anyone starting Sept 11???

[Lady49er]

Oh, @HopingtoHeal, what a tough time for you! It truly is heartbreaking when you want a child so badly and everyone else around you is having them and all you read about in the news is people who have abandoned or abused their sweet babies. I hope you and your husband will soon be able to come to peace with a decision and have success with it.  My husband and I decided to foster and adopt our two (I do have a biological child from my first marriage, who is now an amazing adult contributor to society), and while it admittedly isn't the same as experiencing giving birth, it is still an awesome honor to be called their mother. 

[Lady49er]

Finally! My gut feels like it isn't all jacked up!! MiniMe was complaining of a tummy ache yesterday, and it just now dawned on me that she might be consuming too much apple juice in the form of popsicles. They had a jog-a-thon at school Friday and they always pass out popsicles with high fructose corn syrup in them afterward (never allowed for either of my children), so I froze apple juice and took that to her. Then she had another one after school. Ooops!

The urge to take a bite of something non-compliant has hit me for the first time, and it's been tough. But MiniMe and I talk about it and the feeling passes.

But I feel like I'm light years behind the rest of you because I just had my first food dream last night! It was Day 25 in my dream, and Nana and Papa were taking care of the girls and took them to McDonalds. I went inside and there was MiniMe with 3 partially eaten burgers, a pancake, and a buttermilk bar (I guess the McDonalds of my dreams sells donuts). To her credit, the buns, pancake, and donut only had little nibbles, but still ... a nibble is a nibble!! I was so upset that we were going to have to start over when we were so close to the end. 

Like @HopingtoHeal , I'm curious about your reintroduction plans. I'm super worried because when MiniMe and I talk about it, she wants to eat all the things in the first hour of Day 31. I am scared to death of undoing all the good that's been done with her. I seriously have had so many people ask what we've been doing with her because she looks great. I feel like maybe I sabotaged her unintentionally by making concessions because she's a child, such as allowing compliant snacks, making breakfast smoothies with compliant ingredients, and having some foods set aside as "special" for her to take to parties and so forth. 

Food is such a social thing, and I didn't want her to be singled out when she wasn't going with the norm. As it was, the other kids were jealous that she got a different popsicle after the jog-a-thon, and she gets the 3rd degree every time she turns down a class treat (Why are there so damn many birthdays in September?). She doesn't make a big deal of it, and I thank a vegan friend for that who has modeled appropriate behavior for a different eating lifestyle. 

So we've agreed that we will continue to be W30 compliant 5 days a week and will be "mostly compliant" on the other 2 days, which won't be back to back. We have both developed some other tastes, so hopefully that will keep us both on the right path. And hopefully sling the way we've tamed Sissy's sugar dragon! Daddy is a whole other story though. He cooks like crap though, so he's still stuck with what I make for dinner. LOL! 

[Sytera]

I have already been planning my reintroduction. I only intend to reintroduce the things I have actually been missing. Scones at the local coffee shop with my sons is a big deal to me. We go once a week and slowly eat breakfast while doing schoolwork. Another thing is ice cream. While I usually make it with compliant ingredients anyway, we do enjoy the occasional dairy ice cream treat when they earn the reading reward a local place offers. So I will reintroduce sugar, grain, and dairy over the course of a week. I don't drink alcohol and have not missed legumes one bit. My long-term plan is to eat a Paleo diet (with guilt-free non-Paleo once and a while). We are all thriving on it (my middle son ran a 5k Friday in less than 30 minutes with zero training, felt great, and hiked 4 miles with us today). 

[Lady49er]

What just happened? I went to bed feeling tired but not exhausted, and I did my usual Sudoku game on the Nintendo to finish off my day. Normally I fall asleep while playing it, but not this time. I played until the charge on the battery wore down, which was around midnight, but I still wasn't tired enough to sleep. I tried mind relaxation exercises and think I maybe dozed off for about 20 minutes, but I didn't fall fast asleep until 2 am. I wasn't sure how I'd react to the 6 am alarm, but I woke up feeling fine and pressed the snooze a couple of times just to see if I needed the extra few minutes. Nope! Could this possibly be the tiger blood of which they speak???  I don't exactly feel like I could conquer the world, but I got my corner of the world squared away and off to school, I don't have the need to crawl back under the covers, and I have zero aches or pains this morning ... something new for me! Ummm ... victory? OK, let's not get carried away.  I still don't feel like doing the dishes. 

