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30 Day Time Machine


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May 1st is the start of my first Whole 30. Less than 2 weeks ago I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's, a thyroid auto-immune disease, which answered so many questions about why my body has been working against me. What it didn't answer was how to fix it.  My Dr said go gluten, dairy and soy free and come back in a year and we'll check your numbers again with no explanations no nothing. Yes, she was terrible. I left that appointment and got to reading and researching. Turns out there's some evidence that yes, removing these things from my diet can help address my symptoms. I thought I would give up one at a time to see how it goes and a couple of friends who'd done Whole 30 before suggested this and said they'd do it with me. So here I am. I also met had a consultation with new doctor this week who works with an integrative health clinic at the university hospital and that went really well. Science-based holistic care: here I come!

I saw this today on how to explain Hashimoto's to family and friends and thought it funny while eerily accurate: 

Tell them it's like donating 4 pints of blood after getting into a car wreck, then trying to manage a marathon on decaf coffee with 2 hours of sleep in the past 5 days 

I am a 47 year old mom to a teenage girl and wife who lives in Colorado. I'm a SAHM who also am the Board Secretary and run the day to day of the largest bike racing team in CO. I love being active, riding my bikes, rock climbing, being outdoors, and reading. So all of those things are great until you start l feeling like the description above. I do still try and exercise 6 days a week, because I keep thinking how bad my symptoms would be if I didn't exercise. 

What I'm hoping to get out of this Whole 30 Challenge is:

  • Energy!!! I'm so tired of being so tired. 
  • Sleep. I've been an insomniac for 6 years now. 1am - 4am is prime reading time if you can't sleep. But I used to be able to still function, now I can't.
  • Lose Weight. I'd be lying if I didn't say I would love to see this happen. The weight has just kept coming on despite all the training I've do. 
  • Ride by bike with my friends and teammates again. I only ride by myself right now because I am so slow and tired that it's embarrassing to me how hard it is to ride things that I would used to consider my easy rides. 
  • Race my mountain bike. Last year I made some big mental gains about racing. I have been and will probably continue to be slower than my competition, but I made some great personal gains last year. This year, I'm not signed up for any races because everything is like riding through molasses right now. 
  • Rock Climbing. I used to climb indoors 2 nights a week with friends while my daughter, who is on the competitive climbing team, had practice. I have bailed on my friends a million times now, and I can't believe, they still ask me. And two of them are the ones who suggested this and doing it with me. I would love to start meeting up with these wonderful women again, and climbing again (my first love before I ever got into bike riding), and summer is coming - I wanna climb outside!
  • Stop Losing my Hair! I would love to take a shower without a ton of hair coming out of my head. 
  • Don't Worry. Be Happy! My ability to handle stress is now non-existent. And I'm on the verge of tears constantly. 
  • Focus. I am known for being really well organized and being on top of things. My training is as a paralegal. But anymore I feel like I'm losing my mind. My dad had Alzheimer's and the thought of losing my mind is not a good one. 
  • Swelling.  My right knee has been swollen since a crash in a race last June or July. Been to the doctor. It doesn't hurt anymore. But there's this non-roll of fat over my right knee that doesn't exist over the the left that's been there since it that crash (when I got up and got back on my bike and finished the race, pain be damned - see personal gains above). I also swear my feet have swollen, or gotten fat, some of my bike shoes that I hadn't worn since fall are really uncomfortable, when they weren't last year. They also just kind of ache, especially first thing in the morning when they didn't used to do that. 
  • Machu Pichu. I have this dream vacation coming up and I can't believe that I wish it wasn't. This trip includes, hiking the Inca Trail, of course and mountain biking and rafting in Peru and I'm afraid that I won't have the energy to do it or enjoy it. 

I have some good support going in, but more support is always better.  I have my two rock climbing friends, and two of my bike friends (one with Hashimoto's  and one with no thyroid) also on this journey with me.  My husband is trying to be supportive (he's a typical engineer and struggles with emotions and things he can't just fix). My daughter is in, especially when I told her that if this works you get back your active mom for the summer who isn't just irritated all the time! She's even going Gluten Free to see if it helps her eczema. Both are on board with eating W30 complaint meals with me. I reached out to the women on my team and told them what I was doing and may offered their support. 

Now it's up to me to make it happen and see if I can go back in time to the old, active, happy, healthy me. 

 

 

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Day Zero (yesterday). I went to the gym, and then I went to Whole Foods, Costco, and King Soopers to get all my food for the next 7 days. Sheez! I came home, put it away while clearing out what needed to go, creating a W30 only shelf in the pantry and a shelf for my husband and kid with things like their peanut butter and energy gels on it.  I then did some food prep: salad dressing and pepper slices. And then I was exhausted and had a headache for the rest of the night. Went to bed at my normal time, because insomina says you keep to the routine, although I didn't read at all.  Slept okay. 

