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Whole30 Round 5? 6?


lizziehall

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I’m ready to do another round of Whole30! It’s been around 6 months since my last round & I’m desperately in need of a reset. After restaurants reopened in my state I went a little crazy and quickly started feeling badly. My boyfriend convinced me to try KETO with him and I thought it was a magic diet! I dropped weight quickly while eating cheese at every meal lol! But I know from other rounds than I’m sensitive to dairy so the mental fog, mid-day slumps and acne shouldn’t have surprised me. I also regained almost all of the weight I lost, and look worse than I began due to all the bloating. It was worth a try, but now I’m back to Whole30 to get me out of this hole I dug myself. I went grocery shopping today, took before pictures, got myself a “last meal” of sushi for dinner, and I’m ready to begin with Day 1 tomorrow!

 

Side note: I have been intermittent fasting while on KETO and I’m pretty much in the habit & don’t get hungry until around 12 or 1. I know fasting isn’t encouraged but has anyone tried it? Should I break that habit and eat 3 meals a day? 

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Congratulations on your return to the sanity of Whole30 and welcome back!

1 hour ago, lizziehall said:

Side note: I have been intermittent fasting while on KETO and I’m pretty much in the habit & don’t get hungry until around 12 or 1. I know fasting isn’t encouraged but has anyone tried it? Should I break that habit and eat 3 meals a day? 

I think after having done a few Whole 30s by the book with three meals a day, it's OK to tweak and play with how you do things. There are a few of us old timers here right now doing exactly that, and two solid template meals is fine if it works for you. It's not fine if you're deliberately restricting despite hunger and/or ending up overeating during those two meals. Alternatively, you could still eat three meals if you so desire but shift the timing of them into that smaller window. Totally up to you and how you're genuinely feeling. 

Go ahead and do you, Lady. I'd just recommend staying committed as possible to being mindful about your hunger as well as your motives and do your best to let the program work its magic you've already experienced for yourself in the past!

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Day 1 in the books, almost! I still have to make dinner but wanted to throw some thoughts in here about how I’m feeling. Woke up this morning around 6:20 and made myself an espresso with french vanilla nut pods, I’d never tried them in previous whole30s but I’ve gotten away from my taste for black coffee. I think they’ll do the trick! Here’s the food breakdown for the day:

noon: Beanless chili (I made for keto and it works for whole30 too! sans cheese & sour cream) 

3pm: running errands, gingerbread Rx bar

future/7pm: chicken apple sausage with cauliflower, broccolini, tomatoes, onions and mushrooms bc I was LOW on veggies today

Notes for thought & improvement:

-Up the veggies in every meal!

-Introduce more healthy fats

-I know that Rx bar was a craving & not hunger... I always struggle with that but nothing like this round to conquer it!

-Mindfulness of my prescription & its effects on hunger

I have had to take my meds much more often than I used  to due to new stressors like grad school & studying for the CPA exam. The only real bad effect I get from them is that I can go long periods of time without even thinking about food. This was almost a perk while on Keto because people encouraged one meal a day (how did I think that was healthy!!!) but I know my body needs more than that. As great as weight loss is I need to focus on health first, and sometimes that might mean forcing myself to eat another meal. With other rounds I just listened to my body, but this time I’ll just have to be more active in thinking about my needs. And that’s why I’m going to make some dinner even though I really don’t want it! Because health!

Too soon to notice any energy/sleep/mood changes other than a little irritability. 

Hopes: clear up my skin, less bloating, no need for naps, sleeping through the night, overall better moods

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Day 3 now! I literally can’t stop eating the “harvest bowl” I made the other day. I cut up an onion, broccolini, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms and apple chicken sausage and threw it all into a container so it’s quick and easy to make throughout the week.  This is definitely going to be a combo that I keep making, it has such a good variety of veggies & nutrients. To continue with my fall theme, I’m going to make a sweet potato hash today. I just use sweet potato, compliant bacon, onions and spinach with fried eggs (the only part I dont meal prep). I discovered this my first round and it’s so flavorful and comforting that I never got sick of it. 

Notes: 

- My stomach has been upset but I think that’s just the result of eating more veggies. I’m also super bloated.

- I’ve been waking up earlier recently and was crashing every day after lunch. I notice that hasn’t happened!

- I still need increase fats but the hash has both bacon and eggs which helps.

