The Post-Whole30 Truth

The past 10 days have been spent reintroducing foods into our diet with a side of school related stress.  I've learned quite a bit, some pleasant, most unpleasant.  Here's the truth.

+ When you do the Whole30, prepare to never enjoy your favorite treats or foods again.  Our first reintroduction was dairy--chocolate, cheese, and ice cream.  This was a pleasant surprise because I was able to enjoy just a small amount of each and nothing negative happened. Plus they were delicious. We then did gluten with some doughnuts.  This was terrible. I had a headache all day, stomach was bloated, and it was definitely not worth it.  The legumes didn't have much effect but I only reintroduced peanuts because I don't like beans. We had non-gluten grains and they made me bloated too. Anyway. This was all a long precursor to what I wanted to talk about.  Last night for Valentines Day we went and had pizza, which was always my favorite. The first few bites were amazing, but after a few bites in, the crust was way too chewy and I just wanted the meat off the top. After two pieces I was done and felt like I ate a whole pizza. This morning, it's miserable. My poor stomach.  So watch out, your favorite foods will never be the same.

All Things End

30 days.

1/3 of a school semester.

It flies by but feels like forever.

And it’s enough time to change how you see so many things.

Our Temple Square picture before Christmas and before the Whole30

Was it worth it? 

Yes.  Even though I complained a lot and it was hard at times, I am so grateful we did it. Our bodies are such an amazing gift from our Heavenly Father and when you treat it as such, it gives you amazing things back. With the craziness of this semester, I’m so grateful for my energy and focus that have both been heightened. Jake and I were sick a lot before, just small things, but haven’t had a sign of any sickness at all since we started.

What is your best piece of advice? 

Stick with it. Make a commitment to yourself. Talk about it. Have a buddy.
I realized that accountability is hard when you are only being accountable to yourself.  Maybe internal accountability is hard for only me, but it is now something I hope to master in the future. But for now, where I’m at, it was critical for me to have talked about it and be accountable to Jake, my blog readers, and every other human I told (which was basically everyone). Having Jake was also a huge blessing. He is so supportive and was my voice of reason when I just wanted a greasy piece of pizza just for the fact it was Friday.

Did you get anything out of it? 

I got more out of it than I expected—and I had done this (sorta) before. My skin has been clearer, my focus and energy are through the roof, no more sugar cravings or afternoon slumps, my monthly cramps were much less noticeable, I now consider myself a great cook, and I lost 14 pounds. So that’s pretty cool. The most important thing I got out of it was not one of the physical benefits, but rather a mental one. I showed myself that I can reach goals I set. This has never happened. It is empowering to know that I’m not immune to the statement, “if you can believe it, you can achieve it”. This new empowerment has been priceless through this semester of school. With something so challenging, it’s nice to know that I can do anything I put my mind to—even getting an A in anatomy.

Was it expensive? 

Yes it was. Our grocery bill went up a lot. On the flip side we didn’t spend anything on eating out, our entertainment budget was hardly used, and with the low gas prices, we had over budgeted for that. With all those considerations, we didn’t go over our outlined budget at all. Sure the categories were off, but the same amount of money was spent. My goal is to learn how to eat healthy while staying frugal. Coupon party anyone?

Did it take a lot of time? 

It felt like all we did was school, work, and something Whole30 related—grocery shopping, cooking, washing the endless piles of dishes, eating, or complaining. So yes, it took a lot of time. But again, we just allocated our time and prioritized. Sure we have piles and piles of laundry, but at least we are eating healthy!

What now? 

Now we reintroduce foods. We won’t be getting a pizza with extra cheese and ice cream on the side. We put in a lot of time and effort into this that we want to do it right. The point of this part it to help us find the foods that bring the inflammation back so we can eliminate them from our diet and move forward. The last 30 days we have been on training wheels and relied on what we were told to eat and what not to eat. This part we become our own experiments. Today, day 31, we reintroduce dairy. So we had cheese in our eggs, will have some cheese with lunch, and a bowl of ice cream after dinner. You are to eat something from that food group with every meal. I didn’t try yogurt or milk because I already know my body isn’t a big fan of dairy. Jake is trying both since he loves milk. Then for the next two days we go back to eating the Whole30 way. This is to allow our body to react to dairy without other factors at play. Based on how we feel we decide what’s worth keeping in our daily diet, what should be an occasional guest, and what will be avoided completely. We do gluten Saturday, legumes Tuesday, and non-gluten grains Friday.

bright and early before work on our day 31! 