Morning Day One: I got up weighed for the last time (put the scale on the top shelf of the linen closet), took my measurements, and had my husband take my before pictures. That's done for 30 days.  

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15 minutes ago, Laurie's All In said:

Thanks Cinco! We do sound like we're on very similar journeys! I look forward to both of us finding success. 

I'm Denver Metro area, Southwest area, how about you?

Lakewood, right next to Green Mountain! And my first name is Laura. 

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2 minutes ago, cinco_mouser said:

Lakewood, right next to Green Mountain! And my first name is Laura. 

I can see Green Mountain from my kitchen window! Well not today but usually. lol  We're Morrison by zip code, unincorporated Jeffco. I'm just on the south side of BCLP. I love to ride Green Mtn, hoping to get to where I can ride there again soon. 

Laura...Laurie... the similarities continue.  

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1 minute ago, Laurie's All In said:

I can see Green Mountain from my kitchen window! Well not today but usually. lol  We're Morrison by zip code, unincorporated Jeffco. I'm just on the south side of BCLP. I love to ride Green Mtn, hoping to get to where I can ride there again soon. 

Laura...Laurie... the similarities continue.  

Man. We are living a similar life. No joke.

I got married in December, and in moving to Green Mountain / Lakewood where my husband lives. My house, which I am in the process of selling and where I've lived for the past 6 years, faces the horse pasture on Quincy by Simms. I have spent an immense amount of time in BCLP since I can access it by the pedestrian bridges!

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59 minutes ago, cinco_mouser said:

Man. We are living a similar life. No joke.

I got married in December, and in moving to Green Mountain / Lakewood where my husband lives. My house, which I am in the process of selling and where I've lived for the past 6 years, faces the horse pasture on Quincy by Simms. I have spent an immense amount of time in BCLP since I can access it by the pedestrian bridges!

Good time to get out of that house with them gearing up the road work that's going to go on forever on Quincy! 

I spent a ton of time in BCLP too. So easy to just ride right out of my garage and go ride around the park. My husband and I have talked about moving a bunch of times over the past 17 years that we've lived here. Not the prettiest of neighborhoods but geographically we can't think of anywhere else we'd rather be. Unless it was Golden, but that's so expensive and none of the houses really have yards, which we like about this 'hood too. 

 

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DAY 1

Breakfast: 2 eggs with Simply Potato Hashbrowns all skillet cooked in Coconut Oil w/ a 1/4 of an Avocado

Lunch: Superfood Salad Mix from Costco (minus any of the dressing/toppings) w/ shredded Whole Foods Rotisserie Chicken (2 palms), and Homemade "Ranch"dressing

Dinner: Spinach salad w/ red onions (supposed to have fennel but I couldn't find any), strawberries and blackberries tossed in homemade balsamic dressing. Topped with Pork Tenderloin.  Daughter said it was too much spinach, husband said nothing, which probably says plenty, I thought it tasted fine. 

Snacks: A few grapes and mixed nuts before and after dinner (guessing the lack of fat was the issue with after dinner). 

Exercise: Nothing. :(

Sleep: Not too bad actually. Slept from 9:30-3:30, which means I slept through my usually awake time of 1ish to 4 ish. Did get back to sleep for a maybe another 30-45 minutes, after my husband got up at 4:30. 

NSV: - Didn't give into any cravings, No afternoon snack. 

Thoughts & Feelings: Not too bad. I didn't really didn't have hunger between meals too much. A couple of cravings but tamped those down quickly as recognizing them as not hunger but boredom, routine, whatever. If everyday was gonna be like today, I could TOTALLY do this. But I know hard times are a coming.

I did discover that my Magnesium supplements have soybean oil AFTER I took my am dose. So I promise to go the full 30 days and NOT have my alcoholic drink until after 10 am on the 31st day.  

6 hours is a looong time between meals. I eat breakfast about 6 am. Lunch is 11:30/12. And Dinner is 6 pm. It'll be interesting to see if I can continue to not be hungry between meals as the honeymoon wears off. 

 

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DAY 2

Breakfast: Sweet Potato Hash: Sweet Potatoes, Adelle's Chicken Apple Sausage, Apples.....This is one of our favorite camping meals that we liked so much we started making at home and what do you know, it works for W30 too!

