My WHOLE30 Journey | Week 4 | Now, What?

Hello, folks! I can’t believe that it has been 30 days since I’ve started my whole30 journey, along with my husband! Thanks for sticking with me throughout the month. If you’re just joining, I would recommend you start with this post –> Why I’m Doing The WHOLE30 Challenge – and then read my weekly updates that are listed at the end of the mentioned post. That way you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about, and what I want to achieve.

OK? Great!

So here is my Whole30 week 4 update

Today I’m not going to talk much about the food we ate for the last 10 days of our whole30 journey. I’m just going to share my grocery and meal list. What I actually want to talk about is how we’re feeling, our achievements and what are our next steps for staying healthy. I’m also going to share some tips on how to make your own whole30 journey much easier if you decide to accept the challenge yourself.

So, with no further due, here is the grocery shopping list. There is nothing special and new about it, but I feel the need to share it. Here is what I’ve bought:

• Canned tuna in water,
• Chicken thighs,
• Pork chops,
• Beef chuck,
• Eggs,
• Potatoes,
• Sweet potatoes,
• Tomatoes,
• Purple onions,
• Coconut milk cans,
• Frozen broccoli,
• Frozen cauliflower florets,
• Fresh cauliflower,
• Carrots,
• Fresh peppers,
• Celeriac,
• Cucumbers,
• Tahini,
• Sunflower oil (for the mayo),
• Ground mustard seeds (for the mayo as well),
• Almonds,
• Bananas,
• Apples,
• Dried bananas (Vesely just loves them).

Just as my shopping list was simple, my meal plan was even simpler. I planned on making just a few dishes that can last me for at least two days. I found that this strategy was the best choice when it comes to sticking to whole30, and any other diet out there. That way I was sure that I have something prepared to eat, so we won’t be hungry. Here is what I made:

1. Canned tuna patties – we had those for two days. Once I served them with my baked potato fries, and the second time with baked sweet potatoes. They were really delicious.
2. For the chicken thighs, since I’ve bought almost 2 kg (4.5 lbs), I’ve frozen them in portions. Then I was thawing them as needed, placing them on the baking tray with different veggies and baked everything together. Once I even made the one-skillet curry chicken thighs and potatoes, and that was really delicious. Vesely even asked if I could make that on a more regular basis 🙂
3. The same thing goes for the pork chops. The only difference is that I oven baked them separately and kept them in the fridge until the dinner time. That was really easy and delicious dinner. As a side dish, I’ve just slightly cooked the frozen broccoli and cauliflower florets.
4. On Friday I had to go with my parents and brother for a two-day road trip, so I had to prepare some food to have along. I’ve made the most delicious egg salad (with my homemade 30-second mayo!) and cauliflower „hummus“. I just sliced some fresh peppers, cucumbers, carrots, and celeriac for the dipping purposes. And OMG, we all enjoyed that FEAST! Can you even imagine how good celeriac is eaten fresh? Just give it a try 😉 There is something refreshing and amazingly crunchy about it!
5. When we were on the trip, I mostly ate fresh fruits, fish, and salads.
6. The last thing that I prepared was my slow cooker goulash, AGAIN! Why? Because it’s soooo delicious and versatile.
7. Again, for the breakfast, we kept it simple with fried eggs, frittatas, omelets and chia pudding.

And now the part that you’ve been waiting for

I know that you’ve been probably wondering what are mine NON-SCALE Victories and if I managed to reach my goal? Well, to be honest, I achieved much more than I ever hoped I would. As you might recall from the post on Why I’m Doing the Whole30 Challenge, I said that I want to accomplish three things. And I managed not just to accomplish those, but also much MUCH more. So here are the goals I had:

• I want to FEEL and BE HEALTHY and get rid of the seasonal allergies that I’ve experienced for a couple of years now.
• I want to help my husband who has some digestion problems.
• I really want to defeat the Sugar Demon and clean up my diet.

But I have to say that my biggest VICTORY after these 30 days is something that my husband suggested. He said to me since he didn’t have any digestive problems during the whole30 challenge, that we should eat like this more often! YAY! ???

And, since one of my goals was for him to be better, I’m really glad that we managed to get his IBS in control, and that he is willing to “sacrifice” chocolate and other sweets for HEALTH. Not that he will never eat the chocolate and sweets again, but certainly not that often as he did before.

Now here is the list of mine Non-Scale victories that I didn’t even try to accomplish

Physical (outside):

• Fewer blemishes
• Glowing skin
• Less dimpled skin
• Fresher breath
• Flatter stomach
• Leaner appearance
• Clothes fitting better
• Less bloating
• More defined muscle tone
• Feeling more confident in my appearance

Physical (Inside):

• Fewer PMS symptoms
• Less stomach pain
• Less diarrhea
• Less gas
• Less bloating

Mood, Emotions, and Psychology

• I’m happier
• More outgoing
• More patient
• I laugh more
• I’m less anxious
• Less stressed and handle stress better
• Fewer mood swings
• Fewer sugar cravings
• Fewer carb cravings
• Improved body image
• Improved self-esteem
• Improved self-confidence
• Less reliance on the scale
• Feeling in control of my food

Food and Behaviors

• A healthier relationship with food
• Improved disorders eating habits
• Practicing mindful eating
• Learned how to read labels
• I eat to satiety and listen to my body
• I can identify craving vs. hunger
• Fewer cravings
• More nutrition in my diet

Brain Function, Sleep, and Energy:

• I feel generally more productive
• I awaken feeling refreshed
• Energy levels are higher and more even
• I have more energy in the morning
• More energy to socialize
• More energy at work
• I no longer get cranky when I don’t eat
• I feel energetic between meals and need less sugar

Lifestyle and Social

• I’m outside more (when the weather is nice) 🙂
• I’ve earned new healthy habits to teach my future kids
• I’m more knowledgeable about nutrition
• I shop locally and eat seasonally
• I’ve learned new recipes and how to sub some ingredients for the compliant ones
• Meal prep is organized and efficient
• I’ve created other health goals
• People ask me what I’m doing differently
• I AM WHOLE30!

I know that you might be wondering if I’ve lost any weight? The short answer is YES! And the long answer is – here are my before and after measurements:

• Weight: 65 kg (143.3 lbs) —> 61 kg (134.5 lbs)
• Upper arm: 30 cm (11.8“) —> 29 cm (11.4“)
• Chest: 92 cm (36.2“) —> 87 cm (34.2“)
• Waist: 74 cm (29.1“) —> 70 cm (27.5“)
• Hips: 100 cm (39.4“) —> 96 cm (37.8“)
• Thighs: 59 cm (23.2“) —> 58 cm (22.8“)

I am really happy about this also, even though this wasn’t something that I wanted to accomplish. At least my clothes are now fitting better, and I feel more confident about my look. Also, the best part about losing weight was that I’ve never felt hungry, which is really good when compared to those fad diets.

NOW, WHAT? What are our next steps?

Now that we’re done with the 30 days of eating clean, it’s time for us to reintroduce the „NO“ food groups and watch closely if something is going to bother us. As we’re not drinking alcohol regularly, so that is something that we’re not going to reintroduce straight away. We will just wait for some event where we will give it a try, and then we’ll see how the alcohol affects our bodies.

We’ll be taking the Fast Track Reintroduction, where we will be reintroducing some food groups during the next 10 days. And that is something that I will be covering in my Reintroduction post after I’m done with it. 🙂

That is all for now. If you have any questions, just leave them in the comments below, and I will be glad to give you a feedback as soon as possible.

Until the next post…

Love,