Let me know if you guys have any questions or need a support buddy! I’d love to help you or put burning questions to rest. Now that I’ve Whole30-ed you out, I’ll move on to other things in future posts.  

Not Pregnant, just Whole30-ing

GUYS.

I have to apologize. If you have spent any time around me the past 26 days, I’ve talked nonstop about food. So much so I’m concerned people think I’m pregnant. (I’m not) But guess what? That seems to happen when you do something that is hard and you are actually following through with it! Here’s the deal, it’s been hard and I’ve had a lot of complaining moments. But when it comes down to it, I’m so dang proud of myself. In the past I’ve always been able to talk myself into giving up on a goal, whatever that goal was.  This is showing me that I’m strong and capable of following through on commitments to myself. And that I deserve that commitment!

Jake and I have less than a week left on the Whole30 and it’s been quite the experience.  I thought I’d share our top 5 favorite recipes we have found along the way! These recipes were so good that I would have eaten them even if I wasn’t doing the Whole30.  Try them out and let me know what you think!

Thai Curry Chicken -- We both love Thai curry but could live without Indian curry. I was excited when I found this recipe! We took a trip up to Whole Foods in Draper because I had received a gift card for Christmas from my sister-in-law. While we were there we found a green curry paste that didn’t have sugar! We cooked this up last night and it was DELISH. Jake and I decided we’d probably add some more curry paste (we did the full 2 T and could’ve handled more) and more coconut milk to get more sauce out of the recipe. We didn’t include the kabocha squash cause I had no idea what that was and Jake isn’t a big squash fan. We served over cauliflower rice (which was surprisingly good) and it was the perfect, filling meal. Def a repeat. 

 Pizza Spaghetti Pie -- Over the weekend Jake and I took a trip up to Idaho for my cousin’s mission farewell.  We decided to make this as our meal for the whole weekend. After that we are burnt out of the recipe, but up until we ate it 7 times in a row, it was a favorite! The squash tricks your mind into thinking you are eating cheesy lasagna/pizza concontion. It was super tasty. The hardest part of this recipe was finding sugar free pizza sauce and Italian sausage—luckily we found some at Whole Foods during our field trip. You can add anything you like on your pizza, we did olives and green peppers--both were great additions. (PS. Whole Foods is freaking expensive. No wonder they put it up in swanky Draper. ;) ) 

 Buffalo Ranch Stuffed Peppers -- These are fab. I wouldn’t change a thing. I found them the first time I did this and have made them while I wasn't on the Whole30. I’m not crafty so I've never carved out the pumpkin faces, but man. So good. 

 Balsamic Glazed Steak Rolls -- I mentioned in my last post that we have been having people over for Sunday dinners.  We made this recipe for his dad and stepmom. It was so tasty! The steak was a tad bit rare for our taste so we did have to cook it longer. For the glaze, I replaced the brown sugar with unsweetened apple sauce and I had to make our own Worcestershire sauce because they all have sugar. It turned out super yummy, just a lot of work. 

 Paleo Chick-Fil-A Nuggets -- Jake loves Chick-Fil-A nuggets. I know his order and it’s always the nuggets. (remember when he picked that for his last meal?) Well one night we were stressed and bugged with the restrictions so we decided to make this! It was fabulous. We added some cooked potatoes and sugar free ketchup (another Whole Foods find). Heaven. Although the tapioca flour did do a weird thing where it was stringy while cooking and afterward—I don’t know why, but it wasn’t enough to make them gross because it was still crispy. And they tasted pretty dang close to the real thing. Minus the yummy chocolate chip cookies. (you haven’t tried their cookies? Well you should. They are divine.)

Now a non-food related thing--I crossed something off my list last week! On campus we have a new building and it includes a bowling alley. Last Tuesday Jake and I went for a spontaneous game after class. It was so lovely and the perfect break from the stress of the semester. (Yes, I know it's only a month in.) The first game I got 98! 2 away from #11 on my 101 in 1001 list! So we paid another $2 for a second game.  I broke it!  I scored 115. The best I've ever done! It was a blast and I'm so grateful for the hunk who suggested the idea.

