Week 1 on the Whole30

Let's start with a fun FOOD REVELATION.  Roasted beets are beyond delicious!  And diced fine, they make a damn fine sub for the dried cranberries we usually add to salads.  But wait, there's more...

OBSERVATION #1: ONLY THREE MEALS A DAY?!?

 I have always been a happy grazer, with lots of tiny meals & frequent reheating trips with my mug of coffee or tea.  My habit is to hop in and out of the kitchen all the live long day. 

Being on the Whole30, the goal is to eat three meals a day without snacking in between.  My first observation is how obviously I have been chasing some kind of food constantly.  A handful of walnuts, a few olives, a couple raisins...but ALL DAY.  Seems the 3-meal-limit is something I needed in order to realize my grazing was perhaps too on-going. 

As for The Man - he and I are active folk, so there will be days when we have to eat more.  We're learning that so far my lean & fit guy cannot make it to the next meal without low blood sugar symptoms.  Rather than cut himself since he's too shaky to slice a carrot, he's eating a small, clean snack in between.

Personally, I'm tortured by my urge to go to the kitchen!  I'm bearing with it though.  I like a good set of rules.

OBSERVATION #2: DISHES

We are going to be doing A LOT of dang dishes.  If everything you eat is truly real food, then you are manipulating a ton of it with some kind of cookware or utensil.  I'm trying to apply my considerable quality & efficiency skills to reduce the workload.  (Cleaning pots while still warm helps, for example.)

OBSERVATION #3: PLANNING
It's a very good idea to plan ahead for the Whole30.  Even though creators Melissa and Dallas Hartwig tell you to "start right now" once you get the idea in your head, my opinion is that you should PREPARE BEFORE YOU START THE WHOLE30.  Start AFTER you have shopped for a supply of meat, veg, and the appropriate oils.  And give away or feed the birdies your carbs.  Get them out of your sight.  Whole30 food prep is time-consuming and a touch overwhelming at first; being prepared will take the edge off.  Don't forget - you might be coming down HARD from a firmly rooted carb high; be kind to yourself and prepare. 

OBERVATIONS #4: The commercials for carby American crap food are EVERYwhere!  And other people's grocery piles gross me out as I watch them rolling down the conveyors in front of me at the store.  I am not above judging strangers' food choices.  Keeps me occupied while I stand in line.

HOW IT'S GOING

Day one - why the hell are my allergies so bad?!  And I cannot sleep longer than 1.5 hours without waking.  My Guy seems to be doing pretty good; no whining (as usual).

Day two - why the hell are my allergies so bad?!  :)  But I think we're still doing well since we're pretty geeked about this whole thing (get it?).  And since we are so intent on eating delicious food, we don't feel deprived.

Day three - grumpity grumpity grump.  These allergies are obNOXious.   Things are still fine on the male side of this effort.

Day four - He called around 0900 and instead of some kind of morning greeting, I heard "You sound as bad as I feel."  We'd both had some nausea, aching, and the fatigue felt like a loaded backpack we hadn't trained to wear.  CARB FLU!  Search for "carb flu" on the internet.  Whole30 and Paleo People everywhere will tell you that once you get rid of the grains like this, at some point your bod is gonna let you know that a change is afoot. 

But by noon we were pretty much ok.  I happened to talk to my naturopath and she said that our bodies just aren't very toxic after how hard we have been working on our health.  Any carb flu we get should be short-lived since our emunctories already work effectively at getting toxins out.

                This is a happy benefit of seeing an ND.  All the exit ports (emunctories) in your system WORK!  You sweat, digest, eliminate, and even emote in a way that lets the bad stuff out when it needs an exit. 

But there's always room for improvement!  Howdy Whole 30.

Day five - flat tummy!  I wondered how long that would take to reappear.  (Un-appear?)  I am also experiencing some low blood pressure again.  It's been months since I'd kicked that issue.  Some salty olives and a big glass of water knocked it out lickety split.  Thanks, Dr. Birr, for your easy-peasy low BP solution.

The Man has a temper today.  This is an extremely rare occurrence so it's notable.  He has a good reason, & it sucks, but I do think the reaction was fueled by his body's attempt to make sense out of a new diet.

Day six - Saturday - a LOT of prep work, shopping, cooking, & dishes today.  But I realized that I actually had the motivation and energy to do it all.  Cool.  The Man is also observing a surprising amount of physical energy despite an unplanned and very unusual 16 hour workday.

Day seven - We had enough energy to go out and do some hard skiing, but then I spent the rest of the day with very low blood pressure.  We relaxed quite a bit after a week of so much cooking, prepping, shopping, and change.  I had a brief, second round of the carb flu too.

What else...?  Both of us thought our hair got greasy faster this week (more emunctory movement!).  My PMS was fine, but that's normal since my ND has already eradicated all but the breast pain. 

And finally, if I've learned nothing else, I know for sure that I CAN EAT HOMEMADE MAYO OUT OF BOWL LIKE ICE CREAM.  I have not.  But I sure the hello can.

NOTABLE MEALS

We focused hard on something new and exciting for dinner so that we'd have something to look forward to after a long day of not eating grains or sugar (we are already mostly dairy free). 

Dinner.  Oh dinner!  Sauerkraut and country ribs with apples and turnips.  Lordy, if avoiding snacks and carbs means a nightly nosh like this, we are IN!

Mahi Mahi tacos served in Napa cabbage shells.  The Man was particularly vocal about how much he liked this.  The Man is not particularly vocal.

I made stew because I needed a break from the kitchen.  Once that was done I had the basis for leftovers that would give the scullery maid some time on the couch for a few meals.  (The stew is fab. If you haven't gotten a dutch oven yet, go get one now.)