Lunch: Tokyo Joe's Nikko Salad....lunch with a friend

Dinner: Mexican Twice Baked Potatoes, from one of the W30 books. Mine looked NOTHING like the pictures. Took way too long to cook. Ended up eating mostly the taco meat, potato, cauliflower rice filling w/ Guac and Salsa. It was really good. Leftovers I just save the middle.  Family seemed to agreed and got a good laugh out of my "Pinterest Fail" 

Snacks: Some almonds before my ride, afternoon hunger: Go-Go Squeeze aka Applesauce,handful of shredded rotissierre chicken (THAT was dry and bland) , and a few mixed nuts. 

Exercise: 45 minute mountain bike ride - super tame 1.5 mile-ish trail, with just enough climb that in my weakened state was a workout. I did 3 laps. 

Sleep: Not as good as last night but still pretty good for me. Slept from 10-4. I woke up at my regular time at 1 and a few more times but I was able to fall back a sleep fairly easily. I laid around for another hourish trying to ignore that I needed to go to the bathroom. 

NSV: - Didn't give into any cravings. Got in a workout. Had more energy throughout the day.

Thoughts & Feelings: Still feeling pretty good about this. Haven't felt any ill effects yet from starting this, but I'm sure they're coming. I have noticed how automatic it is for me to step on the scale first thing in the morning and it's odd to realize my scale isn't there anymore. But I have, after only 2 days, found myself wondering if I've lost any weight so I totally get this rule and will continue to abide by it. 

Today starts my "weekend" my husband gets every other Friday off and this is his Friday home. It's always weird for me to to work from home and then have family around me when I'm still trying to get things done and disrupting my routine. So this is where the challenges will start I suspect. 

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Gosh your log is great! Much cooler than mine.

I’m also trying to fix medical conditions (PCOS, Silent Reflux and all the other co morbid conditions I have from being 300+ lbs). I was tested for Hashimotos actually I have a lot of the symptoms.

im glad it’s been easy for you...so far.

 

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12 minutes ago, Laurie's All In said:

so far.

I'm not expecting it to stay that way, figure there's a monster lurking around the corner. 

You know, I saw some people say they never had a sugar detox or anything. Maybe you’ll get lucky!

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I can't believe I haven't had an opportunity to read your log before now! I love your list of outcomes that you are hoping for by end of this challenge. So glad you have such a great support group with you. Also ready love your NSV section of your log :D 

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50 minutes ago, MAYHEM said:

I can't believe I haven't had an opportunity to read your log before now! I love your list of outcomes that you are hoping for by end of this challenge. So glad you have such a great support group with you. Also ready love your NSV section of your log :D 

Thanks Mayhem! I really want to stay on top of if this helps my symptoms or not, because if not give me back my regular food that I don't have to think about so hard! 

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9 hours ago, Laurie's All In said:

Thanks Mayhem! I really want to stay on top of if this helps my symptoms or not, because if not give me back my regular food that I don't have to think about so hard! 

SO smart to stay on top of symptoms... plus if you are logging food/symptoms over time, it'll be so much easier to see if certain foods or activities trigger certain responses! (And especially if it lets favorites off the hook!) 

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7 hours ago, MAYHEM said:

SO smart to stay on top of symptoms... plus if you are logging food/symptoms over time, it'll be so much easier to see if certain foods or activities trigger certain responses! (And especially if it lets favorites off the hook!) 

Exactly! I'm in a odd position of wanting my favorites to make it but also for something in all of this to be the cause so I will have found a solution.  I want my cake and eat it too (pun intended). 

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DAY 3 - a 10th of the way done!

Breakfast: Sweet Potato Hash: Sweet Potatoes, Adelle's Chicken Apple Sausage, Apples.

Lunch: Chipotle salad while out running errands with my husband..... had some diarrhea after, related or not? Will have to see. I used to eat this all the time before (only with corn salsa) so it would surprise me if it were, but maybe with everything else cleaned out. Will wait a few days and try again. 

Dinner: Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Tomato Sauce. 

Snacks:  A few grapes, a few nuts, a few olives (while chopping them to go into the sauce for dinner) 

Exercise: 30 minute dog walk. 

Sleep: Still pretty good for me. Slept from 9:30-5:30. I woke up few more times but I was able to fall back a sleep fairly easily.

NSV: - Didn't give into any cravings. Had more energy throughout the day. I've slept halfway decent for the first 3 days.  *Have not woken up on the verge of tears for the past 3 days, this is huge! I'd gotten so I started off most every day just exhausted and monumentally sad. 

Thoughts & Feelings: Today starts Day 4 "Kill All Things" and "Eat All Things"....not good, I'm about to go out and spend the majority of my day at a mountain bike race to cheer on my husband and teammates, where there will be all manner of food and beer. The women and a few men on the team, and of course my husband, know what I'm doing and why so it won't be all weird. But I haven't had any ill effects/feelings so far so is it possible I could get through this phase too with my friends and family intact?