 

Whole 30 Update

In the past 12 days I have learned a lot. The main one is that 12 days can feel like 45 days, especially when you are doing the Whole 30 and trying to memorize all the things for Anatomy. 

As mentioned in the below post, Jake and I are doing the Whole 30.  We started on January 4 and it's been a roller coaster.  I read an article today that pretty much summed up our experience.  You see, doing the Whole 30 is like death. Okay, not really, but it sure feels like it. 

(side note. last time I did this I posted a quote from the people who started the whole thing about how it's not hard and they said birthing a baby is hard and I believed them but now I think they are crazy because this is way harder than they make it seem and I've never had a baby, but I'm sure they are comparable. #runonsentencesftw #probablynotcomparable) 

Anyway. That article. It was about the 5 stages of grief.  And I'm pretty sure Jake and I went through every. single. stage. in one day. And then we went through it again the next day.  Since then we've settled comfortably in the acceptance phase. The folks at the Whole 30 provided us with this timeline, which is pretty accurate but they forgot the grief. What are the 5 stages of grief?  Well lucky you I have a psychology class this semester and can tell you all about it! (Half lie. I got this from Wikipedia. Although I am taking that class.) 

1. Denial. "The person is trying to shut out the reality or magnitude of his/her situation, and begins to develop a false, preferable reality." This stage happened the first day but it started prematurely when we were talking ourselves into this crazy thing. Our false, preferable reality was that it'd be easy, especially since we are back in school and that means we have a routine, and that the 30 days would whiz right by and we'd be able to eat our homemade chocolate chip cookies before we knew it. Just read my previous post!! I sounded like a sales person because I was so pumped. 

2. Anger.  "Why me? It's not fair!"; "How can this happen to me?"; '"Who is to blame?" A few days into it, I was pissed.  I was mad that I couldn't eat what I wanted and that some people I didn't even know were telling me what I could and couldn't eat! I was so angry I was brought to tears on the chair. Jake was in the other room and sent articles to my phone about people who had done the program before and their feelings and results. It made me even more upset! Why do we have to do this while everyone else is enjoying their free PB&J from institute?!

3. Bargaining. "The third stage involves the hope that the individual can somehow undo or avoid a cause of grief".  This happened multiple times over a few days. One time in particular we were sitting outside Costco and we were both irritable and grumpy. Then, slowly, my brain got me thinking. "You can still get benefits from doing this 6 out of the 7 days." "Remember that study that you read that said you have to eat chocolate to help your heart?" "What about that study where eating an unhealthy meal actually helps your body?"  I vocalized some of my bargaining, trying to convince Jake that it was totally fine to get pizza that night since a cheat meal is always a good idea. He said let's at least finish this week up and then we'll decided.  Another night he was behind the bargaining.  "Ike (our econ professor with biceps bigger than my head) eats doughnuts once a week and he's huge!" "I just want to eat ice cream while we watch a movie, it can't be that bad?" "Even cocaine addicts can't come right off, they need a lower dose.  Why can't we do that?" I suggested we used the cantaloupe as our lower dose drug and if we still wanted ice cream, we could go get it.  Well the cantaloupe worked and we didn't get ice cream.  As you can tell, this was the longest and HARDEST to get through. Holy cow. It took so much self control.  

4. Depression. "It is natural to feel sadness, regret, fear, and uncertainty when going through this stage. Feeling those emotions shows that the person has begun to accept the situation." After showing our great self control, you better believe I fell into the 4 stage of grief.  I knew we were in it for real since none of our bargaining worked, plus we seemed to have our weak moments and different times and we are both stubborn in not letting the other person quit, I knew I was going to do this for the 30 days. I cried over my spaghetti squash and gross chicken breast. Jake had a moment too but he's much less dramatic than I am. 

