Starting August 20!

[Hope4Overcomers]

Greetings Fellow Whole30 Soldiers!!!

Great news for me! I just got to pretend I skipped a day! Went to do my Day By Day reading only to discover I’m on Day 8, rather than Day 7. Whoot Whoot!!

Okay, @Elizabeth33, I officially feel (major) icky too! That lovely combo of nausea mixed with some form of starvation and officially in bed. I’ll pull out of this parking space somehow eventually! Time is my friend. The longer I go without crap in my system the closer I come to health and that coveted Tiger Blood I so clearly recall from Round 1. Yippee!

@Michele B. keep the Bionic Hiking Woman in your neck of the mountains for now. The very thought is dizzying! BUT you kept up!!! Stellar job! She didn’t have to leave you dead along the trail! I’m so impressed. You more than earned that yummy banana and almond butter. Way to go. Way to represent our Team Whole30!

@HoustonLiving, how are you doing?? Still making a smart choice for you by staying away from social scenarios??

To each and every one of you, thanks for being the wind beneath my wings!

Carry On!

Dianne in Day 8 

[Michele B.]

@Elizabeth33 and @Hope4Overcomers  I'm really sorry you feel sick.  Did this happen during your previous times?  Is this common? 

I've had to make some effort to make sure I'm eating enough.  That's a first.  I exercise quite a bit, and cutting out all grains has presented a challenge in getting enough calories on some days. I definitely did not eat enough yesterday, and I felt it at dinner.  And after dinner.  So I went in search of a snack, which I haven't been doing. That's particularly tricky at night, which used to be ice cream time.  I looked online and found a great suggestion to have banana and almond (or other compliant) butter in a little almond milk, with cinnamon. I also added about 5 macadamias.  It sounds weird, but it was the bomb!  It was a very nice change in textures and combinations. I was getting a little bored with food, so this odd little snack brought in some variety. It could be good for breakfast as well. And I also felt better after eating, with no repercussions (like ice cream ;)

One drawback of looking online for ideas was the slew of "dessert" recipes that popped up.  Supposedly compliant "dessert" recipes.  Of course the ingredients are compliant, but seeing photos of fudgey cookies didn't help me. At all. Some of these things might be just perfect later on, but right now, not so much. I do understand that something like that might help prevent a major fail, but they certainly aren't congruent with the plan, and I have seen the light on the wisdom of just staying away from things like that for right now. I do plan to continue working hard beyond the 30 days - the reintro part is super important to me.  I would also like to get to the point where I can have those treats occasionally.  But all my life up to this point, one treat has turned into multiple daily treats pretty fast.  I don't trust myself.  But I am learning new skills for dealing with this every day.  What an awesome plan this is.

Have a lovely day!

[Michele B.]

How is everyone?  Doing well I hope.  At over the halfway point now (of the 30 - not including reintros), I am struggling with boredom of food.  Very tired of meat, veggies etc.  Really wanting more variety.  Today is challenging.  So if anyone else out there is struggling, I'm with you  

[Hope4Overcomers]

I’m still here! On Day 11 and I have an ear infection. I must have really been toxic! Being cleansed, that’s for sure. Some food boredom but I’m hanging in there okay.

How is everyone else???

Roll Call!

Dianne

[Efeiner]

I’m here as well! Day 10 wrapping up. I had zucchini noodles with spaghetti meat sauce that tastes delicious tonight! Also tried a “tuna salad wrap” with some homemade potato wedges. That too hit the spot.

Sorry I’ve been limited in my posts. I’ll attach a picture, we brought home an 8 week old golden retriever puppy. She’s keeping us busy!

keep up the great work team ☺️

[Hope4Overcomers]

Hi @Efeiner! Great job and adorable pup!!! I love it!!! 

 

ROLL CALL!!

Dianne

[prairiefox53]

Hi all. I haven't posted to this thread before but I think I started around the same time as some of you. I am on day 20 and I have to say I feel pretty darn fantastic. I'm almost 65 so I don't think I've said that in years! I have more energy, I'm going for longer walks and not getting winded, my clothes are much looser, my joints are less achy. My daughter was home for the weekend and said she noticed I'm not grunting and groaning as much getting up off of furniture or climbing the stairs.  My timeline is maybe a little off from the typical timeline, but pretty close. I struggled with diarrhea for quite a few days the second week but now I'm good, think I was detoxing. My biggest stumbling block has been breakfast. I've been a cereal girl my whole life and I have a hard time meeting the guidelines, especially the veggies and am getting a bit tired of eggs. This morning I had leftover fish and roasted veggies with a fried egg on top. Wasn't sure I could eat it, but it tasted pretty good! I'm pretty sure I can make it, but am a little concerned with reintroduction and how to go about it. Compliant bacon potato leek soup tonight - yum! Good luck to all!

