100 Days of Awesome "Whole 100" Group Log

[Keiki25]

I'm ready to join you all tomorrow ready or not. I was hoping to be more "ready" than "not" but the flu has knocked me on my arse since Friday and thrown a wrench into my planning. But maybe this will make all of the "detox side effects" more tolerable since I already feel pretty awful...

Aside from anticipating feeling crummy at first (which gives me tremendous anxiety) I am most anxious about not having enough time to prep/cook/etc. since on a lot of days I hardly have time to eat. Also, I'm from a small(er) town and I imagine that a lot of the things I will need foodwise will have to be ordered online. Needless to say, easy will not be any part of this for me.

My goal for this W100 is to follow it as strictly as possible in order to get some good feedback on my body and the way it interacts with certain foods. I would love to be able to sleep soundly again as well as reclaim my brain. If I could just get myself to feel as though I'm firing on all cylinders I will be happy.

[Koneill12]

SO excited this group has so many committed peeps! I am very apprehensive and have a lot of fear of failure but I am ready to DO THIS. Yesterday I made a whole chicken in the crock pot with gravy (Nom Nom Paleo iPad app recipe) and I have lots of fruits and veg on hand. Going out with a bang tonight with some champagne, wine, caviar plus a nice homemade dinner. But honestly, I cannot WAIT for this to begin. I feel gross and am dying to lose the bloat and start sleeping like a champ again. I have been having a protracted goodbye with my lovah, (he goes by the name of "Wine") this last couple of weeks. Looking forward to coming here for support (and hopefully providing some, too). Cheers, and happy new year!

[ccmac73]

Hi! My name is Caitlin- and I am IN!!!

I have been planning my Whole 181, the entire month of December.

I did a Whole 30 in September and felt great! But once I stopped I quickly went down hill... got a severe cold (requiring antibiotics), trouble sleeping and some how my 7 month old daughter has stopped sleeping during the night, weight gain, feel crappy, etc...

So, I decided that I would NOT stress myself during the holiday time and just plan and plan - my come back!

My primary goal during this time is to feel in control...of my body, my household, my creative pursuits and my future. This is why I decided to do a full six months.

I don't see this as a quick fix, a diet or fad. I see this as tool I can use to get me where I NEED to be...clear and present in my life.

A little bit about me

I am stay home mom of 2 great kids. Charlie is a 5 yr old spit fire-always willing to debate the other side. Arden is a 7 month old adventurous little girl, who has already started walking AAHH!!

I work part time at a bookstore so that, I can keep my sanity :-) .

My husband Sean is amazing - always willing to support what I choose to do.

I wish I could say that my time as a stay at home mom has been a rosy wonderful experience , but it hasn't. It's not that I don't cherish my time I have had, but I just didn't know that I would completely lose my identity in the caring for others.

This is why I have decided to give this gift to myself. Jan 6 is my 40th birthday and I want to give myself the best gift of all...allowing myself to be selfish and focus on me!

I know some will say "your not being selfish taking care of yourself" and your right, it's not. It just took me this long to figure it out. That it is OK to make "me" a priority.

So, I started out talking about my planning. Here is what I have done

made a breakfast casserole that will last me 2 wks- will freeze half

made a stuffed cabbage casserole

Hardboiled eggs

Bone broth - used to make soup tomorrow

Involved Charlie with decisions about "his" food choices he has this week - will be prepping his cut up veg , scrambled eggs and cooked bacon that will be waiting fridge for him

Put on the calender- my scheduled workouts, food shopping trips, and big batch cooking - we live by the calender...if it is not there - it does not exist.

Created a chore chart for everyone in the family - Charlie is in charge of putting star stickers on it each night, keeping us all accountable (yeah! its not all on me:-)

I am really looking forward to this new adventure! I can't wait to start!

Thank you all, in advance, for support!

Can't wait to see what happens!!!

[1Maryann]

This is going to be awesome! I want to go back and count how many fabulous people have committed to this.

