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Thinking on doing this diet, but...


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Thinking of giving this a try to (as a desperate measure to lose weight/willing to try anything !) Also read that you train your body to use fat as energy...which to be honest, is what we all dieters want to hear !

I am currently following a calorie controlled diet (using my fitness pal) I have lost 5 pounds in 2 weeks, on week 3 at the moment and not doing very well. I should mention I am in the pre-diabetic category, so I crave sweet stuff a lot !!! (I'm on medication, very low dose) And I exercise 4-5 times a week (2 days bodypump class and the other 3 days cardio) I have been able to maintain myself in the pre-diabetic/normal range by keeping myself active.

I have read about this diet/lifestyle choice and I like the idea...the thought of being able to remove biscuits,cookies, crisps and bars and chocolates is what appeals to me cos those are my biggest cravings !

On the other hand....I dont eat meat, only fish/seafood, so I dont know if that will limit me a lot and food will become boring/give up. I eat eggs though.

I will be following the 30 day program (I have printed the shopping list for vegetarians and some grains and yogurts are ok) I have downloaded a couple of the cooking books (I Like cooking). I want to make an eating plan for the week and stick to it.

Some of the recipes look delish, there are breads and stuff that look exactly as I would like to eat for the rest of my life...I absolutely love nuts (any kind) and it's one of the things I miss the most while on a calorie control diet. I also love anything with dried foods (figs, dates, apricots, etc) And I love using coconut oil for cooking (rarely use it cos of high calories).

I know that for the first 30 days these kind of treats (healthy beads, biscuits, etc) are out of the question, but Im thinking that in the future they will be better to eat than the processed/full sugar stuff.

I really really want to give it a go....I have given myself a week to read the book and to write a weekly menu (with the help of the cooking books I downloaded).

I normally eat a limited amount of dairy products, and I use almond milk in my tea or cereal...so that wont be a huge change.

Last night I had for dinner what I would consider a paleo meal: green salad and a spanish tortilla (eggs, onions, and potatoes) and sometimes I throw in brocoli and courgette.

I have a few concerns though....

1. Would I be able to stick to this diet while not eating meat?? I feel very strongly against still (havent eaten meat in 3 years) Or should I add a bit of meat?

2. How bad are the carbs cravings? I once tried the south beach diet, but by day 3 I had such a headache and bad humour that I gave in and never ever tried again.

3. Because I exercise regularly, would it be ok to eat normal potatoes here and there? or getting carbs from fruit and vegs only?

4. If for example, I decide to have a tuna salad for lunch, can I use a full size tuna can?

5. How about hunger panks in general? will they settle after a while? or could I snack (nuts for example or apple with almond butter? (yummy) )

6. I havent seen any mention of drinks at all ! so I suppose only water/tea/coffee are allowed.

7. How not to overeat?....which defeats the purpose of losing weight.

8. Is it ok to have for breakfast something like: egg omelette and a "cereal" made of chopped apple, banana and some nuts and raisins, a yogurt and tea? (I normally have 2 toast, tea, 1 banana and 1 low fat yogurt and I last till lunch).

TIA

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You really should read ISWF as it covers in depth all of your questions and then some...

As far as meat goes.... You can do just fine not eating red meat, you can go nuts on seafood,fish,chicken,eggs....

That said you are not a vegetarian, so you should not eat anything that is on the exeption list for vegetarians.... You will get all the protein you need from those other animal sources...

To best answer most of your concerns..... You need to look at W30 as a marathon, not a sprint. This is not a Fad that will allow you to loose massive amounts of weight fast.... If you stick to the templates you will drop inches and pounds as your body heals and becomes healthy but don't expect to loose 50 lbs in a couple of months.... If you average 2-4 pounds of fat a month after your initial first drop off.. that could be a loss of 50-60 healthy lbs in a year... And I stress HEALTHY! yeah you can loose that much in a few months but at what cost and how long will it stay off....

W30 has the intent of giving you a new relationship with food.... Viewing it as fuel and only eating things that improve your health...

You will crave carbs the first days-week but that goes away quick if you avoid fruit.... If I were you I would not eat fruit at all and quickly starve your sugar dragons..... And there is NO paleofing things like cereal.... Looking at your recipe for cereal is a recipe for disaster, vegetables have much more nutrition, are way more filling, and you cannot overheat them...

If you strictly follow the meal templates and eat until full.... Protein, veg, and healthy fats.... It is almost impossible to over eat.... You will be full and stay full for long periods... No snacking needed

Change your life starting right now.... You are so worth it!!!! :)

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Oh yeah.... No white potatoes..... Ad get fruit and nuts out of your mind if you really want to drop lbs....

