Category Archives: Whole 30

Whole 30 – first attempt

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It was one of those weeks.  Coming back from spring break, the week felt like it passed so slowly and each day had a thousand tasks to get done and a million decisions that had to be made.  Monday was Day 10 and I packed food to bring for meals #1 and #2. When I got home, I flopped on the couch, totally drained.  I was trying to figure out if I just hit a rough patch in the program or if it wasn’t going to work for me.  On Tuesday, I made taco meat again…and ate it on tortillas.  I wanted the carbs. It didn’t feel like just a craving; it was like my body really needed it. I felt a lot better afterwards: my brain didn’t feel so foggy, my body didn’t feel so off, I rested well that evening.

So I got to Day 10 and then went off the program.  I was off for the rest of the week.  The only health symptom I experienced was a bout of constipation. This came after taking Imodium every morning before work because of the fear of urgency in the classroom.  That’s a hard symptom to manage when you’re a classroom teacher and you can’t leave the children unattended!

I’m not disappointed that I quit on Day 10; I listened to my body. I am disappointed that the scale is starting to creep the other way again.  I wanted the health benefits and weight loss from doing Whole 30 and I didn’t get everything out of the program that I was hoping for.  Which leads me to my next steps: I’m going to start again tomorrow.  I’ve cooked up two soups today for my breakfasts and lunches. Fingers crossed it’ll go better in my second attempt.  The plan is to eat more veg this time around over all the fats and potatoes I had been eating; I think that will help.  I know I need to eat a fair amount of fat but it seemed like that was what wasn’t sitting so well with me before.  I also really need to get on that exercise bandwagon; it helps me physically and mentally. It’s a must-do for me.

Hit a Wall on Day 9

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It happened…I guess I knew it would.
I woke up at 2:50a feeling terribly. After some unpleasant time in the bathroom, I was able to head back to bed for a bit. Then, I woke again at 3:45a and had to go back to the bathroom.  It felt like food poisoning, where there’s a demon in your belly and you know it needs to come out but can’t figure out if it’s going up or down…or both.  What a horrible way to spend a Saturday night.

Friday night while eating a bowl of strawberries and pineapple, I got a sudden soreness in the back of my mouth.  Fearing I was having an allergic reaction (even though I’ve eaten both foods many times before), I was quick to put down the fork and grab some Benadryl.  The possibility of an allergic reaction that close to my throat was very frightening.  But the Benedryl didn’t make anything better and the sore, red spots were still there when I woke up on Saturday and again on Sunday.  After the rough night Saturday, the soreness in my mouth were enough to make me go to the doctor. I always google my symptoms to try to self-diagnose and the only pictures that looked like what I had in my mouth were shown as mouth cancer.  So off to urgent care I ran!  My over-reacting, hypochondriac thinking was wrong (as it usually is); the doctor’s diagnosis: canker sores.  I’ve never had one in my life and the doc said they don’t necessarily know why they occur.  Canker sores, according to him, aren’t serious but can be annoying and painful…indeed they are!  A couple treatment prescriptions later and I was on my way home.

The rest of my Sunday (my last day of Spring Break, mind you) was not spent as I had originally anticipated.  The whole reason I started this eating program was to get healthy again, to reboot my body in a way.  But here I was feeling awful.  The nausea was so intense throughout the day on Sunday and I barely ate a thing.  I made a little bit of chicken-carrot-kale soup in the morning but it hurt to eat.  At lunch, I had a small portion of the previous night’s dinner and dinner…I wanted nothing.  I cooked up another batch of the Sausage & Potato soup around dinnertime, as I had planned to use that for breakfasts this week.  The smell of the meat and then the coconut milk was rough on my senses.  That soup is delicious but I felt so uncomfortable during the whole cooking process due to the nausea.  I didn’t know if the nausea (and the digestive issues during the previous night) were due to the diet or that I was returning to work the next day.  So many times on Sunday, I was ready to throw in the towel on this eating plan.  Usually when I’m not feeling well, tea and toast are my go-to’s…tea alone wasn’t working for me. I wanted Saltines and ginger ale.  It was almost easier to eat nothing than W30 foods.  Dinner ended up being just a small cup of organic, unsweetened apple sauce.

