Starting November 1st - support is key! Men???

[mikem]

Hi Everyone, 

I'm doing my second one starting Thursday, November 1st. I'm a 42 year old father of 4 little ones and have been eating a ton of junk the past year or so. I'm really suffering the consequences and ready to turn things around. Also, my wife is struggling with some digestive issues (serious food restrictions) and I see this as my way of leading the way for her so it can be a little easier for her. 

I am a all-or-nothing personality so if I do this I'll do it 100% but if I slip even a little bit I'll crash and burn in flames of candy.  Anyone out that want to join and get lots of positive support. I see there's a lot of women on here which is cool but there's got to be some men out there that want to start to improve their health. 

I'm thinking of doing a daily photo just to show the effects. Who's in? 

[ladyshanny]

17 hours ago, mikem said:

Hi Everyone, 

I'm doing my second one starting Thursday, November 1st. I'm a 42 year old father of 4 little ones and have been eating a ton of junk the past year or so. I'm really suffering the consequences and ready to turn things around. Also, my wife is struggling with some digestive issues (serious food restrictions) and I see this as my way of leading the way for her so it can be a little easier for her. 

I am a all-or-nothing personality so if I do this I'll do it 100% but if I slip even a little bit I'll crash and burn in flames of candy.  Anyone out that want to join and get lots of positive support. I see there's a lot of women on here which is cool but there's got to be some men out there that want to start to improve their health. 

I'm thinking of doing a daily photo just to show the effects. Who's in? 

Hi Mike, there are some men around the forum, hopefully you'll meet up with them.

Regarding the daily photo - I wouldn't do that if I were you, for a couple reasons. First, physical change doesn't happen in a noticeable way from day to day so you may end up scrutinizing the images and driving yourself bananas. Second, it brings with it a very narrow focus and you can end up missing the more subtle effects. Finally, this bumps up against the "no weighing" rule. That rule is designed to get people away from the scale and the physical focus - pictures every day could be just as problematic.

For sure take a picture before and after your 30 days though, that's always fun!

[mikem]

So day one is in the books. I had been eating a lot of sugar and grain right up until the day before I started. I tried to eat a lot to sooth the jitters I was getting. I made some ghee /coconut oil fat bombs - just poured a little of each in an ice cube tray with a pinch of sea salt. Those helped. I also go through a ton of olives when I do this. I also took an Epsom salt bath last night after we got back from our kids holloween party - yeah, that was tough. So far, day 2 is going pretty well. Drinking lots of water but, wow, do I have some serious cravings. 

 

[smcfad]

Hi Mike, I'm not a man but I started October 30th, I'm on day 6. Had to chuckle at your "fat bomb" idea. Best of luck, the end will be here before you know it!

[ladyshanny]

On 11/2/2018 at 1:08 PM, mikem said:

So day one is in the books. I had been eating a lot of sugar and grain right up until the day before I started. I tried to eat a lot to sooth the jitters I was getting. I made some ghee /coconut oil fat bombs - just poured a little of each in an ice cube tray with a pinch of sea salt. Those helped. I also go through a ton of olives when I do this. I also took an Epsom salt bath last night after we got back from our kids Halloween party - yeah, that was tough. So far, day 2 is going pretty well. Drinking lots of water but, wow, do I have some serious cravings. 

 

Hi Mike, in order to mitigate some of the intensity of cravings, make sure that you are eating enough throughout the day. You can give a rundown of what you're typically eating if you like?

[mikem]

On 11/4/2018 at 4:29 PM, smcfad said:

Hi Mike, I'm not a man but I started October 30th, I'm on day 6. Had to chuckle at your "fat bomb" idea. Best of luck, the end will be here before you know it!

Thanks for saying "hi". How are you doing? You must be on day 8 now?? It's funny, the cravings for day 3-5 weren't that bad but yesterday I was inches away from going to get some candy and chips. I didn't thankfully mostly due to eating those fat bombs and lots of olives. I'm hoping the cravings subside here in the next few days. Tell me how it's going for you? Is this your first one? 

 

[mikem]

Day 6 Update
1. Cravings have been horrible. Almost gave up yesterday and went to the gas station for some evil food. 
2. I'm constipated which has happened before. I'm taking magnesium daily and trying to eat plenty of greens and drink plenty of water. I'm thinking it will even out in a few days and I'll get back to regular. 
3. On the bright side, my focus is coming back slowly, the redness in my face is fading and my dandruff is gone. For me, toxins leave my body mostly through my skin. Oh, and I've lost about an inch off my belly. All that just from 6 days! 

[smcfad]

Good for you for not giving in! I am on day 9 today, doing great! I also didn't have cravings or headaches until about day 5 and it was just that day. I started this with some skin rash/eczema issues. Looked into high histamine foods, allergies, intolerances, etc. That's how I discovered Whole 30. Last night was the first night I slept without antihistamines or sleep aids and didn't wake up itchy for over 2 months! So I'm happily trekking forward!!

 

~Stacy

[mikem]

Day 7 Update
1. Cravings are persisting but I just tear into some Primal Kitchen avocado chipotle mayo. Yeah, dip in there with some baby carrots....mmmmm good.
2. My focus is coming back slowly. A week ago I had this constant fog in my brain and my concentration was non-existent. It's starting to clear. 
3. Also had a really good bowel movement. I usually get constipated when I do this so I started taking Psyllium Husk right from the start. 
4. I think I'm starting to sleep a bit better but still not jumping out of bed in the morning. 
 

