Starting 6/11

[boyercs]

This is my story but I want to hear yours! Is this your first, second,fifth whole30? What are you excited about? What are you nervous about?

We completed our first whole30 in April and felt AMAZING after. Experienced a ton of NSV and a few scale victories. We started the slow roll re-introduction and everything was going well until it wasn't... Our Sugar Dragon's came back with a sugary vengeance and we did not handle it very well. We still try to cook whole30 compliant meals, because we loved our cookbooks that much, but are snacking on sugar and eating gluten A LOT. And we both feel awful, but yet we keep adding Ben and Jerry's to our shopping cart. Long story short we know what needs to happen so we are starting again next Monday. 

After evaluating our last whole30 we have made 3 decisions: 

1. Cutting back on fruit (especially as a "dessert") and compliant Lara Bars. 

2. We are going to do a whole60 days. 

3. DO.THE.RE-INTRODUCTION. --- by the books. (We tried to "tweak" it to suit our needs and I believe this contributed to our turning back to sugar and gluten so quickly)

I think we relied too much on sugary technically compliant foods for snacks. I think it dwindled our sugar cravings, but since sugar is a huge trigger for us we are going to severely limit them this time around. Also, I don't think 30 days was long enough (for us) to re-shape our mentality. It was plenty long enough to learn how to prep, cook, and shop whole30. I am so excited to give it another go and see what happens. I can only imagine how great we are going to feel after the next two months. 

Let's share stories and support each other through the next 30+ days! 

[SoccerLover]

I'm in too!  This is officially my 2nd Whole30.  I did my first one last summer and stuck to it 100%, although didn't follow the re-introduction very well.  I've tried to do it again several times, but haven't made it past 4 or 5 days.  I just finished the school year (I'm a middle school counselor), and am ready to put healthy, wholesome foods into my body instead of simple processed carbohydrates and sugar.  Let's do this!

[Alivesay]

I am going to start today!    I need some encouragement and accountability along the way, but I am pretty much a Whole30 wanna be so you may not want me along.

I have started the Whole30 seriously at least 3 times.  The first time I made it to about day 7.   The second the same and the third I made it to day 13.  What throws me off is beer.  Ugh!  I just really like it.  About 10 years ago, we opened a business and I had to work really long hours.  When I would get off, I would be STARVING.  So, while I was cooking or waiting for our food to arrive, I would drink beer to tide me over and I did that for about 9 or 10 years almost every night.  Just one or two, but when you are a girl and you are starving, 2 IPA s will make you a bit loopy.

So, that is the biggest habit I need to break.  I drank the last one we had in our house last night and won't buy any.  The keys to my success are:
*Not having any IPA in the house.  My husband isn't doing this with me and will have beer here, but it is not beer I like.

*Always having some meat pre-prepared and salad ready if I am starving and pre-cut veggies and dip.

*Avoiding dinners at breweries.  This will actually be pretty simple during this month because we have a lot of plans that do not include going out to dinner.

I have failed/quit early a lot, but I think I am pretty ready this time.  I a runner too and I have some aches and pains that I need to see if I can cure with my diet or I won't be running much longer which scares me, because I really love it.

Besides that, I am 45, have two kids and right now we have two foster kids too.  I am married, live in Missoula Montana and I follow Jesus. 

Oh, and I plan to re-read the book as I am doing this. 

Anyone want to share their favorite recipes or go to foods?

 

[boyercs]

On 6/9/2018 at 9:12 PM, SoccerLover said:

I'm in too!  This is officially my 2nd Whole30.  I did my first one last summer and stuck to it 100%, although didn't follow the re-introduction very well.  I've tried to do it again several times, but haven't made it past 4 or 5 days.  I just finished the school year (I'm a middle school counselor), and am ready to put healthy, wholesome foods into my body instead of simple processed carbohydrates and sugar.  Let's do this!

Yes! Let's do this! We were in the same boat. We tried re-starting many times and couldn't get our momentum. 

[boyercs]

On 6/10/2018 at 8:42 AM, Alivesay said:

I am going to start today!    I need some encouragement and accountability along the way, but I am pretty much a Whole30 wanna be so you may not want me along.

