I finished my first 7 days on the Whole 30 program Sunday. Just a reminder, in this plan you eat meat, veggies, and fruit. You give up highly processed foods and make whole food choices.
These are a few of my meals/snacks from last week. I honestly don't think anything has been harder than reasonable. I have found alternatives for everything except how to get my morning coffee a little sweet. I admitted yesterday that I occasionally add Stevia in because, well I can't figure out why Stevia, a natural sweetener that doesn't effect blood sugar, is really bad.
Cravings:
Honestly except for an occasional chocolate craving which I satisfy with some form of fruit, I am good.
Sleep:
Okay, truth here, I sleep like crap most of the time but this last week I have been dead to the world. I haven't had any trouble sleeping and when my husband, a closet 2am insomniac wakes me up accidentally, I have no problem getting back to sleep. I wake up refreshed too. I admit that mid-afternoon I am tired but overall, it goes away.
Workouts:
I did manage to get a couple in last week. I will be much happier when I get about 3 more a week but I consider this a tiny victory.
Concentration and Clarity:
I haven't noticed any great advancements on my concentration at work but I think my "brain fog" is better. Honestly, my mind jumps around like crazy all the time and I am still fighting my slight OCD issues but hey, this is a healthy eating plan not a miracle plan.
Migraines:
I still get headaches a lot but they aren't horrible headaches so that's good. I'm not sure that I totally give credit to the eating, although food does effect headaches. The simple reason? I get cluster migraines and I haven't been in a cluster for a few months. Thank you God!
Food & more Food:
Overall, this is a good experience so far. I find healthy food requires just a little planning and when I dig in, I remember how wonderful good-for-you food actually tastes. I do miss my occasional glass of wine on the weekends but it isn't anything I am struggling with, yet anyway.
I have made a few smoothies to cure my cravings for ice cream but although I realize the Whole 30 prefers that you don't, I kept them completely within agreement with the plan using veggies, coconut milk or water, and some fruit like banana or mango. The one day that I made a breakfast smoothie, I used a little almond butter for protein.
Ok that's week one in a nutshell. If you asked me today if I would recommend this, I would whole heartedly say yes! In fact, I am feeling so good that I think I am going to switch to a mostly Paleo lifestyle when this is over. My family isn't suffering either. We make adjustments for their carb needs and I am happy to share any healthy goodies with them. In fact, having fruit in the house has been a great thing for them. They turn to that when they need a quick snack and that makes me happy!