Keiki25--don't sweat it, just jump right in! Even in a small town you can get most of what you need. Yes, the extras you can order online will widen your options, but you can start with fresh meats, fruits and veggies, if nothing else.

Koneill12--I hear ya! Feeling gross from the poor choices I have made in December, and can't wait to begin.

Caitlin--Way to get prepped, girl! I'm doing the same tonight.

So far, there's chocolate chili simmering on the stove, a beef stew in the crockpot, and a breakfast casserole in the oven. I've got a dozen hard-boiled eggs in the fridge, as well as another 2# of seasoned ground beef that I will either figure out what to do with, or freeze for another week.

I wanted to make some red and green chicken curry, but for some inexplicable reason, my favorite brand of no preservative/no stabilizer coconut milk was nowhere to be found. I went to three different stores.

If I still have any ambition when the casserole comes out of the oven, I will roast some carrots, brussels sprouts, and broccoli.

I still need to make ghee and mayo, but both of those things tend to require my full attention, so I'll probably leave them for the morning.

Right now the dogs are begging me to come hide out with them in the bedroom. The fireworks started around 7 pm, and that's the only room that doesn't have sliders, where I can draw the blinds and they can't see the flashes. The booms are scary enough. It may be Thundershirt time.

So I'm going to have a last couple of cocktails, finish the last of the non-compliant food in the fridge, and hopefully get to bed early. yeah, right! With all these explosions going off? Ha!

Happy New Year everyone, and here's to a great start! Can't wait until tomorrow.

[Lisa@SwissPaleo]

Good Morning on Day 1

I'm over here in Europe so I'm probably getting started on my day 1 while the rest of you are sleeping. I popped right out of bed at 6am full of excitement to get started.

Started my day with 2 eggs scrambled with 3 pieces of bacon, a few mushrooms, green chilis, and 2 cups of spinach. Topped the whole scramble with half an avocado. Had half a glass of my home brewed kombucha and a mug of bone broth.

And, yes, I'm drinking my coffee black. I'm off for a cross fit workout this morning and a Zombies, Run! jog after that.

Have a great Day 1 !!

[Laurieptsre]

Hi Everyone. My name is Laurie and I am looking forward to being part of this wonderful group. I did the Whole 30 January 2012 and again this last month, December 2012, so I am just going to continue for another 100 days. I have the book (which I need to reread - actually I never read the whole book) and just signed up for the daily emails. I want to take advantage of all the resources to have the best Whole 100.

I have several medical issues - both brain and body. I am currently going though antidepressant withdrawal and, somedays, it feels like living hell. I have been on them for a very long time (changing type and dosage) and my goal is to stay off them but I'm not really sure that is possible. I have felt so bad on them over the last 8 months - no motivation, no energy, no desire to participate in life. Although withdrawal is awful, I see some spark and hope in my future. My doctor does not know I've stopped taking the pills (I do not recommend tapering on you own - that's what I did, and I tapered too fast) but he will find out on Thursday.

I have a history of an eating disorder (started at age 19 and never really went away and I currentlly 49) and have body image issues. I don't need to drop weight or gain weight but I do need to drop a lot of the thoughts in my mind. I do believe the Whole (whatever number) is a great way of eating and it seems to relax my mind because I can only nourish my body with "good food". I love this way of life!

[1Maryann]

Happy New Year, everyone!

I was curious about how large this group is, so I opened another window and started listing names. So far we have:

Koneill12 (Kim)

AmyS

Aj10

Farah Lane

Karen

Mjam

cubby34

luvbnhealthy

juzbo (Justine)

Aberrantatavia (Melissa)

Karin

cpb (Caroline)

Jo-Ani Mercier

jennrider

habitualpurpose (Nina)

SarahEmily

CFholly

Wendyland (Wendy)

heathera *maybe*

shelley417 (Michelle)

kathejane (Kathe)

redjuice

slw600 (Susan)

jtandi

TurquoiseTiger

1Maryann (me!)

janice

Elleon (Noelle)

smacd

amyayers2

kitmao (Casey)

Sandzu (Sandy)

Lisa@SwissPaleo

Megan in Adelaide (Megan)

Bridget

Tiffany Precissi

janette *maybe*

Keiki25

ccmac73 (Caitlin)

Laurieptsre (Laurie)

That's 40 of us! And who knows how many more we'll pick up along the way. Good luck, everyone!

