Whole 30, Week 2: Or, Can I Stop Now?

Fourteen days. I’ve made it through fourteen days of this Whole 30 gig. It hasn’t been easy, and Lord knows it ain’t been pretty. I’ve come close to quitting several times. And yet, I’m still here.

doing-the-w30-IGBe warned: If you’re looking for a post raving about this program and how easy/fun it is and how awesome it’s made me feel, you’ve come to the wrong place. When I wear my author hat, I aim for positivity. But I’m not wearing that hat right now; I’m wearing my “I’m so tired of having to battle myself and my body and food every day of my life, Good GOD why can’t I be one of those people who loves veggies and eating healthfully and exercising. Why can’t I be someone who doesn’t battle food addictions and food issues and food everything?” hat. (It’s a BIG hat.) I’m giving you my honest experiences here. I’m struggling, physically and mentally. I’m frustrated. I’m angry. I’m tired. I’m grouchy. I hate it. I hate everything this week. Foods don’t taste right, I’m still battling my stupid brain/body with the food aversions and nausea stuff.

But … I’m still going. Why? Skip to the end, if you really want to know.

Whole 30, Day 8:

Slept in until 9:15, when husband’s alarm went off. Granted, I didn’t go to sleep until 12:30, but still, so much sleep, and yet still I feel tired. My side is also hurting today – I’m glad my recent ultrasound says no gallbladder issues, but something is still going on. Fighting irritability. Why does my family put up with me?

Sirloin for yesterday and today feels positively decadent – and a little boring. I need to look at recipes and do better at preparing in advance. In particular, I bet I’d like more stir-fry type meals. At least I found a dressing I like – Tessamae’s Olive Oil & Balsamic vinegar. It’s no honey French (my favorite!), but it’s not nearly as bitter as whatever acidic slop I mixed up last week. Now to make my salads more interesting, too – I’m guilty of predominantly eating naked salad (meaning the only thing besides the dressing is lettuce, people!), so I should jazz that up a bit.

This evening, I faced two big challenges:

We attended my daughter’s Back to School potluck. 95%, at least, of the items people brought, I couldn’t eat—and seeing plates full of brownies, cookies, seeing macaroni and cheese and white bun BBQ sandwiches was hard. Hard. However, not choosing them was surprisingly easy. I had eaten a large lunch at 1:30 and hoped that would help stave off the hunger. It didn’t; I felt quite hungry. Maybe it was just cravings? In any case, I munched on carrots and grapes. Not, uh, the right Whole 30 balance, but it was the best I could do.

Fountain penI heard back from my wonderful editor, Tessa Shapcott, with her suggestions for my second book. All eight pages of them. I wanted to weep. Look, I’m smart enough to know she knows what she’s doing, that her advice is golden, and that once I apply it, the book will be that much stronger. But when you get all that feedback at once, it’s like getting hit on the head with a sledgehammer. And the drive to eat is killing me right now. Yes, perhaps I am legitimately a little hungry from the small dinner, but I’m positive that MOST of this is that raging desire to eat in order to tame the emotions running wild. I feel sad that my story needs so much work. I feel scared I won’t be able to do it. I feel angry I didn’t do it well enough the first time. I feel frustrated at how much I have to fix. I feel scared I won’t be able to do it (yes, I already said that one, but it’s possibly the biggest, and deserves a second mention). I admit, I grabbed a handful of cashews and ate it, hoping that would sate any actual hunger. But my stomach is gnawing at me, knocking on my brain in a way it hasn’t since before I started this. I know it’s not real hunger. It’s emotional hunger, it’s looking for some way to soothe myself. Knowing that doesn’t make it easier, though.

Whole 30, Day 9:

eggsMade eggs this morning, though I really didn’t want to. I’m tired of eggs. Apparently so is my body, as I nearly gagged on them several times and had to force them down. What’s up with that? Guess it means I definitely need a different protein source come tomorrow morning.

This is not a fun day. Felt very oogy around lunch. Thought perhaps I needed some protein, so I made some ground beef. Yes, just plain. Obviously one of my problems is not planning enough / making interesting meals. Anyway, ate the meat and a banana and a couple of carrots – and felt worse. I lay down for an hour or so, and then spent an hour hunched in my chair with my innards yelling at me. Is this a Whole 30 thing? A bug? I don’t know, but it sucks. Making a potato now (evening) to see if the starch helps settle the stomach.