5. Acceptance. "This typically comes with a calm, retrospective view for the individual, and a stable mindset." After the night of the ice cream vs. cantaloupe showdown, I woke up without thinking much about those foods I couldn't eat. Jake seemed to be better as well.  It seemed that the crazy had settled down and we definitely more stable.  Since then it has been easier. Not easy, but easier. I haven't had any huge cravings and every time I do I realize it doesn't sound good, it's just what has always been expected.  Hello movie theater popcorn. I sure hope the next 18 days aren't as hard as the first week. Also, Jake did a great job grocery shopping while I was studying! Remember that picture of the Chick-Fil-A? Well here is his latest picture and this is a pretty accurate description of the past 12 days: 

The first week made me realize how much our bodies (and our minds) love and expect certain types of food. It also made me realize that I do have willpower and I can tell my mind to shut up and do what I tell it to.  It's refreshing to realize how powerful your body is and you aren't forced to eat anything. You can tell it no. It's hard. It's not fun. But the outcome always seems to be worth it.  On my day of depressions and bargaining I posted on a Facebook support group about my woes.  Someone posted a quote that made me stop trying to think of excuses to quit. 

Life begins at the end of your comfort zone

I hope you are all having a lovely time with your resolutions and may I say that I really believe in that quote. When we step outside our comfort zone, we'll be surprised by what awaits us.

It Starts with Food

Last summer I discovered the Whole30 through another blogger and started mine that August. The Whole30 is a program where you only eat certain food for 30 days.  In that time you learn about yourself, your body, and how much the food you eat really affects you.  After I did mine in August I realized that dairy and most gluten hurt my stomach pretty bad so I would rarely eat them. My relationship with food, which had been pretty toxic up until that point, was changed drastically and the things I learned are still with me today.

So why are foods removed from your diet for 30 days?  I will let those who created the program explain it:

Certain food groups (like sugar, grains, dairy and legumes) could be having a negative impact on your health and fitness without you even realizing it.

Strip them from your diet completely. Cut out all the psychologically unhealthy, hormone-unbalancing, gut-disrupting, inflammatory food groups for a full 30 days. Let your body heal and recover from whatever effects those foods may be causing. Push the “reset” button with your metabolism, systemic inflammation, and the downstream effects of the food choices you’ve been making. Learn once and for all how the foods you’ve been eating are actually affecting your day to day life, and your long term health. Source.

After those 30 days you reintroduce the foods you've been avoiding back into your diet to see how your body responds. If you don’t have any negative effects, you can put them back into your diet.  This is a way to listen to your body and give it the nutrition that it needs.  The issue I have with so many “diets” today is that it is all the same. There is no customization, they assume your body acts the same as everyone else, and they have long term constrictions on what you eat.  If I told you not to think of pink elephants, that is the first thing you would think.  That’s how diets work. They tell you don’t you dare eat carbs. And what does your body want? It wants every last thing on the Olive Garden menu.

This is not a program for weight loss, while that may be a side effect. This is a program so you may know what foods your body needs to function properly and stay healthy.  My sister Megan was diagnosed with Hashimoto's recently and it has changed her life. She use to say that she had the energy of an 80 year old but once she realized what foods trigger the negative effects in her body and omitted those, she no longer feels as if she is 60 years older.  

It Starts with Food is the book that goes into the science, the details, and the why they have set the restrictions they have for that 30 day “reset”. As I was reading about hormones and how they react as well as having them explain the psychological effects that food has, it all resonated with me. I hadn’t read the book the first time, but when I read it a few months ago, I become passionate about it and how much sense it makes.  Since finishing the book I convinced Jake to read it to help him understand my crazy talk and my desire to do a Whole30 again, but this time with all of the new information I learned in the book. 

He read it and has agreed to do the Whole30 with me!  We have had a lot of good conversations about health and nutrition and how confusing the industry is today. In midst of the confusion, this program made sense to both of us.  One of my favorite things is that Melissa and Dallas (the authors of the book) provide all the information you need for free. Sure, if you want more details it’s a good idea to buy the book, but it’s all provided in a condensed version on their website, whole30.com. 

Anyway, now that I officially sound like an infomercial, we started today! For the next 30 days we will be taking foods out of our diet that are “psychologically unhealthy, hormone-unbalancing, gut-disrupting, and inflammatory”.  We will be eating meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruit, and good fats. It’s going to be hard because food has been designed to be a drug (uhm, hello candy bowl) and we go through a similar detox process. 

I’ll be posting lots about it on here, but from here on out I promise I’ll steer clear from the “I sponsor this program” language. :)

Until next time.

 I’ll leave you with a picture of my love with his love and last meal—oh Chick-Fil-A.