Maryann

[Tamra Wysocki-Niimi]

Hi everyone! Please add me, too! I am Tami. I'm 45 and live with my husband and three dogs in a suburb of Chicago. (My husband is supportive of my Whole30s, but he won't touch a vegetable with a ten-foot pole, so he eats his own stuff.)

I'm so excited to be a part of this group! I did my first Whole30 about a year and a half ago and it was life changing. I had been suffering from daily migraines and had tried every preventative med available. I was taking way too much of the medication that stops migraines. My neurologist wanted me to try one last possible solution: botox injections (33 shots in the head, shoulders, and neck). I felt in my body and soul that this was not a good option for me. (I'm incredibly sensitive to medication, so my response to a toxin was a scary thought!) I was doing Crossfit at the time and two of my coaches mentioned the paleo diet. I googled it and was completely confused (and a little turned off after I found one weird site that recommended replacing milk with whole cream and recommended a glass a day, erk), but then I found the Whole30 site. It sounded so reasonable and do-able. I started my first Whole30 pretty skeptically, but out of desperation as a last ditch effort to help my migraines and avoid the shots. By the second day, I knew I'd found my solution. By the end of that first Whole30, my migraines were reduced to maybe 3 per month and I had so many other benefits that I wasn't even expecting!

Since then I've done a few Wholealmost30s and a Whole45. But the problem is what happens in between. It has become clear to me that I have issues with food, especially in dealing with stress. Even though I know that high fructose corn syrup = instant migraine and foods with preservatives or other funky stuff end up building up (over about two weeks) and lead back into a daily migraine cycle, I still eat these foods --a lot of these foods. Over the past two months I've had so much stress and I've been eating like there's no tomorrow. Then, when tomorrow shows up, I feel horrible and stressed and end up continuing the cycle. Daily migraines are back.

I know that with a Whole30, I can get rid of the migraines, drop the weight, and feel better, but with this Whole100 (or maybe Whole120), I really want to learn to be mindful of my stress and find different solutions for dealing with it.

I've kept a lot of the good habits that I picked up with my first Whole30 -- I prefer black coffee now and with coconut milk, it's a treat; I love salad for breakfast; I generally get 8 hours of sleep each night; and even a Whole30 meal in the middle of a candy bar bonanza can help. I really think that a mindful Whole100/120 will help me to establish better patterns for dealing with my stress. And I really need to restore my overall health after these past few months of chowing down.

I've really enjoyed reading everyone's info here and I'm looking forward to our Whole100 adventure together. Thanks!! Off to kitchen for my breakfast salad now!

[Koneill12]

Happy new year everyone -- I can't believe we have over 40 people. So glad we've all chosen to do something so good for ourselves. I slept late after a late party last night, so I'm just now having an espresso with some coconut milk. I've got leftover chocolate chili and salad planned for lunch and I'll be doing some croquettes of leftover chicken plus steamed broccoli and roasted butternut squash for dinner. It's a gorgeous day here in the bay area so I think a hike in the hills is definitely in order. I hope everyone has a wonderful 1st day of 2013 -- what an adventure we are embarking on!

[okeedokie]

Hello All,

What a wonderful idea! Thank you so much for thinking of this.

I completed a Whole30 earlier this year after struggling for the past 2 with severe health issues.

I live in Evanston, IL (near Chicago) and have a few Paleo friends.

In the past 2 years since being grain free and Paleo I have lost 33 pounds. My health is improving and is my main focus. I found that following the Whole30 the first time induced me to a better level of self care. A Whole100 would be an amazing way to bring that forward.