[AndreaF]

Ugh. I have allergies or a cold and I am afraid to take anything. My normal approach when I get anything like this is apple cider vinegar or lemon juice with cinnamon, ginger, and honey. Not sure I could drink it without the honey. Going to search for options after dinner, which is actually quite good: chicken, peppers, mushroom and broccoli stir fried with curry powder and finished with a squeeze of lime over a bed of riced cauliflower with coconut milk. I know the riced cauliflower is kind of frowned upon, but I’m not considering it a cheat since every bone in my body wanted to go to Golden Corral and fight my cold with comfort foods after a 10 hour work day. Day 18 is coming to a close. I can do this.

[ShannonM816]

7 minutes ago, AndreaF said:

Ugh. I have allergies or a cold and I am afraid to take anything. My normal approach when I get anything like this is apple cider vinegar or lemon juice with cinnamon, ginger, and honey. Not sure I could drink it without the honey. Going to search for options after dinner, which is actually quite good: chicken, peppers, mushroom and broccoli stir fried with curry powder and finished with a squeeze of lime over a bed of riced cauliflower with coconut milk. I know the riced cauliflower is kind of frowned upon, but I’m not considering it a cheat since every bone in my body wanted to go to Golden Corral and fight my cold with comfort foods after a 10 hour work day. Day 18 is coming to a close. I can do this.

Try ginger tea, maybe with the cinnamon and a bit of lemon -- if you have fresh ginger, just steep some in boiling water for a few minutes, the longer you steep it, the stronger it will taste.

If you feel up to making soup, something like this one is really comforting when you're under the weather:  https://www.stupideasypaleo.com/2014/08/17/healing-chicken-soup-paleo-whole30/

And cauliflower rice is fine. You just chopped up a vegetable in a different way, that is never a problem. 

[Michele B.]

Hi all!  Enjoying the posts! Especially the puppy photo.  Love that.  I was having a rough, rough day when that popped up, and it made me smile.  Still does!

The second half has been more challenging. I've definitely had some days when my carbs have been too low and my energy dips. I looked in every grocery store for compliant sweet potato "fries", and they do not exist.  So I made my own. Which is fine, but I was hoping that some brand out there would make a compliant version for those nights when I don't have much time (we don't have a Whole Foods here - maybe they have one).  And no worries - I didn't fry them.  Baked in clarified butter. Just sliced small   Sometimes the slightest change like that - how something is sliced, a  change in texture or temperature - can provide a much needed bit of variety.  

Is anyone else struggling with keeping carbs up for recovery from workouts?

ISWF is blowing my mind.  I've read a lot of health/nutrition/etc books, and this one just nails it down, every chapter. The grain chapter especially.  Having IBS, I've read all the grain stuff over the years, and this one chapter is better than anything else I've seen. Wow. I can see that I really need to expand my knowledge of how to cook vegetables in a variety of ways.  I did just buy a spiralizer.  Veggie noodles are saving my tush right now.  My 17 year old son made fun of me (in a nice way) when he first saw them.  Now he requests them!

Have a happy weekend everyone!

[Efeiner]

I agree, I’m struggling to eat enough to keep me satisfied until the next meal without snacking. Especiall the days when I work out.

 

I made this shrimp on the grill last night and it was delicious! Give it a try ☺️

[AndreaF]

On 9/6/2018 at 8:57 PM, ShannonM816 said:

Try ginger tea, maybe with the cinnamon and a bit of lemon -- if you have fresh ginger, just steep some in boiling water for a few minutes, the longer you steep it, the stronger it will taste.

And cauliflower rice is fine. You just chopped up a vegetable in a different way, that is never a problem. 

Thanks, Shannon! I remembered I had ginger juice so I had that as a shot with cinnamon. I’ve been doing that morning and night since Friday and feeling much better. As for the cauliflower rice, I guess that’s no different from zucchini noodles. However, I heated the leftover with a few raisins and cinnamon for breakfast and that started my mind running on all the ways I could make that more like oatmeal or even a custard. It’s a slippery slope.

