Need Help!!

[JamesG]

Hello everyone!! I started the whole30 diet in February 2021. I stayed with this way of eating faithfully for 6 rounds. I loved every bit of it. I felt better than I ever have! I stopped the diet just at the end of August. Throughout the 6 rounds of whole30 I lost a total of 82 pounds. I went from 284 down to 202. I am now struggling to get back into the diet. I caught myself getting into the old habits that put me up at that weight in the first place. Does anyone have any tips of tricks I can do to get back on track. I know I did it the first time and I can do it again, but just looking for some guidance! Thanks in advance. 

[Rebecca001]

Hi, firstly it sounds like you really experienced the benefits of w30 and sounds like you did amazingly well - well done. 

Did you do any reintroductions? Did you decide any foods were ‘never’ foods? What about those that were ‘maybes’ ? What about those technically compliant foods that still can’t feature in your menu often (for me it’s almond butter, dried fruit, and any kind of paleo baking/recreated baked goods) 

when you say you struggling to get back into it, are you trying to get back into a 100% w30 or are you trying to regain control over the things you have reintroduced, like a food freedom type plan? 
 

for me, I did around 14 months of a combination of strict w30, and w30 food 99% of the time but with wine and some occasional treats. This worked for me. However this last month I have taken a real nosedive, my mental health has gone up the creek and my eating had gone with it. Sugar, sugar, sugar ! (Weirdly, coinciding with a month of non alcohol, and I actually wonder if that’s what had caused it) I have eaten more sugar in the month of September than in the entire year before. 
I have no food intolerances in the form of pain or inflammation but I cannot control my response to these heavily processed sugary foods. So I can eat them, but I clearly can’t as actually they make me really unhappy. 
 

for me, the solution is a full, back to basics, by the book whole30- although like you I am finding this restart difficult and keep putting it  off for another day, another day. 
 

I can’t offer you any real advice except to just bite the bullet and start. You know it works. You know the first few days can be hard. But you know if will bring you such huge benefits, and much quicker this time. Go for it!

( I need to follow my own advice!!)