4/2/2018 Starting Whole30

[Let's Dooooo It!]

@tinkarooni...how YOU doin'?

[Kiralyn D]

@tutormom I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear someone is also struggling a bit!! I couldn’t get the words right... But you put it perfectly!! I’ve made it over two weeks without any major problems - but man have I struggled yesterday and today. I want ALL THE THINGS. And I am SUPER grumpy about not being able to have them. Thank you @ShannonM816 for explaining this “extinction burst.” It makes a lot of sense. Logically, I know I have so many Victories (scale and non-scale), but emotionally, I just want the pan of brownies my husband requested for dessert tonight. Or a glass of wine!! Sigh.  I’m even dreading a bit the reintroduction period. I know this is essential, but those extra days are stretching out in my mind... And it scares me because I’m afraid I’m going to just go nuts when this is over. 

So yes, I am also in need of encouragement... 

Hanging in there... by a thread... 

[suzannes]

Hmm... @ShannonM816 ... Extinction Burst or a Hormonal PMS Hurricane...? Like @tutormom I was also feeling pretty great, in control, steady till about mid week this week when out of the blue PMS hit me like a ton of bricks. Terrible insomnia, extremely irritable mood and powerful junk cravings. It's been a very long time since I've noticed any PMS issues till now. But this week, my last week of Whole30, I went from happy Tiger Blood to Bloody Murder--Eat All The Things--Kill All The Things. I really regret not seeing  earlier all of the helpful advice here on the forums re upping your carbs before PMS strikes. Lesson learned! Ouch. I do not want to experience this awful PMS week again. I'll be much more mindful next month to carb-prep in hopes of heading off the PMS tidal wave.  This bad week is another reason I'm going to do another round of Whole30 in May...my sugar dragon had been in retreat, but this week came roaring back and scaring the beejeezus out of me. 

But on a cheerful cheering note: Keep up the great work @Let's Dooooo It! @tutormom @LizaQ @bigmamabird @humanitysurvey @Dave K @Hope4Overcomers @Kiralyn D @dnewc @deviin22 y'all! 

[Let's Dooooo It!]

Cravings will always be. We have boot camped our way into mindfulness. When SD roared...you didn't cave. (I am NOT AFRAID of you!!)

We've learned that WE are the animate objects, and food is INANIMATE. We've learned that...HECK YEA...we have a CHOICE to eat or NOT to eat. Melissa CALLS this something... 

We now know, almost 30 days later, the METHOD in conducting ourselves when the cravings DO come. Cool points to ALL of us for not caving in, giving up, justifying minimizing or rationalizing a slip that could cost us the game... actions that probably would NOT have taken place a month ago...

We've GOT this..now and forward. 

[Hope4Overcomers]

59 minutes ago, suzannes said:

Hmm... @ShannonM816 ... Extinction Burst or a Hormonal PMS Hurricane...? Like @tutormom I was also feeling pretty great, in control, steady till about mid week this week when out of the blue PMS hit me like a ton of bricks. Terrible insomnia, extremely irritable mood and powerful junk cravings. It's been a very long time since I've noticed any PMS issues till now. But this week, my last week of Whole30, I went from happy Tiger Blood to Bloody Murder--Eat All The Things--Kill All The Things. I really regret not seeing  earlier all of the helpful advice here on the forums re upping your carbs before PMS strikes. Lesson learned! Ouch. I do not want to experience this awful PMS week again. I'll be much more mindful next month to carb-prep in hopes of heading off the PMS tidal wave.  This bad week is another reason I'm going to do another round of Whole30 in May...my sugar dragon had been in retreat, but this week came roaring back and scaring the beejeezus out of me. 

But on a cheerful cheering note: Keep up the great work @Let's Dooooo It! @tutormom @LizaQ @bigmamabird @humanitysurvey @Dave K @Hope4Overcomers @Kiralyn D @dnewc @deviin22 y'all! 

Oh my, @suzannes! I wonder if the same thing can happen in menopause! Sleepy, weepy, and creepy as of late! Went from Tiger Blood to who is that???? You have my sympathies! I’m in agreement as usual with you in May. May be slightly my own version due to wedding feasts for my niece, with few options, from what she’s chosen...wine, pizza, and pies!!! Yikes, plus my son is coming. I refuse to just bail though! Other than my recent Monster Woman, it’s been very, very, good!

How is everyone else? Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you! You are all too special to me!

