Am I doing this wrong?

[jfredrickson]

I started my Whole30 (first time) on April 1st. I am someone who LOVES sugar - pretty much anything with sugar. On the first day, I had a bit of a headache (no sweet coffee drink) but that was all. I keep reviewing the timeline to see what to expect and I did have one day where I was SOOOO tired I could hardly function (and didn't really) - other than that, I haven't had to deal with any of the stuff from the timeline. This also means that here I am, well into day 18 and not feeling any sort of tiger blood. I have read the posts about how this period is different for everyone and I may never actually feel any of it...which is disappointing to say the least.

My question is - am I a miracle of science or am I doing this wrong? I really, honestly do not feel any different than when I started. I have noticed a few NSV things for myself (sleeping more soundly maybe, and clearer skin despite being on my period) but I'm feeling very disillusioned with this right now...

So, am I doing this wrong?

[ladyshanny]

You're not necessarily doing anything wrong because you don't have side effects and Tiger Blood is such a misnomer for so many people. Maybe list out a couple typical days of eating including portions and timing etc. We can see if anything stands out.

[kirbz]

My experience sounds very similar to yours!

I, too, am a complete sugar addict. When not being mindful, I eat sugar by the family-sized bag, tub, etc. I've now done a complete Whole30 twice and have done a few other attempts and mini-resets of varying lengths. I never experienced pretty much anything from the timeline. I didn't experience any of the adverse stuff like the carb flu or hangover or kill-all-the-things. Likewise, I never really felt like I got tiger blood or any of the other really positive things. 

However, after doing a Whole30 and going back to poor eating habits, I started to really notice the stuff I did get. Because, once I lost it again, I recognized it for what it was. So, for me, the changes are subtle but kinda significant once I lost them again. Here are a few of them that I experienced: 

• Less pain in my joints (sometimes my knees or elbows ache when I hike or climb a lot; this happens less when on Whole30 but sometimes I don't recognize that because it was never really severe pain in the first place and never stopped me from doing those things) 
• Less of a morning and 3:00 pm slump (I never really got that increased energy that people talk about, but I did feel less tired if that makes sense; I started to lose the super sleepy slumps I would sometimes get driving into work and a few hours after lunch) 
• Clearer skin (I generally have pretty clear skin but it's much more "glowy" when on Whole30 than when I'm not)
• My resting heart rate decreases 
• My heart rate doesn't go as high when doing exercise 

So yeah, they weren't super dramatic for me,  but they were significant and do actually affect my quality of life. A whole lot of subtle things add up to me truly just feeling better when I eat cleanly. But it was always hard for me to see during the transition. 

So, maybe this is you. And hopefully this will help you dig a little deeper and perhaps recognize some things that might not be so obvious but are still important to you... 

Best wishes!