Monday (Day 10) saw me back at school.  My stomach was a little uneasy in the morning, as it has been so often lately.  I took two Imodium tablets and hit the road.  When I got to school, I took my anti-nausea pill, hoping I was covering myself at both ends so that I would make it through the day.  The canker sore is still there on the right, making talking and eating a challenge.  I didn’t want anything for breakfast even though I was hungry.  I ate a banana, since I had to put something in my stomach to take the anxiety medication, and made myself a cup of green mint tea.  A colleague noted a change in my appearance: she said I wasn’t looking well.  So my appearance was matching how I was feeling; I guess that’s something…

I’ve been reading a lot of comments from people who didn’t complete the Whole 30 and how they felt better going off the program.  It was interesting to read those after reading so many positive ones about the plan.  So far for Day 10, I’ve stuck it out.  I got through a school day eating these foods. I know I need to eat more, that I really did not have enough food today.  Out of fear of food not sitting well along with the pain of eating due to the mouth sore, my goal was simply get through today whatever it took.  I did…now I need to figure out how to eat healthily so that I’m not feeling so hungry and lethargic while being confident that my digestive system will respond in kind.  April 30 seems so far away…

My Whole 30 Days 7 & 8

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So I forgot to post yesterday and was just about to curl up with a movie when I realized, I hadn’t yet posted today!  I have to figure out this writing habit as I certainly don’t have it down yet…

I have been breaking a Whole 30 rule. I’m usually not a rule breaker by nature; in fact, I’m conscientious to a fault.  But I want to be successful with sticking with this eating plan so this was a rule that I had to bend for me: I weigh myself every day.  My weight has fluctuated quite a bit over the last few years…since BBE and I started dating actually.  I had just finished marathon training, it was a bitter, cold New England winter, and BBE makes really delicious foods.  I’ve been frequently ten pounds heavier than I want to be, and oftentimes, I was closer to fifteen.  Personally, I find it really motivating to see the consistent, lower number on the scale.  When the craving for a cookie set in the other day, I looked at my Withings app and saw how the weight has just dropped every day since I started – that was better than any cookie could have been.  I want to hit my goal weight. I don’t know if it’ll happen through this program – and it honestly isn’t why I started it. My main goal was to improve my overall health and stop the unpleasant digestive issues I’ve been dealing with since January.  But I think it’ll also be a great start towards reaching my goal weight. I do understand why the rule was put in place to not weigh yourself, to take the focus off weight loss – but if seeing that number each day (and possibly lower ones) keeps me eating according to plan, then I’ve determined that’s okay for me.

The reason I went off on the weighing myself tangent is that yesterday, my weight fluctuated up, almost a whole pound.  It was still five pounds lower than I’ve been for months and months but I thought that might be why they say to not weigh yourself. I’d been eating Whole 30 foods for a week and my weight went up. I get it and I’m okay with the fluctuation.  But I’m guessing others would be frustrated.  (In case you were wondering, it was back down today.)

Today Day 8 was an all day cooking extravaganza!  The pork shoulder went into the slow cooker first thing this morning for pulled pork and then in the early afternoon, I started making the sweet potato gnocchi.  I didn’t sit down to eat until after 6 o’clock but it sure was tasty when I did.  I do think I’ve hit my sweet potato capacity though.  Time to find some new recipes for the week ahead…hopefully without anymore grocery runs (I went five times in one week!)

Once the rain finally passed this morning, I went out for a short run (one mile).  It was slow going but all I wanted to do was just run one.  I haven’t run in a while so I have to start slow and low. Plus, with the new diet, I wasn’t sure how I’d feel so I thought it best to just do one.

Days 5 and 6

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So yesterday got away from me and I remembered that I had forgotten to write as I was lying in bed.  Sleep and rest is my priority so I wasn’t about to get out of bed for a quite recap.  So here’s two days in one.

Today was the first day since I started where I had a craving.  All in all, that’s pretty good considering I’ve been home from work this whole time.  Being busy keeps me distracted from cravings; being home, I’m used to sweets and snacking.  Today’s hankering was for chocolate.  I really wanted a piece of chocolate… I thought about maybe sprinkling some cocoa powder on my strawberries – but resisted.  I went for shredded coconut.  I beat my first craving!  I’m sure there will be others…

I made my first attempt at curry yesterday. Following the recipe, it was a little bland and the potatoes weren’t as cooked as I’d hoped by dinnertime, but it was edible.  I heated some up for lunch and it was better in the second eating.