Whole 30, Day 10:

I did a no-no. I stepped on the scale. No, I’m not starting over (the Whole 30 argues if you break one of their main tenets, you must start anew with 30 more days. So. Not. Happening.). The good news is, I’ve dropped 11 pounds. 11. (Some of that is binge weight from the frenzy in the first few days before). The bad news is, I just don’t want to eat. Like, anything. I don’t mean psychologically, I mean physiologically. Yes, it’s totally bizarre for me, but I also know it isn’t healthy. Eating eggs yesterday morning, and then ground beef at noon, had me sick to my stomach. Not sure what to do about this. Of course, the book says days 10 & 11 are the hardest, because the newness has worn off, and sometimes gastrointestinal issues are still around, but really, not eating is not an option.

squashYou know when they say “x” tastes just like “y”? Don’t believe them. Why do I always believe them? When I was little, my mom tried to entice me to eat squash by insisting that if I put some brown sugar on it, it would taste just like pumpkin pie. I’m here to tell you, she lied. According to the Whole 30, coconut aminos taste just like soy sauce. OK, I admit, I haven’t tasted them – but I did dump them on the chicken and veggies I’m frying up for stir fry. And the smell was NOTHING like soy sauce, so I dispute the notion it’s going to taste just like soy sauce…

I wound up throwing some soy sauce in and resigning myself not to eating it (I don’t think I can stomach it, anyway), because if I didn’t, I have a feeling I’d have a family rebellion on my hands. So much for that.

Whole 30, Day 11:

I very nearly quit today. I know, how cliché; the Whole 30 book warns that most people who quit, quit on days 10 & 11. But I felt so awful this morning, and have felt that way for three days. Ugh.

When I mentioned to my husband I was googling people who’d quit the Whole 30, to see if others had experienced this level of innard discord, food aversion, gagging, he said, “That doesn’t sound like very productive reading.” I nearly threw the laptop at him.

Feeling sick and unable to eat for three days in a row is no picnic. Anyway, I made myself a fruit smoothie for breakfast (technically okay, but heavily frowned upon during a Whole 30), and felt MUCH better after drinking it, enough so that I decided to attempt some protein for lunch.

coconutoilI baked chicken, coating the glass pan with just a bit of coconut oil to prevent sticking. Upon taking the pan out and smelling the warm oil, I nearly retched. But it was a lightbulb. Aha! Maybe it’s the coconut oil that’s bothering me – I’d scrambled eggs in it, cooked meat with it, etc. Maybe if I stop using the oil, I’ll feel better! I managed to eat the chicken and one white potato. No greens, which I know is terrible, but hey, I was thrilled to choke down some protein!

Tonight I ate more chicken, and an orange. Again, no greens, but still, protein! And this evening I’m actually feeling 90% normal. Let’s hope this continues, and I can work more veggies back in.

This isn’t the prettiest Whole 30. It certainly isn’t going to win “Best Rule Follower” award. But I’m still here.

Whole 30, Day 12:

chickbrocWoke up feeling good, but still revolted at the idea of protein in the morning. Had a smoothie instead, which was yummy, but I think I woke the Sugar Dragon. Either that, or my body just feels better – I’ve been hungry again today! I suppose I should try to find a smoothie recipe that has veggies in it.

Lunch was baked chicken, baked potato, and broccoli, but I liked it. Felt good all afternoon, though hungry! Right now I’m cooking dinner for the family – and some anger and resentment has hit again. I want to eat their tacos, not whatever I’m going to eat. I’m grilling a steak. Not because I want to.

So I guess I need to find some real recipes to do. I want to make stir-fry, BUT I can’t use soy sauce, and the coconut aminos smell terrible to me, so I’m not quite sure what to do there. The ever-present challenge of finding proteins and especially veggies I like continues.

Whole 30, Day 13: Massive headache again, and slight stomach oogies. Not sure if it’s food-related, or just normal stuff (I get headaches a lot). Still can’t stand the idea of protein at breakfast, though I considered making eggs. Had a smoothie instead. Wish I could put yogurt into it more than fruit juice. Perhaps I shall try to find some appropriate almond milk and give that a shot.

People have asked me if I notice anything.

orange-clip-art-2Yes. I might feel slightly thinner (well, near the face, at least). Some fruits taste a lot sweeter than they used to. I still can’t stomach the idea of lots of protein in the morning. I still don’t like a wide enough variety of veggies, or probably protein sources, for that matter, which is making this especially challenging.

And I am way more emotional than I like.