Leftover roast beef is unbelievable diced up and quick-sauteed on high with some lime, cumin, and pickled jalapenos.  Layer it with avocado & salsa - all served up in a cabbage shell.  YUMMY YUM!  (Check the salsa jars closely for sugar; it took me forever to find one sans the sweet stuff.)

WEEK ONE RECAP: 
This was NOT as hard as we expected it to be at first.  The excitement, all the planning, reading the Hartwig's book through the days, & surfing for others' success stories served to keep our spirits high. 

Cravings were minimal but it's because we purposefully ate like culinary kings.  The flavors, nutrition, and new things we tried on top of our normal tasty fair served to keep us completely content with our food.

Energy available to exercise was LOW.  I had to look down to see if I was picking up a larger weight than intended!  A lot.

I was surprised to have as much carb flu as I did.  I was already gluten free, dairy free, and low sugar (thank you Dr. Birr).  However, the cheats I have allowed myself since Christmas were clearly enough to un-do some of progress my naturopath and I had achieved.  It seems this whole Whole30 thing was a good idea.

Stay tuned for week two! 

The Whole30 - Naturopathic Style

My guy and I are doing the Whole30.  Hurrah!

Let me start with a disclaimer: I give full, gleaming credit to the authors Melissa and Dallas Hartwig. I'm talking about their program as outlined in the book It Starts With Food.  We will be doing the Whole30 according to their specific plan but with a naturopathic twist because that is how we do everything.  We are NOT altering their program and I do not suggest it needs changing.  We're just incorporating naturopathic approaches to wellness because it's how our house runs.

The Whole30 is a 30-day nutritional reset in which one eats only vegetables, fruits, meat, nuts, and healthy oils.  Here are the no-no's:
· No grains. None at all; not quinoa or rice or anything ancient or sprouted or otherwise supposedly better than wheat.
· No Sugar - real, fake, organic, plant-based or otherwise.   None.
· No Dairy
· No legumes (no beans or peanuts or soy).
· No corn, which is usually treated as a grain in America anyhow.  It's just not veg.  Also no white potatoes.
· No eating between three meals a day unless necessary due to physical activity.

Please see their site for details and specifics, particularly if you have any health conditions like diabetes. Remember folks, I am not a doctor or health professional of any kind! I'm a blogger.
Get your advice from a pro, get your naturopathic entertainment from me.

Check it out: http://whole9life.com/category/whole-30/

This plan is similar to my ND's program minus Biocleanse Plus (yum), minus beans, plus coffee... hurrah for the javahhh!

I like the idea of a reset.   A detox program is attractive, but I get very annoyed by the judge-y looks I get when I use the word "detox".  Hello! I'm not dumb enough to think that cayenne pepper and maple syrup comprise a healthy way to support my body after a period of poor diet or stress (uh...Christmas anyone?).  Nutritional reset shuts up the judges.  It also feels more accurate.  By the by, I like "cleanse" too but people still get all frowny-faced.

Our naturopathic twist will include the castor oil packs, dry skin brushing, and treatment plans from our ND (woot woot Dr. Alicia Birr) that are already in place for the month.  We'll take a closer look at our environmental factors.  For instance I'm setting aside any lotion or potion that contains soy ( in the sneaky form of vitamin E ingredients); instead I'll use plain coconut oil for the month.  I am also going to see if my husband will give up his petroleum pillow (Tempurpedic).   We're already pretty environmentally conscious; all our cleaners and products are homemade, organic, or flat out natural (really natural, not marketing/advertising "Natural").   We keep fake fragrances out of the house & NEVER put plastic in the dishwasher or microwave it.   That kinda stuff.

Why the Whole30?
I've fallen off the Wellness Wagon since Christmas.   Obviously I still struggle intermittently with sugar, and when I'm in the throes...oy yoy yoy.   The symptoms sneak back in - even those my ND had previously eliminated.  I'm ridiculous.  The severity is never as bad as before my first days as a naturopathic patient, but guess what everyone?  Junk food makes you feel like crap.

My husband is also much healthier since working with an ND.   Part of his issue is 100% compliance with the treatment plans.  He can't bring himself to do castor oil packs, or drink apple cider vinegar for example.  Ultimately, his symptoms get progressively better but never disappear and it's hard to know exactly why since he's not quite as diligent as he might be.

We're hoping the Whole30 will trash the symptoms along with the habits that keep them around.   Also, after being a Naturopathic patient for a few years, I've come to know that switching things up with new approaches & new frameworks reinvigorates you!   It's a great way to get motivated again.   For reals.

And...I am really good at compliance when something is strict, finite and has potential for good results.  The Man is really good at following rules.  I'm thinking this is going to work!   (I bet our ND ends up being stricter with us going forward.  lol.)

Time passes no matter what; we may as well do something productive with it.

My husband has never done a cleanse/detox/reset of any kind.  He's eliminated specific foods one at a time for a few months to test their effect on his skin issues, but he's never done it all at once.  The reason we always did things piecemeal (harhar) is because he is both thin and very active; lots of meal options and ease have always been important.   Translation: grains fill a guy up with very little effort.   However, since his skin issues are so stubborn, he's now ready to give this a try.   I'm so glad to have him as a partner in this!

THE COMPLAINTS:

My big three are breast pain, allergies, and anxiety
The Man's big three are skin issues, sinus issues, & circulation issues

Next post on the Whole30?   A full list of our symptoms and complaints.   This way we'll be able to track how the Whole30 helps us . You can compare our progress to your own situation - and try it too! START NOW!   (That's what Melissa and Dallas recommend. Why wait?)

Stay tuned for our Whole30 Story....naturopathic style.

(Ha.  One of my favorite songs just came on as I'm finishing this up.  "Cornflake girl" by Tori Amos.  Good thing I "never was a cornflake girl" either - cuz they ain't allowed on the Whole30.)