Second and third weeks have gone pretty well, overall. No epiphanies or wild bursts of energy, but I feel fairly stable and the cravings are less extreme. Still some funny food dreams now and then, like last night’s extended episode featuring Dr. Pepper and chocolate.

The biggest challenge for me has been the afternoons at school. I get the munchies big-time when I’m working at my desk. Not sure if its just something to ride out or if it means I’m missing some nutrient or something like that. Is there a “perfect snack” that would calm the cravings without exacerbating them? Or should the lunch mix be altered?

One thing I have been depending on is dates. We bought some tubs of Medjool dates from Costco and I used them to combat my cravings for other banned snacks. (If you’re a date-fan, these mongo dates are pretty spectacular.) Technically they are allowed on the Whole30 since they are a natural fruit, but they are sugar bombs—nature’s candy. This week I’ve been pulling back on them, culminating in a complete moratorium yesterday. My sense is that the dates were basically feeding the beast, maintaining a hunger for sugar. Possibly coincidentally, I felt deeply fatigued yesterday. By late afternoon I was wrecked, completely out of gas. Not sure if this was directly related to less sugar or if it was simply a result of a poor night’s sleep combined with a challenging day at school. We’ll see how today goes.