Starting 5/24: 1st time!!

[_kiragreer]

Hi there!

I'm Kira. I'm 22 and I decided to finally start Whole30 this week. I just graduated college and played D1 lacrosse for the past 4 years. That was always my excuse for why I didn't want to try it earlier- it simply would've been too difficult seeming as we travel often. I have a ton of stomach/digestive issues and I'm hoping this can pinpoint them. I've been diagnosed with EoE (eosinophilic esophagitis) which has to do with frequent heartburn. I've been on 349852 prescriptions, but am weening myself off. I am also allergic to tree nuts and cut out my dairy due to my EoE. I consider myself a pretty healthy eater, but I do eat a fair amount of grains and peanuts. I'm curious if cutting out gluten will help with my bloating.

I am super active and am nervous I won't be eating enough calories on the Whole30. That's part of the reason I actually track using MyFItnessPal- to make sure I AM eating enough. I will be, however, as they recommend , not tracking during this adventure. Well, that's about all! Let me know if you're starting as well and have any advice :)

Good luck!!

-Kira 

[GoJo09]

It is easy to undereat when you first start Whole 30, but your body will let you know about it in short order! Just make sure you've got plenty of fat at every meal, you eat your pre- and post-workout mini-meals, and don't skimp on potatoes or other starches, and you should be fine. Not tracking is so freeing - from a former religious MFP user!

I'm sure your doctor is aware that your weaning off your prescriptions, right? One thing I find excellent for heartburn, indigestion or just a general funny tummy is apple cider vinegar - the unfiltered kind with the mother still in - a couple of tablespoons in a glass of water really helps me (I have no scientific evidence for this, just my own experimentation, don't replace your medication with vinegar!)

 

[jen c]

Hi Kira,

If you want company, I'll start in today too.  I'm a returner which has its positives and negatives.  I started my first W30 in Feb 2016, followed by a month of reintroductions, and then a second W30 right after that.  We have a lot of food allergies in our house (kids:  tree nuts, peanut, dairy, egg, sesame;  me:  watermelon), and in my month of reintro's, I learned I have a strong intolerance to gluten.  I did the second W30 just to give myself time to wrap my head around the reality of eliminating another major food group and reading labels beyond what we already have to do. 

Here's the good stuff . . .  doing W30 was truly life changing.  Yes, that's cliche and dramatic sounding, but it really is true.  I suffered from headaches 3-5 days per week since my teenage years (I'm 45 now).  For 30 years headaches were so commonplace that they were simply part of my normal life!  Going gluten-free has eliminated my headaches nearly 100%.  I've only had a handful in the past two years and that has been the biggest life changer.  Learning of my intolerance and remaining GF has also eliminated all of my bad digestive issues, which prior to W30 were getting really bad on a daily basis:  pain, bloating, aches, heartburn, nausea, indigestion, constipation.  Like the headaches, those were gone 100%.  W30 decreased inflammation so much that my first summer afterward, I had no hayfever or sinus issues even during the peak of allergy season.  I slept better, muscle and joint stiffness went away, and I lost 30 lbs in 90 days. 

Here's the bad stuff . . . this is all on my shoulders.  I tried to do a couple of W30s in 2017 but as a returner, found it harder to have the motivation to see it through.  My first W30, it was easy to be pumped up and gung-ho to get going, but each of my returning attempts failed beyond the first week because at that point, I said to myself, "I've been reminded how to eat better . . . that's good enough for now."  I also tried to go it alone each of those attempts, which added to the ease of ducking out partway through, since I was avoiding having an accountability partner.  I now know that I need more than just a reminder to eat better, will be accountable to others, and have the expectation that I WILL see it through to the end. 

I've been relying on dairy and corn too much in recent months, especially in the form of quesadillas and ice cream, which are foods I need to label as "no brakes" foods.  And chocolate - yep, way too much of that too.  And coffee with plenty of cream.  Sigh.  In the last year and a half, I've gained back 20 lbs and my clothes aren't fitting so well anymore.  It's time to get serious about this and commit to the Whole 30 days.  I'm back to having some heartburn here and there, and I know that the corn makes me feel bloated and uncomfortable.  I'm committing to the entire month and am determined to see it through.  No excuses. 

Here's my meal plan for the day:

Breakfast:  chicken sausage, zucchini, red peppers, tea w/coconut milk. 

Lunch:  cucumber, spinach, pear, avocado, tuna, black coffee.

Dinner:  diced chicken, sweet potato toast w/avocado & bacon and sunbutter & berries. 

Good luck with your Day 1!  I hope you'll find relief for your stomach/digestive issues.  What is your meal plan for today?

 

[jen c]

Hey Kira, two days in . . . how are you doing? 

[_kiragreer]

Hi Jen! Pretty good... minus the fact that I don't have much energy /: I'm hoping my body gets used to it ,and maybe I need to start increasing my food intake but I find it difficult to eat a lot in one sitting!
 

How bout you?

[jen c]

I'm sorry your energy levels are low.  It can be hard to eat a lot in one sitting and can take some time to find the right adjustment of protein and fat amounts.  Are you a coffee or tea drinker?  Adding coconut milk as a creamer to either one can add a bit more fat if you drink a cup with your meals.  Maybe that would help with your energy? 