[50andstillhere]

Wow-that is great being able to do this without snacking. I think my afternoon snack is a "stress realiever " for me. 

Day 18- I love everyone' s success stories. 

My husband would never do this with me, nor my kids. That is why I rely on this forum. 

[50andstillhere]

Hi everyone- major mistake-

I decided to make split pea with ham soup! I was so tired of my pumpkin soup. After I ate it I had this nagging feeling that split peas aren't compliant (along with a bloated stomach ) so after searching, I found my answer!  

I have to say that I am so disappointed that I made this mistake.

i will have to decide what to do next. I was feeling so strong to do my introductions properly this time!

Everyone - remain strong the end is near.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Lady49er]

On the contrary, @50andstillhere, that was a success and not a mistake! You're in reintroduction, right? The point of all this work and the methodic reintroduction is to see how your body reacts. And now you know that pea soup, as yummy as it is, probably isn't worth the bellyache. Now all legumes are suspect and you know to pass on the beans when you hit that amazing Mexican restaurant with your husband and friends.  That's a win! Now, a moment of silence at the loss of pea soup .... <sigh>

[Lady49er]

Ooops! I reread your previous post, @50andstillhere , and I see that you aren't in reintroduction phase but were a little more than halfway. I got confused because a couple of people on here started at different days but stayed for the party. (Y'all seriously make my day!) Still, it may have been a mistake because you need to go back to Day 1, but really in the grand scheme of things it was more of a learning experience.

Clearly your body talked and you listened. Isn't that one if the goals of the program?

So you have to go back to Day 1 ... you've got this! You've already done it for 18 days. You know you're strong enough. Keep reminding yourself "it's only 30 days" and the Halloween candy will be on sale when you're done. And truthfully, is anyone planning on going back to the old way of eating when they're done? I don't think so. We've all worked too hard and attained so much to undo it all. Even though my husband and other daughter haven't done W30 with MiniMe and me, they are still reaping the benefits in the form of having less empty calories sitting around the house and getting better dinners and than before. So really, your husband is an unwitting accomplice in this by virtue of seeing you succeed. Don't be down on yourself. Pat yourself in the back for seeing the error and taking steps to correct it. As they say, You Go Girl!!

[madness]

Hey everyone, I'm one of those that started earlier but stayed for the party!  I'm here to give you a bit of advice...DO REINTRODUCTIONS. I know. You are all planning on doing them properly. But REALLY. Do them.

First time around, nothing bothered me and I just went straight to 80/20 and was totally fine for months with no lapses in NSVs (or weight!). Took nearly a year for some of those NSVs to finally fade away (and the weight never came back!). This time, I went straight to eating anything at day 31. But then back to Whole30 for a few days. Then on to "whatever". I've been on the "whatever" wagon for a week now. I FEEL LIKE CRAP.

I'm gearing up for another full round. I thought I would just go Whole30 for a week and then do reintroductions. I'd probably still learn a lot from that, but might as well go full on. Half my family is doing it this month already, and many of my friends are so used to me eating this way. So really, I have no excuse. What do I have to lose? Another 8 pounds? Arthritis pain? Insomnia? Sign me up!

[Lady49er]

Thanks for the affirmation and testimony, @madness! I have visions of MiniMe face-planting into a ginormous platter of ice cream, cookies, tacos, and A1 steak sauce. I've been trying to prepare her for the fact that, despite being compliant for 30 days, the challenge isn't over and we can't eat All The Things on Day 31. I'll be with her for each bite of reintroduction, and I hope to show her that savoring every bite of 1 or 2 cookies is every bit as satisfying as mindlessly shoving 5 or 6 into our faces. We've talked about how eating this way has made us both look and feel better, and we'd really like to stay that way. McDonalds should be reserved for when Mommy really doesn't have the time to cook, not something we do 2 or 3 times a week just because it's easy. I am sooooooo looking forward to having a pumpkin spice chai from you-know-where, but it won't be Day 31 because we're starting with dairy, not dairy AND sugar. All these life lessons about ourselves and food shall not be in vain!