Day 5 also found me back at the supermarket.  Three trips in five days!  Definitely need to plan better moving forward. A teacher’s salary only goes so far, you know.

Since I found myself again making hash for breakfast today (it’s too damn delicious!) I decided to make a soup tonight to have for my breakfast over the next few days.  I need to figure out breakfasts that I can take to work to heat ‘n eat there.  I’m hesitant to cook at home in the morning to eat before I go because the nausea always seems to kick in by 6:15a.  Feeding the nausea doesn’t seem like a pleasant way to start each day but eating at 7:05am should work.  This sausage and potato soup was quite tasty!  Soup seems a decent option for my take-to-work first meal.

My Day 4

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Well, I had curry chicken on the menu for dinner but had forgotten to defrost the chicken so I had to improvise dinner.  After a successful batch of hash for breakfast (bacon, sweet potato, onion), I decided to make another batch with an orange potato for dinner.  Maybe it’s not the healthiest way to go – but technically it was Whole30 compliant, so that worked for me today!

I also learned about a tasty little treat that might help me get through the rough days ahead.  I used some of the grated sweet potato to make a patty, sprinkled it generously with cinnamon, then pan-fried it.  So good!  I don’t have any pictures of those (I ate them too fast…)  I’ve had too many potatoes in the last couple days so I’ll have to watch that.

Day 4 Reflections:

  • Prep well ahead of time for week 2 (when I go back to work). I was going to go to the grocery store again today, which would’ve been three times in four days. Hopefully next week will only require two visits to Safeway over the full seven days.
  • Start off slower with exercise. I went to yoga yesterday and today am having trouble moving my shoulder joint without pain. I tried to do too much too soon and am paying for it now (unfortunately). Long walks will be the new plan until the shoulder gets fixed.
  • Quiet mornings are a nice start to the day. I turn on the kettle before going in to the restroom and brew myself a cup of ginger tea first thing each morning.  I’ve read lots about drinking a large glass of water first thing to wake up the body but I like the warmth of the tea and the ginger is soothing to my tummy. I sip it while reading (I used to check email or Facebook but am trying to stay device-free in the wee hours of the day). What I’m reading while I do my Whole 30 is How to Live a Good Life by Jonathan Fields.  It has 30 days of ways to improve the quality of life so it seemed fitting for this month. Then ten minutes of meditating with the Headspace app.  I’m hoping to keep that routine going once school kicks back in next Monday.
  • An army of one. Yes, it would be nice to do this program with someone (especially BBE since he lives here and I want him to experience amazing health alongside me) but I’m finding I’m doing okay without a partner.  I am feeling pretty good so far (hard to know if it’s the Whole 30 foods or the new med or that I’m on spring break…or most likely some combo of all of them) and I want to share my wins with others but it’s only been four days.  Too soon to toot my own horn…

My Day 3

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Waking on a weekday morning without an alarm is the best feeling! 🙂

I had some cooking fails today but, again, I’m feeling okay.  I’m nervous about when the bad feelings and cravings are going to set in. In so many blogs I read about Whole 30 experiences, people talk about their struggles in the beginning (and weird dreams later on…). It’s so weird to me that I haven’t had them yet. I’m a gal who loves her sweets – where are the cravings?  The headache?  The withdrawal??

I was feeling so okay today that I went to hot yoga in the late afternoon.  The heat was a little much for me today but I showed up for myself – and I’m glad that I did.  Admittedly, I almost didn’t go. About an hour beforehand, I just wanted to curl up on the couch with a movie.  Somehow I got past my relaxing desire and put on my yoga clothes. I’m not so sure I feel better having gone but it’s probably better for me that I went.  Not to mention, couch-time and a movie used to mean snacking.  It might’ve been tempting to eat had I stuck around at home.

Whole 30 – Day 2

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Day 2 has been an interesting day. I was waiting for the really bad feelings (headache, unsettled tummy)…but thankfully, they haven’t come.  I got up at 7am, after 8 hours of sleep. I wasn’t feeling particularly hungry and knew I’d want to go for a walk after my morning routine (ginger tea, meditation, reading) so I started the day with a banana and my morning med.

I really wanted to run after yesterday. The weather was beautiful and as I walked, I saw runners all over. It made me reminiscent; I missed the days of my own running, which I haven’t felt in quite some time.  But due to the fact I haven’t run in a while and I’m just starting Whole 30, I thought it best that I just walk today and keep my workouts simple until I see how my body reacts to this food plan.  Since today is uneventful, I’m thinking I’m going to go to hot yoga tomorrow.  (Hopefully I won’t regret that decision!)

