Insights Into The Whole30 Gone Bad

How many blocks are in this stalk of celery?

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Before finding Paleo, I tried to Zone. I read Barry Sears’ book and responded to the information on insulin resistance. My husband printed out the Meal Plans Blocks Chart from the CrossFit Journal and we were all in.

After exactly three days, I quit.

Physically, I had the shakes, I was hungry, and I was exhausted.

Mentally, my head was spinning because this constant focus on macronutrients was new and a little annoying. I couldn’t figure out the exact right amount of blocks to eat and I didn’t know how to accurately assess my physical activity.

Emotionally, I was a mess. I was yelling at my son for messing up my blocks when he tried to grab a carrot off my plate. I weighed and measured everything precisely; he wasn’t going to screw it up. I was totally consumed by my perverted view of the Zone’s proper implementation. I had “complete control” over my food and I was determined to do it “right.” After 72 short hours, I dangerously close to reverting back to my eating disorder days.

I told my husband I was quitting immediately. I already felt myself going back to the old me, the one that would hide in the closet with a celery stalk, the one who felt guilty for eating so much, the one I hated so much.

I sort of felt like a loser. Lots of people could Zone, why not me? But I was also relieved. Given my history and obsession with “dieting perfectly,” the Zone was all wrong for me. For once in my life, I listened to my body.

Should I Quit Paleo?

Whole9's Insight into The Whole30 Gone Bad

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I wrote recently about Paleo being my version of a nutrient-dense eating disorder. These are murky waters that I’ve been navigating solo, feeling like there is limited support in a community of perfect eaters. Today, Whole9 brilliantly posted about what to do when healthy eating becomes unhealthy in The Whole30 Gone Bad.

I loved every piece of that article. For some time now, it’s been difficult for me to read anyone but Mark Sisson (who is a huge proponent of the 80/20 rule). It seemed like every other Paleo blogger (myself included) was touting Paleo as the only healthy way to eat. All ailments could be attributed to poor nutrition, so if my nutrition wasn’t spot on, it was all my fault. I’d received my just desserts. I don’t feel this way anymore (and consequently, I’m a lot more open to other nutrition plans), but it’s taken a lot of conscious effort to subdue that part of my personality and embark on a healing process.

This article is part of that healing process. After supplying a quiz to see if an eating intervention is necessary and providing a 5-step plan, Whole9 encourages each person to do what’s right for them: “The Whole30 program can be a valuable tool in your health and fitness arsenal, but it’s not for everyone.”

That simple statement makes me feel human and reminds me that they are human too. My experience has been normalized and it turns out that, perhaps, not all Paleo Rock Stars are robots.

So if your Paleo lifestyle has become a hot mess, I’d encourage you to check out the article and comments; you won’t find any PaleoBots there. We’re all human, and as it turns out, that’s okay.