And I work out at a competitive MMA level.... Workouts that will crush most mere mortals..... I'm fine on only vegetables for carbs and one sweet potato per day..... Good fats like avocado, olive oil, coconut milk are the key!!!!

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Hi, Christina welcome. As Fenderbender said, the best thing you can do is read the book. I could start giving you quick answers to your questions like no, even as a vegetarian, no grains are allowed, a whole can of tuna's fine, etc but to really understand the W30 and why it's designed the way it is, nothing beats reading the book. W30 is not a quick fix, it's designed to heal our bodies and feed them real nourishing food.

Nourishing your body with real healthy food and cutting out all the processed crap instead of punishing it by restricting calories and going hungry really lets it heal and get on with it's job of being the best it can be. I know that can be a scary thought but, honestly, it will all become clear when you read the book. So give it a go, you deserve to be the best you can be, read the book and if you have any more questions about it feel free to ask, they're a really helpful friendly bunch here. good luck

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I second reading It Starts With Food--it is very important to know the hows and whys of doing a whole 30. With you being a pre-diabetic, I highly suggest killing your sugar dragon--cut out the fruit, nuts and any paleo'ed treats. I am a type 1 diabetic and this has been a true God send for me with doing the whole 30 and paleo in general. It has really brought down my blood sugar levels. As for fruit, for me, I only have berries and then just a sprinkling in a salad--like a palm full of blue berries in a chicken salad. I have banished nuts from my house because it was far to easy to snack on them all day long. Bananas and any tropical fruit are a diabetic's worst enemy, at least in my book!

For me, breakfast is 3 eggs, hard boiled, scrambled or fried in ghee or coconut oil and a minimum of 2 cups of veg. Sometimes, I have leftovers or a salad or soup --don't be trapped in the mode of the first meal of the day having to be breakfast foods. I often have a 1/2 an avocado as well.

lunch is left overs or a salad with protein of some sort, a TON of greens and other veg, homemade dressing either a creamy one with homemade mayo or olive oil and lemon juice and herbs.

Dinner is a protein again and veggies or soup or stew. Sometimes winter squash or a sweet potato, but not often. I don't like the fact if I do carb heavy veg, I have to take more insulin, and my goal is to drop the amount I need to take. (I am on a sliding scale btw)

Healthy fats, real food is the way to go. Be careful of the lowfat dairy in general! If when you are off the whole 30 and you opt for dairy, go full fat, because the low fat and non fat is higher in carbs and can really drive up your blood sugars. I have found for me that I prefer coconut milk in my tea and coffee and if I do have any dairy--again when I am NOT on a whole 30--it is plain, full fat greek yogurt. Dairy can really mess up your blood sugars.

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Hi, thanks for the welcome and all the information ! I have the book ISWF downloaded to my ipad, I will start reading it today. :) I have spent the last 2 hours reading the facebook page of a vegetarian, her recipes and meals ! and I am getting the idea (before reading the book) She also drinks kefir, which I used to make my own many years ago ! I didnt know it was called kefir, for me it was just only homemade natural yogurt, so I have ordered the kefir grains to go back making my own. I also think I can jiggle quite a few meals with tuna, salmon and prawns (my favourite). I also have the nom nom recipe book downloaded.

Thanks for the advice on the fruit, and I agree I need to kill my sugar cravings....I also need to change my mind on breakfast looking like breakfast.

And to be honest, what Im looking for is not only losing weight (at a healthy rate) but to nourish myself with better quality food (I gave up on weight watchers because I felt it was focusing too much on processed foods) and mostly to not feel hungry in between meals.

Thanks again. And I'm sure I will be back after I read the book ! :)

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That's great, that one of your goals is to nourish yourself! After I read your OP, my reaction was, oh, whoa. This isn't a diet, like South Beach or the Grapefruit Colon Cleanse Beating or whatever, but a way to heal yourself and your relationship with food.

If you read ISWF you will get many of the answers you're looking for in a scientific context that will make you wonder why you ever ate a Standard American Diet!

The only other thing I will add is that you need to check your ingredients on your almond milk (anything in the cardboard cartons is out...most contain carageenan, which will wreck your gut. I make my own) and tea (many contain soy). My first Whole30 was a month-long lesson in label reading. My salt contains sugar? My tuna, soy? And my dijon mustard, all kinds of stuff I don't want? Sheesh.

Good luck, and we're all here when you need us!

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Definatly no dairy on W30 so kefir is out until you are done and decide if you wish to reintroduce.

Don't get confused with people who are post W30 and reintroducing certain things.... Facebook posts can and will confuse use, use this moderated forum and ISWF as gospel

Also,and I hope a MOD corrects me if I'm wrong.... The vegetarian option is for people who are strict vegetarians/vegans, who are trying to adapt to this life style.... They eat no animal products at all.... It's not a mix and match I don't eat certain products so I will add the vegetarian ones..