I don’t think the Whole 30 sparks the emotionality; rather, I think the emotions have always been there – I just try to ignore them or stuff them down with food.

I have cried about something every single day since I started this. I’m angry a lot more. Or maybe not. Maybe I just feel it more acutely since I’m not smoothing it with sugar.

This doesn’t mean I haven’t had times of being happy – I have. But this “tears close to the surface” feels weird to me.

And that’s what I’ve noticed.

Whole 30, Day 14:

SadAnneGag reflex is back. Now it’s for cashews. What the heck, body/brain? You LIKE cashews. Hoping this passes. Today I’m in an extremely bad mood and have a ferocious headache. And I have 16 more days of this?

The problem is, The Sugar Dragon and My Brain are incredibly devious – because I can feel my body trying to self-select down to things like smoothies and Larabars. I know those are no-nos – I know it’s my brain WANTING the “no brakes” foods back.

If I’ve learned nothing else from this Whole 30, I’ve learned my brain has VERY strong notions about food, and about what should and should not go together.

I added almond milk to my smoothie. Innocuous, unsweetened almond milk. And I’ve having a hard time drinking the stupid thing.

How did these notions get so firmly entrenched in my head? Why do I have such a very hard time trying/accepting new foods?

almond-milkThis is making this whole experience extremely sucky. Feeling nauseated by foods I normally don’t mind (maybe because I’m eating so much of them) and then feeling nauseated by the idea of some new foods.

Frankly, the only reason I haven’t quit is a) because I told all of you I was doing this, b) I’ve dropped 14 pounds, and c) I want to prove to my husband I can do it.

We’ll see if I can actually make it another 16 days, though.

*stomp**grrr**stomp*

Day 14, evening: Just spent 1/2 hour sobbing in my room, angry at my husband and everyone for telling me not to quit.

Then I realized I was more angry at me. I don’t want to quit.

no-quittingBut I also don’t want a body/brain that has to fight this battle every stinking day, nor a body/brain unwilling to accept new foods. So right now I’m just very, very angry. Frustrated. And so very tired of the battle. Exhausted by the battle. Pissed off at the battle.

Why can’t I be someone who is an adventuresome eater who prefers this way of eating by nature?? Two more weeks feels unfathomable right now, especially in the middle of book edits. And yet, I really, truly do not want to quit. For me.

Because I always quit. It’s too hard. It’s no fun. It sucks. It’s not comfortable. It’s not easy.

Trying so, so very hard to tell myself that being overweight and tired and having high cholesterol and fatigue is no fun, either. But it’s what I am, it’s what I’m used to, and it sure would be a heck of a lot easier (and frankly more fun) if I just accepted that. Most of the time I do.

I’m not saying these Whole 30 habits will last forever. They won’t. I’m already looking forward to day 31. I don’t want pizza or donuts or ice cream (well, I do, but not first thing). No, the thing I crave most lately is a bowl of noodles with peas and a little bit of butter. I really miss peas.

I want to continue eating more healthfully, if not as stringently as this month. I want to improve my health. I want to be a better example for my kids. I want to look better for my husband.

Screen Shot 2015-08-30 at 3.11.02 PMBut at the moment, I am filled with rage. Rage at how hard this is, at how much my stupid body and brain are not cooperating, at how it feels like everyone else has it easier and gets to eat whatever they want (yes, I know that’s not true, but hey, my brain is DEVIOUS, people).

Rage. And tears. I have cried every day this week. Every single day.

On to Week 3, full of rage and tears. And maybe that’s okay. Because I’m finally acknowledging and experiencing those emotions. I hate it. I hate everything right now.

But I’m determined. I’m determined to prove to myself that I can do this.

(And dearest husband, if you read this far, I’m sorry. I know I have not been easy to live with. I know. And while I’m fighting not to take this out on you and the kids, I know I’m not always succeeding. Please forgive me.)


 

The #Whole30: Week 1 in Review

keep-calm-igRather than commit to (and bore you with) daily entries regarding my month of embracing radical change a la the Whole 30 recommendations, I decided to blog once a week.

Most of these notes probably interest only me, but in case you’re considering giving the Whole 30 a try, are in the middle of a Whole 30 like me, or are a Whole 30 veteran, if my experiences/challenges/victories provide guidance/inspiration/warnings for anyone, then I am pleased.