[Hope4Overcomers]

10 hours ago, Kiralyn D said:

@tutormom I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear someone is also struggling a bit!! I couldn’t get the words right... But you put it perfectly!! I’ve made it over two weeks without any major problems - but man have I struggled yesterday and today. I want ALL THE THINGS. And I am SUPER grumpy about not being able to have them. Thank you @ShannonM816 for explaining this “extinction burst.” It makes a lot of sense. Logically, I know I have so many Victories (scale and non-scale), but emotionally, I just want the pan of brownies my husband requested for dessert tonight. Or a glass of wine!! Sigh.  I’m even dreading a bit the reintroduction period. I know this is essential, but those extra days are stretching out in my mind... And it scares me because I’m afraid I’m going to just go nuts when this is over. 

So yes, I am also in need of encouragement... 

Hanging in there... by a thread... 

I’m relating, @tutormom, big time! The reintroduction time scares the heebie jeebies out of me!!! 

[Dave K]

54 minutes ago, suzannes said:

Hmm... @ShannonM816 ... Extinction Burst or a Hormonal PMS Hurricane...? Like @tutormom I was also feeling pretty great, in control, steady till about mid week this week when out of the blue PMS hit me like a ton of bricks. Terrible insomnia, extremely irritable mood and powerful junk cravings. It's been a very long time since I've noticed any PMS issues till now. But this week, my last week of Whole30, I went from happy Tiger Blood to Bloody Murder--Eat All The Things--Kill All The Things. I really regret not seeing  earlier all of the helpful advice here on the forums re upping your carbs before PMS strikes. Lesson learned! Ouch. I do not want to experience this awful PMS week again. I'll be much more mindful next month to carb-prep in hopes of heading off the PMS tidal wave.  This bad week is another reason I'm going to do another round of Whole30 in May...my sugar dragon had been in retreat, but this week came roaring back and scaring the beejeezus out of me. 

But on a cheerful cheering note: Keep up the great work @Let's Dooooo It! @tutormom @LizaQ @bigmamabird @humanitysurvey @Dave K @Hope4Overcomers @Kiralyn D @dnewc @deviin22 y'all! 

Day 26 ... Tiger Blood dipped a bit, but still going strong. I Increased my steps on the fitbit, 4,000 and my morning runs have improved. The diet has been in autopilot and still maintaining all the correct foods. Some cravings, but they seem to get easier to dismiss. I can relate with you @suzannes about "Kill all the things", I've been good but could easily lose my temper, been catching myself before the words actually come out of my mouth.  .

I did break out the scale, was curious. I try not to let the numbers drive/ bother me. I feel good, my clothes are looser, belt moved a notch, maybe another one soon, look thinner, but the scale didn't move as I thought it would. That's alright, I feel really good. My goal was to restart my metabolism and I think I've done that. 

Only a few my days to go!!! Stay strong everybody!! We've come so far, only a little bit to go!!!

[tutormom]

5 minutes ago, Hope4Overcomers said:

But on a cheerful cheering note: Keep up the great work @Let's Dooooo It! @tutormom @LizaQ @bigmamabird @humanitysurvey @Dave K @Hope4Overcomers @Kiralyn D @dnewc @deviin22 y'all! 

All this encouragement is very helpful! Even the "commiserating".  I was just thinking of how PROUD we can be of ourselves come Day 31 if we finish the race.  Just like running a marathon (which I will never do - Hate running!), it's hard but good, and we will be better for our accomplishment.

As for hormones, thank goodness I'm way past PMS, but hormones still play a part, I think.  Whatever it is, I feel a bit better today.  I'm just determined to finish so that I can say "I did it!!!!"  @KiralynD Let's clink our wine glasses next Wed night! 

[Hope4Overcomers]

Thanks for the encouragement @Dave K! Needed that this morning! 

[Dave K]

11 hours ago, Kiralyn D said:

@tutormom I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear someone is also struggling a bit!! I couldn’t get the words right... But you put it perfectly!! I’ve made it over two weeks without any major problems - but man have I struggled yesterday and today. I want ALL THE THINGS. And I am SUPER grumpy about not being able to have them. Thank you @ShannonM816 for explaining this “extinction burst.” It makes a lot of sense. Logically, I know I have so many Victories (scale and non-scale), but emotionally, I just want the pan of brownies my husband requested for dessert tonight. Or a glass of wine!! Sigh.  I’m even dreading a bit the reintroduction period. I know this is essential, but those extra days are stretching out in my mind... And it scares me because I’m afraid I’m going to just go nuts when this is over. 

So yes, I am also in need of encouragement... 

Hanging in there... by a thread... 

This is sort of where my wife is, still struggling a bit. I think if she was able to put cream in her coffee she would be a lot happier. She to is hanging on by a thread, mostly in part because i'm doing it with her. She's waiting for me to give the word, but I won't do it. I keep telling her we're almost there. 

