Kirbz's Whole30 Log

[kirbz]

ROUND 3, Day 24: Wednesday, September 25

Meal 1: none

Meal 2: large portion of chicken shawarma; ~1/2 cup of baba ganoush; ~3/4 cup of tabbouleh

Meal 3: two sweet potato salmon patties; bowl of cauliflower bone broth soup

Water Intake: ~80 oz 

Symptoms/NSVs:

• clear skin (I saw my reflection in the mirror and thought that I really like the way my skin is looking these days) 

Thoughts/Reflections: I had a bit of a tummy ache after eating my delicious shawarma and baba ganoush, so the meal likely had something in it that wasn’t compliant. Oh well, I did the best I could to ask the right questions.

Otherwise, I spent the evening at a bookstore and it was lovely. I came home with a new fantasy book series that I’m excited to read! 

[kirbz]

ROUND 3, Day 25: Thursday, September 26

Meal 1: none

Meal 2: two sweet potato salmon patties; bowl of zucchini bone broth soup

Meal 3: BBQ chicken wings; asparagus cooked in avocado oil;  

Water Intake: ~80 oz 

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: I’m back home now and plan to eat three full meals each day through the rest of my Whole30. Who knew that would be such a struggle?

[kirbz]

I do a health biometric screening each year and just received my results. I thought it would be helpful to post them here. These were taken on Day 25 of my Whole30, on Thursday, September 26. 

• Glucose: 73 (normal) 
• LDL Cholesterol: 96 (normal) 
• HDL Cholesterol: 39 (low!)
• Triglycerides: 48 (normal)
• Cholesterol/HDL Ratio: 3.8 (normal) 
• Total Cholesterol: 149 (normal) 
• Blood Pressure: 111/63 (normal) 
• BMI: 29 (high!) 

I'm not sure what the low HDL cholesterol means and what I can do about it so I'll have to look into that. Perhaps I'll actually take advantage of my free annual physical exam this year and have my numbers re-tested in December. 

 

[kirbz]

ROUND 3, Day 26: Friday, September 27

Meal 1: four scrambled eggs with a splash of coconut milk cooked in leftover bacon fat; two slices of bacon; large bowl of cauliflower bone broth soup; small glass of orange juice

Meal 2: seven BBQ chicken wings; three dill pickle spears; GT’s Gingerade kombucha

Meal 3: huge slice of zucchini lasagna

Water Intake: ~80 oz 

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: Three full meals! That’s all I got…  

[kirbz]

ROUND 3, Day 27: Saturday, September 28

Meal 1: three scrambled eggs with a splash of coconut milk cooked in leftover bacon fat

Meal 2: pulled pork cooked with BBQ sauce; can of sliced potatoes cooked in ghee; small head of steamed broccoli

Meal 3: none (I had a tummy ache)  

Snack: chamomile tea

Water Intake: ~60 oz 

Symptoms/NSVs:

• evening tummy ache

Thoughts/Reflections: We went and saw It Chapter 2 this evening. I had planned to eat some lasagna before leaving but fell asleep. So I went to the theater hungry. It was kind of hard being there, but not that hard. I wasn’t really tempted to eat anything. I did, however, fantasize about toast and jam on the way home. I continue to miss delicious convenience food and know that will be the biggest hurdle to overcome when I’m done with this.

And then when I got home from the theater, I had a pretty bad tummy ache. I didn't feel like eating at all, so I had some chamomile tea and went to bed. 

[kirbz]

ROUND 3, Day 28: Sunday, September 29

Meal 1: three over-easy eggs cooked in leftover bacon fat; two slices of bacon; served over spiralized sweet potato and russet potato cooked in ghee with seasonings

Meal 2: large slice of zucchini lasagna  

Meal 3: grilled ribeye steak with seasoning; one half spinach and artichoke twice baked potato  

Water Intake: ~60 oz 

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: Well, I’m almost there. This one didn’t feel particularly hard. Well, I guess it wasn’t hard for me to stay committed anyway. I was never really tempted to go off plan. In other ways, it was hard.

I’m not sure what I want to do when I’m done. I won’t do formal reintroductions. I’ve already done those. I think I’ll probably try to generally stay within the guidelines of Whole30 eating but I’ll relax on the sauces and condiments. I miss real ranch dressing. I miss my favorite BBQ sauce. And I’ll probably have some banana bread. Because, yum!

I go back and forth as to whether or not I want to try and bring desserts back into my life in a more controlled manner. I probably will. But I think I’ll try a Paleo version of the desserts I love and I think I’ll wait until I lose some more weight…

On another note, I'm going to try and bring back some exercise this week. I quite literally have not done a thing since I climbed Bear Creek Spire... Oops. 