I have started the Whole30 seriously at least 3 times.  The first time I made it to about day 7.   The second the same and the third I made it to day 13.  What throws me off is beer.  Ugh!  I just really like it.  About 10 years ago, we opened a business and I had to work really long hours.  When I would get off, I would be STARVING.  So, while I was cooking or waiting for our food to arrive, I would drink beer to tide me over and I did that for about 9 or 10 years almost every night.  Just one or two, but when you are a girl and you are starving, 2 IPA s will make you a bit loopy.

So, that is the biggest habit I need to break.  I drank the last one we had in our house last night and won't buy any.  The keys to my success are:
*Not having any IPA in the house.  My husband isn't doing this with me and will have beer here, but it is not beer I like.

*Always having some meat pre-prepared and salad ready if I am starving and pre-cut veggies and dip.

*Avoiding dinners at breweries.  This will actually be pretty simple during this month because we have a lot of plans that do not include going out to dinner.

I have failed/quit early a lot, but I think I am pretty ready this time.  I a runner too and I have some aches and pains that I need to see if I can cure with my diet or I won't be running much longer which scares me, because I really love it.

Besides that, I am 45, have two kids and right now we have two foster kids too.  I am married, live in Missoula Montana and I follow Jesus. 

Oh, and I plan to re-read the book as I am doing this. 

Anyone want to share their favorite recipes or go to foods?

 

 

You can do it! Just take it one day at a time. Utilize the forum. The moderators are incredible.

Do you have any of the whole30 cook books or the day by day guide? I ordered two of the cook books and the day by day guide from amazon when we did our first whole30 and they are truly amazing. I don't know that I would have gotten through without them. Consider checking those out! Another great resource for recipes is Pinterest (just be sure you double check the ingredients are truly whole30 compliant). 

One of our favorite meals is pretty simple. It's a one skillet meal of diced potatoes, kielbasa, and green beans. We cook it in a bit of coconut oil or ghee and add salt and pepper. Start with the potatoes first, they take the longest and then add the green beans and kielbasa. Cook until starting to brown. We also use our crock pot multiple times per week. It is a huge time-saver. We make roast and potatoes, pulled pork (with Tessamae's compliant BBQ sauce), and chicken often. 

[4Donna]

Well, this is my 3rd Whole 30....my last one was in April of this year and my husband and I both participated.  We felt wonderful - followed it to the letter with no exceptions and thought we were on the road to freedom.  Like some of you...we introduced too much too soon and then our sugar dragon was GELATO!  I've noticed the last 3 weeks my legs are achy all the time and I'm sure it is the food we are eating.  We were going to start on 6/1 but life and family medical emergency got in the way.  We are not waiting for a new month....we started TODAY!

I have gained just under 5 lbs in the last 43 days (that  was the last time I weighed)....but it feel like 3 x that much from the bloating!  Hubby only gained .2 so he has done much better than I have.  I love the support and ideas from here and would love to jump in with you all.

My quick meal is somewhat the same.  I use shredded potatoes.....start them in coconut oil....chop up some shallots.....add those and a little garlic with some browned Italian sausage (Use ground pork and add your own spices for this)......We usually do a side salad or steamed or grilled green beans with this.  It is a pretty quick and filling meal and can be reheated really well. 

I'm also committing to a whole 60 for this too.....so in for the long haul.  Looking forward to getting to know you all better.  Donna

 

[boyercs]

20 hours ago, 4Donna said:

Well, this is my 3rd Whole 30....my last one was in April of this year and my husband and I both participated.  We felt wonderful - followed it to the letter with no exceptions and thought we were on the road to freedom.  Like some of you...we introduced too much too soon and then our sugar dragon was GELATO!  I've noticed the last 3 weeks my legs are achy all the time and I'm sure it is the food we are eating.  We were going to start on 6/1 but life and family medical emergency got in the way.  We are not waiting for a new month....we started TODAY!