On 9/8/2018 at 8:31 AM, Michele B. said:

I looked in every grocery store for compliant sweet potato "fries", and they do not exist.  So I made my own. Which is fine, but I was hoping that some brand out there would make a compliant version for those nights when I don't have much time (we don't have a Whole Foods here - maybe they have one).  And no worries - I didn't fry them.  Baked in clarified butter. Just sliced small  

Michele, when time is tight and roasted veggies are on the menu, I start them in the microwave. Especially for sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and other hard vegetables, I’ve found I can cook it halfway in the microwave then let it cool enough to slice and toss in OO. Then I roast at a higher temp to get the browning I want on he outside. Another shortcut is to preheat your pan in the oven so veggies sear when they hit the pan. This is especially good if you use a large cast iron skillet.

[Michele B.]

@AndreaF  Thank you for the tip about microwaving veggies halfway first.  I do that with potatoes sometimes and it works great.  Just hadn't thought to do that with other veggies. 

@Efeiner Thank you for the shrimp recipe! 

I made a quick turkey hash for lunch today.  I do that often, and throw in whatever veggies are left over or on hand.  Sweet potato is great in that. Something about the slight sweetness with the turkey. Highly recommended. 

One really cool change now - I'm not thinking about dessert after meals.  Well, usually.  There have been a couple of nights here and there that I have.  But it's really decreasing.  This is a HUGE change.  I would obsess about dessert.  I didn't think I could ever eat dinner without a dessert.  Yikes.  The retraining my brain to new habits is working!  

I hope everyone has had a good weekend!

[prairiefox53]

@Michele B. Alexia makes an organic line of french fries and sweet potato fries. I have not purchased the sweet potato fries, but the regular fries I believe are just potatoes and sea salt, maybe canola oil. They carry them at Whole Foods, but I've also purchased them at Mariano's - do you have those by you? I believe I have also purchased them at Jewel which is a Chicago area store, but they are owned by Albertson's.

[Michele B.]

Hi everyone!  Stress has been a little high here in Virginia over Florence.  If any of you guys on here live in the Carolinas, I hope you are all ok.  It's just sickening watching the destruction.  My heart goes out to you.  Here, we struggle with flooding and are waiting to see what happens, like everyone else. 

I have a family member staying here who was evacuated from Virginia Beach.  It's been a challenge to continue cooking for myself and the family, and for him.  He has a particular set of beliefs about food that do not mesh with mine or this plan, and he is very vocal/judgemental.  So I'm fighting the fight to stay on plan and also keep my sanity   Wednesday is the 30 day mark for me and I'm really excited to start reintroductions and learn what I can. It's exciting to think about having more information to operate from.

I hope everyone is doing well on the plan and also navigating successfully through this hurricane. If you get a chance to give us a shout and let us know how things are, I know I would love to hear from you!  Take good care, all. 

[AndreaF]

2 hours ago, Michele B. said:

Hi everyone!  Stress has been a little high here in Virginia over Florence.  If any of you guys on here live in the Carolinas, I hope you are all ok.  It's just sickening watching the destruction.  My heart goes out to you.  Here, we struggle with flooding and are waiting to see what happens, like everyone else.

Michele, I found myself navigating the Costco aisles on a nearly empty tank after spending Tuesday morning at school securing my classroom to the best of my ability. Luckliy, they have a compliant Polish sausage and they were sampling it. I took two then opened my cherry tomatoes as soon as I got to the car. My focus in hurricane prep this time around was on protein. It was interesting to see the food choices people were making in the face of a potential disaster. I was planning to cook a bunch of chicken and salmon from my freezer and eat that first after the power went out. So far, we are good, although I worry about too much rain bringing down trees this weekend, so I will do my Sunday prep and roasting a day early, or maybe tonight. I hope we are back in school by Monday, but I guess we have 24-36 hours to see if there is flooding in our district, part of which has been under mandatory evacuation since Tuesday morning. Navigating this emotional rolllercoaster without my old standby foods has been challenging. I did make some almond crusted chicken strips and had those with mashed potatoes, and I have had fruit with almost every meal. I guess if that’s my new version of stress eating, I can live with that.

[Michele B.]