Tonight I have to go to a Mexican restaurant so wish me luck on finding something to eat there. 

 

[mikem]

Day 8 Update
1. The cravings monster has finally taken a day off.  Thank goodness. I still had to stuff my face every few hours but that little voice in my head telling me to quit was gone.
2. Weird thing though, I had a crazy diarrhea like bowel movement after lunch. Not sure if my body is just getting stuff out or if it was a reaction to something. The only thing I've had off a  store shelf is Primal Kitchen Ranch dressing. 
https://www.primalkitchen.com/products/ranch-dressing

3. Mexican restaurant last night went pretty well. Fortunately, they had a T-bone steak which I asked them to grill with peppers and onions. 
4. Slept like a rock this morning. 

[ladyshanny]

3 hours ago, mikem said:

Day 8 Update
1. The cravings monster has finally taken a day off.  Thank goodness. I still had to stuff my face every few hours but that little voice in my head telling me to quit was gone.
2. Weird thing though, I had a crazy diarrhea like bowel movement after lunch. Not sure if my body is just getting stuff out or if it was a reaction to something. The only thing I've had off a  store shelf is Primal Kitchen Ranch dressing. 
https://www.primalkitchen.com/products/ranch-dressing

3. Mexican restaurant last night went pretty well. Fortunately, they had a T-bone steak which I asked them to grill with peppers and onions. 
4. Slept like a rock this morning. 

Hi Mike, I noticed that you posted a duplicate of this in another thread. Forum rules exclude duplicate posting and copy-paste style posting. I have removed the other post in order to keep the forum clean.

[smcfad]

Looks like you are doing great, Mike! I have had to go out to eat a few times so far and twice I have brought my own salad dressing and ordered a compliant salad with grilled salmon. Once I just used vinegar and oil. A Mexican restaurant would have scared me, chips and salsa are one of my downfalls when I'm "off the wagon". 

I bought some Crio Bru (roasted cocoa beans) this week because I am a wimpy coffee drinker and can only drink it with cream and sugar. I really like the peppermint with some unsweetened almond milk. It's my new favorite thing

 

~Stacy

[Jim4884]

Hi Mike,

I am not currently doing an official Whole 30, but I am a man who has done two complete Whole 30's, and I have just switched my diet to be at least 95% Whole 30 all the time, I'm just am not as strict about eating out or an occasional off-plan splurge.  I have been maintaining this for almost a year and a half now, and have no desire to go back to how I used to eat.  Why?  All of the incredible health benefits I experienced.  I am now 56, and was obese when I started, so my results may not be typical, but I:

• Went from pre-diabetic and my doctor e-mailing me personally to tell me I had to do something about it, to completely normal blood sugar
• Got off of blood pressure meds and my BP has stayed lower than it was on meds
• Lost 40 lbs without limiting portion sizes or increasing exercise
• Mild eczema completely disappeared
• Inflammation in arthritic ankle was so bad I could not run due to the pain, that has totally cleared up and I can run and hike without issue
• Cholesterol lowered modestly and triglycerides dropped 3X
• Mood and sleep improved modestly
• Resurrected my joy of cooking and learned to love vegetables (which used to mostly be condiments on burgers/subs and pizza toppings  )

Hopefully that's a little motivating.  I will happily go ahead and be strict whole 30 for the rest of yours, hope to hear from you!

[ladyshanny]

16 hours ago, Jim4884 said:

Hi Mike,

I am not currently doing an official Whole 30, but I am a man who has done two complete Whole 30's, and I have just switched my diet to be at least 95% Whole 30 all the time, I'm just am not as strict about eating out or an occasional off-plan splurge.  I have been maintaining this for almost a year and a half now, and have no desire to go back to how I used to eat.  Why?  All of the incredible health benefits I experienced.  I am now 56, and was obese when I started, so my results may not be typical, but I:

• Went from pre-diabetic and my doctor e-mailing me personally to tell me I had to do something about it, to completely normal blood sugar
• Got off of blood pressure meds and my BP has stayed lower than it was on meds
• Lost 40 lbs without limiting portion sizes or increasing exercise
• Mild eczema completely disappeared
• Inflammation in arthritic ankle was so bad I could not run due to the pain, that has totally cleared up and I can run and hike without issue
• Cholesterol lowered modestly and triglycerides dropped 3X
• Mood and sleep improved modestly
• Resurrected my joy of cooking and learned to love vegetables (which used to mostly be condiments on burgers/subs and pizza toppings  )

Hopefully that's a little motivating.  I will happily go ahead and be strict whole 30 for the rest of yours, hope to hear from you!

Always love hearing your results, Jim! And what a wonderful offer to another member to jump in with both feet as a show of support! Well done, you give me the warm-fuzzy feelings!

[Jim4884]

mikem come back!  Sorry I was too late with support but I'd do another W30 with ya if you went off the rails.  Or hopefully life has just been busy for you in agreeable ways.  Let us know how you're doing...

[Jaydubelyou]

Hi All, I started on 6th November and am a man, as far as I can tell.  Going pretty well, I feel very motivated to do the whole 30 days to the letter and I am noticing positive effects already.  I have a long way to go but I feel that this has given me a very positive start.