You might be wondering....WHY AM I TORTURING MYSELF WITH THIS?

Hopefully you read the little intro post yesterday and now you're back for more. I said I would share in more detail about why I am doing the Whole30. This is a bit longer of a post.

First of all, I really enjoy being miserable and not having sugar in my coffee or cupcakes crumbs on my shirt. I'm kidding. Obviously. I don't drop a single crumb of my cupcakes and I much prefer milk in my coffee.

In reality, there have been some tummy health issues in my life that have been happening no matter what I eat. So, good food choices or not, I was having stomach pains and other related issues. Poop. I am talking about poop. And unhealthy poops are unpleasant. 

A little science for you: Humans are born with the enzyme called lactase that breaks down lactose in the gut. That's in milk. Breastmilk. Formula. It's about babies and their main source of food. Our bodies stop producing it after approximately 5 years of age (which is an age that children are breastfed til in some parts of the world), unless we continue to consume dairy. Here in the modern world, we have access to dairy and a lot of us enjoy it. So our body responds by producing the enzyme past that young age. Here is a full explanation of that. I am posting for the science. Any opinions in that post are not necessarily ones I hold. 

As we get older, we can develop that natural lactose intolerance as our body stops producing the enzyme needed to break down lactose in our gut. And, while I am a huge fan of dairy and have always eaten it, I started to notice a pattern between drinking milk and eating ice cream and some pretty awful digestive issues. So, I cut back. Switched to milk alternatives (Soy, Coconut, Almond milks) and noticed an improvement. But, not a complete fix. 

Then my paternal grandmother reminded me of her Celiac disease and my mother reminded me that my uncle also suffers from Celiac disease and pointed out "hey, it runs on both sides of your gene pool here..." And, finally, someone else shared an article about how lactose intolerance and Celiac disease can often occur together. Like two really mean girls at school who ganged up on your digestive system. Sooooo, I had a suggestion to check out the Whole30 and started my research,

I had heard of it before and once I read all the restrictions, I laughed. Because I live a SUPER active lifestyle teaching classes at the gym and I don't have any weight loss goals. I might annoy a lot of people by saying this, but I am pretty happy with my body in regards to my weight and muscle tone. I could be more defined, but I enjoy food. I eat a variety of mostly healthy foods and I eat other foods in moderation. If I ate cleaner, I would have less body fat and more muscle tone. I get that. I made my choice. I know what I'm about. I love food. I wasn't really having any stomach issues. I mean, yeah there have been some instances where I have been doubled over in pain after eating, but I sorta wrote it off as one or two nights of something I ate that wasn't "right". In retrospect, I was likely showing signs of sensitivity to something and here I am, 30 years old, experiencing those problems more often than not. It's time to do something different.

I look at Whole30 as the ideal goal. I don't know how I will do. I may decide that, darnit, I am going to make some cauliflower crust pizza even though it's not in the spirit of the Whole30. I AM committing to reading labels and eating things that are compliant. I will not eat sugar. I will not eat grains. I will not eat dairy. I will not drink alcohol. (Though I am not really a big drinker at all. I;ll have a drink at a girls night out or a birthday dinner, but I don't really drink much outside of that.)

There are things like LaraBars and Izze sodas that are Whole30 "ok" but that are technically not allowed because they're packaged and processed. Here's the thing. I get that some people do the Whole30 to revolutionize their eating habits. I am pretty well educated on what is good to eat and what to avoid. Whole30 will allow me to go deeper into the rabbit hole that is those seemingly obnoxious people who can't eat anything at all ever at a restaurant and are a giant pain in the butt to be around. I don't think eating something prepackaged will be a gateway food to me eating cupcakes in my closet while I swig a half gallon of cow's milk.

My purpose is to find out what is making my stomach hurt and my trips to the bathroom miserable. I am positive I will feel better and that I will learn more about what's sneaking around in our seemingly harmless foods. I can almost guarantee you that if I find gluten isn't bothering me, I will return to eating it with abandon. Don't put me on a pedestal here. I am here for answers and once I find them, I will make educated decisions on how my eating habits will change for the future.

That being said, please feel free to join me. Ask questions here or directly on Facebook. Let's learn about eating for our best selves. If you feel icky, try this with me. I'll share what I discover and maybe you will have ideas that will help me out, too. Gimme your recipes and your experiences doing the Whole30 yourself. I'd love to hear them!

In Fitness and Health,
Jodie

Prepping and Counting Down

I decided to go ahead and launch the new blog for the Whole30 journey on which I will be embarking in just over a week. I am in the research (and back-pedaling) stage right now. As a couple of people have pointed out, the 30 days will include Thanksgiving. I don't plan on veering off course just for the holiday. I mean, I have had like 30 Thanksgivings in my life and I can only assume I will have more after this year. So, one year of eating Paleo style will be alright. Also, I will be pretty far into the 30 days, and I am convinced that it will be easier to stick to the Whole30 25 days into the month rather than in the first week. My resolve should be pretty strong by then.

So, before I talk too deeply about WHY I am doing the Whole30, you might just simply want to know what the heck I am talking about. Here is the link to the Whole30 website where you can read details on it. Basically, it's a very strict Paleo diet. NO dairy. NO grains. NO legumes. NO added sugar. We're talking about lots and lots of NOs, but, hey, there are a ton of other foods out there. The thing that really makes the Whole30 so strict is that it doesn't allow things that take compliant foods and make them into treat/cheat items. No Paleo baking muffins or brownies. It's like eat real food. No ingredients. Your food should be the ingredients! Could you make a cauliflower crust pizza? Sure. Is it in the spirit of Whole30? No. I am debating some things as I look into the rules. I mean, it's 30 days. And I know we could all use 30 days without cupcakes and pizza.

My motives for doing the Whole30 will be covered more in my next post. And those motives will define how I handle the food choices and rules. If you're curious about Paleo eating, you can read more about it here: Intro to Paleo.

So, if you're here to watch the world burn and me descend into madness, please follow along! Find me on Facebook and add me. I will be posting the links to new blog posts there as well.

In Fitness and Health,
Jodie