May 23, 2017 was the final day of the Whole 30 Challenge. I happened to have had a doctor appointment that day. It was a coincidence, although I did want to have one at or near the end of the challenge.
BP
Unfortunately, my blood pressure was not where we wanted it to be. Therefore, I have orders to take it from home several times and if it is above 140/90 consistently, to begin taking Lisinopril. I am surprised and not happy about this and hope that it remains below that threshold or than I can get control of it with some means other than medication.
Weight Loss
The doctor measured my weight at 177 with allowance for clothing. This is lower than I have measured it using the digital scale at work, which I have used throughout the entire Whole 30 experience. I have not weighed that low on the same scale since the Dr. apt so I am assuming the scale I have been using measures a bit high. At any rate, I started around 193 and my Dr. pointed out that the last time she measured my weight (granted, over two years ago) I was at 196. So I managed to lose at least 13 and perhaps as many as 15 pounds while on the Whole 30. That is roughly a half pound a day. I am assuming that since I have continued on this slow downward trend that at least most of this is fat loss rather than water weight fluctuation. The weight loss is my biggest victory from this Whole 30. I cannot remember the last time I have consistently weighed in the 170s, and now the fantasmagorical dream of making it to the 160s (my college weight, circa 1986) does not seem out of reach. I will keep working on this.
Intermittent or Regular Fasting, Migraines
Prior to the start of the Whole 30 Challenge and over the last several years I have practiced "intermittent" fasting. There is plenty to read about this but in short I have generally followed the compressed eating window approach, which is to limit eating to a shorter-than-normal period in the day, say 8 hours, and do not consume calories during the other 16 hours. To me, this is actually "regular" fasting rather than intermittent. I have grown to really like this, or rather to really like prolonged periods without eating. But the effects on weight loss and body composition have been small. For that reason about three weeks into the Whole 30 challenge I decided to switch my approach to fasting and to follow the "eat-stop-eat" approach of one to two larger fasts per week and a free-for-all on the off days. But since I can't imagine eating early in the day now, I opted for a modified approach where I still skipped morning eating every day and then twice a week I skipped breakfast and lunch. So typically I would eat two meals a day on the non-fast days, starting around noon, and then one main meal a day on fast days started after 4:30 and sometimes as late as 7:00. I didn't (and don't, as I'm still doing this) count hours between meals.
This new fasting schedule has been very interesting. First, it has not been difficult. The fasting days have been really positive because I can go to work without having to lug any food with me. I have continued my bike riding and calisthenics workouts without any negative consequences and in fact, have generally found that my strength and endurance are better under this new schedule of eating. Most noticeable has been the bike riding on fasting days. I just really feel good on the ride home, at which point I am at least 20 hours without calories. I believe this new fasting schedule has been largely responsible for the continued weight loss.
But roughly corresponding to the new schedule I have seen a marked increase in migraines. I suffer from classic migraines and would consider them "minor", as I normally don't have more than maybe two or three a year and generally don't find them too disruptive, nor do I find the pain too bad. Every now and then, say every three or four years, I have had them in groups; every day or every other day for a few days. The last time I remember this happening was I think 2012 when I was in Greece.
This has been happening three times a week to every other day roughly since I switched to the new fasting schedule. I did mention it to my doctor and have done a little research on this. My doctor said that I may be detoxing and that could account for it. I would assume that I have been detoxing during the entire Whole 30, so it is surprising that this effect would start around day 24 or so. But if it's true, it may not be an entirely negative thing. Maybe I am burning some toxic fat that has been around for a very long time?
The other possibility is that this irregular and more extreme fasting pattern may not be a good option for migraine sufferers. Something to do with glucose levels in the body.
The migraines are distressing and not worth enduring in the name of weight loss. So I have decided to give this new fasting schedule one more week and if the migraines continue, I will move back to a more regular eating and fasting schedule.
Allergies and Asthma
Two things I had hoped would improve under the Whole 30 Challenge are persistent yet mild asthma symptoms and nearly ubiquitous allergies (itchy, watery eyes, some sinus issues, itchy throat). The asthma has greatly improved. Until the Whole 30 Challenge and throughout the entire winter I had daily symptoms and would use the inhaler sometimes a few times a day. Since Whole 30 I have used it at most once a day and have found that the symptoms are often not bad at all and will pass on their own without any treatment. The allergies, unfortunately, have not improved much.
Digestion
My digestive symptoms improved quite a bit but were nowhere near eliminated. I think this issue deserves a larger post, which I will do in the future. Suffice it to say that I think a complete correction of these problems will take a long time and a lot of effort.
Alcohol
This is the big one. The elephant in the room. I am typing this quite a long time after finishing the Whole 30 Challenge. Why did it take me so long to finish this post? Conflicted feelings and a need for complete honesty I suppose. After I finished the challenge, I decided to continue not drinking. It was easy not to drink at this point, as my cravings were no longer physical and I had a good number of days of feeling great under my belt. I made it to 41 days. I had two beers on a Friday night and then drank quite a bit that weekend. In the couple of weeks following, I drank only on the weekends. And at this point (about two months later), I am pretty much back to my prior levels of drinking, both in terms of amount and frequency. As with the digestive issues, this will require a post of its own, or perhaps even a new blog or a new focus. This is really the issue (duh!).
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