Whole30 is a diet that encourages you to eat whole foods for 30 days. It eliminates grains, dairy, added sugars, and processed foods. The beginning of the diet is such an adjustment because so many of the delicious foods in our diet include grains. They also are composed of added sugars. Dairy is very common in multiple different cuisines, so cutting it out is challenging. 

My mental victory

I think the biggest victory from this Whole30 challenge has been mentally breaking the addiction to butter. While I do like butter and don’t know how much it impacts my health, adjusting to life without butter is almost effortless now. I feel pretty confident that I can continue on without butter after the 30 days are over. 

Do I want to? 

I’m not sure. I do like the idea of eating junk foods on special occasions, but I also really want my hair to start growing again. It is just discouraging that I have changed my diet multiple times without seeing much progress at all. 

Symptoms update

I started the diet with relatively good health. I tend to have good energy, sleep well, and feel good overall. The symptoms that I do have are minor. I experience some mild bloating and gas, but this seems more correlated with my menstrual cycle than with the food that I eat. 

My hair does not seem to be growing. Occasionally, I will notice a few extra clear eyelashes, but I don’t know if they are new or not. My head hair is not growing. 

I have not had a seizure during this Whole30 journey. I feel like it could be due to taking the vitamin D cod liver oil. 

The hard thing is that improvement with hair takes a long time for even normal growth. Fixing whatever is preventing the growth takes time and then you have to wait for another month to see if the hair will emerge. 

My favorite foods on Whole30

I got rid of my bacon and egg breakfast because the grocery store bacon was cured with sugar. I started making butternut squash and hamburger breakfast hash that is now my favorite breakfast. I think I like it more than bacon! I do cook it in pastured lard, so it tastes a little like bacon. 

I love my soups! It helps that it is winter and soup is just comforting during winter. I make a big pot of soup at the beginning of the week and have a cup or two each day. It is tasty, comforting, filling, and full of nutrition. 

My Whole30 exceptions

I have made a few exceptions to the Whole30 diet. I am taking a supplement that is not a whole food. I take cod liver oil. It is a bit processed. The cod liver oil that I am taking has some synthetic vitamins added to it. I do think it has made a difference in preventing my seizures, so I didn’t eliminate it on the Whole30 diet. 

The other thing that I made an exception for on Whole30 was bacon. I bought some pastured bacon that contained evaporated cane juice during the curing process. I realized that it contained an added form of sugar after I had eaten a few pieces of it. 

Olives. I put some black olives in a salad without reading the back of the bottle. It does look like there are some questionable preservatives in olives, so I didn’t start over and consider the Whole30 experience ruined with a few olives on top of my salad. They aren’t something that I regularly eat or put on a lot of dishes. 

Conclusion

Whole30 has been a great experiment for me. I started it because my cousin was doing it, but it has been good for my overall health and wellness. Just another eleven days until I am finished. Then I can decide to get tighter with the autoimmune food restriction or loosen up and celebrate my birthday. 

For many people, strict diets are easy to implement immediately. For people like myself, you need to slowly eliminate a few foods at a time and not jump into something super restrictive immediately. The slow adjustment just seems to work better for me. It may mean that the healing is slower, but I’ve tried it both ways and it is very difficult to tell if I am healing. 

On this website, I tend to focus a lot on what to eat. Whether you move or not is just as important to your health. Many people wrongly assume that they have to do high-intensity exercise for a long time every day to see some health benefits. Trust me. That is not the case. 

I have been an athlete. I have been a sedentary office worker that never exercised. I think I may have found my middle ground at this stage in life. I can honestly say that if you add a 30-minute walk to your day, you will feel great.

Improves your mood

Research has shown that walking modifies your nervous system. You will experience a decrease in anger and hostility. Soaking in sunlight or strolling through some woods can be very helpful especially during colder months when many suffer from seasonal depression. 

If you make your walks social with a good friend or relative, you feel more connected. You are strengthening your relationships with the important people in your life. 

Helps with weight loss

As you incorporate a daily walk into your schedule, you may notice that your pants start feeling looser. Regular walking can improve your body’s response to insulin and help reduce belly fat. 

Want to increase your calorie burn? Schedule your route to include hills and alternate the speed that you walk. Challenge yourself to longer routes on some days. You should strive to get in 10,000 steps a day. 

Daily walking increases metabolism by burning extra calories. It prevents muscle loss which can positively alter body composition.