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Day 4 and 5 are over and I’m starting to feel some effects today! My bloat is down and cravings are getting under control. My rash/irritation on my face is getting better but still there, I’m sure that’s going to be harder to get rid of with the masks. I’ve also noticed it was harder to get out of bed in the morning both today and yesterday.

Today was definitely not my best day for eating or mental health. I had a very stressful day work-wise and realized around 9pm that I hadn’t eaten since noon. I wasn’t hungry and was still too busy to cook so I ate a chomps beef stick.... totally not enough food for the day. I should have just thrown some frozen veggies in the microwave, but I kind of forgot they were there. I also really struggle with the disordered mindset of, “oh thank goodness I’m not hungry, I’ll lose more weight if I just don’t eat.” I know in my head it’s not sustainable but it’s also hard to convince myself to eat when I dont ‘have to.’ I have another very busy day tomorrow so I’ll have to keep in mind how silly I feel right now and use this feeling to do better. 

I’m grateful for this space to reflect on my days. I think it has/will help me to live intentionally, both in food and overall behavior. 

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It’s been a few more weird days for me. I wake up and have a cup of coffee with an espresso shot and nut pods every day and start getting hungry around 1pm. So I’ll eat a meal around that time and really try to stick to the template. The past few days have been sweet potatoes, onion, bacon, and spinach topped with 2 eggs. It seems to me that I’m getting the appropriate amount of fats and protein and filling the rest of my plate with veggies. I bet each serving is 1 cup spinach and 2/3 of a bigger sweet potato but it’s all meal prepped so I just kind of eyeball it. Then the rest of the day I am not hungry at all! I’ve tried to force myself to eat and always end up feeling sick and on the toilet (sorry tmi) so I don’t really know the proper way to handle this. I’ve stopped taking my medicine and that hasn’t helped with appetite, if anything it has just made me more stressed so I’ll probably start it again tomorrow. 

Because of everything above I haven’t been feeling great physically. I definitely look smaller but I don’t want to get used to seeing that lol I know once my appetite comes back I’ll just be disappointed. I haven’t been sleeping very well and today I took a 2 hour nap, but my stress levels have been super high so I’m blaming that. 

Ugh. I’m just frustrated. I’ll head over to the troubleshooting forum and see what I can find!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Day 1 again today...

I went on a vacation this week and Whole30 just wasn't happening. I'm scoping out a new city to move to once I get my Master's so I went to different restaurants/bars to get a feel for the area. It didn't help that it rained all weekend and it seemed like the only thing to do was eat and drink! The timing of this round was poorly planned because I've known about this trip for a while and I know it was important that I make the most of my time there. I'm not beating myself up over it but I am doing a full restart. 

Since my last post I have gotten my appetite back and been feeling great! I'm not sure if my sleep and lack of appetite were just an adjustment back to clean foods or due to added stress but I'm glad it's over.

I made breakfast style potatoes this morning and added some Trader Joe's Italian chicken sausage, a fried egg and some hot sauce. I couldn't get to a grocery store yesterday after my drive so today might be a little sad on veggies but I'll make sure to use the frozen ones I have for dinner. I've been sticking to 2 meals a day for a while now but I got hungry earlier today so I snacked on a half of a pumpkin pie larabar and those things are delicious!! My first instinct was to go to Amazon and buy a big pack but I think I'll wait a week so that my sweet tooth is gone. 

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Despite the rain it sounds like a fun adventure scoping out a new city to live.  So excited for you on the brink of finishing your masters. what a big accomplishment.  Welcome back to the boards and best of luck with your reset. May it serve you well. 

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My friend made chicken wings in the air fryer with a dry rub of Old Bay and I really thought they were whole30 so I dug in, but it turns out he had brushed them with butter before putting them in the air fryer... UGH. I asked him questions about ingredients but I was more focused on breading and sauces. So I guess I'm starting over. Again. I am discouraged but determined to do this right for the full 30 days.

Here goes day 1!

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3 Days down!

I’ve still been really enjoying the foods and trying new recipes. I found a recipe for some rosemary potatoes that are amazing! Also, if you haven’t trie 40 Aprons Creamy Tuscan Chicken you MUST! I was to try it again soon with palmini “pasta” (only ingredient is hearts of palm). One thing I have never really struggled with that is driving me nuts right now is the scale. Maybe it’s because it’s been a while with all these restarts and I know I still won’t have that number satisfaction for another month. I feel great physically so I’m reminding myself that’s what matters. NSVs like no bloating, better sleep, and clearing skin are keeping me away from the scale right now. 

