candice@allthingsyogi]

Thanks for sharing your Reintroduction.

I am currently eating Whole 30 Compliant, but have been drinking wine 1-2x week.

I was training for a marathon before starting the Whole 30 and had not been drinking for a while (about 2 months) I missed partaking in the fun,social drinking. For me, it is worth 1 day of slight- stomach upset for a great night out with friends.

I have had similar reactions to dairy and gluten. I don't miss them or the bloated/irritable/cravings that come along with those foods!

[ginsinnot]

Sunday was the trial day for some pancakes. Had pumpkin pancakes with pecans and bacon for breakfast. I only ate 1.5 of 3 pancakes and they weren't very big. It's nice to just stop eating when you're satisfied, that's something Whole30 helped me with.

I honestly don't remember lunch, may have napped through that. Dinner was a pub burger (took 3 bites of the bun and removed it, didn't really enjoy it) with olives and mayonnaise with onion rings. That was really tasty.

Overall, some grain foods do taste delicious (like pancakes, cupcakes and onion rings). But they're not worth the side effects. I'm bloated, I've had terrible gas since eating grains and I didn't sleep well last night. My newly regular bowel health is now irregular and I'm hoping that it won't take too many days to get back on track.

I loved my Whole30 scrambled eggs with mushrooms and sausage this morning with my black coffee.

I really enjoyed my lunch of red cabbage, red onion, mushroom and sausage for lunch.

I don't feel any guilt or worrying associated with foods. I'm armed with some great knowledge from the re-introduction and I can make informed decisions about what I eat. Which is AWESOME.

So, for now my re-introduction is over. Some day I'll want some black beans or corn chips and I'll check back in with the re-introduction of those. But back at my clean eating for the foreseeable future, with I'm sure some occasional happy off-roading as we move into the holidays. I'll be moving over to the post Whole30 section for the time being.

Good luck to everyone with the reintroductions

[kb0426]

Thank you again for sharing these details.

Your comments about guilt struck a chord with me...that honestly may be the real issue I am having with reintroduction and why I have been delaying it. There is, of course, concern about messing with just.how.good I feel, but I think there is some fear of underlying guilt there as well.

Thank you for giving me something to think about!

[ginsinnot]

Thank you again for sharing these details.

Your comments about guilt struck a chord with me...that honestly may be the real issue I am having with reintroduction and why I have been delaying it. There is, of course, concern about messing with just.how.good I feel, but I think there is some fear of underlying guilt there as well.

Thank you for giving me something to think about!

I toyed with the idea of staying on my Whole30 but then worried that was fear motivated (if I eat that I'll just fall off the wagon and go crazy). So I did the reintro starting on Day 32.

I am so glad I did because I learned so much! Emotionally and physically. I can eat something off plan when I want and come right back to my clean eating. That makes me feel so empowered. Give it a whirl:)

[ginsinnot]

Addendum to my gluten experiment: Ouch! My left hip and piriformis, a pain in my butt literally that I've been dealing with for 2 years before the Whole30, has suddenly reared ( ) it's head just a few days after the gluten re-intro. It had pretty much disappeared during the Whole30 and didn't show up with dairy re-intro.

And I've got a pinched nerve in my neck. Which I'm sure is from laying around on the couch in the wrong position on Sunday but also an inflammatory thing. And I'm thinking this increased inflammatory pain is solely to be blamed on gluten grains.

Was all Whole30 yesterday and plan to stay so to get rid of this pain! Hopefully it clears out fast.

[NinjaSarah]

Since I can't in good conscience click the Like button for the above post I'll just say and stupid gluten.

[kb0426]

Hope you are feeling back to the Whole 30 Normal soon!