While I have considered this as a lifestyle for myself, I do struggle with the delvil known as POTATOES and I often forget to get vegetables in my meals.

I am going to commit to another Whole30 starting today.

I am taking this one day at a time and being gentle with myself. My ultimate goal is to eat well, sleep soundly, get healthy and live beautifully!

Today I cleaned out the cupboards. I weighed and measured myself and promptly put away my scale. I went grocery shopping and stocked the shelves with good, clean, healthy food.

I missed breakfast so I made a very hearty curried turkey vegetable soup. It was SO good. If anyone is interested in the recipe, let me know and I will post.

Good luck to us all and Happy, Happy New Year!

Linda

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom" Anais Nin

[okeedokie]

Hello All,

What a wonderful idea! Thank you so much for thinking of this.

I completed a Whole30 earlier this year after struggling for the past 2 with severe health issues.

I live in Evanston, IL (near Chicago) and have a few Paleo friends.

In the past 2 years since being grain free and Paleo I have lost 33 pounds. My health is improving and is my main focus. I found that following the Whole30 the first time induced me to a better level of self care. A Whole100 would be an amazing way to bring that forward.

While I have considered this as a lifestyle for myself, I do struggle with the delvil known as POTATOES and I often forget to get vegetables in my meals.

I am going to commit to another Whole30 starting today.

I am taking this one day at a time and being gentle with myself. My ultimate goal is to eat well, sleep soundly, get healthy and live beautifully!

Today I cleaned out the cupboards. I weighed and measured myself and promptly put away my scale. I went grocery shopping and stocked the shelves with good, clean, healthy food.

I missed breakfast so I made a very hearty curried turkey vegetable soup. It was SO good. If anyone is interested in the recipe, let me know and I will post.

Good luck to us all and Happy, Happy New Year!

Linda

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom" Anais Nin

[okeedokie]

OK, my apologies. Not sure what I did but it looks like my post showed up 3 times...yikes! We'll chalk it up to great enthusiasm over being on this Whole100 journey with all of you.

LOL!

[kitmao]

I'm starting the Whole100 out with a cold, apparently. But you know what goes good with a cold? Eating super healthy! Spicy beef and veggie soup is really doing the trick right now. Ooh, and I think I'll make this crab salad with cucumbers recipe that's in one of Mark Sisson's cookbooks for dinner.

Hope everyone is off to a great start today! Happy New Year and a happy new us everyone!

[MJam]

Day 32 for me since I am just extending my W30 into a W100. Everything is going great and I feel like I really am pushing the reset button. I had a BIA test done at the beginning on Day 1 since I wanted legit REAL data, not just a weight and I don't own a scale. I went for a second BIA today (BIA is a bioimpedance analysis which is just 2 electrodes on your hands and 2 on your feel and current is passed though your body...totally quick and painless). Well I lost 5lbs in my W30...one entire pound being fat but I also lost some muscle too (not a lot but I am not in the market to lose my precious muscle). If you are able to do a BIA I would HIGHLY recommend it. I get it done at the naturopathic clinic I go to. It gives you much more data than just a weight. It showed me that I really need to up my protein intake to not cannabalize muscle tissue (who cares if you lose weight if it's muscle you lost!)

[melbournegirl]

If we all click on follow this topic (top right) it will make it easier to count the size of our group??

[jennrider]

I was on the fence about starting today or tomorrow. So far today I have had

2 eggs with yellow bell peppers and spinach (cooked in ghee)

Lemon artichoke chicken from Practical Paleo (my fave from that book) and a tomato.

A few pecan pieces while shelling some of the 10 pounds my dad brought.

Supper is ribs with homemade sauerkraut.

Looks like today is day 1 for me. We do have some champagne that we didn't drink last night. The adults all fell asleep waiting for midnight. Thought abou having it tonight, but think I'll pass and keep on with the good eating. One cup of coffee this morning after a glass of water and breakfast. I have a slight headache and I think it's probably caffeine withdrawal. I'm going to give hot tea a try tomorrow.