But I already feel bad that after a race our go to food is a big ol' burger.  I really have a problem with the rules to the point of calling a restaurant ahead of going, seeing what oil they use, asking a million questions. This isn't life threatening and I'm not that kind of person. So do I try going getting a plain burger patty and a salad somewhere or stick to what I know I can eat (maybe not Chipotle) or bring my own lunch (which I'm doing just in case of any emergencies). 

 

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DAY 4

Breakfast: Simply Potatoes Hash browns, 2 eggs, fried up in coconut oil

Lunch: Tokyo Joes Nikko Salad

Dinner: Pomegranate BBQ Brisket, with coleslaw....recipe from the slow cooker W30 book. 

Snacks:  A few grapes, a few nuts, a cashew butter after workout, a Kombucha afternoon brewery date with my husband. Apple after dinner. 

Exercise: 200 stair incline hike and playing on the playground with my 14 year old daughter. That's winning right there folks!

Sleep: Great! Slept from 9:30-4:30. I laid around for maybe another hour and then woke up at 6:45! 

NSV: - No real cravings. Energy is still up, but I'm still not where I was or where I'd like to be. Sleep!!! Suggested going out to a brewery with my husband, got a Kombucha, felt like a real human and not a W30 human. 

Thoughts & Feelings: Did not feel like "Kill All Things" and "Eat All Things", so that was good. I'm great with not having any of the ill-effects of #30 but I really hope I don't skip the good stuff too, like Tiger Blood. I really want Tiger Blood!

Loving the sleep thing. Hope it keeps up. I've had insomnia for the past 6 years and I've tried a number of things over the years an it'll work for a week or two and then I'm back to being up in the middle of the night again, so trying not to get my hopes up too high. 

 

 

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DAY 5

Breakfast: Simply Potatoes Hash browns, 2 eggs, fried up in coconut oil

Lunch: Whole 30 Protein Salad - chicken, grapes, celery, almonds, mayo and a little curry powder for flavor

Dinner: Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!  I finally got a recipe that the family got excited about! Hawaiian Chicken Burgers out of cookbook I got from the library. The recipe I found online here

Snacks:  A few grapes, a few nuts, a cup of blueberries. 

Exercise: 12 mile bike ride with the family in Waterton canyon. Kid complained through most of it. Can't win everyday I guess. 

Sleep: I was exhausted and was falling asleep on the couch at 8 so I just went up to bed. I only had a few chapters left in my book and finished it while tossing and turning, I had restless legs bad. I thought of taking something but didn't because I'm trying to keep this all clear as to what's changes in my diet and what's something else.  But I ended up falling asleep at 9 and slept through till 4. Think I got up once to go to the bathroom.  Laid back in bed sleeping on and off until 5:30. I am a big fan of whatever is going on that's allowing me to sleep.  

NSV: - No real cravings. Energy a bit down, but I did feel like I could keep going on that bike ride at the top where it dirt road turns to steep and to single track, or at least I would have been willing to try. Sleep!!! 

Thoughts & Feelings: I and my family all survived "Kill All Things" and "Eat All Things" weekend, though the kid just barely with her whining on the bike ride. 

Still no progress on the hair loss. I washed my hair this morning (I try not to very often given how much hair I lose each time) and yea, still not good. And don't feel like I've lost any weight, definitely curious though. I'm not secure enough in feeling like the W30 is life changing enough without the weight loss though to try it because I know if I got on the scale and it hadn't moved (or god forbid went up!) it would all be a downward spiral from there. 

My board meeting tonight got canceled and so I could go climbing tonight - fingers crossed that I have the energy to do so. 

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My (also 14-year old) daughter was especially whiny the one time we rode Waterton Canyon. It was not ideal. I blame the road: it makes people fussy. 

If I end this program having lost zero weight, I will be crushed. My Dr's all insist it's imperative I lose weight, while at the same time telling me that with my auto-immune disease the likelihood of ever losing weight without significant intervention is practically nil. And am I a candidate for those interventions? No. I'm hoping that the side effects of this program are enough to keep my in line, but....I doubt it. 

 

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Hi Lauri!  I also have hashimotos and hypothyroidism.  I gained 25 lbs in 2013 and have never been able to lose them.  Considering Whole30.  Lately, I've been putting on more weight from a thyroid medicine change and am super discouraged.  -- Kaitlyn 

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3 hours ago, Laurie's All In said:

Dinner: Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!  I finally got a recipe that the family got excited about! Hawaiian Chicken Burgers out of cookbook I got from the library. The recipe I found online here

This sounds sooooo good! Thanks! I love pineapple so this would be great to try!

I am glad that it seems like you are getting through these hard Whole30 stages well! I hope you notice some more good health improvements today.

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