I’ve been really thinking about why this Whole30 round has been so difficult for me, I feel like I’m sabotaging myself with all these restarts. My stress has been at an all time high for the past month and a half as I study for the CPA exam. I give 5 hours a day to preparing for this test, in addition to the seemingly endless school work, and I still feel hopeless. Food really is a coping mechanism for me and I think that’s why I’ve been more likely to go off plan. The thing that stinks is that it doesn’t help even a little bit. If anything, eating processed foods makes my brain work worse and I get tired so I have less hours to tackle my to-dos. Also, studying life is just way easier without alcohol or hangovers but a glass of wine always sounds so amazing after a long day. I’ve gotta break these dependencies and form better habits over the next 27 days, this round might be my most difficult and important yet!

 

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I find that if I can get through 3 days, I'm usually able to keep going, so I'm hoping today is easier for you!  It's the age old question of why do we want to turn to poor food items when we least need them?  I've certainly never found that my stress levels lessened or that I've felt better after digging into a box of sugary whatnots, and yet I also tend to go to food to cope.  And we KNOW this doesn't work!.  *Sigh...no good advice, just saying I know your struggle.  Good luck with the studying!

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Day 4 down & halfway through Day 5:

I’m still feeling great physically! No bloating, no crashes, able to stay up later and get up earlier without wanting to die, etc. The perk of messing up is & restarting is that I get to feel this awesome for the whole 30 days, usually day 5 is where the fun wears off for me and it starts getting tough (mostly tiredness & bloating). 

I woke up SO hungry today which is unfortunate because I have nothing in my fridge. So far I’ve had an Rx Bar and 2 applegate hot dogs with saurkraut and mustard. I needed everything to be very quick today because I have just about no time, so anything involving cooking and washing dishes was out of the picture. I do have some frozen veggies that I’ll make sure to eat this afternoon along with a chicken burger. I hate the days before grocery shopping where I rely solely on frozen foods but I like to go through everything I have before my next grocery trip.

Luckily I’m doing a big grocery haul this weekend and I’m excited about the recipes I have planned!!  :) I’m such a dork but meal planning is my favorite. I like to do one big trip a month to get all my meats, frozens & shelf staples that I’ll need as well as the produce I’ll use in the first week or 2. It makes it much easier for me to stick to my budget while on Whole30 because grocery bills can get a little crazy. I know that anything I spend money on will be used because it’s all planned out. It also saves me time because any following trips that month will be a quick run into the produce section.

Recipes for the month:

-(almond flour) breaded chicken breast with spaghetti squash and red sauce

-creamy tuscan chicken with palmini

-chicken thighs with a bacon mushroom sauce and palmini

-Harvest bowl (broccolini, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, garlic, cauliflower gnocchi, and chicken apple sausage)

-Frozen ingredients for shrimp fried cauliflower rice

 

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Checking in on Day 8! I grabbed a couple new flavors of Rx bars from Trader Joe’s this weekend & I would say not eating those is my biggest temptation at the moment. I can’t 100% tell if I just want to try the new flavors or if I’m craving sweets so I won’t let myself eat them until I’m in a crunch. 

I feel like this Whole30 isn’t giving me the crazy energy/motivation/Tigerblood that I’ve felt before. I do have a lot of outside factors that I can attribute that to, but I am getting a little frustrated. It can make it hard to keep going, especially with the little stuff. For example, I looked at chicken sausage that had maple syrup in it at the grocery store and definitely had the “does it really matter?” thought. Same though about the compliant Cassava flour chips. So I told myself that it’s a bad sign that I’m still looking to those food as comfort and I need to finish it out. And those are things I can definitely let myself have in the future. Now that I write it out I realize I had a self-control win today! I’ll try to shift my focus to that rather than frustration.

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11 hours ago, lizziehall said:

Now that I write it out I realize I had a self-control win today! I’ll try to shift my focus to that rather than frustration.

Yay! That is definitely an NSV. I ran out of Larabars and I just am not going to get anymore until after the 30th which is the last day of my W30. Wait, maybe not. I am hiking with my very competitive sister that day. I hiked with my more talkative sister last Friday. :)

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