And on a more personal note, @madness ... I chuckled to myself when you said we had a lot in common regarding families. Oh, more than you know, Sister! I also had that same living arrangement you spoke of, so don't feel weird. Rejoice in the fact that we are good enough friends with our ex'es that we can tolerate living under the same roof. That was so many years ago for me, but I totally get it. You do what you have to do to keep your world turning, the bill collectors off your phone, and your kids happy. Sometimes that's what being a grownup is all about. 

[tjgett]

 I just made the Thai red beef curry from the W30 cookbook...and it was amazing, even the kids ate it! We will be making this again.

50andstillhere: My first W30, I messed up on Day 1! I accidentally ate a piece of my kids' pasta without even thinking. So I started over. Then I messed up around Day 15 by popping a piece of candy in my mouth without thinking! So I started over. Then about 2 1/2 weeks into that, I got really sick with the flu. For 3 days I ate almost nothing, just a few grapes and an apple. But there was no way I was going to start over..again!! So my first round lasted about 6 weeks. You can do this!!

I've been thinking a lot about my reintroduction, and really only want to introduce what I've been missing, which is rice and beans (and maybe red wine). I've found when doing these W30s, I tend to eat way more meat than I normally do because I don' t like many veggies. That totally contributes to my food fatigue. Even with all the meat, I still feel better than when not doing a W30, and would like to be one of those people that can eat this way 80% of the time. I usually slide back into old habits, so I'm hoping that I can make it last this time. Good luck everyone!

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[Lady49er]

It made me laugh when @tjgett described a couple of setbacks by mindlessly popping a piece of non-compliance into her mouth because I've come so close to doing the same thing. What mom doesn't lick that little bit of peanut butter and jelly that accidentally gets onto her fingers or the plate when making the kiddos their PB&J sandwiches? Oh, come on ... you know you do! So I've had to be very mindful of that and fi

[HopingtoHeal]

On 10/1/2017 at 4:29 PM, Lady49er said:

Oh, @HopingtoHeal, what a tough time for you! It truly is heartbreaking when you want a child so badly and everyone else around you is having them and all you read about in the news is people who have abandoned or abused their sweet babies. I hope you and your husband will soon be able to come to peace with a decision and have success with it.  My husband and I decided to foster and adopt our two (I do have a biological child from my first marriage, who is now an amazing adult contributor to society), and while it admittedly isn't the same as experiencing giving birth, it is still an awesome honor to be called their mother. 

Thanks @Lady49er, we've had another couple of pregnancy announcements come in this week too so it's been another tough week. I think it's like you say, it's having peace with a decision, and at the moment I am not sure when we draw the line and head down the adoption route, I guess when the time is right then we'll know.

So my plans for reintroduction are to follow the fast track idea of trying something, taking 2 days back on w30 and then trying the next. The only things I am looking to reintroduce at this point are peanuts (peanut butter is so much cheaper!), sourdough bread from whole foods (or similar freshly baked to avoid preservatives), cheddar cheese and red wine. I won't be having these things often but I think doing the proper reintroduction to see how I react would be a good thing. In time I may well try wholegrain pasta as well but I'm not in a rush for that and would like to try the bread just on its own because I think sometimes our bodies will react to one version of something but not another. I'm keen to know the specific foods that cause me issues. We do have a night away booked for the 20th so I also need to be mindful of that, I may save peanuts until a later date and just get bread, cheese and wine reintroduced as I think they are the most likely groups for our night away!

I think I am keen on 80/20 like @madness mentions. That is where I was at before we went off on holiday and I have seen the difference it makes when I go any more than 20% off plan. Glad to report that this round of w30, as hard as I've found it, seems to have restored some hormonal balance again and this whole thing has made me realise just how much my body suffers when I choose sugar, dairy and gluten too often - don't get me wrong, I had a great time on holiday and I don't regret it necessarily, but good to know how long I can expect my body to take to reset.

And I am with you all on the having to be mindful so as not to eat something by accident! I had a dream the other night that I ate a chocolate and then as soon as I had swallowed it I had a total meltdown! Thank goodness I woke up!

30 days nearly done! Well done to all who are nearing the end. And well done also to those back at the beginning for having the strength to go back to the start and prioritise health over convenience!

