Whole 30 First Thoughts

On the last Sunday in August, I started day 1 of the whole 30.

Honestly, I've wavered back and forth about completing one for over a year now. I'm pretty sensitive when it comes to food (not that I usually let it stop me). Dairy and fruit have never sat well with me, and anything too rich and 'unusual' (like a sauce I'm not used to) gives me horrible cramps. Honestly, most of the time I feel very bloated and uncomfortable, so much so that that was normal.

I also eat a lot. I am always hungry, but that's what comes with daily yoga/skating/cross training, plus work, plus mental energy with school and whatnot. Even prior to the Whole 30, I was trying to eat more FOOD and less BREAD, and really focusing on protein to fill me up. But my serving sizes were getting larger and larger...and I was getting hungrier and hungrier.

On top of this, I've had instances in the past where I've gotten 'the shakes' frequently. Particularly when I was a freshman (and not very good and looking at what I ate), I'd start to feel really weak if I'd eaten a lot of carbs versus a lot of protein. Honestly, I'd feel scarily faint a lot. Over the years, that's something I've really focused on and it's not reoccurred much, but it's made me be obsessive about what/when I eat.

So ANYWAYS. I wavered on the whole 30 for awhile, but I finally decided to take the leap and just go cold-turkey into it after realizing how every single thing it's supposed to fix is something I'm currently having a problem with.

I'm a little over a week into it, so I thought it'd be a good place to share some first thoughts.

Not gonna lie, it's been really depressing having to be so strict with stuff. And I like healthy food! I have only cheated once...on a mini Reese's PB at work that I put in my mouth before even thinking I wasn't supposed to have it. Woops! Other than that, the only thing I've really missed is my Greek yogurt. It's the easiest thing to buy on break at work and I just love love love the coconut Chobani! Also all the flip ones with the granola! I miss you!

One thing that's been frustrating is that I've honestly not been feeling a huge difference with cramps and such. I know it's because I've been eating more fruit and nuts than usual...but hey, what else am I supposed to eat? You can only have meat and veggies so often! I've definitely been questioning if it's worth it seeing that hasn't gone away, but it's worth sticking it out.

The thing it has helped is my perpetual hunger and energy levels. I can go so much longer without food now, and not worry so much about things. And for servings, I've actually been eating less...but everything on my plate is pure energy. None of those empty sugars! So that's really exciting.

A lot of people worry about variety on the Whole 30, and honestly, you can have plenty of variety as long as you have the time/motivation to actually cook. The hard part for me has been buying my own food, and cooking my own stuff while the family eats something else...that's not fun. But otherwise, your options are endless!

Because that's what I was most curious about, here's what I've been eating lately:

Breakfast:

3 eggs + a sausage patty. Going in, I was worried I didn't digest eggs well...but I think with everything else pretty much eliminated it's not been an issue. This is a breakfast I'll definitely be making my daily after the Whole 30.

Apple + almond butter (since I can't have peanut butter anymore, because no peanuts on the whole 30. This goes more into it.). Honestly, I've been avoiding this because (1) apples are really hard to digest and full of carbs and I'm realizing how much they mess me up in the mornings, (2) techinically my almond butter is illegal because it has sugar and I can't find a natural one, (3) my egg breakfast is much better.

Lunch:

Waldorf salad (with homemade mayo) is my favorite. Hardy, sweet, and packed with real food. Definitely a keeper.

All sorts of salads, although I've been less into these then pre-whole 30 (when I was eating them every day) because I really miss the cheese.

Dinner:

Stir fry with steak and veggies. Super great because it's literally a bowl of whatever.

Plain chicken with fresh salsa. This was something I made when my family had tortillas for dinner, and it was actually really good! Fresh and light for hot summer days.

Soups. We've been doing lots of soups lately, from chili (made with cabbage instead of beans) to super hardy chicken and veggies soup. I love them, especially for the fact that they can be dinner or much, a pot can feed you all week, and they're easy to bring to work and microwave.

Snacks:

Bananas.

Larabars. (aka lifesavers).

Baby carrots and almond butter.

Packs of nuts and dried fruit.

This granola. Minus the chocolate-ness and honey. Also, she put WAY too much coconut oil in it, so much so that I ended up heating every back up so I could melt the oil and mop it off, because it was way to oily for me to eat. But the finished version is all right, and with raisins it's a good cereal.

Peaches. They've been my go-to for night time sweet cravings.

Also, I would just like to say that I'm not being a purist. The three 'cheats' I've been having regularly are:

Chewing gum. I know it has sugar, but I'm not eating it, so.....

My almond butter. It's sort of ironic because it actually has a lot more sugar than the natural peanut butter I buy.

Almond milk. I realize I'm not supposed to have it, but I did need something and I've honestly only been making iced coffee with it and using it for granola.

Anyways, that's where I'm at right now! I'm definitely already learning a lot from this whole 30, and while I seriously considered quitting on Day 2, I think I am going to stick it out and learn what I can learn. I would certainly not eat like this full-time (by personal choice, anyways) but the re-set is certainly helpful.

So, I'm nosy. Tell me what you like to eat.

Happy Tuesday! xoxo