Whole 30 Thoughts: Week 3

I can’t believe I’m almost done with my Whole30 challenge. This past week seemed to really fly by and there weren’t really any big challenges like their had been in previous weeks. I still want wine and some chocolate but I don’t crave them quite like I did before. In fact, I really don’t crave anything – I just want certain things since I haven’t had them in a month. Overall, it’s been a pretty good week but I did have some trouble sleeping (I don’t think it was diet related), consequent moodiness, and felt a little bloated/off most of the week. Let’s get through the daily recap and then discuss the good, the bad, and lessons learned.

DAY 15: I was super ragey and pissy today because I didn’t sleep well and was in a terrible mood. I think I was a little carb depleted as well. Found out that shredded chicken is much more palatable for post-workout snacks!

DAY 16: I still kind of felt like I was in a funk today but some good time at the gym which included meeting/working out with a reader (!) helped that. I also felt a little sore – I think this was due to not eating enough the day before.

DAY 17: Still not sleeping great but still felt really energized. Felt good for the rest of the day and during my workout (okay as good as 10 skin the cats, 100 KB swings, and 1000m row could feel!). Noticed I was a little bloated in the evening – I think I need to up my water intake.

DAY 18: Finally slept really well and was really hungry all day – definitely think I didn’t eat enough the previous days. Still feeling kind of bloated/off which I’m thinking may be related to nuts. Going to try going a day without them to see if that helps. All I want is something bready and crunchy!

DAY 19: Felt really great today and gym session was great. Still feeling kind of bloated but not as bad as previous days. I didn’t have much of an appetite today so I felt like I didn’t eat a ton.

DAY 20: Apparently, 5000m row make me ravenous since I was hungry ALL day. I felt like I couldn’t get enough food in me to feel refueled! I think it was due to not eating enough all week – I really need to work on that.

DAY 21: Slept amazing and felt super energized all day. Bloating has gone down a little bit but I need to drink more water to help it go away completely. Did a much better job of eating enough today and felt great!

THE GOOD
Goodbye food boredom: My food boredom has mostly subsided thanks to some seriously liberal use of spices and playing in the kitchen. My husband has even gotten in on it – last night we had some gorgeous steaks for dinner and he wanted to make a sauce (he’s a chef, it’s all about the sauce) but was having a hard time coming up with something Whole30 compliant. He whipped up this AMAZING sauce which just included deglazing the steak pan with club soda (yes, really) and adding some high quality balsamic vinegar that we had purchased earlier in the day, and finishing it off with some good olive oil.

Serious gym performance improvement: I’ve been feeling good in the gym the entire time but this week really showed me how much better my performance is when I’m eating right. I didn’t set any new PRs or anything crazy, but it was nice to be able to feel strong throughout my workouts and complete lifts that I usually have a hard time with (I’m talking about you behind-the-neck split jerks).

THE BAD
Eating enough: I eat, A LOT, and I have no problem with that. My goal has never been to be “skinny” (sorry but I’m just not built for that) and throughout this challenge my goal has been to reduce body fat over “losing weight”. That said, I felt like I was eating a little too much and cut back this week and then the combination of stress and poor sleep (due to stress) kind of killed my appetite so I ended up not eating nearly enough. I know I need to eat more and I feel SO much better when I do, I just really need to make an effort to do it.

Cravings gone savory: I haven’t really been struggling with cravings this week as I did in previous weeks but I really, really want something savory like a gluten-free sandwich. I think part of this is me craving texture – I want crunchy, crisp things and I want SALT. I’ve mentioned before that when I cut out sugar, I have major salt cravings and I think that is coming out full force. The cravings aren’t anything like the sugar cravings I was having, they are more along the lines of me seeing or having to work with something and wanting it because it’s there.

LESSONS LEARNED
Out of sight, out of mind: I’ve known that the best way for me to avoid eating junk is to just not have in the house but this week really drove that home for me. I had to buy some things for work that I normally don’t crave (like gluten-free bread) and all of a sudden, all I wanted was some bread. If it wasn’t in the house, I think I wouldn’t be craving it at all. If it’s not in the kitchen, I probably don’t want it.

I’m excited to be done but I also can’t believe how quickly it has gone by! I know that this way of eating is sustainable for me (with some treats included of course) and I fully plan on continuing to eat this way and feel better. I will say though, I fully plan on falling face first into a glass of wine on day 31

Tagged: crossfit, eating enough, fuel, out of sight, paleo, primal, savory cravings, week 3, whole30, workouts