Life after whole 30-hard to figure out!!

[mdjess86]

So, I'm in the reintroduction phase, and technically I'm actually done with reintroduction. Interestingly the only thing that gave me huge issues was legumes (?) something that surprised me so much I'm reintroducing them again in a few days to see if it was really the legumes or something else. Other than tiredness and mild headaches from grains not gluten, and definitely headaches from anything with much sugar, I had no issues with reintroduction. I was SHOCKED to find that dairy and gluten did nothing to me. Legumes apparently make me super constipated and feel like death the next day, or at least they do if that day wasn't just some weird fluke. But anyway, I've also discovered gluten is just food without breaks for me. I just can't do them, so while I know they won't necessarily make me feel badly, they are no good to keep around the house. Although it is nice to know if I'm out for a special occasion or decide something is worth it it won't wreck my stomach or something.

So, now I'm supposed to figure out how to eat regularly. I'm so...overwhelmed. I know that whole 30 did some great things for me. It honestly took me the whole 30 days to feel good, like not until day 30 did I start to think it was really going to be worth it, but it made concrete changes. So I know even if my reintroduction didn't show anything glaring, my body was happier without all that stuff. And I'm sold on not letting gluten back into my life until I'm better at controlling myself, or maybe never, who knows. But what do I do with everything else? Do I just eat it if I want it? Cause the truth is I want cheese all the time. Not in an unhealthy way, but it's delicious and I'd love to add it to meals...but now I feel guilty about eating anything not whole 30. And who knows maybe certain types of cheese, or certain quantities will end up bothering me, I know it's a process to figure all that out, but since I found cheese didn't seem to bother me do I get to add it to meals whenever I want now? Shouldn't I only have meals with cheese once a week? Only if I'm really craving it? Am I not supposed to crave/want/like any food? AHH I'm so confused about how to feel about noncompliant foods. I know I'm going to really limit non gluten grains because although they seem fine, I know I will just end up replacing veggies in a meal with a filler grain that is less nutritious and that it will make me sleepy later. While I love some quinoa sometimes, I'm not a grain lover by any means, so those will definitely be sparse. And what about sugar? Is a little honey ok in recipes, or should I keep being completely sugar and sweetener free? Or do I see what happens to my sugar dragon?

Clearly I feel lost about how to go from here, I figured someone would at least have some words of encouragement, lol. Thanks!!

[ArtFossil]

Life after Whole30 is hard to figure out because you are designing your own personal eating plan/way of eating--your Wholemdjess, or "riding your own bike."

You choose to eat the reintroduced foods occasionally, regularly, or not at all. This may take you some time but you always have the structure of template meals to return to. 

As @kirkor says, reintroductions are where the deep learning occurs. This is not a quick task. 

What's helpful for me about the reintroductions is that the structure of eating a reintroduced food one day and then going back to 2 days of Whole30 eating is great practice for including foods in moderation or occasionally  

However, some people are not moderators  They may make a decision to avoid certain food completely as they are food without brakes for them  

I would suggest you look at the Whole30 guide to off-roading (off-roading = eating a non-Whole30 compliant food). This will help guide your own analysis about whether whether a food that makes you sleepy (for example) is worth including.

http://whole30.com/downloads/off-roading.pdf

[ShannonM816]

None of us can tell you how to eat from here on out. It is much harder to figure it out for yourself instead of just following the rules. There are several resources on the whole30 site that might give you some ideas, and of course Melissa's book Food Freedom Forever is about figuring out your own food freedom, so that might be something to look for as well. On the site, start here, and definitely check out the links to more articles listed at the end of this:  http://whole30.com/step-four-finished/

Do know that it is okay if you have trouble figuring this all out. There's no magic wand we can wave to make you suddenly have a perfect relationship with food. If you find yourself not feeling as good physically, or a little out of control with your food, come back to whole30 eating for a while, and try again. 

[MeadowLily]

If you can't figure it out, seek the help of a nutritional or medical specialist. Actually sit down with someone, face-to-face and work through all of your questions, how to move forward.  I did. Best decision I've ever made for myself. 

Even with the best of tools, no one can do it for you. There are hours in every day when you're faced with choices and consequences at every turn. Hours when you're all on your own, facing trigger foods or cravings.  There is no simple 1-2-3 toolkit that fits everyone equally.

[LisaLulu]

It's mostly a lot of experimentation and what works for you. I cut out legumes because I reacted poorly, and non gluten grains, pasta or crackers because I just didn't care for them. I use dairy occasionally but can take it or leave it and I'm addicted to bread, so I try to only eat it outside the home. I eat sweets on special occasions like birthdays but am not a huge dessert person so I'm able to control that fine. The one thing I was able to add successfully at home was added sugars. I don't have a sugar dragon so having condiments or sauces that contain a bit of sugar aren't going to set me off but give me a lot more choices when making meals. 

[mdjess86]

7 hours ago, LisaLulu said:

It's mostly a lot of experimentation and what works for you. I cut out legumes because I reacted poorly, and non gluten grains, pasta or crackers because I just didn't care for them. I use dairy occasionally but can take it or leave it and I'm addicted to bread, so I try to only eat it outside the home. I eat sweets on special occasions like birthdays but am not a huge dessert person so I'm able to control that fine. The one thing I was able to add successfully at home was added sugars. I don't have a sugar dragon so having condiments or sauces that contain a bit of sugar aren't going to set me off but give me a lot more choices when making meals. 