And here we go – my week in review:

Whole 30, Day 0:

oatmealcremepieI’ve alternated between bingeing on crap and trying to still my racing, nervous insides. Tomorrow? I start this tomorrow? I’m so excited and yet so irrationally terrified. Which tells me I really need to do it. I spent the last two days reading The Whole 30 essentially from cover-to-cover; today I delved into It Starts With Food. All while doing what they say not to do: don’t start the Whole 30 with a binge the day before. Uh, try a week. I’m sure I’ll be paying for this. On the other hand, if I don’t do the program, I’ll be paying for much longer.

Whole 30, Day 1:

tongueoutI didn’t eat all morning, because of yesterday’s Super Binge. I had to go to a church luncheon, but it really wasn’t bad – I ate a snack pack of almonds, a Larabar, a banana, and some carrots. Pretty sure that’s not the ideal Whole 30 meal, but I didn’t eat any off-plan foods.

Dinner brought my first adventure with zoodles – zucchini sliced into noodle shapes.

One of the most annoying things about me (to me) is my weird rejection of foods that don’t seem “right.” I tried substituting ground turkey for ground beef in spaghetti once, for the health factor, but couldn’t eat it. Likewise, I bought a pound of ground bison once, but again, it didn’t go into my mouth. So. Annoying.

zoodlesHalfway through my second bite of spaghetti-sauce covered zoodles, my gag reflex went off. Hello? No. I don’t need this. Zoodles are bland. They are fine with spaghetti sauce, if a bit crunchy (is one supposed to cook them? I assumed not). So why was my head trying to reject them?

[The community subsequently informed me one should cook zoodles, and if they had eaten them raw, they, too, would have gagged. I feel better.]

I ate about half the bowl, saved the rest for lunch tomorrow, ate some broccoli, and a few strawberries and grapes. Interestingly, I had been starving right before dinner, but barely ate half of it before I decided I was full. We’ll see if I get hungry this evening.

Also, I tried to make Whole 30 mayonnaise (not sure why, since I don’t like mayonnaise, but hey, it seemed the thing to do). No luck; it was a soupy mess. I’ve put it in the fridge anyway, to see if it will solidify there, and I might still cook some chicken in it or something, but clearly it was Disastrous Kitchen Mess: 1, Margaret: 0.

[“Mayo soup” got thrown out on Day 4, without being used]

In the meantime, back to reading It Starts With Food, and hunting down more recipes to try.

Whole 30, Day 2:

tiredStupid gag reflex. Ate a bite of raw red pepper this morning. Nearly gagged (but not when they were mixed in with my eggs). Ate my leftover zoodles for lunch. Struggled a little, but not as bad as yesterday. Ate a cold, hard-boiled egg in the afternoon, and thought I was going to hurl. Stupid brain. I’m pretty sure it’s all in my head, but I need this reaction to GO AWAY.

Walked two miles. Slowly – it was not super-hot, but was very humid outside.

Tired today – took a two hour nap. A bit mentally foggy. Did eat a Larabar at the store. Still struggling with finding things I like to eat, and getting the balance right for the program (ie, still ate two snacks today, and I know my meals aren’t quite at the protein+lots of veggies+fat balance yet). But I was “compliant” (a word which makes me want to scream, “I’m not docile!”) and I made it to the end of day 2. I was feeling pretty good tonight – we’ll see what day 3 holds.

Whole 30, Day 3:

angryIn the book, Days 4 & 5 are labeled “Hate All The Things.” Well, I always was a precocious child. Hating everything today. Stomach feels off. Took a nap, and dreamt I was eating large mounds of donuts and muffins. I guess I know what I miss most.

Wrestling with that old familiar thought of, “What the heck is the point of trying to eat well? Why not just pig out and enjoy everything there is to eat, since we’re all going to die and the world is going to hell in a hand basket anyway?”

My Sugar Dragon is devious and enormous, people. What’s your answer to the question above? Looking for reasons to stay resolute. (I am resolute, no worries, but it still helps to have reasons to remind me why I am.)

End of the day was better than the first, though I’m still struggling to “get it right.” I definitely don’t want to eat as much protein as I’m supposed to, and want to, instead, eat nuts and fruit. Told you that Sugar Dragon was quite the wench.

Whole 30, Day 4:

unmotivatedcatSlept in; woke up feeling better, but dreading breakfast. That’s the hardest meal for me. Made scrambled eggs with peppers in them. Didn’t get tired until mid-afternoon, but still had to lie down for an hour.

Same feeling of food dread/food frustration in the evening. This isn’t good, folks. I WANT to embrace new foods and feel happy with what I’m eating, but I’m not. Not yet.