@AndreaF It certainly has been an emotional roller coaster!  l feel your pain on getting caught hungry and searching for something to eat. It's at those times that I become acutely aware of how much we are surrounded by processed foods. I can only imagine what you saw in people's carts for a stockpile.  I've been there!  It sounds like you are handling the stress well and pre-planning quite a bit.

Good luck this weekend. I hope all your trees stay strong!

[Efeiner]

Prayers to all of you on the coast! I'm in the midwest, but thinking of all of you often.  Today is my day 19.  My buddy who was doing whole30 with me fell off the wagon last night - went out for a beer and wings.  I'm still going strong with each of you! Stay strong

 

[Michele B.]

@Efeiner Good for you for staying with it!  I think that might be hard to have started the journey with a friend and now be going solo.  Do you feel ok with that?  I have found that being on here has helped.  I've never once been part of a forum.  I'm rather private.  But this has been very helpful here.  Hoping I can stay on here after reintros start!

Also, how are you feeling at day 19?  It's interesting to me the variations of responses that people feel.  I feel good.  Didn't ever feel sick or unusually tired.  But I have been sleeping less, which I find strange. I've never had trouble sleeping, except for the rare occasion.  Since I started this, I wake up pretty early (for me), getting only about 6 1/2 - 7 hours of sleep.  I always needed 8 or more before.  

Have a great day everyone!

[Efeiner]

@Michelle B I was pretty bummed when she said she was quitting, but all of the more motivation for me to finish strong!

I really appreciate the forums too - helps me stay focused that “I’m not the only one” in this boat!

I definitely felt sick and tired at the beginning. It’s the sweet tooth of mine, I’m sure. My body was shocked!  Now that I’m further in, I’m feeling great! I know I’ve lost some weight (not really my primary goal, but a nice bonus). 

My sleep is great too. I find myself sleeping better and arise much easier! I’m definitely not sleeping less (still 8 hours for me). 

Now im at the point of being nervous off the program. It’s so easier for me to say NO when I have strict rules. The idea of being tempted by sweet treats is terrifying for me. I “treat” myself, but then it turns into treats every day, or even ever meal. Help!

[Michele B.]

@Efeiner  I feel exactly the same way about re-introductions!  I am such a sugar fiend - I never, ever thought I could do something like this. Now I know that having the strict rules works so much better for me.  At least for now. I like the idea of being able to include occasional, small amounts of desserts, etc. later on, but I just really don't trust myself yet. Exactly what you said - a "treat" becomes an every meal thing. I would obsess about it.  Daydream.  Plan out this super healthy meal and then follow it with cookies or ice cream.  Telling myself that all the exercise I do makes it ok. I really didn't mind giving up bread, rice, etc., but I had to have my dessert!  Oh,  and the best justification I used was my kids.  "My kids" will enjoy these homemade chocolate chip cookies...I don't want to deprive them....this is a special time together baking.  And on and on.  Funny thing is, they don't miss any of this at all.  I changed my diet but still have provided reasonable grain carbs for them, minus all the desserts, and they are completely happy. Go figure  

[AndreaF]

Here I am about to make dinner for Day 28, amazed that I have lasted this long. I am going to mostly stay on plan without reintroduction, and then indulge in a few foods on my birthday in 8 days. I considered trying to choose one or two forbidden groups to enjoy on my birthday, but let’s face it, pizza and cake both contain grains, dairy, and sugar. I can make a gluten free, dairy free cake, but I wonder if I should just enjoy the “real thing” rather than trying to make something that is closer to compliant and might not have quite the flavor or texture that I am looking forward to. Mostly, I can’t believe that I have slayed the Sugar Dragon. This week with all the cloudy days I have had some difficulty getting through the afternoons, when my old habit was to seek a sugary snack for energy to get me through to dinner time. I think I am looking forward to weighing as much as I am looking forward to indulging my craving for pizza. I hope you all are safe and dry, and ready to head into the final stretch!

[Michele B.]

@AndreaF I'm hoping a moderator or advanced member will respond to you.  Those are great questions and I'm on my first Whole30.  I wonder if you have time to introduce any of those ingredients (wheat, dairy, sugar), alone, before your birthday? Maybe two of them?  Then you could monitor how those things are affecting you before they are combined with other ingredients. If it were me, I think I would fix the real deal and really enjoy it, but make sure the cake is small so that I'm not tempted by leftovers. I can see how incorporating the festivity you want for your birthday into your reintroduction period is challenging.  Please let us know how it goes. I'm excited but also nervous about reintros.  This 30 day phase has been challenging, and like you, I can't believe we are at the home stretch, but the next phase has it's own unique blend of challenges as well.

