The day after – Reflections on my first Whole30

So here I am, the day after my first Whole30. I made it!

The challenges

Having to make all of my meals, from scratch: I couldn’t rely on premade foods. Most had terrible ingredients that were absolutely not compliant with the challenge. Before Whole30 (like I’ve mentioned in a previous post), I used to buy my breakfast and lunch at work, AND could eat restaurant food for supper up to 5 times a week. Appalling!

Finding compliant ingredients: It’s quite the eye opener when you read labels to see how many things have sugar (and the other fancy names it goes by) and other undesirable ingredients (such as soy and gluten). Spice mixes I loved I couldn’t have because of these issues. I couldn’t find any compliant store bought broth or almond milk. Realizing that some of the things that pass as “healthy” can be quite far from it.

Trying new recipes that didn’t turn out as delicious as I expected them to be: However, once I relaxed and kept things simple, oh man was the food ever so tasty!! In fact, many of the meals I made during the challenge will absolutely stay in regular rotation!

When I got emotional or stressed, I couldn’t turn to food: I had no idea that I was a stress eater or emotional eater. Seriously! It became evident to me that I was during this process. And being a single mom of a teenager, having recently (October 11, 2014) lost my father whom I dearly loved, and having my mother move in with us – God knows I’ve been experiencing stress!! So what did I do? I just took better care of myself. Getting new lovely scented shower gels. Buying a perfume scent that I used to wear in my early twenties that I really liked and wearing it to bed, just for me. Watching my Big Bang Theory DVDs. Hiding out in my room once in a while. Reading.

The easiest

Eating the delicious food that I was making!: Eating so much restaurant food had left me unimpressed with food. I kept wanting tasty things. But you know what? I’ve come to realize that restaurant food isn’t as tasty as one would expect.

I didn’t have to count calories or limit portions: As long as you eat real food, your body pretty much does that on its own. It’s very difficult to binge on meat and vegetables. Your body is satisfied quicker than it would if you binged on pizza, chips, chocolate, and other “treats”. Go figure!

Resisting cravings: Really! I had them. Sometimes, they were quite intense. However, I was SO much stronger than them. I don’t know why. I suppose I was ready. And I think that reading It Starts With Food before undertaking the Whole30 probably helped. Knowing why and how we react to food the way we do makes it easier to control cravings – in my opinion.

The results

I don’t think I’ve felt the “magic” as strongly as I had expected. However, here is a list of subtle changes:

·    My joints hurt less.

·    I’ve only taken my heartburn medication 3 times (I think) during the whole month. I used to take it every other day.

·    I’m extremely proud of myself to have made it through this challenge! It’s about time I start treating myself with love!

·    My face looks different. I can’t quite explain how. It’s subtle. But I see it. Less bloated maybe?

·    My daughter and my mom both got colds, but I didn’t, even though we all live in the same house.

·    I don’t get the same afternoon “want to nap” feeling as strongly as I did.

·    I don’t feel the need to eat between meals.

·    When I’m hungry, it’s not the hurting kind of hungry. It’s just a matter of fact “hey it’s been more than 3 or 4 hours since I last ate, I should probably eat something” kind of hungry.

·    I don’t use food for comfort, reward, or stress management.

·    I understand the difference between hunger and cravings.

·    I’ve inspired a few people around me to incorporate some of my healthier meals into their meal rotation.

·    I haven’t eaten restaurant food in 30 days.

·    I have a bigger good food recipe repertoire.

  

Weight loss:                   11.8 lbs

Centimetres lost:            Arm – 2 cm

                                       Chest – 6 cm
                                       Waist – 2.5 cm
                                       Hips – 2.5 cm
                                       Thigh – 2.5 cm

What’s next?

Reintroduction, that’s what.

So for the next two weeks, I will reintroduce food categories I’ve eliminated one at a time to see how my body reacts to them.

First, grains (wheat, rye, or barley). Then dairy. Then other grains (like rice and corn). Then legumes (although I’m not a super huge fan, so I don’t mind not bringing them back into my diet – they weren’t there much anyway).

But no matter what, I will most likely eat a Paleo diet most of the time.

I want to keep the good habits I’ve developed during this challenge. I want to keep making my meals from scratch. The difference, if I’m invited to the restaurant or to eat at friends or family’s homes, I won’t worry about what will be served. In restaurants, I can make the healthiest choice possible within the limits of the menu (with possible modifications if needed – yes, I will be THAT woman).

 
So there you have it. This was my first Whole30 journey. I expect to do it again, maybe yearly, or every 6 months. We shall see.