befabdaily Posted June 24, 2012 Share Posted June 24, 2012 So I'm sitting here on the last day of my Whole30, having happily scarfed up a giant cucumber and Tuscan melon salad along with some chicken and paleo mayo, and it's kind of anticlimactic. When reading up beforehand, I thought this was going to be a huge pain in the ass, and that I would (maybe) be miserable restricting myself even though I might feel better in the end, and that at the end I would want to dive into a bottle of wine and a bowl of rice. Instead, I'm just like, well, Day 30, and, OK, what's going to be different tomorrow? Nothing. It's not like I'm going to run out and re-stock my pantry the old way. I might have an adult beverage. The bad: I probably ate too much fruit. But -- it is the season when every fruit I love is ripe. Other times of the year I could do a Whole30 and the berries just wouldn't be available and I'd adapt. I had a few days there when I was way too fascinated with Artisana Coconut Butter. But then after a few days it lost its novelty and has been sitting in the cupboard harmlessly. I figured out that not eating in a timely fashion is most likely to send me into a mini-spiral of grazing. But I did manage to graze exclusively on approved foods. The good: My sinuses and ears are much clearer than when I started. I'd love to see where they'd be after a Whole90. I am still using Claritin, but the standard dosage now does what the standard dosage is supposed to do instead of just barely making a dent. I'm down to using my control inhaler about one puff every three days instead of the prescribed 2x/day. When the temperatures went up and the air quality got bad here, I didn't have the experience I have at least once per spring of my eyes becoming sore, sticky and photophobic, and requiring steroid eye drops. I haven't had a headache since sometime in the carb-flu days early in the month -- neither a regular headache or the migrainey kind that feels like it starts in my gut. I haven't had much gas, random stomach cramps, or other gut problems since early in the month. My skin is really soft. I can't tell you how much weight I lost because I wasn't weighing regularly when I started, but I'm about 6 pounds less than the weight that made me worry a few months ago, so that's good, and I've lost about inch off chest, waist, hip since I started and more like 2-3" off the little puff below my belly button. I can look in the mirror and it's obvious that things have redistributed and that some puff is gone off my upper chest and face as well. I can also see a difference in how my tissues look. The places where I still have accumulated fat, feel softer and the tissue looks more translucent. My kitchen is organized with much more clarity around what I actually need day-to-day and not around being prepared for things I don't often do (like baking). I have been thinking about what my food policy is going to be once this is over, and I think it's pretty much going to be Whole30 style at home, make the best of it when socializing, and if I want a treat like a baked good or a chocolate, buy one out, enjoy it, but don't bring the ingredients home. I don't really eat out much anyway but would like to be able to go to the shawarma place with my work buddies once in a while, or have a social glass of wine or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Tom Denham Posted June 24, 2012 Moderators Share Posted June 24, 2012 Great write-up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethnomusicolog3 Posted June 24, 2012 Share Posted June 24, 2012 ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
befabdaily Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 I'll have to be a little flexible over the holiday when I visit my family. But it seems like a good and permanent change. I don't really want to go back to being congested and having headaches and such. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emily Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 My kitchen is organized with much more clarity around what I actually need day-to-day and not around being prepared for things I don't often do (like baking). This is a great point and one that I experienced also. Why was I so ready to bake bread when I haven't baked bread for years? I had a realistic discussion with myself about whether yeast and various kinds of flour were really things I needed on hand and sitting in view on my countertop. Onions and squash go much better in there place! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
befabdaily Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 ...AND, I'm thinking chocolate might be a headache trigger, or sugar. I had some TJs chocolate bar and boom. There was a confounder, though -- I was wearing a pulled-tight waist belt this morning, which I have, in the past, felt was connected with migraines and digestive ill-being. I'll repeat the test without it. Crio Bru wasn't bothering me during the Whole30, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tavia Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Awesome! So, what was your diet like before whole30? Did you experience any withdrawal symptoms in the first week or so? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
befabdaily Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 I didn't have a horrible diet before starting, and I had gotten where I didn't really like to eat a lot of sweets, but I was relying a lot more heavily on things like refried black beans and brown rice pasta and whole wheat tortillas -- your standard quick and easy "healthy" high carb fare. I was also relying too heavily on fruit and not enough veggies. I didn't really have much in the way of "carb flu" or other difficult adjustment stages, maybe a couple of days when I felt a little tired and ornery but that wasn't worse than I was feeling before I started. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julia Nelson Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Hey befabdaily - Congrats on your success! I love reading this stories and hope to have one of my own soon. My biggest issue is my sinuses - I would *love* to see improvement there. I was wondering how long it took before you saw improvement with your sinuses, and how much do you think they improved? Thanks for sharing your story! Julia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
befabdaily Posted June 25, 2012 Author Share Posted June 25, 2012 Well, I started cutting back on dairy a few weeks before I started the Whole30, so I was seeing improvement even before I started. If dairy's really your problem, you should definitely feel some improvement by the time you're through. My doctors have said over the years that I have a lot of scarring in my sinuses due to old infections, so I don't know if they'll ever be 100% clear, but I will take breathing through my nose during normal day to day activity, and not dripping! I'm going to try for a Whole60 (or more) after I get back from a couple of trips I'm taking at the beginning of July, and see if it improves further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Strathdee Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Befab - You nailed it! Great story, great lessons learned. Things can only get better from here! PS: My money is on the sugar. My first indulgence after a Whole30 generally leads me straight to the ibuprofen. PPS: I can't believe I'm not the only one who has trouble with belts! I thought I was a freak... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
befabdaily Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 I also thought I was the only one who has a problem with belts, Robin. Belts and Spanx -- the enemies of happy belly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Strathdee Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 Never done the Spanx (now I probably never will...). I also have to wear low rise pants. My mom used to say something about a big fat nerve running right through that area that may cause trouble if it's pressed to much, but I'm no scientist so I just avoid things that push on my belly. So good to know I'm not a lone fish... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee Lee Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 I hate fashion belts. I legit do not know how to wear them. I keep wanting to pull them super tight directly around my waist, a la weightlifting...but I'm pretty sure this is not an attractive look. HATE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derval Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 One of the best things about losing 35lbs was binning all the spanx! Never never again. Never got in to belts as accessory but I do need them to hold up some of my lower rise jeans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
befabdaily Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 My mom used to say something about a big fat nerve running right through that area that may cause trouble if it's pressed to much, but I'm no scientist so I just avoid things that push on my belly. There's all sorts of cool research now about the gut basically being like a second brain in terms of neurological complexity. I get headaches when I wear tight things on my head (like a pinchy pair of sunglasses) so it makes sense that being squeezed could piss off that "gut brain" as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Jeanne Penrod Posted July 9, 2012 Share Posted July 9, 2012 Befabdaily, FYI on the chocolate. I learned in Kona that there are a rare 2% of the population that get headaches from chocolate. Thus may be you. ;( Unfortunate because a little piece of dark chocolate is always nice. you'll just have to determine how worth it, it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vickizee Posted July 9, 2012 Share Posted July 9, 2012 Congrats to you! I can't wait until I can say I've successfully completed my first whole30. (day 3!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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