[Sytera]

I really like this article on RobbWolf.com and it got me doing lots of thinking: https://robbwolf.com/2013/07/11/9010-8020-4060-whats-paleo-percentage/. I thought it was worth sharing since we are all headed towards reintroduction soon and some are considering Paleo and percentages.

i spent the evening making dozens of chocolates and muffins for our sons. Even with good-sized Whole30 meals, three growing boys go through a lot of snacks. The muffins are toasted coconut banana bread paleo muffins and the chocolate is three ingredients (coconut oil, maple syrup, and pure dark cocoa powder). I got both all over my hands, especially when putting the chocolate into Star Wars ice cube molds. Luckily I was wearing a stained chore shirt and just wiped my fingers off immediately every time. A dirty shirt is well worth staying on track for the last four days!

My husband bought a glucose meter- simply out of curiosity- back in April. Back then I was eating my old normal way and weighed at least ten pounds more than now (I lost ten in August). I tested my fasting glucose a handful of times. It was, on average, 93. We ran out of strips and I didn't test again until yesterday morning: 73!!! This morning was 74! I don't know what the scale will say Wednesday or what foods I will and won't be able to eat again, but I do know my body is healing and getting healthier! 

[HopingtoHeal]

Day 29! We're nearly there!!! All the best for the last few meals folks!

[Lady49er]

At last! MiniMe and I are on Day 30! But rather than this being the end, we see it as a new beginning. I'm almost scared to go back to the real world of food.

We've joked about eating cookies and drinking pumpkin spice lattes every day, but I know that all of the things we've learned about ourselves and food will keep us from doing that. The weird thing is that I think we've thrived rather than feeling deprived. it's nice to know we can have treats if we want to, but we aren't going forward and sabotaging all we've achieved.

Tomorrow we add dairy, and MiniMe is so excited to have tacos (no shells) with cheese and sour cream. I've also got a gift and card to give her telling her how proud I am of her strength and resolve and thanking her for doing this with me. I seriously couldn't have done it without her.

So, now we know we can go to parties and not have to stuff our faces with junk, but we can have a treat or two guilt-free. We'll eat better knowing it's possible and easy, and I'm so in love with homemade mayo I'm never going back!  

Most of you have one more day, and I hope we can still stick together for encouragement and support through reintroduction and beyond. I can't believe it's been just a little over a month since we all took the first step to commit to this!!! Yay!!!!

[Sytera]

I just had my new favorite lunch: mixed greens, diced cherry tomatoes, homemade vinaigrette, grilled burger patty, fried butternut squash, all topped with a fried fresh egg. I will be eating it regularly after this is over. One meal left! I am making it a good one and grilling ribs from our homegrown pigs.

[HopingtoHeal]

Day 31 for me and I lost a total of 6.5cm from round my middle this round which means that since I started my first round of Whole30 in June I have lost a total of 21.5cm!!

Today I reintroduced gluten containing grains - freshly baked sourdough from whole foods market and some wholewheat spaghetti. I was glad not to see my belly bloat up (which happened instantaneously after eating rice in reintro for round 1) but I have felt a bit heavy today in my tummy, and I know my body has struggled to digest it. I am craving being back in Whole30 eating tomorrow!!! I am sure I will have bread from time to time because I do enjoy it but it won't be often and pasta just didn't feel worth it tonight! 

How's reintro going for others who've made it to that stage?

[Sytera]

Day 31 here, too, and I had sugar today in the form of maple syrup. It was in my homemade chocolates that I had a few of as well as the hard chocolate sauce I put on my banana hazelnut ice cream. I think I overdid it though on the calories since I had them as snacks and am also craving tomorrow's Whole30 routine. Three meals a day with a light snack might work but a heavy snack like I did today is just too much.

i didn't do measurements before I started but I did weigh. I lost 9.8 lbs! Only 3.8 to my goal now and as long as I don't have days like today (which wasn't awful but I know now that my snack choice is too heavy) I should hit it with not too much trouble. 

[Healthgrab]

Hi to all, I just want to say good luck to all who are still starting the program.

[Lady49er]

Wow! You really had some significant results, @HopingtoHeal and @Sytera! Congratulations! We don't even own a scale, so I'm not sure how MiniMe did, but Sissy has a doctor's appointment next week, so I'll ask them to weigh MiniMe also. I don't think I did anything significant on the outside because I don't exercise. I've still got belly and underarm flab, but I kind of feel lighter because there is no joint pain and there is zero struggle in zipping jeans. I'm sure that staying the course 5 days a week once we're finished with reintroduction  and being judicious about portions and choices on the other 2 days will continue to give slow but steady results. It took 21 years to put this weight on, so it won't all come off in just a few weeks. I just love not feeling like crap all the time. 

