Allisonstrine Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 Me: 54 years old, have had an eating disorder since I was too young to count. I've been in therapy for this for a couple of years, and have managed to lose 50 pounds. The typical eating disorder treatment is to eat all foods in moderation, and I have really struggled with the constant sugar cravings. My therapist suggested I try to cut out carbs, and once I read ISWF, I was hooked. My biggest goal is to change my obsessive feelings about sugar, and food in general. I had a hateful relationship with food – to say I never enjoyed cooking is an understatement. I also have high cholesterol and look forward to taking the test in three weeks to see if it's changed. Started CrossFit a year ago, and am really driven to improve my strength and speed. After my whole 30, I hope to feel more energetic. The first six days have gone well: I've managed to deal with the sugar cravings by focusing on the things that I have learned in ISWF, and by going to bed early to avoid my most difficult time of day. I don't have any great feelings of health yet. I feel very weak during my CrossFit workouts, and have had massive head rushes and dizziness. I work out in the morning and I think I haven't eaten enough fat before my WOD, So today I'm going to eat a whole avocado pre-WOD, to see if I feel stronger. I wish I had remembered to journal the first six days, because I've cooked foods that I've never would've tried before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derval Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 best of luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Tom Denham Posted March 20, 2013 Moderators Share Posted March 20, 2013 Welcome. Eating the Whole30 way is likely to help you make positive changes in a lot of areas, but be sure to look for progress, not perfection. The weakness and dizziness you report makes me concerned you may not be eating enough or drinking enough water. Both are common issues with folks learning to eat the Whole30 way. Be sure to follow the meal template with regard to how much you eat: http://whole9life.com/book/ISWF-Meal-Planning-Template.pdf If you are still losing weight, your cholesterol may not improve much. And, if you are like me, it might not improve at all. My triglycerides fell sharply when I started eating this way, but my LDL cholesterol remained stubbornly high. However, cholesterol may not be a very good marker of health when all is said and done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bicky145 Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 to say I never enjoyed cooking is an understatement. I can totally realate to that! pre-Whole30 my method of meal preparation was microwave frozen entres, drive-throughs, and carry outs! It is quite an undertaking, isn't it? But it does get easier as you begin to form habits. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 20, 2013 Author Share Posted March 20, 2013 I have felt very little energy during my workouts. Day after day I've had to stop because of dizziness or exhaustion. This morning I ate a salmon patty a little bit of butternut squash fries and an avocado in hopes of that would give me strength for the work out. Instead, the workout was very difficult as I felt weak and lightheaded. Starting to feel a little bit down about the program. I am really hoping for the energy boost that I've heard so much about. I'm also struggling with the eating three meals a day versus eating immediately after your workout, which would bring it to four eating times a day for me. Is that okay? Limiting the fruit is tough too – I'm used to eating oranges and grapefruits for the refreshing juices. So I'm trying to keep it to two servings a day. That becomes tougher because I enjoy berries after every meal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 20, 2013 Author Share Posted March 20, 2013 Tom, thank you so much for your response, and Howdy neighbor! I live in Roswell so we're right around the corner from each other. I've been keeping to the meal template pretty well, except for not getting the post WOD meal in quickly enough. Thanks for the tip about drinking enough water. I have thought I've been drinking enough, but I need to keep better track of my intake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 20, 2013 Author Share Posted March 20, 2013 Lunch: sweet peppers, tomatoes and mushroom in coco oil, with the last salmon croquette from last night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 20, 2013 Author Share Posted March 20, 2013 4:00 - big handful of blueberries. Just trying to stave off cravings and negative talk. It's been hard for so many people - I'm starting to question myself! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 20, 2013 Author Share Posted March 20, 2013 Made it through to dinner. Roasted broccoli and sweet peppers, plus grass fed steak, pan seared. It tasted really good - that was the first time I ever did steak in a pan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 21, 2013 Author Share Posted March 21, 2013 Just before bad I had a handful of blueberries, and a finger full of almond butter. i think I should probably try and break this habit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 21, 2013 Author Share Posted March 21, 2013 Day 8: Breakfast was half piece of steak and Half a grapefruit. And a little guacamole. Workout was terrible – still feeling unspeakably weak... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjinguy Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 If you are really weak at this point, maybe you are not eating enough? If you are not getting many carbs, add in half of a sweet potato or some carrots. Are you really hungry before meals? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 21, 2013 Author Share Posted March 21, 2013 Thanks for chiming in! My trainer just told me that – I need to eat carbs immediately after I work out. I know, that's what it says in ISWF. Today workout at 9:30 – could barely get the bar over my head. Then at 11:30 I had a whole sweet potato, followed by a piece of salmon. Then I was so tired I went to sleep. At 3:30 I had a small piece of pulled pork roast and a box of blackberries. Tonight is the night that I don't get to eat dinner till almost 9 so I needed something to tide me over. Feeling really discouraged – I just want to get some energy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjinguy Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 I believe you want protein + fat for before workouts and easily digestible protein after. You should have enough energy ready for workouts, that you should not need anything else really. I would suggest patience and backing off for a few days and see how that does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 Dinner was grilled chicken and broccoli at Alessios, plus another 6 oz blackberries after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 Okay… I've realized that I've been compensating for my lack of candy with too much fruit… So as of today, I'm committing to having one serving only of fruit per day. That sucks. But I can do it. Also, the having no coffee in the morning really sucks for me. But my friend just suggested that I have coconut milk with the coffee, and I think I'm going to switch to decaf or half calf at least, In hopes that that will help me be healthier in the long run. I'm kind of sick of driving to supermarket after supermarket, but my friend said that Whole Foods has little coconut coffee creamers. Yesterday I bought Thai kitchen coconut milk at Fresh Market, And I'm pretty sure that's good to go but I will check to the forms to make sure before I start having that with coffee. Just the thought of being able to figure out a way to have coffee every day has motivated me to keep going though. For the past few days I have been wavering in my resolve to complete this program. So I'm going to use this space to list reasons that I need to keep going. 1. First, nothing else has worked. I've been addicted to sugar my whole life, and trying to eat it in moderation just does not work. I must give this a complete effort in hopes of being free of the sugar monster. 2. I don't know if there's any other way to remove the extra body fat that I have now. I know some of the fat is just skin from when I was really fat, but this program can help me to get leaner. And I want to get leaner so that I can do pull-ups, and other bodyweight exercises for CrossFit. 3. Before I started this program, I really hated food. I certainly didn't like cooking, and bored my poor family to death with the same old five dinners for the past 10 years. I hated the thought of cooking, and I hated the thought of chopping and cleanup. We had turned from a family that had dinner at the table every night to a family that ate different things at a different time, usually in front of the TV. In the week or so since I've started, I've made delicious meatballs and amazing panfried steak, yummy veg sides, and have served my family a bright, colorful, well seasoned dinner every night. That is the biggest blessing I've had from this program so far. 4. The thought of setting a good example for my family can really make a big difference. I feel badly that I've taught them poorly before, but I'm really happy that my eyes are open now, so I can set a good example for the last few years before college! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 Lunch was another pan-seared steak and Asian stir fry veggies. For the crazy price that whole foods charges for grass fed steak, I had hoped it would be a little easier to chew. The steak was kind of tough. I indulged in the pre-chopped package from Trader Joe's, and it has red peppers, onions and a whole lot more yummy things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 I'm feeling more hopeful right now. Yesterday I thought for sure that I might crack this weekend, but today I feel better. Not superstrong, I took the day off from working out so I can do 13.3 tomorrow. I'm going to make sure I hydrate well tonight and have one sweet potato for dinner, and a second smaller one before the WOD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 Oh my gosh, I might've just had a breakthrough. I had so much fun cooking dinner with Ethan. We did a special panseared pork chop – that was Ethan's. He seasoned and salted and rubbed to his heart's content, before deciding to cook one chop first, so he could test his method. I made butternut squash with cinnamon salt and pepper, using clarified butter for the very first time, and stir fry veg. I told Lloyd that I felt like a real cook. It felt like that that was the first time I cooked with love. In the old days I would just take out a piece of chicken breast, glare at it, add some salt and cook it with a growl on my face. But this was actually so much more real and loving! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Tom Denham Posted March 23, 2013 Moderators Share Posted March 23, 2013 I'm also struggling with the eating three meals a day versus eating immediately after your workout, which would bring it to four eating times a day for me. Is that okay? On days you workout, we want you to eat 5 times... three regular meals and then a small meal before your workout and another meal after your workout. The pre/post-workout meals are bonuses because workouts are demanding and increase your needs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 23, 2013 Author Share Posted March 23, 2013 Thanks for the insight, Tom! Yay - more food for me! Okay, day 10 begins. Unfortunately, I don't have the sleep thing worked out yet. Got to sleep around 10 last night, and woke up about four. Dozed a bit until seven, but I really look forward to getting a solid eight or nine hours of sleep per night. I've taken a sleep med nightly for the past couple of years, and am experimenting with lowering the dosage as I go. The goal, of course, is to need no meds at night. At about 730 I had leftover steak and half an avocado in preparation for my workout. I also jumped back on the coffee wagon,having a cup with caffeine and coconut milk. I realize now that having no caffeine might've been a big contributor to feeling so crappy last week. Post WOD I had leftover pork and butternut squash at about 930. Forgot to have it within 15 to 30 minutes after the workout, but at least I remembered to bring it to the gym! Feeling excited about the possibilities of success here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 23, 2013 Author Share Posted March 23, 2013 Lunch was yummy… Braised cabbage with a chicken sausage from Trader Joe's. I probably should've had two sausages because I need the protein. I was that inspired to clean up the spice cabinet - Ditching tons of noncompliant foods, and discovering that we had more food coloring than just about any family on the planet. I'm also making up lists of things to go get at Costco… Last week I probably averaged going to the grocery store 2 to 3 times per day – not very efficient yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 24, 2013 Author Share Posted March 24, 2013 Dinner was at whole foods tonight, on our weekly Saturday date. At first we thought we would try a restaurant, but the choices ranged between suburban chains and expensive steak house. I have quickly learned that if I'm gonna spend 20 or 30 bucks on a steak, I want to be the one sourcing and cooking it! At whole foods I got a piece of chicken and the salad bar, buying a jar of salsa for the dressing. For every previous Saturday for the last three years, I would get yummy chocolate English Toffee Caramels to take to the movie, but I came with a plan last night. No chance was I gonna allow myself to sabotage my Whole 30 work, so I stayed well away from the candy aisle. I had a few handfuls of berries, for my 1 serving per day of fruit. The only slightly not great part was that I had another big handful of grapes at home before Ned. Those can tend to be my 'binge-y' food, 'cause they're so sweet. Oh we'll, something to work on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 24, 2013 Author Share Posted March 24, 2013 DAY 11 Sleep is still crappy - keep waking up at about 4... For breakfast at about 10:00, I grilled up the whole tub of Trader Joe's veggie stir fry, and stored it for later. I mixed some chicken with a little crustless quiche that Amy had made. Easy peasy. And I had coffee with coco milk. Lunch - about 12:45. The Trader Joe veg, with chicken from Amy. I've got to drink more water! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allisonstrine Posted March 25, 2013 Author Share Posted March 25, 2013 4:00 had a serving of protein-I was starved and didn't want to grocery shop hungry. I went to Trader Joe's and bought only healthy foods. My cart looked so beautiful with all the colorful fruits and vegetables. The checkout lady even commented that that was the first cart she had seen where there was no unhealthy food! When I got home I cleaned out the refrigerator and washed the drawers, threw out a whole bunch of food we weren't going to eat anymore, and filled the fridge with all the good food. I was originally planning to cook something, but there were so many leftovers in the fridge that we had a mash up of fish and all sorts of veggies. At about 6 I had a big handful of grapes and blackberries, my one fruit for the day. This girl is on fire! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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