We don't plan on changing our diet much from what we learned on Whole30, it's been a great leaning experience for both of us.

Hang in there, we almost made it!!

[Dave K]

Just now, Hope4Overcomers said:

Thanks for the encouragement @Dave K! Needed that this morning! 

You got this!!!

[Hope4Overcomers]

33 minutes ago, Let's Dooooo It! said:

Cravings will always be. We have boot camped our way into mindfulness. When SD roared...you didn't cave. (I am NOT AFRAID of you!!)

We've learned that WE are the animate objects, and food is INANIMATE. We've learned that...HECK YEA...we have a CHOICE to eat or NOT to eat. Melissa CALLS this something... 

We now know, almost 30 days later, the METHOD in conducting ourselves when the cravings DO come. Cool points to ALL of us for not caving in, giving up, justifying minimizing or rationalizing a slip that could cost us the game... actions that probably would NOT have taken place a month ago...

We've GOT this..now and forward. 

Great post, as usual @lets do it! You always speak for me just right!

Yayyyy to all of us for learning so very much and not caving in the more challenging times!

Way to go April Gang!!! 

[Kiralyn D]

55 minutes ago, tutormom said:

All this encouragement is very helpful! Even the "commiserating".  I was just thinking of how PROUD we can be of ourselves come Day 31 if we finish the race.  Just like running a marathon (which I will never do - Hate running!), it's hard but good, and we will be better for our accomplishment.

@KiralynD Let's clink our wine glasses next Wed night! 

I won't be doing any running either... But heck yes to a celebratory glass of wine!! I'm also feeling better today, maybe because of the commiserating! I've had a slow morning at work and have been browsing the "Dear Melissa" pages suggested by a moderator. I've found this one ( https://whole30.com/2016/08/sugar-dragon/ ) to be really helpful in re-thinking my battle with the dreaded, vicious Sugar Dragon, and also in re-thinking life after Whole30. This isn't a diet, and it's not about restriction - it's changing habits from the inside out and changing emotional relationships with food. This is only THIRTY days going up against a LIFETIME of emotional and habitual associations with food. I also printed out the Off-Roading Map ( https://whole30.com/downloads/off-roading.pdf ) , and if I have to pull that out every time I have an "unhealthy" food choice, then I will. @Let's Dooooo It! mentioned earlier that "Availability does NOT equal necessity." And that's the truth. I need to think more in terms of the empowerment I feel when I make good choices for my body, rather than feeling sorry for myself when I'm "unable" to have something. If I expect my brain to throw tantrums over what I can't have, I'll be better prepared to handle it.

[bigmamabird]

Help!!  Guys, I need you to help me stay strong!!

There's a heavenly gourmet cupcake place near me that it discontinuing some of their flavors and their FB posts are killing me!!  I only have 4 days to go, I certainly don't want to ruin my streak now.  But the whole psychological bent of "get it now or they'll be gone forever!" is really tempting me.  Logically I know that for the rest of my like I can have a cupcake anytime I darn well please, but my sugar dragon is trying to convince me otherwise.

[Kiralyn D]

@bigmamabird Unfollow this place for the next 4 days!! And don’t go anywhere near that shop!! If you don’t see it, chances are you won’t think about it. It’s good that you recognize this is just a psychological/sugar dragon thing. Remember that cravings only last 3-5 minutes, so if you start thinking about it, distract yourself until it passes. 

You've got this!!! 

[Let's Dooooo It!]

It is quite astonishing the amount of FOOLISHNESS that crosses our path the last leg of the race:

Today: free breakfast (had brisket and potatoes...yum)

Tomorrow: appreciation luncheon. Home cooked food.

Sunday: taken out for anniversary at a restaurant that I love. Savory AND sweet.

Yup. It's good in a way. This is real life, in real time.

But crew...we DO life. We know how now.

All of us will make it to Monday with new found zeal and strength!!!!

BRING IT!!!!!

[SugarcubeOD]

3 hours ago, bigmamabird said:

Help!!  Guys, I need you to help me stay strong!!

There's a heavenly gourmet cupcake place near me that it discontinuing some of their flavors and their FB posts are killing me!!  I only have 4 days to go, I certainly don't want to ruin my streak now.  But the whole psychological bent of "get it now or they'll be gone forever!" is really tempting me.  Logically I know that for the rest of my like I can have a cupcake anytime I darn well please, but my sugar dragon is trying to convince me otherwise.