[kirbz]

A couple of things to note: 

• I had Advil over the course of two or three days on my period, starting on Day 17
• I had Natural Calm before bed on Day 26; my legs were feeling restless so I had some Natural Calm, read and wandered for a bit, and then went back to bed and slept fine 

[kirbz]

ROUND 3, Day 29: Monday, September 30

Meal 1: none

Snack: Gaia Herbs Liver Cleanse tea  

Meal 2: large slice of zucchini lasagna  

Meal 3: large chicken grilled with BBQ sauce; two halves spinach and artichoke twice baked potatoes  

Water Intake: ~60 oz 

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: One more day to go!

[kirbz]

ROUND 3, Day 30: Tuesday, October 1

Meal 1: none

Meal 2: large chicken grilled with BBQ sauce; two halves spinach and artichoke twice baked potatoes  

Meal 3: pulled pork cooked with BBQ sauce; large bowl of zucchini bone broth soup

Water Intake: ~60 oz 

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: Done! I had hoped to end on a stronger note (i.e., with three delicious meals), but here I am. I wasn’t going for perfect this round. I was going for sustainable and this is what I ended up with. Which may not actually be sustainable because I’m really not eating enough food. So, that’s kind of crappy…  

[kirbz]

ROUND 3 RESULTS

Alright, I’m done! I think I’m going to immediately transition into living my food freedom. I’ve already done formal reintroductions and generally understand how foods affect me so I don’t need those data points. I really just want this to become a sustainable lifestyle change, so I’m going to give food freedom a try right away. More on that later. For now, here are my scale and non-scale victories!

NSVs:

• Healthier relationship with food
• In control of my cravings and my food choices
• Improved physical performance (I'm convinced I could not have done Bear Creek Spire without this) 
• Lower resting heart rate (upper 60s to lower 50s)
• Clearer, glowing skin with fewer blemishes
• Leaner appearance and flatter tummy 
• Less painful joints 
• More nutrition in my diet 
• Stronger commitment to and belief in a healthier lifestyle (I'm convinced I cannot do the physical activities I want without better nutrition)

Weight Loss: 13.4 lbs

More thoughts to come later! I’m still processing…

[kirbz]

I’ve thought a lot about what I want my food freedom to look like. And I guess it looks like this.

I want to eat whole foods the vast majority of the time. For me, that means I want to essentially eat a slightly relaxed variation of Whole30 most of the time. By relaxed, I mean I can have BBQ sauce with honey and molasses in it because that’s my all-time favorite BBQ sauce. And maybe I can sometimes have banana bread for breakfast because I really don’t love eating so much meat and because I really, really like it.

I want to have desserts in my life. In the past, I had said I could maybe never do that because I’m an abstainer and not a moderator. But, I want to have desserts in my life. So, I think I’m going to try just having Paleo desserts. Or at least desserts NOT made with refined sugar. Because that stuff is messed up.

I want to be able to eat off-plan foods when they’re worth it. I don’t intend to have them in the house. I don’t intend to eat them a lot. But, if I’m out with friends or if I feel like a slice of pizza, I want to have that. I don’t want to resort to those foods simply for convenience.

But that brings me to my biggest concern about all of this. I don’t know if I can do this forever. It’s just so much work. I found myself not eating way too often because it was just too much of a pain in the a** to have food to eat. And I hate Whole30 convenience foods. That Chipotle meal, though I’ve eaten it a number of times, makes me gag. On-the-go foods like Chomps and RXBars aren’t all that great either. Those frozen meals sound awful. A Big Mac on the other hand is delicious!

So, I’ll keep trying. But, to be honest, I may very well find myself here again because this is hard for me. But, that will just be me trying…

[kirbz]

ROUND 3 FOOD FREEDOM, Day 1: Wednesday, October 2

Foods Reintroduced Today: peanuts, soy (tofu), white rice  

How I Felt: I had a mild tummy ache after lunch and I felt full for a very long time. It’s so much easier to overeat on stuff like rice. Otherwise, it wasn’t bad at all. I hope it doesn’t trigger any additional cravings over the next few days.

Thoughts/Reflections: I had a special occasion lunch with a new hire and she wanted to eat Thai. After looking at the menu, I decided that the yellow curry was most likely 100% compliant. But I also decided that I wanted something more. So I ordered and ate the fresh rolls and the rice too. It was really as simple as that and I enjoyed every bite.