I have gained just under 5 lbs in the last 43 days (that  was the last time I weighed)....but it feel like 3 x that much from the bloating!  Hubby only gained .2 so he has done much better than I have.  I love the support and ideas from here and would love to jump in with you all.

My quick meal is somewhat the same.  I use shredded potatoes.....start them in coconut oil....chop up some shallots.....add those and a little garlic with some browned Italian sausage (Use ground pork and add your own spices for this)......We usually do a side salad or steamed or grilled green beans with this.  It is a pretty quick and filling meal and can be reheated really well. 

I'm also committing to a whole 60 for this too.....so in for the long haul.  Looking forward to getting to know you all better.  Donna

 

That is awesome for not waiting for a new month and starting now!!! So glad to have you along, and for the full 60 days! Looking back, my boyfriend and I don't think 30 days was long enough for our habits to change. Another BIG thing we are doing this time around is re-framing how we talk about whole30 to others and OURSELVES. Instead of saying  we "can't" have something. We are saying we are "choosing" not to have something, or we are making healthier choices right now. On our last whole30 we were awful at that part. I think that is partly why our old habits came back so strong. It was the reward of finally being allowed to have something we couldn't have before. We realized that was not a very productive way of thinking, so we are pushing big to re-shape our mindset. 

Do you notice that the eating whole30 compliant foods and following the meal structure is easier this time around? I have noticed I don't have the urge to snack as much as I did the first week of my first whole30.

 

[mmesarahf]

Hiya, 

I started my first Whole30 on 6/11 and am currently on Day 3. I'm 35 years old, married, with 3 fur babies. I've been "cleaning up" my diet over the past few years. I cut way back on coffee/caffeine and alcohol and switched to organic food a few years ago. A few months ago, I cut out gluten, and switched to grass fed animal products. I'm doing W30 to take me the rest of the way - to eat more whole, unprocessed foods and rid myself of my sugar addiction and possible dairy obsession. I grew up in the midwest, and have joked that dairy flows through my veins. Also, I just wrapped up a pretty stressful contract office job, over the course of which I gained about 10lbs in the past year, so would love to get rid of some of that extra fluff. 

My husband is not doing the W30 with me (he's training for a marathon), so unfortunately I wasn't able to completely rid my house of the non-compliant food, but I did move it all to separate sections of the fridge/pantry. He generally eats cleaner than I do, so is quite happy to eat compliant meals for dinner which is helping. 

A few initial observations: 

• I think cutting out gluten a few months ago was a helpful precursor to W30, since it introduced me to having to read labels, find alternatives and just not be able to run through the Chic Fil A drive thru when I was hungry. It forced me to think ahead about what I could eat/where and plan. 
• Even still, as I was going through my pantry and refrigerator, I was shocked to discover just how many products contain sugar and soy. It's really opened my eyes to why Americans are having so many health issues.
• My cravings for sugar, dairy, and grains over the past few days have been real! It is shocking when I go into a store to see all of the food that is non-compliant. 
• Physically, I've been cranky, and my muscles have felt very sore and achy. Hopefully this is me detoxing?!
• I've also been starving constantly. I eat a huge meal, and a couple hours later, I'm starving again. I woke up at 6am today, ravenous and ate the biggest breakfast I've ever eaten that early in the morning. By 10am, it's like I never ate a thing. 
• The cooking and the dishes --- wow. I've been running two loads in the dishwasher a day. 
• I spent a $$$$$$$ on groceries. Like blew through a handful of hundreds. Yikes. 
• The food has been tasting amazing, and even in this short time period I can feel my taste buds becoming much more aware. 
• I'm dying to know what tiger blood feels like!!!

That's all for now. Thanks for reading, hope you're journey is going well! I'm going to head into the kitchen and make some bone broth now lol. 

 

[boyercs]

21 minutes ago, mmesarahf said:

Hiya, 

I started my first Whole30 on 6/11 and am currently on Day 3. I'm 35 years old, married, with 3 fur babies. I've been "cleaning up" my diet over the past few years. I cut way back on coffee/caffeine and alcohol and switched to organic food a few years ago. A few months ago, I cut out gluten, and switched to grass fed animal products. I'm doing W30 to take me the rest of the way - to eat more whole, unprocessed foods and rid myself of my sugar addiction and possible dairy obsession. I grew up in the midwest, and have joked that dairy flows through my veins. Also, I just wrapped up a pretty stressful contract office job, over the course of which I gained about 10lbs in the past year, so would love to get rid of some of that extra fluff. 