 

Improves your digestion

Your morning walk can help keep you regular. A regular walking routine can improve bowel functions. It utilizes the core and abdominal muscles which encourages movement through the gastrointestinal system. 

In a 2017 study, middle-aged obese women with chronic constipation were asked to walk on a treadmill three times per week for 60 minutes. Their constipation symptoms improved more than the control group. 

Poor gut bacteria can also lead to constipation. A 2019 study focused on the effect of brisk walking on intestinal microbiota composition. Results showed that aerobic exercises help to increase intestinal Bacteroides which greatly help digestion.

Enhances creative thinking

Whether you are feeling stuck at work or can’t seem to figure out a tricky problem, research has shown that it is a good idea to get up and move. In a 2014 study from the Journal of Experimental Psychology, researchers found that creative thinking tests given while walking demonstrated more creativity than taken while sitting. 

So, when your writer’s block hits hard, it is time to get up and take a walk. Get outside and move your body. You will have a break-through! 

Boosts your immunity

Walking can help to reduce your risk for disease and promote longevity. A high-intensity interval walk can improve immune function in older adults. In a study from Chronic Respiratory Disease, it shows that walking can help patients with COPD reduce their morbidity and mortality rates. COPD patients often find intense movements difficult, but walking can improve symptoms and lower their risk for cardiovascular disease. 

Go take a hike! 

Whether your goal is simply to improve your creativity or lose weight, taking a walk is one of the easiest and best things that you can do. It doesn’t require any equipment or gym membership, and you probably already have comfortable shoes suitable for walking.The intensity can be varied from hard to easy based on the route and the pacing that you select. 

Walking can be done at your convenience. You can choose to get in as little as 30 minutes of walking per day, or you can lengthen your walk to an hour or more. With consistent daily walks, you won’t suffer from muscle soreness or fatigue and often you will feel more energized after you take a walk. 

Don’t feel limited by the weather. In the summer, you can walk early in the morning or late in the evening to reduce overheating. In the winter time, just bundle up! You can still get a good walk in with freezing temperatures. A warm jacket will keep you comfortable and as you walk your blood flow will increase to keep you warm. 

So, what are you waiting for? Find a friend, grab your dog and get outside to take a walk.

Ok, you probably think I’m the crazy diet lady. I have done raw vegan, AIP, GAPS, paleo, ketogenic, paleo ketogenic, and even carnivore. None of these diets have regrown my hair. I have struggled to stick with them because I don’t tend to see results. So why am I even bothering with the whole 30 diet? 

Good question!

My Interest in Whole 30 

Honestly, I didn’t know that much about the whole 30 diet until this week. I knew that it was similar to the paleo and AIP diet, but after trying many variations of diets, I kind of figured it was just another diet. 

I read a post from fmy second cousin online that he was starting the whole 30 diet. After doing a bunch of diet variations, I knew I could tackle the challenge with him and his wife. I also was coming off of the holidays and indulging in lots of sweets and foods. A dietary challenge may be just the thing that I needed to get back on track and stop cheating. 

My Whole 30 Challenges

I have given up wheat before and it wasn’t too difficult. The paleo ketogenic diet was the most challenging diet that I have done. It eliminated dairy and grains. I had added butter and cheese back into my diet for a month. I knew that giving up dairy would be tough for me. Giving up bread was something that wasn’t as hard. I had avoided bread much longer than I have avoided butter. 

It is also a joke in my family that we love butter. My mom’s father would put cold butter and warm butter on his oatmeal. The cold butter has a different texture.

Eliminating butter means that you are eating vegetables without fat. That can be kind of hard. Some veggies are just not that tasty. One thing that I learned from the paleo ketogenic diet is that your body needs a certain amount of fat every day. It keeps you satiated and helps your body absorb those essential fat-soluble vitamins. 

My first Whole 30 day

Today is my first day of the whole 30 diet. I admittedly have already cheated on it. But I had a few strips of bacon that weren’t going to last in the refrigerator for 30 days. I know that there was some added sugar in the bacon. It is a very small amount. So small that there are no carbohydrates listed on the nutrition label. So, maybe I’ll just do an extra day or remember that I need to do an additional Whole 30 breakfast on day 31. 

I actually eliminated dairy and wheat yesterday, so today hasn’t been too bad. The whole foods that I have eaten today include the following. 

• 2 eggs
• 4 strips of bacon
• chuck roast
• roasted carrots
• apple
• boiled egg (snack)

I seasoned my foods with salt and pepper. It still was delicious. 