That being said, I have no reason not to eat healthy, whole foods again for the next few days, so it’s back to Whole30 at least until the weekend. I need to ease very slowly into this food freedom thing so I don’t go off the rails. I also want to make sure the food I eat today didn’t trigger new cravings.

Exercise (1 hour, 5 minutes): mild vinyasa yoga (71 average HR; 105 max HR)  

[kirbz]

ROUND 3 FOOD FREEDOM, Day 2-6: Thursday, October 3 to Monday, October 7 

Foods Reintroduced Today: cheese, crackers, salami, sprouted tortillas, sour cream, peanut butter, strawberry white chocolate mousse cake  

How I Felt: I had some very mild stomach upset but nothing significant. I definitely craved peanut butter after I ate it and then proceeded to eat half a larger jar over the course of three days. 

Thoughts/Reflections: I don't regret any of my food choices. I absolutely LOVE cheese, crackers, and salami as an outdoor snack and it made a wonderful crag treat. We enjoyed fish tacos for dinner and I loved preparing them in my favorite way and I loved eating every darn bite. And then I had planned to go back to being fully compliant on Monday but we had a birthday celebration with a cake from a delicious local bakery, so I had some. I don't regret it, but I will carefully monitor my sugar cravings over the next couple of days. That decision, while I don't regret it, definitely cements my commitment to eating Whole30 for the rest of the week.

This will be a good test of my food freedom. So, here we go! 

Exercise (58 minutes): 2.17-mile hike with 446 feet of elevation gain (92 average HR; 136 max HR) 

Exercise (1 hour, 48 minutes): outdoor toprope climbing with 2.06-mile hike (102 average HR; 162 max HR) 

[Angelia]

On ‎10‎/‎2‎/‎2019 at 8:39 PM, kirbz said:

But that brings me to my biggest concern about all of this. I don’t know if I can do this forever. It’s just so much work. I found myself not eating way too often because it was just too much of a pain in the a** to have food to eat.

My daughter did W30 with me and these where her thoughts exactly.  I live way out in the county and have lots of food in the kitchen and more of a routine for cooking and packing, but she lives in town, has a full and part time job, a big active dog and an busy, fun husband and social life.  She would find herself just not eating because eating W30 was too much trouble, and she lost 17 lb.  I actually ate A LOT more in calories and volume during W30 and still lost 4 lb.  But she is really struggling to sustain.  I am not struggling at all because all I had to due was change the foods I was buying at the grocery store.  I don't have any suggestions or solutions for you  other than to say that she and I understand and commiserate!

[kirbz]

@Angelia Thanks for your comment! It's always nice to know that there are others out there who can relate. I'm still committed to making this a lifestyle change, but yeah, it's hard. I definitely haven't been in a routine of cooking regularly and with long work hours, a ridiculous commute, two active pups, and time-consuming weekend hobbies, it's hard to fit it all in! But, without healthier eating, I won't be able to do the things I love for very long, so it's worth it! 

My friend told me yesterday that research shows that your body can start the aging process as early as your thirties. If you're active and healthy, it starts in your forties and the rate of aging slows by half! So if I stay active and healthy, I can shave off twenty years of aging by the time I'm like 65! That's totally worth it! 

[kirbz]

ROUND 3 FOOD FREEDOM, Day 7-9: Tuesday, October 8 to Thursday, October 10

Well, despite my noble intentions of returning to Whole30 eating this week, I've continued to eat off-plan foods every day this week. Which isn't ideal, but life is a bit of a mess right now, so I'm doing what I can. I've felt more tired than usual, but have otherwise have not had any ill-effects from my food choices. And I have been thoughtful about my food choices even though they haven't been ideal. Oh, and I've enjoyed them! Let's not forgot that... 

Tuesday: miso soup, two sushi rolls

Wednesday: rice, hummus, Middle Eastern bread 

Thursday: shrimp spring roll with peanut sauce, pho 

[kirbz]

Alright, I'm back again. I willfully returned to a very SAD way of eating in response to a bad breakup. I'm not sure what it says for my health mindset that I conscientiously did that, but I did. It was comforting and easy to have cereal and pizza and ice cream during a very difficult and stressful and sad time.

But, here I am again. The plan is to do another Whole30 before Thanksgiving, to fully indulge during the holiday at home, and then return to a Whole30-ish, long-term way of eating. Thanksgiving though, 100% worth the indulgence! 

[hollysmokes]

Hey@kirbz so sorry to hear that you had to go through that but glad you're back. Is today Day 1? Good luck and I hope tiger blood finds you quickly!