My husband is not doing the W30 with me (he's training for a marathon), so unfortunately I wasn't able to completely rid my house of the non-compliant food, but I did move it all to separate sections of the fridge/pantry. He generally eats cleaner than I do, so is quite happy to eat compliant meals for dinner which is helping. 

A few initial observations: 

• I think cutting out gluten a few months ago was a helpful precursor to W30, since it introduced me to having to read labels, find alternatives and just not be able to run through the Chic Fil A drive thru when I was hungry. It forced me to think ahead about what I could eat/where and plan. 
• Even still, as I was going through my pantry and refrigerator, I was shocked to discover just how many products contain sugar and soy. It's really opened my eyes to why Americans are having so many health issues.
• My cravings for sugar, dairy, and grains over the past few days have been real! It is shocking when I go into a store to see all of the food that is non-compliant. 
• Physically, I've been cranky, and my muscles have felt very sore and achy. Hopefully this is me detoxing?!
• I've also been starving constantly. I eat a huge meal, and a couple hours later, I'm starving again. I woke up at 6am today, ravenous and ate the biggest breakfast I've ever eaten that early in the morning. By 10am, it's like I never ate a thing. 
• The cooking and the dishes --- wow. I've been running two loads in the dishwasher a day. 
• I spent a $$$$$$$ on groceries. Like blew through a handful of hundreds. Yikes. 
• The food has been tasting amazing, and even in this short time period I can feel my taste buds becoming much more aware. 
• I'm dying to know what tiger blood feels like!!!

That's all for now. Thanks for reading, hope you're journey is going well! I'm going to head into the kitchen and make some bone broth now lol. 

 

Thank you for sharing your story! Kudos to you for all of your hard work! I was so surprised about the dishes and cost as well! We spend about $200- $250/ wk on groceries for two people. We are in Indiana so our cost of living is pretty low. We even double almost every meal for leftovers. I will say, we meal plan very diligently and go to 3 different places for groceries. We go to the farmers market for produce, Kroger for paper products, and the meat market for meat. It takes a little extra time and planning but we save quite a bit by doing this. It takes time. Also, since we aren't eating out, stopping at Starbucks, etc. we are actually still saving money. 

I remember my first whole30 thinking that there is NO WAY this is a practical lifestyle.. well I was wrong...  now we both breeze through the grocery store knowing what is compliant (always double checking because recipes do change) and have even memorized most of our favorite meals. It will click and soon you will look back and realize you have mastered shopping and cooking. 

I can relate to all of those cravings and what you are feeling and it is all completely normal for day 3. My boyfriend is really struggling with his sugar cravings today and we both have had headaches all week.  Your body is just getting used to a new way of fueling itself, so it will take time. I know I get really hungry in-between meals if I don't include enough fat in my meals. Maybe give that a try? I have also noticed my attention span is really short this week. Makes it more difficult to refrain from boredom eating at my desk.  

I hope you're enjoying your whole30 journey so far. I look forward to hearing how your month progresses!

 

 

[mmesarahf]

2 hours ago, boyercs said:

Thank you for sharing your story! Kudos to you for all of your hard work! I was so surprised about the dishes and cost as well! We spend about $200- $250/ wk on groceries for two people. We are in Indiana so our cost of living is pretty low. We even double almost every meal for leftovers. I will say, we meal plan very diligently and go to 3 different places for groceries. We go to the farmers market for produce, Kroger for paper products, and the meat market for meat. It takes a little extra time and planning but we save quite a bit by doing this. It takes time. Also, since we aren't eating out, stopping at Starbucks, etc. we are actually still saving money. 

