Anyone starting Whole30?

Starbunny11

I'm planning to start tomorrow (coming back from vacation and will do my planning and prep tonight). Looking forward to it and glad there are others here participating.

Loves2snack

I start tomorrow you guys! I'm so nervous! Yesterday I had 5 krispy Kreme doughnuts ( WTF is wrong with me!?) Do you guys have any suggestions?!

Loves2snack

Sammybunny4711 wrote: »

I'm planning to start tomorrow (coming back from vacation and will do my planning and prep tonight). Looking forward to it and glad there are others here participating.

Did you start? I start tomorrow!

aliem

Loves2snack wrote: »

I start tomorrow you guys! I'm so nervous! Yesterday I had 5 krispy Kreme doughnuts ( WTF is wrong with me!?) Do you guys have any suggestions?!

Stick with it! Realize that you are probably going to want to give up for at least the first week or two (some people even longer), but know that you made a commitment to yourself and you should honor your commitment. It is definitely hard to get over your cravings, even if you are a person who eats relatively clean to begin with. Also, plan ahead. Always have a snack on you just in case you have a late day at the office and are starving or some other emergency. There are some Larabars that are whole30 compliant (check the labels, because there are some that aren't). I personally found them too sweet for me. There are some jerky brands that are compliant. I personally carried a bag in my car that had things like cinnamon applesauce, dried fruit, a laurabar, nuts and baby food pouches (very weird, I know. But they are very much like applesauce consistency and tend to have a serving of veggies in them and I prefer to lean on veggies over fruit and there are very few things that are veggie based that are shelf stable. I also would go to these the most. Also, read labels. I was able to find tons of these that were compliant, but there were also a lot that were not.) Lastly, plan, plan and you guessed it, plan! This is sooooo important. Definitely put a menu together for the week. I food prep so this was very easy for me, but most people don't. So make a list and check it twice. Once you have some staples (oils can be expensive and that first snack/nut purchase will probably make you gasp), doing whole30 is pretty cheap. Besides the first trip, where I probably spend about $40-50 for my first week's food and additional staples, I usually spend between $20-30 a week on food by shopping the ads!

Dove0804

It's just another way to decrease caloric intake. Note that you don't have to eliminate any of those foods in order to lose weight, and there's no such thing as "resetting your metabolism" as the authors claim. That being said, some people prefer to have a set of rules and a specific plan to stick to. If you like it and feel like you can sustain it long term, that's great. Good luck!

aliem

Dove0804 wrote: »

It's just another way to decrease caloric intake. Note that you don't have to eliminate any of those foods in order to lose weight, and there's no such thing as "resetting your metabolism" as the authors claim. That being said, some people prefer to have a set of rules and a specific plan to stick to. If you like it and feel like you can sustain it long term, that's great. Good luck!

It's actually not about decreasing caloric intake. In fact, I tend to increase my caloric intake (and the weight still comes off). For a lot of people they will decrease their intake, but you are specifically not supposed to count calories. Additionally, resetting your metabolism while is mentioned, I do not believe is the main goal. The author also puts reset in quotes. What I got out of it was more ingredient awareness (I.e. More awareness about what I put in my body), how you feel when you cut out certain food groups and how they affect your body when they are reintroduced. It also focuses on the non scale victories. I had better sleep and more energy and no issues with food allergies. Everyone is different. My sister cut out dairy and her adult acne went away. As someone who struggled with major acne, even with the doctors going through a laundry list of different solutions that did help but not to the degree as cutting out dairy, she now greatly limits her dairy intake. It's all about changing your relationship with food. Everyone is different. Wish you luck in your journey!

CattOfTheGarage

I wish you all the best of luck. I have to say, I was curious about the plan once and went and read through the rules, and I did not like them one bit. They honestly made me want to slap someone. So much unnecessary restriction of things that are in no way unhealthy, and some of them struck me as plain sadistic - like, you're not only banned from sugar and flour and things like doughnuts and pancakes, but even from making substitutes for these items from "permitted" ingredients - so no cloud bread, no banana pancakes, no cauliflower crust pizza - why? It was like you had to avoid, not just the actual ingredients in the "processed food", but some kind of aura of unhealthiness that apparently goes along with something just *looking* processed. It seemed more like a set of arbitrary religious injunctions than healthy eating guidelines.

I don't say all this just to be annoying, and I'm not really talking to those of you who are doing it and finding it helpful. I'm glad it works for you, and the basic principle of more fruit and veg, more home cooked food and less sugar is great. But I felt that the uber-restrictive and controlling tone of the rules could be super unhealthy for some people who have restrictive tendencies anyway, so i want to stick this dissenting voice into the conversation.

aliem

CattOfTheGarage wrote: »

I wish you all the best of luck. I have to say, I was curious about the plan once and went and read through the rules, and I did not like them one bit. They honestly made me want to slap someone. So much unnecessary restriction of things that are in no way unhealthy, and some of them struck me as plain sadistic - like, you're not only banned from sugar and flour and things like doughnuts and pancakes, but even from making substitutes for these items from "permitted" ingredients - so no cloud bread, no banana pancakes, no cauliflower crust pizza - why? It was like you had to avoid, not just the actual ingredients in the "processed food", but some kind of aura of unhealthiness that apparently goes along with something just *looking* processed.

I just wanted to reply to this. The author does address this. It is about changing your relationship with food. A lot of people are literally addicted to sugar. There are multiple studies on this (though they tend to be on mice, which may or may not correlate to humans.) However, the "sweet tooth" is real. So what good does it do to cut out cake, but then allow people to a slice of paleo cake every day? Same goes for other things like French fries (not sugar but still nutritionally not great for you), frapachinos, etc.It's for 30 days (or 45 or 60), but it's not supposed to be whole lifetime. That's enough time to break your relationship with your cravings so when you are out of it, you know how to control your cravings and know how good you feel without eating so much sugar. I am not trying to get you on board. It's not for everyone. But I just wanted to address this, since the plan explains it. Best wishes!