Then again, according to Whole 30, I’m still in the “Want To Kill All The Things” phase. So I’m hoping this is my brain in rebellion, and that it will pass, and soon I will love food again. If not, well, maybe eating less is good on the weight end (though I suspect some of my lack of energy stems from that).

Whole 30, Day 5:

Totally wiped out. Walked two miles this morning and it was way harder than it ought to have been. Didn’t take a nap today (the first time all week!), but that’s only because I had to go with son to high school freshman orientation–which in and of itself was exhausting!

The hardest part was walking out and smelling pizza. PIZZA. My salivary glands still have not recovered.

I felt angry much of the day. This evening, had some bouts of melancholy. I must really think this is worth it to keep at it. But I vowed all 30 days, and that’s what I’m doing. Please let the Tiger Magic come sooner rather than later, though.

Whole 30, Day 6:

eggsLesson learned: Do not try to reheat a hard-boiled egg in the microwave – at least not for too long. I wanted to avoid the gagging issue of a few days ago by heating up an egg before eating it. Only it exploded. With a very loud bang, and a very big mess. The kids thought it was hilarious. OK, I did, too, but it sure was a chore to clean up – and I ended up making scrambled eggs, instead, after that.

A friend invited me to lunch with her daughter and my daughter. I didn’t really want to go because I was nervous about the food part, but I like this friend and don’t see her often enough, so I said yes. Guess where the daughters picked to eat? Golden Corral. GOLDEN CORRAL, people. Buffet-O-Rama.

I did the best I could. I would not be surprised if the cold steak pieces I ate, the one slider burger I ate (sans bun & cheese, of course!), and the small piece of rotisserie chicken (inside piece) had stuff on them I shouldn’t have had. I ate a naked baked potato, salad with chopped up egg and no dressing, four strawberries, and two pieces of pineapple.

If there was stuff on the meat, I’m not starting this thing over. Because I WANTED to be face-down in the mashed potatoes, the bread, the entire dessert island. And I wasn’t.

I do feel a bit better today – slightly less interested in killing everything. Frustrated that this evening I feel quite apathetic – there’s so much I can and should be doing, and I’m just like, “Whatevs.”

But I made it through another day.

Whole 30, Day 7:

Tired. Tired. Why I am I always tired? Part of the reason I’m doing this is to IMPROVE that, not worsen it. I have been so tired all week. Yesterday I took a nap from 3:30 – 5. I went to bed at 11:30, a bit late, but didn’t get up until nearly 9 this morning! And yet I’m still tired. I just got up from napping with my daughter (she had an excuse; she was exhausted from an overnight) for two hours. Augh.

Apparently I've been angry for a long, long time. This pic is from 1995.
Apparently I’ve been angry for a long, long time. This pic is from 1995.

I also am angry. Irrationally, intensely angry. I’m sure this is both because of the withdrawal reactions to food I love, AND because I’m no longer stuffing that anger down with food.

So in a way, it’s good, these horrible moods.

Not that I want to be in them, not that I want to expose the people around me to them, but because maybe, just maybe, it means I’m breaking down 40 years’ worth of behavior patterns. I’ve never, ever felt comfortable with being angry; it’s an emotion I’m supposed to deny, to ignore, to stuff down. Or so I tell myself.

I was grumpy this morning, irritated with this whole process. This afternoon, I’m feeling hope again, hope that there’s a reason I’m doing this, that it will get better, and that I can make real, lasting progress in this life-long war with food and myself.


Conclusions:

This isn’t the happy, cheery first week of Whole 30 people might want to read about. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give it a shot. I’m a week away from the Magic, as they call it, the Tiger’s Blood, where I’m supposed to sleep extra well, be full of energy, etc. I’m in the middle of the really sucky part – and yes, for me, it’s really sucked.

And yet, I’m determined – because recognizing that while feeling angry SUCKS, the fact that I FEEL it is good, has me pushing on, and pushing forward.

orange-clip-art-2Although I admit, I still have a long way to go. I need to:

  • include more vegetables, especially green ones
  • eat a bigger variety of protein
  • eat fewer Larabars! (I’ve averaged one a day)
  • work on getting to a true 3 meal a day plan – I still want to snack/graze through the day
  • figure out how to manage the gag reflex versus trying new foods.
  • get more exercise in!

If you’ve read this far, kudos to you. Wish me luck for Week Two, won’t you?

W9-Manifesto-for-FB-Cover-NEW-660x244