I did notice a bit of bloating last night. It wasn’t uncomfortable like the bloating I had back in January; it was just my tummy stuck out more than usual. A little fatigue and bloating are the symptoms I’ve experienced so far; maybe I’ll get lucky and this will be the worst of it?

I googled other people’s experiences with Whole 30 and there has been quite a variety in what people experience.  I read them, not to compare, but just to see what others went through so that I might know what’s ahead for me.  Sounds like it was good that I took a week to start prepping my body for this program; indulging in the days before seem to cause more withdrawal symptoms.  The only thing I have to withdraw from is sugar.  BBE made cookies for himself today; that wasn’t a pleasant moment but I got through it.  Just gotta stay focused on why I’m doing this.  I want to feel better. I want the nausea to go away. I want the energy to do all that I want to do in this life.  If one cookie is going to take that away, that is not a cookie that I have any desire for.

My challenge today was at meal 2.  The challenge: I didn’t want to eat.  I wasn’t feeling hungry and was thinking about skipping it. I mean, why eat if I’m not hungry, right?  But I thought that goes against the plan so meal 2 ended up a bit later in the day and meal 3 was small but eaten.

Meal 1: Eggs with bacon and spinach, topped with guacamole
Meal 2: Berries with coconut, zoodles with guac and baked chicken
Meal 3: Roasted potatoes and chicken sausage

My Day 1 – Whole 30

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No sugar, legumes, dairy, alcohol or grains. For 30 days.

Breakfast was easy today. I enjoy eating eggs for breakfast when I have time to cook in the morning; since most mornings I won’t be able to, meal prep will be key for a breakfast that will keep me not feeling hungry until lunch.  Today’s breakfast was eggs with spinach and Whole30-compliant chicken sausage – tasty!

After a morning walk and meal one, I spent some time out on the back porch with my Kindle and It Starts With Food. Our north-facing porch is usually so cold but it was an unusually warm morning today, perfect for outdoor reading.  Since my focus this month is to improve my health overall, I’m adding on a few components along with eating Whole 30; spending time each day outside is also part of the 30-day challenge.

Also, I’ve added to my 30 days abstaining from Facebook and playing Candy Crush.  Facebook isn’t a huge time-waster for me; I do check it a few times a day but not for long periods of time.  My reasons for staying away are more about what my Facebook feed has become: some posts from friends about their kids and lots of posts about our current political climate.  The reminders of not having children and how our country is currently a scary, disappointing mess weigh on me mentally. Gotta take care of the mental health along with the physical so that’s why I thought it best I take a little break from it all.  As for Candy Crush, that is a time waster of mine – not a terrible one but I figured I could find other ways of occupying myself during these 30 days that would be better than sitting around staring at a tiny screen.  Perhaps more time in nature… While the food part hasn’t proven too difficult on this first day, there were several moments where I was tempted to revert to these two habits, mostly in moments of boredom.

As a possible treatment for my nausea, I started a new anxiety medication a couple weeks ago. I upped the dosage today.  It’s possible that the medication could make me not feel well initially so it’s hard to know if the symptoms I experience in the next few days will truly be from the Whole 30 foods or side effects from the medication.  I’m hoping both will be mild, otherwise I’m being particularly cruel to myself…and on my spring break week at that!

The only symptom I had today was fatigue.  Again, not sure if it was from the food or the medication or just a lazy Saturday where too much reading brought on heavy eyelids.  I did nap on the couch for about an hour, from 4p to 5p.

The BBE had breakfast with me and said he’d eat the Whole 30 foods along with me while we were at home together.  But once he heard about what all the restrictions were, he backed out.  So it seems that I’ll be going through this alone, which I think will be okay. BBE was supportive in that he cooked up steaks and asparagus for our supper.  I wish he’d do the whole thing with me, as the potential health improvements would be wonderful for both of us. But to each his own… I know this is what I need right now – maybe my results will motivate him down the road.

Meal 1: Eggs with spinach and chicken sausage
Meal 2: Baked salmon with garlic, sweet potato with cinnamon
Snack: Berries with shredded coconut
Meal 3: Grilled steak and asparagus, strawberries with almond butter