While I am not a big drinker by any means, I do like to have a drink when I go out to dinner sometimes. I like a place called Smokey Bones. They have a great steak salad entree and they also have a great drink menu. However I will try to forego the bubbly at least until the end of the 30 days. My husband is a teetotler so that makes it easier because we don't have any liquour in the house.

It's OK BlueSojrn, just KBO! (Keep Buggering On! A phrase made famous by Winston Churchill!) There are TWO bottles of wine in my fridge, and I've been giving them the eye...so far I've held off. I should, of course, just take them out of the fridge and put them somewhere else!

I've got a new question for the forum. My BFF is going through a divorce, and is having a hard time. I'm going to go visit her next week to lend moral support. Normally we would drink red wine and eat chocolate, but I really don't want to do that on my Whole30 Challenge! My friend is very supportive of my WOE too, which is great. Can anyone think of some enormously decadent meal we could make and share together to soothe emotional pain, and to celebrate our friendship? Any favourite dishes people have? The weather is great here, so BBQ is an option.

It looks like everyone so far is doing well on the challenge! I'm soooooo tempted to weigh myself, but I'll hold off!

How is everyone else doing for family support? My family and friends have all been terrific...quite curious and asking really interesting questions about this WOE. No one seems to think I'm insane...although maybe they're just being polite!

I finished off my wine before starting the diet. he sugar is too high on a regular basis so I gave it up while de-sugaring my WOE. Once I get back on track of eating appropriately I plan to add a small glass of red wine each night. Supposed to help with MS/IR, lowering Try/Chol numbers, etc. Not a fan of the reds but am willing to see if it helps.

Hey Sue333, if a barbeque is on the cards, I would go with that! There is nothing more satisfying and comforting than char grilled and barbequed chicken wings, lamb chops, ribe eye steaks etc etc, imho. I'm salivating just at the thought!

Whole 30 day 7 and I'm still going strong. Today a colleague brought in a box of mini donuts. She asked me several times if I wanted one and I politely declined. It was another colleague's last day today and she brought in cakes, biscuits, sweets and chocolates. I have decided that when people bring things like that in, I'm just going to go over and smell them It's ridiculous, but I get to enjoy the smell and I get to see other people enjoying them on my behalf!

The strangest thing happened though... I opened the door to the office where the cakes and sweets were laid out and within a couple of steps into the office I hit a wall of sickly sweet stench! That has never happened to me before. I could practically taste the Percy Pigs on the back of my throat, and the coffee icing of the cake! Then as one of my colleagues walked by I could smell the cake that he was eating!! I'm glad to say that they all smelled far too processed and sickly sweet and I wasn't tempted for even a split second.

Keep up the good work everyone, tomorrow will be the beginning of week 2!

I used to be a problem drinker, seriously. Even then, though, I could stop for months or even years at a time without any withdrawal. The descriptions of "alcoholic" never quite fit me.

Over recent months, I've noticed that I never have an urge to drink too much or too often. This has happened as my pea brain has finally realized that the repercussions are too great and the payoff way too small. This just happened for me, and I can only attribute it to a state of grace and the universe smiling upon me.

I may end up including wine with dinner some evenings once all my excess weight is gone and my long-term eating plan is fairly solid. I do not lose weight when I have wine.

My favorite is Smoking Loon cabernet sauvignon. My husband enjoys the same wine, and is not interested in abstaining, so it's always in the house.

I say squeeze a bunch of grapes, let them sit out for awhile before getting fuzz on them, stir in some fruit, chill it and enjoy a paleo sangria!

oblong, I never heard of Percy Pigs before. I googled for them - cookies in the shape of pigs, right? They didn't look too appetizing to me, but if I had loved them as a child, I'm sure I would have been drawn to them!

Yes, week 2, here we come!

I didn't know they did PP cookies! But I'm talking about the gelatin sweets. They are strawberry or raspberry flavoured. They actually contain pig gelatin as opposed to the vegetarian gelatin that they put in sweets these days. Percy has a load of friends too... Sharon Sheep (lemonade) and Cuthbert Cow (cola). They also taste absolutely disgusting, from what I can remember. (and certainly the kind of thing I would have been drawn to as a kid as well!!!)

While I don't always agree with what this guy says (author of "Eat This, Not That"), I do agree with what he's said about additives.

http://health.yahoo.net/experts/eat...-food-additives

BlueSojrn,
You don't have to give up yams. Only white potatoes are nightshades. Also, you'll want to check your spice cabinet, there are a lot of spice mixtures that have nightshades. On the bright side, my co-worker gave up nightshades the first round we did of the Whole 30 and her arthritis cleared right up and she has a bad knee that she's said is completely resolved. I think she can also tolerate nightshades in small amounts now.

It's been a wobbly week, leaning on fruit a bit much - maybe an apple or couple of plums a day, but knowing if I didn't I'd fall face first into neolithic junk! I have kept to no dairy and fresh/home made food though.

Yesterday was the last straw as I feel like I might be coming down with a virus so craving junk like CRAZY! I'm afraid to say I whipped myself up 2 paleo pancakes (almond flour, egg and coconut milk and, ok maybe a couple of drops of stevia - I'm SORRY!) and ate them with raspberries. Job done, cravings and obsession with junk stopped and I felt satisfied. Before that I was in danger of eating every item in the house in the quest to stop my hunger for something to hit the spot.

Interestingly during the period from 20 - 30 June, I was a lot stricter and it was easier to follow having gone hog wild during my holiday the week before. That one meal off on the 30th did a bit of a number on me! Most of the weight has stayed off anyway. Onwards and upwards!

Don't feel bad, tigerh, about your pancakes. Some of us have slipped a time or two over the past week. And yours doesn't seem like much of a discretion to me. I was never sure why stevia is banned in the first place.

oblong, I guess the Percy Pig picture I saw only looked like cookies at first glance ..

Manaloa, I'm glad about the yams. I bought a couple more.

Today starts week 2. I'm feeling another good wave of recommitment today, after my own discretions. Just going forward and doing better from here. Good luck to all!

Hi tigerh! I'm having the same experience as you...super committed during my jump start in June, smooth sailing, but once the "official" start date came, I had some issues. I haven't cheated (except on day 1 when I had some Irish Whiskey...strictly medicinal of course!) but I have found it harder going. Maybe that's just normal though....I think I read that peopel giving up tobacco have the hardest time in week 3, and then again in week 7.

Keep going! One bad meal (and it wasn't such a bad meal when you think about what you COULD have eaten) does not ruin the challenge.

I THINK my lower abdomen is a bit smaller today...

Thought this recipe was kinda funny (about the bear):

http://www.ichef.com/recipe.cfm/rec.../recipeid/79911

Anyway, I buy ground pork and make my own sausage so there are no nitrates and other additives in it. Don't know if I would like bear sausage or not, although I love moose and bison. As far as the bread crumbs and flour go, I think you could leave them out as long as the meat is packed around the egg good.

Thanks Sue! Yes, I think we have to console ourselves that at least we are still being Paleo in the broader sense No grain or dairy this month at least. After this month, maybe occasional one week mini challenges are in order for me.

I hope you took your measurements - I think if you can notice your abdomen shrinking it must be quite a difference. Well done!


Thank you, Bluesojrn. Yes, I had noticed when I came to post that a few people were struggling occasionally. At least we're all human and if it were easy it wouldn't be a challenge, right?