This may seem daunting, but once you get rolling it is very very easy to maintain. ive never been so satisfied/full/sated. I honestly couldn't think of eating any other way now

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Two things:

1) I think anytime you consider doing something "out of desperation", it sets you up for a negative mindset. "This is going to suck." Whole30 doesn't suck. You eat delicious food that makes you feel good, not guilty. And if you're already a vegetarian, chances are you love vegetables, so that will help you succeed on the program.

2) I don't know what blog I happened upon when I googled "whole30 reviews" which said after about a week (maybe more) passing up ice cream and pizza and bread becomes empowering. That really resonated with me.

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Great thread. I have to say, though I agree with CC above about not starting out of desparation as a general rule, I started my own first Whole30 out of desperation. I was just pretty much done with myself, and I couldn't put up with how I was doing, healthwise, emotionally, mentally, any longer. The change has been remarkable. Do read the actual information about what to eat, from ISWF and also here on the website. I think you are confusing information from other sources as being Whole30. Whole30 is really pretty simple. And the food is a.m.a.z.i.n.g. If you decide to do it, it will be transformative.

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Think of a W30 as a "reboot".

I don't want to dilute the message of the book, but as a fellow sugar-sufferer here are some of my experiences:

- I feel like I am stuffing my piggy little face. But, if I sat down and counted calories, I'm not.

- I am eating more vegetables now than ever.

- I am also eating more meat. But there are quite literally plenty of fish in the sea for you. Do you have a decent fishmonger nearby? Do you like experimenting with recipes?

- The W30 recommends 3 meals a day, but I have told myself that I can eat whenever - as long as it is not feeding the sugar monster. So for me this means no tropical fruits, no dried fruits, no technically-paleo-but-still-trying-to-be-cake concoctions. Carrots are a good sweet/juicy/crunchy candidate, and it also takes time to chomp through them!

- I am not restricitng the amount of food I eat, because I need to re-learn to trust my own appetite. So don't worry about that can of tuna.

- Sweet potatoes, swede, turnip, beets, squashes, yams are all good veg to swap with normal potatoes. I wouldn't worry about low/high carb right now.

- I find it easier to cook from raw ingredients - essentially things with no ingredients labels - than to fuss about wondering which E-numbers are permitted or not. Depends what you like to cook.

Good luck!

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Thanks for all the advice...taking everything on board !! Im a 3rd into the book and so far it seems it was written for me !!

Out of desperation not as a weight loss tool mainly , but to help with sugar/carbs cravings, so Im feeling a lot more positive that this diet/lifestyle is what I've been trying to achieve long time ago !

I'm realising how "out of wack" my body has been,, and it explains the hunger/cravings/binge eating I have struggled with !

I'm also looking forward to make the change now, but I have told myself I need to read the whole book first !

I printed the vegetarian shopping list already, and it does include kefir and as for grains: lentils.

Going to bed now....and hoping to read more pages tonite !

I'm in Ireland by the way....but originally from Costa Rica...and yes, I grew up eating the American style !! :)

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Hooray! Also, you know, since you eat fish and eggs, I would suggest looking at the regular Whole30 plan and seeing if that would work for you. I really don't think you need to do the vegetarian Whole30. You will already be eating at least six cups of vegetables per day. I'm sure someone more knowledgeable will chime in here, but I've seen several people here talking about Whole30ing with fish and eggs as protein sources.

The other thing to consider is that if you eat fish and eggs, can you introduce other meat protein into your diet as well? As you keep reading ISWF you'll see why meat protein is recommended, and how, and what kinds. It might be something to consider.

Have fun reading and enjoy Whole30ing! Stick around here for information, support, recipes, and general hand-holding as needed.

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Ditto on what Amy said. If you eat seafood and do the vegetarian version, you will be combining two versions of the program. Hopefully a moderator will chime in and say if that is okay or not. My gut tells me you should go with a traditional W30. We just want to see you get the very best results. :)

I kinda figured you were in Ireland when Derval gave you a shout out. :0)

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Hi Cristina!

I have to ask: what are your reasons for being pescatarian? It sounds like it's not working for you on a happiness level and on a nutritional level. I'm not saying you have to stop, but I feel like you should think about it.

Whatever you decide, I would agree with everyone else and say that you should either do the vegetarian plan, or do the omnivore plan and enjoy your seafood!

And just so you're aware, lentils are a legume (technically a pulse), not a grain. I only mention this because you sound like I did before I read ISWF, and I need firm boundaries, otherwise I have trouble with 'slippery slopes'.

I did a slower transition before I went full Whole30, and I gathered recipes and ideas before I went ahead. As a result, I'm still in my first week. My Whole30Log is really helpful for staying on track.