Grankakes

how is everyone doing? i'm on day 9. not feeling the best, but not any worse. still trying to get used to cooking every afternoon, since i haven't in the last 15 years! eating out was SO much easier! and getting used to grocery shopping REGULARLY and having to PLAN! that part is killing me!

ncn312

My husband and I did a whole30 a few months ago. As per usual, he lost all sorts of weight. I lost some too, just not as much as he did, which is fine. Slow and steady, right?

Anyway, I found the food part of it pretty do-able and filling. I did crave cheese and bread the first few days, but afterward - even after we did the 30 days - I didn't crave it as much. I don't have a sweet tooth, so that wasn't really an issue for me, but it was with him and he seemed okay after a few weeks. I don't think I felt any miraculous significant change at the end, and we did follow it pretty strictly. But I did lose weight and I felt less bloated, so those are good things, right?

We just started another one this week, but this time keeping in social drinking, since we both have pretty social lifestyles (I'm going to try to stick to an occasional vodka soda).

So just curious - has anyone tried a "modified" whole30 without giving up drinking and if so, was it successful?

TeaBea

ncn312 wrote: »

My husband and I did a whole30 a few months ago. As per usual, he lost all sorts of weight. I lost some too, just not as much as he did, which is fine. Slow and steady, right?

Anyway, I found the food part of it pretty do-able and filling. I did crave cheese and bread the first few days, but afterward - even after we did the 30 days - I didn't crave it as much. I don't have a sweet tooth, so that wasn't really an issue for me, but it was with him and he seemed okay after a few weeks. I don't think I felt any miraculous significant change at the end, and we did follow it pretty strictly. But I did lose weight and I felt less bloated, so those are good things, right?

We just started another one this week, but this time keeping in social drinking, since we both have pretty social lifestyles (I'm going to try to stick to an occasional vodka soda).

So just curious - has anyone tried a "modified" whole30 without giving up drinking and if so, was it successful?

Weight loss is all about calories. So if you drink moderately and still manage to stay under your calorie goal, then yes you will lose weight.

If having a few drinks brings you over your calorie goal, then no it won't work.

CattOfTheGarage

@aliem just wanted to thank you for your civil and friendly reply. I may not agree with you but it's nice to be able to disagree on good terms.

aliem

CattOfTheGarage wrote: »

@aliem just wanted to thank you for your civil and friendly reply. I may not agree with you but it's nice to be able to disagree on good terms.

Thank you! It is so hard to do when writing in a forum. I am sure I have rubbed people the wrong way, even if that was not my intention. I appreciate your point of view and realize that a Whole30 is not for everyone. Plus it is not really a "diet" in the traditional weight loss sense, even though most people do see that benefit. I feel like most people just see food restriction diets (that are non-medical, religious or ethically based) and think that it's a cult of crazy people (which you are still entitled to think haha.) I am usually in that camp with the witch hunts on gluten and sugar and fat as well as the crazy juice cleanses and very low calorie plans (once again, these are my opinions. I am not a doctor. Please don't yell at me. I support whatever you want to do to yourself, because it does not affect me!) However, this one really resonated with me and seemed well thought out and more education based in the sense that it is learning about your relationship with food. Even the authors don't believe in a WholeLifetime. I am glad you listened are were respectful! Best of luck to you!

aliem

ncn312 wrote: »

My husband and I did a whole30 a few months ago. As per usual, he lost all sorts of weight. I lost some too, just not as much as he did, which is fine. Slow and steady, right?

Anyway, I found the food part of it pretty do-able and filling. I did crave cheese and bread the first few days, but afterward - even after we did the 30 days - I didn't crave it as much. I don't have a sweet tooth, so that wasn't really an issue for me, but it was with him and he seemed okay after a few weeks. I don't think I felt any miraculous significant change at the end, and we did follow it pretty strictly. But I did lose weight and I felt less bloated, so those are good things, right?

We just started another one this week, but this time keeping in social drinking, since we both have pretty social lifestyles (I'm going to try to stick to an occasional vodka soda).

So just curious - has anyone tried a "modified" whole30 without giving up drinking and if so, was it successful?

I mean you should do it for you. Would I personally consider that a Whole30? Not really. But you are an adult and can make adult choices. I have modified Whole30s through non-food things like weighing myself logging food (though most of them I do not log food, or if I do, it's to make sure that I am eating enough calories. Long story short, I have had issues with EDs in the past so I really don't want to spend a month not realizing I am only eating like 500 calories a day and that becoming a habit, though this has never been a problem with Whole30 and following the template, but I sometimes like to check to make sure) Also, would anyone really notice if you were drinking a soda water with lime sans vodka? I personally feel like if you concede on one thing, it might lead to conceding on others. But you are an adult. You make your own choices and I wish you all of the best wishes in hitting your goal!

aliem

Grankakes wrote: »

how is everyone doing? i'm on day 9. not feeling the best, but not any worse. still trying to get used to cooking every afternoon, since i haven't in the last 15 years! eating out was SO much easier! and getting used to grocery shopping REGULARLY and having to PLAN! that part is killing me!

Keep with it! Great job! I am sure that in a week or so, you will be feeling better. I know around day 9-11, I usually have a day or two when things I never crave are all of a sudden the only thing I can think about! Just remember, mind over matter! You got this!