[MattieRoss]

Hi everyone, please count us in! Husband and I are starting a whole30 today but we were thinking that 90 would be better. But, what the heck... put us in for 100.

We are cooking up a storm and planning lots of great meals.

Best of luck to all of us. So nice to have this log as a landing pad!

M1 eggs

M2 chicken breast, apple

Tea

M3 pork tenderloin, asparagus and spinach salad.

[Elizabeth Anne]

Hi everyone,

My name is Elizabeth, I live in Chicago, and I'm delighted to see that so many people are up for doing this thing! Yay! I'm 33 years old, live with 3 housemates and 5 cats, and would be happy to get together with others in the Chicago area if anyone is interested in an off-line support group too.

This will be my first Whole-anything. I've experimented with eating paleo/Primal in the past and have had good results from it, but it hasn't been enough. I already know that I've got dairy issues (since age 12) and wheat issues (since age 20-ish) and sugar issues (since pretty much always, probably), so taking on a challenge that addresses all three of those at once is definitely going to work me hard. I love that this group log is called "100 Days of Awesome," since I've had some moments of "this is the last time I get to eat ____ for a while" in the past few days. Reframing this undertaking into sustained awesomeness instead of sad deprivation is a huge step forward for me.

I'm officially starting tomorrow, 1/2/2013, and am clearing out the last few noncompliant things from the fridge into my dinner tonight. I do love my husband's chicken marsala, which he makes with gluten-free breadcrumbs so I can eat it, but it's nearly the anti-ISWF meal: bread crumbs and cheese and cooking wine! (Hence why one of my housemates requested it yesterday, rather than for dinner next Sunday.) Tomorrow I will probably be making a big pot of W30-compliant comfort soup, which has the added benefit of making tons of food that I can then eat at any time.

Since this'll be my first Whole-anything, my plan is to do the first 30 days in full-on, 100%-compliant W30-style, then take 10 days to do some food trials (non-gluten grains, dairy, and legumes). I hope to stay "in" on this W100 beyond that first 30 days; if the 10 days of food trials don't count, maybe I'll do a 30+30+40 and go until May 1!

We can do this, y'all. *offers a fist bump* Let's rock.

[Karen]

I have a deck of these Wisdom Cards and pull one out every now and then for an affirmation. The one I grabbed today, Day 1, is going on my bathroom mirror as I think it sums up my Whole experience: "I am willing to release the need for this condition. I take a nice, deep breath and release all resistance to healing."

I made a few meals today - sweet potato hash w/ground beef, chicken legs, mayo (for a chicken salad, yet to be made), a steak, and have a beef bone broth on the stove. My goal is to get enough food in the fridge by tomorrow night to get me through the rest of the week. I'm going to need help with veggies - I don't crave them like I do protein. I need to find ways to incorporate them into dishes as I'm not as included to make them if it's just a side of steamed/roasted/sauteed xyz.

This is my 3rd Wholexx and have been mostly paleo for a few years now, but fell off the rails completely from October - now. This is the first Wholexx where I'm thinking about all the foods I can't have at the moment. Damn those sugar demons!

[AJ10]

The day is done! This is my 5th day of clean eating and I felt really great today. So excited to get a 3 miler in too, it has been a long time for that coming:) No cravings and even made it through a movie with family eating a little off plan lol. Preparedness is definately the way to go.

I'm not very fancy with my meals quite yet but am discovering new ideas here and there.

M1 fried eggs, bell peppers/onion/tomato, sweet potato cake

M2 egg salad - oh my goodness, first time for that with my mayo. there is a new dish and so easy at that! Carrots and a few grapes

M3 chocolate chili with avocado, i'm gonna get that baby memorized!

snack at movies - small mix of pistachio and raisins, water

Hooray! Hope everyone has a great day tomorrow!!!