All the best!

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Ditto on what Amy said. If you eat seafood and do the vegetarian version, you will be combining two versions of the program. Hopefully a moderator will chime in and say if that is okay or not. My gut tells me you should go with a traditional W30. We just want to see you get the very best results. :)

I kinda figured you were in Ireland when Derval gave you a shout out. :0)

I agree with the above advice - mixing the two programs is not likely to give you the best success. I would really suggest going with the standard program and eating the animal proteins you're comfortable with. The vegetarian plan is designed for folks on a very restricted (little to no animal protein) plan and contains some choices we consider to be less ideal than the standard plan. However, for those who want to change the food on their plates without changing their stance on animal protein, the option is there. But we're pretty up front that the program's not going to do all it can for those folks.

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Cristina, I am so so glad you're reading the book. I know exactly what you mean about 'written for me'. When I first read it, it was a total lightbulb moment, in fact it was a lighting up everything spotlight, searchlight moment :). Reading and planning are brilliant, i think they're key to making a success of it and then jump right in. Do a W30 and it really will be life changing. All the very best with your new healthy start in life and looking forward to hearing how you get on with it.

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I honestly havent looked at the non vegetarian shopping list yet (but I will). The thing is, I do eat fish/seafood but not on a regular basis, so let's say I eat 90% vegetarian in a month (fish/seafood once a week ) I dont eat many eggs a week either, but increasing their consumption won't be a problem.

I decided to go vegetarian 3 years ago because I simply got fed up with the amount of meat (s) I was eating and the way I was feeling....I got diagnosed with fibromyalgia and since I stopped eating meat, I have felt a lot better, as if it is not an issue for me anymore !

. Before coming to live to Ireland, I was a "flexetarian" I would eat chicken or pork every now and then, but I have a huge amount of choices when it came to fruit and veg. Once in Ireland, less amount of fruit and vegs (potatoes appear in literarily every meal !!) I went back to eating meat, including lamb and duck. But through the years (I have lived in Ireland nearly 15 years) I realised there is enough there to go vegetarian (I have got used to the "new" vegetables I get this side of the world) and we (husband and I) left the fish/seafood choice open because of convinience...for example, going out to a restaurant, or invited by friends for a homemade meal. Vegetarian options are not widely available yet.

Ok, I got tired of meat, or should I say the amount of meat we were eating (nearly everyday) along with that, I am an animal lover and I have never felt comfortable with the way we humans treat "food" animals (my humble opinion). I only buy organic/free range eggs because I know they come from happy hens, I buy them locally from somebody who has a few hens laying more than what they can eat. In other words, I have a moral dilema on meat eating.... Fish on the other hand, I have always felt there is a little less cruelty factor there.

So, my thinking about meal planning on the W30 has been to follow the vegetarian option, but have fish/seafood once a week...would that mess the program for me? I know that in the 30 days I will be eating out at least once, and since it's hard to find vegetarian meals (and without carbs), I have the option of for example a salmon/tuna salad.

I would love to hear opinions .... I know I will be mixing both vegetarian/non vegetarian programs, but in a 90% vegetarian way. Would that be acceptable?

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First of all, congratulations on starting a Whole30! I would definitely recommend doing the regular Whole30, and not the one for vegetarians. For 10 years I was a was a vegetarian who ate fish and eggs, and I can tell you that my health deteriorated from eating all the pasta and bread to make up for it. It pretty much destroyed my thyroid and I gained wait on that diet. I decided to incorporate chicken and turkey and my health improved. Finally, two years ago I went full Paleo and started eating quality red meats and gave up all grains. My health really improved. For me, it was easier to slowly incorporate chicken and turkey (turkey burgers - yum!) and then transitioned back to red meat.

The weight loss in my case was easier when I added meat and got rid of all grains. Oh, and getting rid of sugar helps immensely. Good luck to you!

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I'd just like to add that I, too, have fibromyalgia. One of the doctors who originally came up with the 18-tender-point diagnosis has a clinic in San Antonio and puts his patients on a diet that looks remarkably like a Whole30...high protein, lower carbohydrates from non-processed sources, no grains, etc. I've been following that type of diet (Paleo, really) since before I learned of Whole30 and my symptoms are GONE. Not reduced in intensity, GONE.

If you have an ethical problem or even a taste problem with meat, no argument from me, but this diet has changed my life so much for the better as far as my fibro is concerned, I can't even begin to tell you. I feel like the dairy I was eating (that is allowed on the vegetarian plan) before Whole30 was holding me back from reaping all the benefits of my diet.

Of course, everybody is different and all doctors prescribe different things for their patients. When I mentioned this to my doctor, I am lucky enough to have one who said, "Why not give it a try?" I hope for the same benefits for you, whichever plan you follow!

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