I ate out last night, which I haven't done very much this past month. It was a special date with my son. I studied up again on the rules and the specific recommendations for eating out. I did my very best.  Chose all compliant things, but felt that the sauce on my meal was hyper-flavored.  So I have been watching for bloating, symptoms, etc, and so far so good. But it's funny...it didn't spark cravings, but it sparked that crummy/why did I eat that feeling.  Just from the sauce!  I ate healthy proteins and a huge plate of broccoli, but that darn sauce. You never know what restaurants put in food.  And the Whole30 plan addresses that and asks you to just do your best.  Most restaurants use canola oil, etc. But I just don't want that crap anymore.  So @AndreaF, I wonder how you will feel after eating the cake?  I'm NOT suggesting that you should feel any sort of negative emotion.  Absolutely enjoy!  I know I will at some point!  Probably my husbands birthday next month and my son's in November.  But I wonder how your body will feel?  If you will be happy to return to your new way of eating?  This is truly an interesting journey. 

As for changes in my body, I am thrilled with the progress. It's not a miraculous cure-all - I imagine that there are still changes to come as well.  I still have pain in my neck from arthritis and a disc bulge; I have some knee pain; I get headaches, I get tired, and have some occasional IBS symptoms.  BUT:  I have less joint pain; I know I've lost weight; I have more energy overall; I'm not bloated at all.  Overall, all of my symptoms are reduced, and I am just so excited beyond belief that I am no longer that person who allows food to control her. It felt ridiculous to be my age and feel like I couldn't get through the day without sugar. What a powerless feeling.  And now, what a powerful feeling.  I hope all of you here are experiencing positive changes as well, both physically and mentally. 

Happy Monday!  

 

[ShannonM816]

18 hours ago, AndreaF said:

Here I am about to make dinner for Day 28, amazed that I have lasted this long. I am going to mostly stay on plan without reintroduction, and then indulge in a few foods on my birthday in 8 days. I considered trying to choose one or two forbidden groups to enjoy on my birthday, but let’s face it, pizza and cake both contain grains, dairy, and sugar. I can make a gluten free, dairy free cake, but I wonder if I should just enjoy the “real thing” rather than trying to make something that is closer to compliant and might not have quite the flavor or texture that I am looking forward to. Mostly, I can’t believe that I have slayed the Sugar Dragon. This week with all the cloudy days I have had some difficulty getting through the afternoons, when my old habit was to seek a sugary snack for energy to get me through to dinner time. I think I am looking forward to weighing as much as I am looking forward to indulging my craving for pizza. I hope you all are safe and dry, and ready to head into the final stretch!

So, first a bit of warning about the sugar dragon. They never truly go away completely, they sleep as long as you don't feed them, and if you do indulge in sweets, as long as it's occasional -- like one meal occasionally, not a whole day of sweets occasionally -- it'll probably be pretty easy to get it to go back to sleep. But the more you have sweets, the harder it gets.

I would try to do some reintroductions in the days after whole30 before your birthday. Maybe on day 31, do dairy and see how that goes, then wait at least two days (more is fine, especially if you feel like you have any lingering effects after the two days), and then do wheat. Do at least those two, so you have some idea what to expect from pizza and/or cake.

 

[Michele B.]

Hi all!  I'm wondering who is still with us.  I've glanced at some of the other forum threads and they aren't as good   I like it here where we are all generally at the same point in the process.  I started reintroductions yesterday.  I chose to start with rice.  Legumes are more problematic for me, and I've always though rice was pretty benign.  So good place to start.  Well...it isn't as benign as I though and I'm surprised. I ended up pretty bloated.  I also had a terrible stomachache yesterday, but it's the type I usually get when I'm stressed.  So I'm not sure if there is a connection there.  I will have to retest.  My second serving of rice last night didn't result in a stomachache.  Anyway, it also wasn't that good.  I thought I would be so excited to have it.  I put off eating it in the morning because I just didn't want it. So then I had it at lunch and dinner.  Pretty blah.  I didn't feel great eating it.  I was so relieved to go back to the 30 day protocol today.  Has anyone else had this experience?