I weighed myself and took pictures today. I was VERY bloated, but I don’t know if it was the diet or PMS. I still had bloating on the paleo ketogenic diet and I wasn’t eating any gas-producing beans or veggies. In fact, I wasn’t eating veggies or fruit at all. My after pictures may look much better just because I’m not so bloated. We shall see! 

Upcoming Whole 30 menu ideas

I went to the grocery store to pick up food for the week. I was inspired by the frozen vegetables this week. I definitely am not ready to give up all of my carbohydrates and do the paleo ketogenic diet again. So, this is a simple way to eat. 

I plan on eating very simply for the next week. Homemade soup, stir frys, hamburgers, apples, and vegetables are on the menu. I did purchase some coconut aminos to go with my asian stir fry dish. I saw that was whole 30 approved and soy sauce was out. 

I grabbed some sweet potatoes from the produce section today. I plan on cutting those up and baking them with some olive oil and salt to make sweet potato fries. That should be fun. I haven’t had those in a long time, but I know they are delicious. Also, sweet potatoes are on the GAPS diet, which allows some of the less irritating veggies onto the diet. 

A bunless hamburger is always an easy meal to make when doing an elimination diet. It can be difficult to look down at your plate and just see what looks like a hockey puck, but when cooked correctly, a plain burger can be delicious. 

Another item I found in the freezer section was chopped butternut squash. I plan on cooking that up with ground beef to make a breakfast hash. I’m hoping it will be tasty.

Wish me luck! 

So, now I have a general plan on how to survive this first week of whole 30. I haven’t given up eggs or nightshades despite having an autoimmune condition. That may come next week. This week I will be adjusting to not eating dairy or bread. Next week, I can figure out what to eat instead of potatoes and whether I want to include the spices that have nightshades in them. 

I haven’t updated my blog in a long time. I was working with the Paleomedicina group on a healing diet that presumably would cure my epilepsy. But, did it work? It a word. No. Did I give up on it too quickly? Maybe.

Was I strict on the diet? Yes. I didn’t cheat.

A seizure on the paleo ketogenic diet

This is one of the things that worried me the most. I knew that I was having more auras and seizures around the time that my menstrual cycle was happening. I had gotten the seizures under control to the point that the ONLY time that I was likely to have a seizure was either mid-cycle when the estrogen was dropping and the progesterone was rising or right before menses when the progesterone was dropping and estrogen was rising.

The change in hormones also triggered diarrhea. This ONLY lasted for a few days. It happened while I was on the paleo ketogenic diet as well. I actually did not see an improvement in digestion. Dr. Zsofia Clemens told me that I could go a few days without a bowel movement. I went 14 days once without a bowel movement.

Why was I having a bowel movement when I did? I started my period. Suddenly, I went from no bowel movements to lots of watery bowel movements for a few days. Then back to nothing for days.

I also experienced gas. I would belch and fart during these times when my hormones were changing. It was more noticeable than when I was on a standard diet. I was paying closer attention to the symptoms because I had to record them everyday and follow up with Paleomedicina. So, maybe it was slightly better and maybe it was worse. It is difficult to say.

Did I continue with the Paleo Ketogenic Diet?

Sadly, I had not one but two seizures on this diet. I was on the strict diet for 12 weeks. At week 8, I had my first seizure. I was encouraged to give the diet more time. Two weeks later (at the mid-point of my cycle), I had another seizure.

The diet wasn’t hard and I was hopeful that I could see some amazing results. Unfortunately, Thanksgiving was coming up and I knew that after having seizures and not feeling great on the diet, it was going to be hard to convince myself to stick with it through the holiday.

I went out and tested my vitamin D level. Dr. Zsofia Clemens had commented that it had started out low and that my angular cheilitis was a result of the low D levels, but she discouraged me from taking supplements due to additives that could hinder the healing process.

She told me that the vitamin D levels would naturally increase.

Well, they didn’t.

In fact, the vitamin D levels had dropped by one point. I had gone from 29 ng/ml to 28 ng/ml. I do realize that seizures can decrease the vitamin D level in your blood, but I had waited a week and started taking cod liver oil with vitamin D in it for a whole week before I thought to test my levels.

Supplementing with vitamin D

I got my test results right before Thanksgiving. A lowered vitamin D level was discouraging and let me cheat on the diet for Thanksgiving Day food. I do realize that I may have erased any progress that I was making, but I wasn’t feeling great with only meat in the specified proportions.