This sounds similar to what I see in my future! except i'm going to have to limit fruit (sugar dragon) although my dragon doesn't seem to mind a little honey in sauces. And I love dairy, but don't really crave it or need it. And absolutely no gluten for me!!!

Thanks everyone for their responses, it's nice to know it's a process and I'm not expected to just know everything right away!!

[sunnytropic]

I'm having trouble figuring this out too, about ready to "start riding my own bike" after tomorrow after my final Whole30 day after my final reintro. The article linked to above was helpful.

What are people's thoughts on maintaining a food log after the Whole30 journey? I didn't use an app to track calories/macros or weigh and measure any of my meals the last 45 days, but I did write down *what* I ate at each meal the whole time. I think it might be helpful to continue this to see when things start creeping in too often or causing my sugar dragon to re-awaken so I know when to do a mini-reset to get back on the right track.

I loved Food Freedom Forever but one thing I struggle with is not planning treats ahead of time or allowing myself to say, on Friday I'll have a beer, etc. I have a history of binge eating and yo-yo dieting, I like to have something to look forward to, but know this can be a slippery slope. On the other hand, it also can keep me satisfied and not go off the deep end into binge land.

Let's take my coffee for example. We have a free coffee shop at work and pre-Whole30 I was having iced caramel lattes every day. On Whole30 I got cold brew there and drank it black or with some nutpods. I plan to continue drinking the cold brew 90% of the time but would like an iced latte every now and again. On my dairy reintro I got one with 1/2 the caramel sauce and it wasn't too sweet and didn't re-awaken my sugar dragon. I could get one every day since it's right there. There is nothing super special about it except that I like it. I'm having trouble defining how "worth it" it is. I am thinking to start I will get one every Friday if I want it. But that kind of goes against the logic in FFF.

I know from all of the above it's a process and we all have to figure it out for ourselves, just thought I'd put my thoughts out there.

[MeadowLily]

4 hours ago, sunnytropic said:

 I think you're on the right track. 

There's some real wisdom up in there. I can't eat one bite and throw the rest in the trash. That doesn't work for me due to my food addiction M.O.   One bite of my major trigger foods would cause a food addiction relapse.  

 

[sunnytropic]

1 hour ago, MeadowLily said:

There's some real wisdom up in there. I can't eat one bite and throw the rest in the trash. That doesn't work for me due to my food addiction M.O.   One bite of my major trigger foods would cause a food addiction relapse.  

 

Thank you!

There are definitely some foods I will have to be careful with because of food addiction also, potato chips were my kryptonite before Whole30, I wouldn't keep them in the house but if I wanted to binge I would go buy them at the grocery store and eat a whole full size bag (or more) in secret and throw away the evidence. I don't see a way for me to be able to have them in future without it being a trigger. Thanks to FFF I'm sure it's possible I'll slip up at some point but feel like I have the tools I need to turn things around.

[francisdrew]

My question to this forum - Is a Hybrid lifestyle (90% Whole30, 10% non-compliant "worth-it" foods a reasonably healthy lifestyle?

I started and completed Whole30 to see if food OR medications were causing excessive gas (NO bloating or cramps) just gas - some days lots of gas - other days none or very little.  I also wanted to reduce silent inflammation, as I have had heart issues and a knee replacement.  My BMI is 23.

Prior to Whole30, I have never thought I had a Sugar Dragon, as I never ate dessert, but did use sugar only in my coffee and tea.  And I didn't eat junk food, yet I wasn't eating enough green vegetables. 

While I did feel really good while on Whole30, I really didn't see much improvement after 30 days except NO indigestion, NO bloating and losing 10 pounds. Hopefully silent inflammation is better, as cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL are all lower.  But, anyone know why my good HDL would go from 90  to 45 on Whole 30?

For me, reintroduction has become sort of a hybrid lifestyle - eating 90% Whole30 at home, but adding back a few non-compliant foods when I eat out - Like occasionally having a real hamburger bun with a burger or having cheese toast and sauteed greens for breakfast.  I still have not added back any legumes, sugar, or soy.  Foods re-introduced have caused me no problems so far.   We eat out about 1-2 meals per week.

I am really enjoying the new hybrid lifestyle and feel I have food freedom, but am I going too far off Whole30 to be healthy for the LONG-TERM? 

[MeadowLily]

14 minutes ago, francisdrew said:

My question to this forum - Is a Hybrid lifestyle (90% Whole30, 10% non-compliant "worth-it" foods a reasonably healthy lifestyle?

I am really enjoying the new hybrid lifestyle and feel I have food freedom, but am I going too far off Whole30 to be healthy for the LONG-TERM? 

Whole 30 is a 30 day elimination protocol for a Food Reset.  The original plan in ISWF, didn't lay out a Whole 365.  Chapter 20 gives you strategies for long-term success. The W30 is a springboard, a tool to create sustainable habits that you can hold onto for the rest of your life.

If your current plan is working for you, you can always tweak it at any time to accommodate the foods that make you  feel good.