Dieting

I am currently doing the Whole30.  I didn't know anything about a few weeks ago, but a friend of mine on Facebook said she was going to do it, so I decided to try it out.  It scared me to death to go without cheese, pasta, bread, etc.. In general, it hasn't been hard to figure out what I could eat, but I have to read a lot of labels.  Apparently there are a lot of items I wasn't aware of that I wasn't allowed to eat the first few days.

To give you a general idea, the Whole30 is 30 days of no sugar, alcohol, gluten, legumes, dairy, rice, and eating lots of vegetables and meat.  Fruit is allowed sometimes, nuts (certain kinds) and seeds (but not their oils).

My mistakes:

1. I ate cheese on accident. I did it once thinking I had picked up the sausage below that I probably shouldn't have eaten, and my kids left cheese out with a slice on the knife they didn't eat, so I took a bite.  While I was chewing I realized I was eating cheese and wasn't supposed to, so I spit it out and rinsed out my mouth.
2. I ate sausage that probably had, soybean oil, or MSG, or sugar, or any number of items I wasn't supposed to eat, but didn't realize it.
3. I ate bacon and because it was uncured bacon, I thought it wouldn't have sugar in it.  Apparently there is only one kind of bacon sold in America that doesn't have sugar in it.  I think that's pretty sad.
4. I had sesame oil one day for dinner without realizing that seed oils are on the "no" list.  You can eat the seeds, but not the oils.  I didn't read the science on why not.
5. I ate a few dried cherries, which in themselves isn't on the "no" list, but these particular cherries had sugar in them, which makes them a no.  I was hoping to make my own Larabar type snacks so I could eat something healthy and a little different than just vegetables.
6. They say you should read their book, It Starts with Food, before beginning your Whole30 and plan out your meals so that you get just what you need on your shopping trips.  I didn't.  I did it on a whim.  I'll probably do it again another time, and I'll be more prepared next time.  I have the book now.

I'm on day 18 and I keep seeing all of these foods on commercials and looking through pinterest for foods I can eat and it's hard to watch.  I rarely snack, but some mornings I have a hard time finding breakfast because I'm either out of eggs or sick of them.  I'm also not a morning eater.  So far I don't think I've lost any inches or pounds, but I don't have a scale at home.  I didn't weight or measure myself before I started, but I measured myself on day 10 (though they tell you not to do either).

I'm also tired of eating at home.  It has been 2 weeks since I ate out at a restaurant and am dying to not eat at home.  I ate at Chipotle with a friend thinking I was eating Whole30 compliant, but didn't realize I got the wrong kind of meat in my research that wasn't complete.  i did go to my husband's soccer game and had a hamburger that was just meat with no seasonings and no added ingredients. I also really like to eat dessert. Not every day, but yesterday would have been a good day for dessert.

All that being said, I wasn't eating too poorly before I started.  I've read blogs by different people because they have to stop drinking alcohol, or they can no longer put milk or sugar in their morning coffee.  I don't drink coffee or alcohol.  I was starting to drink more hot tea because it's winter, and I put maybe a teaspoon in each cup to cut down on the bitterness.  I only drink sodas once in a while.  We never buy drinks in twelve packs.  I tend to be careful about what my family eats, but when I get frustrated, I start eating whatever sugar I can find.  I would say I haven't been quite so grumpy and wanting sugar, so much as I have wanted food from outside my home.  We make our own bread from flour, water, yeast, olive oil, salt and a little sugar in our bread machine, the only box mix I buy is macaroni and cheese, I always use fresh or frozen vegetables with the exception of diced tomatoes and black beans (which I realize is not a vegetable), and I only buy fresh fruit with the exception of natural applesauce that only has vitamin C to keep it from browning.  Maybe my days of intaking sugar were causing my problems, but there's also a chance I have a thyroid problem, since my thyroid has been enlarged since I was early in pregnancy with my 4th child 2 years ago and it hasn't gone away.  I need to go see a family practitioner for a regular check up, but haven't been to the doctor since my follow up visit after Nathan was born.  I guess I'll get started in making doctor appointments.