Oh and small win for me ..... my son who used to whine "chicken....agaiiiiin?" Said my chicken was the best today and he'd eat it all the time like that. hooya. And he liked the chili, just a bite but it was positive. Actually that was a Huge win and there is hope yet:)

goodnight:)

[Tina44]

Hi all,

My name is Christina. I have made it through today successfully:). I am excited, and a little nervous:). I completed a successful whole30 back in Sept and have been eating primal since...except on a few occasions. I am 30 and have 2 toddlers, work full time and really want the energy to keep up. I am really looking to get my sugar addiction under control. The first whole 30 I completed, I still had fruit and dates/ larabars whenever sugar cravings came in, and after the whole 30, dark chocolate crept in along with many paleo approved treats. I definitely lost some weight which was wonderful, I felt better physically but am still having trouble sleeping along with lack of energy and my hormones are a mess.

This whole 100, I would really like to start sleeping better, get some of that tiger blood they talk about, maybe loose a couple pounds, slay this beast of a sugar addiction (mentally, the late night treat cravings:) and also am hoping for my insane hormones to balance out.

Love that their is a group here for support as food for me is a real big deal in many ways!

Happy New Year! May we all find what we are looking for:)

[luvbnhealthy]

OK, it's day 1 of Whole100! It's been a good day. Taught my New Year fitness class this morning and got 6 people on board to do a Whole30. Not only do I have this Forum and my triathlete forum for support doing the Whole100, but I have a close at hand support group for at least 30 days!

Food today - Breakfast: eggs & spinach in coconut oil; homemade dried fruit/nut bar; Lunch: organic ground beef and onion sauted in coconut oil, sugar snap peas; Dinner: fresh sockeye salmon, roasted butternut squash in coconut oil, fresh green beans.

[Jtandi]

wow, day one done! I worked today and am so glad I did, I think mentally it was exactly what I needed to start this thing off. I did find myself a couple times thinking about all the snacks in the break room (someone always brings in cookies/cake/bread) but I have told enough people at my job what I'm doing that it wasn't an issue.

food today: found some amazing pork sausage at the farmer's market that is compliant so I scrambled some eggs, added said sausage, some cherry tomatoes, and 1/2 an avacado

once I got to work I was hungry quickly and wasn't able to have a break, this is why I bought primal pacs, so I ate one (beef jerky, nuts, and dried fruit)...totally held me over until lunch

had beet salad (beets, cabbage, red onion, vinegar and a little oil/salt/pepper - it's awesome), the other 1/2 avocado, and more beef jerky (I needed better protein today but I wasn't prepared like I should've been, but still compliant, so I'm ok with that)

got home and sauteed some spinach and garlic in the floating fat from the pork broth I made yesterday. fried an egg so the yolk was still nice and soft and threw it on top. it was fantastic and my 8 year old ate some too (major goal: getting her to eat veggies).

SO, great day. I threw a chicken in the crock pot this morning before work and kept it at "warm" thinking it would cook super slow. when I got home it looked like it wasn't done and I almost threw it out, glad I checked because the meat was cooked. it was still slightly pink but I took it off the bone and put it in the microwave for a couple minutes just to make sure, threw the bones back in the crockpot, and can't wait to have some nice chicken broth tomorrow! the chicken tasted amazing, so completely tender and juicy I was amazed. I love throwing a whole chicken in the crockpot.

[Jtandi]

btw - would it be easier to follow this post if each day someone threw up a new post (whole100 day __) so people could just check in if they wanted to? I think this post is going to get super long. just a thought.

[habitualpurpose]

Well Day 1 was a day of not feeling well unfortunately. I'm prone to kidney stones and found myself in bed pretty much all day with pain and nausea. Not exactly the best for promoting truly good W30 (100) eating. While I did not eat anything non-compliant today I did not manage to eat 3 full meals due to the nausea. I'll still count this as Day 1 though.

Kudos to all of us for the beginning of our Whole100!!