I remember my first whole30 thinking that there is NO WAY this is a practical lifestyle.. well I was wrong...  now we both breeze through the grocery store knowing what is compliant (always double checking because recipes do change) and have even memorized most of our favorite meals. It will click and soon you will look back and realize you have mastered shopping and cooking. 

I can relate to all of those cravings and what you are feeling and it is all completely normal for day 3. My boyfriend is really struggling with his sugar cravings today and we both have had headaches all week.  Your body is just getting used to a new way of fueling itself, so it will take time. I know I get really hungry in-between meals if I don't include enough fat in my meals. Maybe give that a try? I have also noticed my attention span is really short this week. Makes it more difficult to refrain from boredom eating at my desk.  

I hope you're enjoying your whole30 journey so far. I look forward to hearing how your month progresses!

 

 

Thank you for your reply, recommendations and encouragement! It's good for us rookies to hear from those who have been in the trenches and made it out before! And you are doing a Whole60 - I'm impressed! 

I think my husband and I have budgeted somewhere around $125/week on groceries, but I  honestly have no idea how much we actually spend [cringe]. I do meal plan and also shop from multiple places to try to keep the cost down. Recently I've joined Thrive Market, which does seem to be cheaper for some things. It's easy to rack up the bill at Costco - when each item is $20-40 but now that our pantry is stocked up it shouldn't be as bad. Also, my husband has planted a million fruits/veggies in the garden, so we'll be harvesting produce all summer which should help us save. Although, I think I'm developing some new expensive habits - I tried pecan butter for the first time yesterday and it was heavenly! 

My bone broth is in the crock pot, now I'm going to make some ghee. Who have I become?! Looking forward to being on this journey with you all. Together we will fight the sugar dragons!!

 

[D.Jordan]

I started on Monday, June 11th too, so I'm with y'all on this Whole30 schedule!! 

After I did my first Whole30 a couple of years ago, it was life-changing!  Ever since then, Whole30 principles have guided my food choices.  But now I also want to actually do another true restriction period, because I realize I have been getting too sloppy and need another re-set.  I'm excited to read your progress and keep each other on track!!  

[mmesarahf]

2 hours ago, D.Jordan said:

I started on Monday, June 11th too, so I'm with y'all on this Whole30 schedule!! 

After I did my first Whole30 a couple of years ago, it was life-changing!  Ever since then, Whole30 principles have guided my food choices.  But now I also want to actually do another true restriction period, because I realize I have been getting too sloppy and need another re-set.  I'm excited to read your progress and keep each other on track!!  

It's so encouraging to see all of you veterans coming back for more rounds of W30 - it gives me hope that I'm on the right path!

[Alivesay]

Hey, just checking in to see how everyone is feeling today.  I am a bit groggy.  I feel good, but just a little bit lethargic.  I am normally a pretty big runner, but I probably will just be walking today. 

I too am impressed about the Whole60 and when I make it to the full 30, I will evaluate and see.  I would not mind doing the 60 days either, but summer, with travel is so hard.  We back pack a lot and sometimes with groups so we all eat the same thing normally.  We will see, though. 

The hardest things for me this week have been:

Putting peanut butter on my kids toast.  I LOVE natural peanut butter and almond butter is TOTALLY not the same.  Bad news is, I have some aches and pains here and there and I am thinking it may be from legumes.  AGH!!!

Snacking after dinner.  I am still having something, last night it was some cashews. 

Good news, no real beer cravings and not much truly sweet cravings so far.
It has been busy, so I have made nothing interesting, just meat and roasted veggies and homemade ranch. 

Day 5, Here we come, right?!

How is everyone else doing?  Any big wins or struggles?

[mmesarahf]

Hey all, Happy Day 12!! Cruising right along, aren't we?! How's everyone doing? I'm feeling sleepy today, probably just didn't get enough sleep last night.

Last night I survived a lady's night dinner at my girlfriend's house. They had wine, cheese and quinoa - but I came prepared with some sparkling water and a Wild Zora bar and made it out compliant. I'm proud to say that I haven't had any slips to date, despite a networking event, a travel day last weekend and a few days of conferences this week. 