It's hard to believe we're already on day 7 and so far it feels like it's flying by.  On day 2 I wanted chocolate SO much, but decided to do some weight reps instead.  So far that's been a good strategy for me this past week - in place of having a mid-afternoon snack, I do some toning exercises.  I've also decided to make this more than a W30 . . . more than focused on food.  Along with my eating, I'm tracking my cardio and strength exercises, yoga and stretching, water intake, and sleep length and quality.  Physical self-care is the most common part of my life that ends up on the bottom of the totem pole, and taking this month to really zero in on it and make it a high priority has made this a much more positive experience than my last tries.  My week-long W30s last year felt like a burden.  This instead, feels life-giving and energizing and I'm anticipating that when 30 days comes, I won't be stopping there. 

[jen c]

1/3 of the way through . . . how's it going for you?  Any luck with increasing your energy?

[_kiragreer]

Hi there!

Can't believe 10 days are over already. To be honest, my energy is not good. It's actually gotten worse these past couple days. I've had bad headaches - I hardly ever get headaches. I was so weak and exhausted today but dragged myself to the gym anyways. I almost fainted during my workout!!! I'm a former D1 athlete- I used to crush runs and now I'm exhausted walking up a flight of stairs. I'm hoping it'll pass. I've been focusing on drinking a lots and getting good sleep. I drank over a gallon of water today. I sleep at least 8 hours a night. And as far as I know, I do think I'm eating a lot. I'll post what I ate today to give you a good idea- maybe you have some insight on how I can modify? What's honestly most confusing is that before I started Whole30, I ate pretty similar. I've always considered myself a relatively healthy eater- with a few treats of junk/weekends of alcohol.

Breakfast: 2 eggs overeasy with peppers, chicken sausage, and coconut

workout- 60 min cardio + 30 min lift (didn't eat pre workout bc not hungry)

Post workout: Epic chicken stick + clementine (i was doing errands and didn't have a quick veggie on hand)

Lunch: Large salad w/ chicken, dates, carrots, celery, olives, homemade balsamic dressing

Dinner: Salmon marinated in coconut aminos w/ broccoli + a sweet potato

I also had some compliant Kombucha today...

But anyways, I hope it's going a little better for you! How are your cravings?  Still focusing on your physical self care?

Good luck with the next couple weeks, we can do this!!!!!!

[jen c]

My cravings are gone.  My physical self care went great for the first 10 days but this has been an exceptionally busy week and there hasn't been available time to devote to walking or biking for the last four days.  I'll walk to and from work tomorrow, which will give me a good 45 minutes and will get me back on track.  Eating has been the easiest part of this W30 so far.  My bigger challenge has been on the mental/emotional side as I anticipate reintroductions not going well.  I've known for months that corn makes me bloated and feeling blah, but I've tried to ignore it and continued to eat it anyway.  I'm quite certain that when I reintroduce it, I won't be able to ignore it any longer, and that's made me feel grumpy and irritable even though reintro's are still two weeks away.  It's a reality that I don't want to be, but will need to face up to.  Since starting this W30, the bloating and blah feelings are gone and my waist is definitely showing the difference in a good way, but <Sigh>, I'll sure miss enchiladas and quesadillas.   

Are you finding relief for your digestive woes?  Any luck yet with increased energy? 

 

[_kiragreer]

I agree with you on the re-intro's - it's been stressing me out a bit as well. But still a decent amount of time away as you said Glad to hear the bloating and blah feelings are gone!!! My digestive issues have significantly increased, which I'm super pumped about. As for the energy, I'm not nearly as tired as I was but I still have yet to feel that "tiger blood." To be honest, I ate very similar before I started w30 (minus the grains/legumes + added sugar) , so I wouldn't be too surprised if I don't go through this tiger blood I read about. I'd assume it's more for those who went from extremes in changing their diet? I may be wrong but that's what I've read. i didn't go that extreme, thus I won't really experience tiger blood?

Less than 2 weeks til we're done! Trying to decide what I want first (after the re-intro's of course ) I'm thinking chinese food, a lenny and larry's protein cookie, or pancakes. Lol. I also have a half marathon next Sat, which I'm a little nervous carb/energy wise but I've always been a decent runner so I'm sure it'll go okay.

[jen c]

I'm glad to hear your digestive issues have improved.  Hooray for NSVs like that!  As for tiger blood, I'm not feeling it either.  My normal diet wasn't super bad before starting this round and it may be like you said - if it's not an extreme change, maybe it's less noticeable.  The only foods I had to drop were corn, dairy, oats, and added sugar.  Legumes are very rare for me (maybe a few times a year), so I don't think they factor in much.  This past week was so busy and my sleep hours and exercise were pretty minimal, so all that could be feeding into my lack of tiger blood too. 

I've been thinking about my reintroduction plan and will introduce oats first.  We have a road trip coming up, followed by a week of church camp, and I don't want to deal with negative food effects by trying to reintroduce things during that time.  With all of our allergies, we're taking along as much food as possible, have reservations in places with kitchens, and will also pack our camp stove for roadside meals as needed.  Again, because of the allergies, we provide all of the kids' food for church camp, and it'll be easy enough to just take along my own for that week too.  I'll try oats first thing though so that I'll know if I can pack some jars of overnight oats for the road trip.  All the other reintroductions can wait until later in July.