As much as we looked forward to having things added back onto our plates, we are weirdly comfortable with still eating on plan. It's the new normal, I suppose. 

Dairy was added on Tuesday, and MiniMe did well, but I think it may have been what caused my knee pain, which was non-existent during the 30 days. So I can deal with almond milk and having less cheese in order to keep my knee from hurting, but I'm not giving up having one Haägen Dazs bar per week and a couple of pumpkin chai lattes per week. They're worth it.

Tomorrow we'll add grain (and probably in a gluten form) because it's pizza day at school and MiniMe has given up soooooo much pizza during the 30 days. And my husband is going to take me to my favorite pizza place for lunch, where I will face plant into a pepperoni pizza. But I'll only eat 2 pieces. :-) We'll likely also do white rice at dinner... sushi is one thing I've REALLY missed! 

Full disclosure: I found out last night that MiniMe apparently ate non-compliant items a couple of days ago. A girl in her class is having a birthday party and made it a point to tell MiniMe that she isn't being invited. Then she told her that she would invite her if MiniMe ate dirt. What. The. Hell. And to make matters worse, my otherwise strong little girl did it!!  Then the girl told her she also had to eat grass, which scares me to death because they spray the grounds with weed killer. I'm so heartbroken over how this girl is treating my daughter, and disturbed by the fact that my little one would demean and endanger herself just to be accepted by that evil brat. I'll be meeting with the teacher after school today. Meanwhile, I hope MiniMe sticks to eating what I packed in her lunch ... no dirt and no grass.

[HopingtoHeal]

20 hours ago, Lady49er said:

Wow! You really had some significant results, @HopingtoHeal and @Sytera! Congratulations! We don't even own a scale, so I'm not sure how MiniMe did, but Sissy has a doctor's appointment next week, so I'll ask them to weigh MiniMe also. I don't think I did anything significant on the outside because I don't exercise. I've still got belly and underarm flab, but I kind of feel lighter because there is no joint pain and there is zero struggle in zipping jeans. I'm sure that staying the course 5 days a week once we're finished with reintroduction  and being judicious about portions and choices on the other 2 days will continue to give slow but steady results. It took 21 years to put this weight on, so it won't all come off in just a few weeks. I just love not feeling like crap all the time. 

As much as we looked forward to having things added back onto our plates, we are weirdly comfortable with still eating on plan. It's the new normal, I suppose. 

Dairy was added on Tuesday, and MiniMe did well, but I think it may have been what caused my knee pain, which was non-existent during the 30 days. So I can deal with almond milk and having less cheese in order to keep my knee from hurting, but I'm not giving up having one Haägen Dazs bar per week and a couple of pumpkin chai lattes per week. They're worth it.

Tomorrow we'll add grain (and probably in a gluten form) because it's pizza day at school and MiniMe has given up soooooo much pizza during the 30 days. And my husband is going to take me to my favorite pizza place for lunch, where I will face plant into a pepperoni pizza. But I'll only eat 2 pieces. :-) We'll likely also do white rice at dinner... sushi is one thing I've REALLY missed! 

Full disclosure: I found out last night that MiniMe apparently ate non-compliant items a couple of days ago. A girl in her class is having a birthday party and made it a point to tell MiniMe that she isn't being invited. Then she told her that she would invite her if MiniMe ate dirt. What. The. Hell. And to make matters worse, my otherwise strong little girl did it!!  Then the girl told her she also had to eat grass, which scares me to death because they spray the grounds with weed killer. I'm so heartbroken over how this girl is treating my daughter, and disturbed by the fact that my little one would demean and endanger herself just to be accepted by that evil brat. I'll be meeting with the teacher after school today. Meanwhile, I hope MiniMe sticks to eating what I packed in her lunch ... no dirt and no grass.