This is 100% marketing and you're too strong to fall victim.  If the flavors were 'that' good, they wouldn't be discontinuing them so they're probably not worth it anyway   

[LizaQ]

Day 24 here - chugging along. I was out longer than I expected today and I was pretty hungry so I got an RX bar - Maple se salt - to tide me over till I got home. It was sooooo sweeeeeet!!!! I liked it though it's not something I would keep in the house - I wouldn't want them available every time my brain thought a treat would be a nice idea.

No Tiger Blood but no Kill All The Things either. Tired a lot of the time and nothing I have tried has helped me sleep better. It's been almost 2 weeks since I stopped all caffeine and it makes me sad that it hasn't made a difference! But I'm in yet another, even smaller, pair of jeans today so things are definitely changing.

I had another one of those dreams where I ate something I shouldn't have - a sandwich. It was so real and I was so upset that it took me a bit to realize that it wasn't real life!!

My plan for reintroduction has me excited!! Butter! Rice and beans! Soy sauce! Cheddar cheese! Pasta! I'm hoping at least some of those things will agree with me....but I do feel confident that I will manage just fine without them if I need to.

 

[humanitysurvey]

One of the biggest reasons I decided to do the W30 this time (I've done rounds before in 2016) was to show myself that I can be consistent. Consistency is my biggest struggle. I'll be doing well and then I'll deviate and feel bad about it. I've been doing mindful mediation for a while now and I really think that has helped me to really think through my choices. When I have a craving, my goal is to be mindful and ask those questions that Melissa talks about in Food Freedom Forever "“Do I want it? Is it worth it? Will it mess me up? Am I willing to accept the consequences? Do I really want it?” There are only two answers here—yes, it’s worth it and I really want it, or no, it fails one or more of those criteria." I know that I'm an Abstainer. I do much better when I just stay away from said food. So I'm working on figuring out how I can manage trigger foods and not let it throw me totally off because you know I have to live life. https://whole30.com/2017/04/abstainer-or-moderator/ I also do much better with black and white rules instead of guidelines and that is something I'm working on also. I feel like I've taking the desperation out it. I've already tried to lose the weight (30-40lbs) "quickly" and that hasn't produced long term success. So now I'm just working on becoming healthy. Doing what I need to do to feel good, have energy, less stress and sleep throughout the night without waking up. I now know that if I pursue health, that I will get a smaller pant size by accident. 

Also I've never done the reintroduction correctly any of the times I've down W30 and I'm determined to do it correctly ALL the way through. I'll be doing the slow reintroduction and I've already planned out the next 30 days. I'll be reintroducing something new every 2 weeks. I know that for most foods I do not have an immediate reaction. It happens over time so I need to give it time. I'm totally OK with that. 

Here's to the next 4 days and beyond. YES WE ALL GOT THIS!!!!

[Let's Dooooo It!]

Mmmmmmm...yes we do...

Started listening to FF last night.

 

[dnewc]

3 days to go! Congratulations everybody nearly there!

Sinuses finally clear! I wish I knew what I eat off whole30 that causes so much inflammation that it takes nearly 4 weeks clear up... Even going through several reintroductions I haven't been able to identify it. I hope it's not corn.

[humanitysurvey]

10 hours ago, dnewc said:

3 days to go! Congratulations everybody nearly there!

Sinuses finally clear! I wish I knew what I eat off whole30 that causes so much inflammation that it takes nearly 4 weeks clear up... Even going through several reintroductions I haven't been able to identify it. I hope it's not corn.

I found that sugar triggered my sinuses. The very first W30 I did was in the spring and I realized I wasn't taking my allergy medicine any more and I wasn't getting sore throats anymore. So glad you are feeling better. 

[Hope4Overcomers]

Hi there April Buddies! 2 Days to go. How are people proceeding? How are you handeling the Reintroduction for yourself? Going another round? Switching to Whole30 Vegetarian?

Im considering 1. Going another round or 2. Trying Whole30 Vegetarian (Vegetarian has been my leaning in life for 50 years...just don’t like meat much and don’t digest well). 3. Trying Whole30 Vegetarian but reintroducing quinoa. 

Right now my food supplies on hand are to go another round of “traditional” Whole30. I haven’t quite figured out which aspects have made me feel better and I’d like to get in touch with that, if you know what I mean. I do have cravings and am not currently experiencing Tiger Blood. Too much fruit? Maybe. Hmmmm.

So what’s up with the rest of you? I’d love to hear!

Be encouraged! We did this thing and we are finishing (or going on) strong!

xo Dianne

[Let's Dooooo It!]

2 of 3 crazy weekend days conquered. Just gotta get through celebratory dinner tonight, then headed for the home stretch.

Feeling good. Thinking I will do a slow roll. No need to reintroduce what I know is problematic...

[Let's Dooooo It!]

DONE.

I am WHOLE...