The hardest part for me is breakfast, especially if I have somewhere I need to be earlyish in the morning. I am not a morning person in general. I've realized that it's so much easier (and I'm so much happier) when I have some leftovers I can heat up, instead of having to start my day with an hour + of cooking. So my goal  moving forward is to have my breakfast and lunch ready to go in advance for days I need to get out the door quickly. 

Over the past 12 days, I've become a real sparkling water connoisseur.  I'm really digging the Spindrift and Waterloo. And I'm getting into Kombucha. The pecan butter I ordered from Thrive Market came yesterday, so I am super looking forward to having some of that this afternoon! 

Physical wise, I'm eating a ton of food. I've noticed that my facial blemishes have cleared up (yay), and (sadly) it appears that my chest is shrinking. It's great that my body is recognizing it can use fat as energy, but uhhhh - hello! - there are other sources of fat on my body!! lol. 

Does anyone have any new favorite foods/drinks to share? Any victories? Has anyone's Tiger Blood kicked in yet?!

 

[boyercs]

On 6/22/2018 at 4:35 PM, mmesarahf said:

Hey all, Happy Day 12!! Cruising right along, aren't we?! How's everyone doing? I'm feeling sleepy today, probably just didn't get enough sleep last night.

Last night I survived a lady's night dinner at my girlfriend's house. They had wine, cheese and quinoa - but I came prepared with some sparkling water and a Wild Zora bar and made it out compliant. I'm proud to say that I haven't had any slips to date, despite a networking event, a travel day last weekend and a few days of conferences this week. 

The hardest part for me is breakfast, especially if I have somewhere I need to be earlyish in the morning. I am not a morning person in general. I've realized that it's so much easier (and I'm so much happier) when I have some leftovers I can heat up, instead of having to start my day with an hour + of cooking. So my goal  moving forward is to have my breakfast and lunch ready to go in advance for days I need to get out the door quickly. 

Over the past 12 days, I've become a real sparkling water connoisseur.  I'm really digging the Spindrift and Waterloo. And I'm getting into Kombucha. The pecan butter I ordered from Thrive Market came yesterday, so I am super looking forward to having some of that this afternoon! 

Physical wise, I'm eating a ton of food. I've noticed that my facial blemishes have cleared up (yay), and (sadly) it appears that my chest is shrinking. It's great that my body is recognizing it can use fat as energy, but uhhhh - hello! - there are other sources of fat on my body!! lol. 

Does anyone have any new favorite foods/drinks to share? Any victories? Has anyone's Tiger Blood kicked in yet?!

 

Kudos to you for staying compliant throughout all of those events. That's awesome! We went to a birthday party Saturday night and made sure we ate a delicious meal before going. We stayed compliant munching on veggies and water while everyone else ate giant slices of ice cream cake. Now if I'm being totally honest.. it was difficult not to be envious of the cake eaters, but we tried to focus on the benefits of whole30 and how much better we are already feeling. The worst part about the social gathering was not watching everyone else eat things we are choosing not to.. it was actually all of the comments of "well you're braver than me", "I could never do that", "Why would you want to deprive yourself"... I was saddened that our family members considered our healthy choices deprivation. Something doesn't seem right there to me because we feel the exact opposite. We feel fulfilled, recharged, and well. 

In regards to breakfast, I totally get it. We are so lucky that we love eggs. I ate eggs everyday pre-whole30. My tip for breakfast (and any meal) is just to remember the meals don't always have to be "pinterest-ready" beautiful plated meals. Most of the time my breakfast is 3 scrambled eggs, a compliant breakfast sausage, red peppers, and ghee. It is simple and it takes about 10 minutes to make. We also make egg casseroles in advance to last the week sometimes. Our first whole30 we got so caught up in complicated fancy meals that we were exhausted from cooking. I am not ashamed to say sometimes our meals are whatever is in the fridge... ground meat, random vegetables, and a compliant sauce all thrown into the same bowl. Sometimes we eat grilled hot dogs, avocado, leftover vegetables, and apple sauce. Our meals still follow the template and are 100% compliant even though they are somewhat random at times. We also double every meal for lunches and leftovers... this has saved us a TON of time.