I didn’t just have the apple pie, but I ate the stuffing, the potatoes, the sweet potatoes, and the cranberry sauce. I helped finish up the leftovers for the next two days without triggering a seizure. I kind of felt a little better with more food in me.

It turned out to be difficult to return to a paleo ketogenic diet. I tried to be as ketogenic as I could until Christmas. I continued supplementing with vitamin D. When Christmas rolled around, I had been taking vitamin D for about 5 weeks without having any seizures. I felt pretty good.

My ridged nails from the alopecia were looking better. Still, no hair, but Zsofia Clemens had not sounded promising about getting hair back on the paleo ketogenic diet anyway.

Christmas diet cheats

I ate all the food at Christmas when my family was in town. It was great to see them and I didn’t want to make a big deal about the food. My sister also commented that I looked too skinny and boney. This was incredibly hard to hear because Dr. Clemens had said I may initially lose weight and put it on. The putting it on part did not happen.

So, I indulged. Chocolate, pasta, pies, and pizza.

I ate poorly for about five days. I didn’t have a seizure from the cheats. On December 26, after the family had left and I was getting back to my normal diet, I had the mildest seizure of my life. I didn’t even know I had one when my mother told me. She said that it was about half as long.

I attribute this seizure improvement to vitamin D. My diet was absolutely terrible. But if my seizures were caused by diet alone, I would have had one days earlier.

The seizure was 2 days before my menstrual cycle. I could tell my hormones were fluctuating because I was getting gassy.

I know that hormones can improve with these ketogenic diets, but it hasn’t really been the case for me thus far. I think the biggest improvement came when I added in vitamin D.

I quickly made an appointment to test my vitamin D levels after the seizure. They had gone up to 49! I had watched a youtube video done by Dr. Annette Boswell who stated that neurological benefits don’t happen on the ketogenic diet unless vitamin D is above 50.

Maybe this is the key.

A Paleo Ketogenic diet isn’t a cure-all

I strongly feel that I shouldn’t have had a seizure on the paleo ketogenic diet if it was truly the answer for me. I definitely think that correcting vitamin D levels is a vital component of healing. In addition to Dr. Annette Boswell, Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride of the GAPS diet says that you need vitamin D for healing.

It is fun to hear about all the testimonials from a carnivore diet or a paleo-ketogenic diet, but when it doesn’t happen for you, it is discouraging. My frustration led me to quit blogging for a while. Sorry!

Now that we’re half-way through January, I have eliminated most junk food from my life. I’m not entirely keto or paleo, but I am taking my cod liver oil. I do feel pretty good. It’s been 3 weeks since my last seizure, but I’m feeling optimistic. I’m not strict on my diet anymore, but I’m listening to my body’s signals more closely.

I have been on the Paleo Ketogenic Diet as prescribed by Dr. Zsofia Clemens for about 6 full weeks. This has not been difficult. But I don’t experience overwhelming improvement within the first two months. It is somewhat disappointing.

I did have a break out of angular cheilitis that has since settled down. My hair hasn’t really grown at all. (I’m still bald and not seeing any new growth.) Unfortunately, I had a seizure. I’m super disappointed by this. The last time I attempted this diet was two years ago. I had a seizure at about the same point. This time, I was monitoring my blood glucose and it had elevated a bit. It was in the middle of my cycle when my progesterone was decreasing, so apparently ketones don’t tend to prevent hormonal seizures.

I feel blessed to discover that my seizures aren’t really closely related to the food I eat. I have decided that I will continue on with the diet for a few more months. This could be a case of just needing more time to heal. I don’t want to give up too early like I have done in the past with AIP.

I’m into a nice groove with my ketogenic paleo diet. I know what I like to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I have adjusted to the amount of food that Dr. Clemens thinks is appropriate. I would love to eat more, but according to my blood work, this is the right amount.

What’s Next?

I’m going to continue on. Overall, I feel great. I felt great when I started, but I feel like if I don’t give this diet at least six months, I won’t see any hair regrowth. 

My seizures are decreasing in intensity. I bounce back much better. It could simply be that the root canals in my mouth are the culprit for the seizure and NOT my diet. 

There is a PEG 400 intestinal permeability test that I will be taking in order to discover if I still have intestinal permeability issues. I don’t think that I do. My digestion seems fine.