[kirbz]

Thanks @hollysmokes, that's very kind of you. It's been very difficult but it was most definitely for the best and I know things will be better. For now, I'm focusing more on me and health and fitness are once again going to be a very big part of that! Today is now Day 2. I should finish just in time to indulge in Thanksgiving goodness! LOL. I hope all is well for you! 

[hollysmokes]

Good for you. Lot's of self love!

[kirbz]

ROUND 4, Day 1: Monday, October 28  

Meal 1: ~2 cups breakfast eggroll in a bowl with sausage

Meal 2: large grilled chicken breast served over cauliflower rice with a generous portion of Primal Kitchen Teriyaki sauce; ½ avocado

Exercise (1 hour, 10 minutes): vinyasa yoga (84 average HR; 118 max HR) 

Meal 3: blueberry RxBar  

Water Intake: ~60 oz 

Steps: 7,572

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: Here’s to another round! As with my last round, my focus will continue to be long-term sustainability. So, this will not be a perfect Whole30 and that’s okay.

As an improvement on my last round, I want to drink more water and to be more consistent with my day-to-day activity. I did lots of big activities on my last round, but wasn’t so great with the day-to-day activity. So, I think I’ll also try for 10,000 steps a day and 100 oz of water, though those goals will have to start on Day 2 because I didn’t make either of them today!

[kirbz]

ROUND 4, Day 2: Tuesday, October 29

Snack: Gaia Herbs Liver Cleanse tea with Primal Kitchen collagen peptides

Meal 1: ~1 cup breakfast eggroll in a bowl with sausage (I just couldn’t eat any more than that)

Movement (40 minutes): lunchtime walk (flat, neighborhood terrain)

Meal 2: large grilled chicken breast served over cauliflower rice with a generous portion of Primal Kitchen Teriyaki sauce; ~1 cup steamed broccoli

Meal 3: grilled sirloin steak with spicy seasoning; can of sliced potatoes pan-fried in a generous amount of ghee

Water Intake: ~100 oz 

Steps: 12,395

Symptoms/NSVs:

• woke up with a sligtht headache
• slightly constipated

Thoughts/Reflections: Just another day of Whole30…

[kirbz]

ROUND 4, Day 3: Wednesday, October 30

Meal 1: bowl of zucchini bone broth soup

Meal 2: grilled trout marinated in garlic oil; fingerling tomatoes marinated in garlic oil; broccolini

Meal 3: two round steaks cooked in whole tomatoes; large baked potato with ghee and salt

Water Intake: ~60 oz 

Steps: 6,511

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: Well, so much for 100 oz of water and 10,000 steps every day. Oops.

Regardless, I still feel good about what I’m doing. I’m doing this for health and for me and it isn’t perfect and it won’t be perfect but I’m trying. And I’m trying amidst massive stressors related to a bad breakup. So this is a win no matter how it goes down and I’m proud of myself

[kirbz]

ROUND 4, Day 4: Thursday, October 31

Meal 1: none  

Meal 2: a few bites of leftovers (I had an unexpected personal situation I had to deal with)

Movement (20 minutes): neighorhood walk with the pup (flat trail terrain)

Meal 3: two round steaks cooked in whole tomatoes; large baked potato with ghee and salt

Water Intake: ~60 oz 

Steps: 9,437

Supplements: Natural Calm in a glass of water before bed

Symptoms/NSVs:

• slight constipation (i.e., couldn’t poop today, despite feeling the need)

Thoughts/Reflections: Today sucked and it’s over now. That’s all I’ll say here.

[kirbz]

ROUND 4, Day 5: Friday, November 1

Meal 1: four scrambled eggs cooked in leftover bacon fat with salt and pepper; two slices of bacon; large bowl of caulfiwloer bone broth soup   

Movement (40 minutes): morning neighorhood walk with the pup (flat trail terrain)

Movement (30 minutes): lunchtime neighorhood walk with the pup (flat trail terrain)

Meal 2: piece of grilled salmon with spices and BBQ sauce; grilled aspargus with avocado oil and spices; whole avocado; strawberry kombucha

Meal 3: two small top sirloin steaks; baked potato with ghee and salt

Water Intake: ~80 oz 

Steps: 15,847

Symptoms/NSVs:

• none

Thoughts/Reflections: I felt unreasonably full after breakfast, which is kind of odd because that’s a breakfast I had eaten many times before on Whole30. Overall though, this was a good day.  

And now I’m off to a backpacking adventure for the next two days! I’m really going to miss my cheese, crackers, and salami and my peanut butter M&M summit snacks!