We don't own scales either! I have no idea what weight I am or what weight I started as!

that is so awful about the child at school, your poor Minime, I hope you get a good response from the school, behaviour like that is so unacceptable!

we seem to have done our reintro's in the reverse of each other, I am on dairy tomorrow, not sure how i'm doing it yet, might try some plain yoghurt and then def some cheddar cheese but how they fit in terms of meals I'm not sure yet! It's funny I spent the whole of the 30 days dreaming of bread and pizza and my one day with sourdough and I feel like that has been totally broken cause I've remembered it makes me feel rubbish!

[Lady49er]

Thank you, @Sytera... the conversation with the teacher went very well, and she is very concerned about the situation with this girl. The fact that it has become physical (bullying MiniMe and another little girl into eating grass and dirt, which is very dangerous and could cause serious damage because of fertilizer and pesticides on the grounds) means that it will now go to the principal to handle once the teacher does some investigating. It might get sticky because her grandma is a teacher at that school. But the principal is very smart and fair, so I'm hoping it will be resolved soon. 

The day we've been waiting for is here: PIZZA! Oh, I mean "grain". And it's going to have to be gluten grain because MiniMe's school cafeteria's pizza crust probably isn't gluten free. I really feel like this will be where we see the most negative aspects. First, almost all the foods that contain grain (especially those with gluten) happen to be the "food with no brakes" items for both of us. Bread baskets at the restaurant, cookies of all kinds, chips, rice (Mmmmm! Sushi!), and breakfast cereals are likely the biggest culprits in our Journey To Larger Size Clothing. Next, my eldest daughter's veterinarian told her that the sagging belly of her cat is known as "corn belly" thanks to the copious amounts of that grain found in commercial pet food. Once she found a dry cat food that didn't have corn, her cat slimmed down.  So I have no doubt it affects humans the same way. As with all of the other things we've eliminated during the 30 day reset, those foods we choose to bring back will be eaten with far more clarity, intention, and discretion. 

You know, @Sytera, I totally agree. The reintroduction days we dreamed about are sort of anticlimactic. I wonder if it's because our minds were reset while we were resetting the rest of us. Do you anticipate any other groups being problematic besides grain? How are you going to handle that going forward? Will you still be indulging in pizza or something special in a limited quantity or does the way it make you feel just not make it worth the splurge?  

I look back on that first shopping trip I took to buy compliant ingredients and how I longingly passed the cookie and soft drink aisles and literally sat and cried in the the middle of the aisle where the dizzying array of coconut milk cans were displayed, and now I go to the store for specific items and that's it! Even if I end up walking down the cookie aisle because it's the most direct route to the checkstand, it doesn't even faze me anymore. I walked through the bakery section of a store last night and took in the sights and smells of all the goodies that come with Fall (I'm part of that white-girls-who-love-all-things-pumpkin-spice cult), and as wonderful as they looked and smelled, nothing grabbed me as a "gotta have" item. I just enjoyed seeing and smelling them. I can see the pumpkin spice mini scones making it into my shopping bag some day soon though. LOL! 

[50andstillhere]

It sounds like everyone is doing a good job reintroducing food groups. Here is my question - if I experience gas with dairy isnit also a sign that it is doing more damage inside me, other than just the gas. (Sorry about being so graphic )?

also- I know that cheddar cheese doesn't ageee with me  does that mean all cheeses are off limits? I have arthritis in my hands  it has improved but not gone 100%..

 

 

 

 

[HopingtoHeal]

Great news on how supportive the school are being @Lady49er, and rightly so! How was pizza?

I ended up skipping cheese and giving flatbread a go - when I went to buy some cheese at the supermarket I just realised I didn't want it - this is HUGE for me, especially because dairy is meant to be especially bad for PCOS. I decided trying another kind of bread in a lesser quantity was a worthwhile endeavour and it did go down better. I actually wonder if my body is missing whole grains a bit because I've been really cold, had brain fog, not sleeping well which makes me think there's a deficiency somewhere? I'm seeing the doc a week on wed so hopefully he can give me some answers!

As for diet going ahead I think it will be mostly Whole30 but with occasional dips into grains and I know I will eat cheese again - most likely only at special occasions and only really good stuff! I discovered after round one when out for dinner at friends I get a hangover the day following a lot of dairy (she had cooked a meal that had cream in ever course!!!) so it's got to be special to be worth it!

Definitely keen for input from my doc before making any definite long term plans because this round I definitely haven't felt well, and I'm experiencing almost like a hangover the day after the gym which is no use!!!