Whole30 Food for Thought

Morning, ladies. So today's the day, the Whole30 recap day. If you're not interested in my Whole30 experience feel free to click the red X. I know this might not be everyone's cup of tea and hopefully nothing I says offends anyone or comes off preachy. But, I've had many of you ask questions about Whole30 and I figured I would answer everything in one post. Even if part of it is for me to remember everything, too.  Full disclosure: I am in no way licensed or certified in nutrition or fitness, everything in this post in my opinion unless otherwise sourced.

I started my Whole30 journey on February 23rd on a bit of a whim, but with a decent amount of research. I did not buy the book but found all of my information online at Whole30.com. I do plan to buy the book to dive into the nuts and bolts of why this style of diet works and to learn the science of how our bodies react on certain foods, but the book isn't necessary to attempt the program.

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First things first, a lil bit of a refresher on Whole30. The WHOLE point [haha] of this program is to get your body off the sugar dragon and off of bad cravings. Huuuuuuuuuge undertaking right!?!? But, if you consistently plan you will be okay. There will be days you crave something you aren't supposed to eat, but you'll get through it and by the end won't NEED that coke, cupcake or afternoon coffee. So, let's refresh the Whole30 rules.

"Yes: Eat real food.
Eat meat, seafood, eggs, tons of vegetables, some fruit, and plenty of good fats from fruits, oils, nuts and seeds. Eat foods with very few ingredients, all pronounceable ingredients, or better yet, no ingredients listed at all because they’re totally natural and unprocessed. Don’t worry… these guidelines are outlined in extensive detail in our free shopping list.

No: Avoid for 30 days.
More importantly, here’s what NOT to eat during the duration of your Whole30 program. Omitting all of these foods and beverages will help you regain your healthy metabolism, reduce systemic inflammation, and help you discover how these foods are truly impacting your health, fitness and quality of life.

• Do not consume added sugar of any kind, real or artificial. No maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, coconut sugar, Splenda, Equal, Nutrasweet, xylitol, stevia, etc. Read your labels, because companies sneak sugar into products in ways you might not recognize.
• Do not consume alcohol in any form, not even for cooking. (And it should go without saying, but no tobacco products of any sort, either.)
• Do not eat grains. This includes (but is not limited to) wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, rice, millet, bulgur, sorghum, amaranth, buckwheat, sprouted grains and all of those gluten-free pseudo-grains like quinoa. This also includes all the ways we add wheat, corn and rice into our foods in the form of bran, germ, starch and so on. Again, read your labels.
• Do not eat legumes. This includes beans of all kinds (black, red, pinto, navy, white, kidney, lima, fava, etc.), peas, chickpeas, lentils, and peanuts. No peanut butter, either. This also includes all forms of soy – soy sauce, miso, tofu, tempeh, edamame, and all the ways we sneak soy into foods (like lecithin).
• Do not eat dairy. This includes cow, goat or sheep’s milk products such as cream, cheese (hard or soft), kefir, yogurt (even Greek), and sour cream… with the exception of clarified butter or ghee. (See below for details.)
• Do not consume carrageenan, MSG or sulfites. If these ingredients appear in any form on the label of your processed food or beverage, it’s out for the Whole30.
• Do not try to re-create baked goods, junk foods, or treats* with “approved” ingredients. Continuing to eat your old, unhealthy foods made with Whole30 ingredients is totally missing the point, and will tank your results faster than you can say “Paleo Pop-Tarts.” Remember, these are the same foods that got you into health-trouble in the first place—and a pancake is still a pancake, regardless of the ingredients. " [source]

Again, I know it looks daunting and the no dairy and no alcohol were the hardest rules for me to follow. I love me some half and half in my coffee and who doesn't enjoy a glass of wine every now and then? I know I sure do! But, I substituted Thai Kitchen unsweetened coconut milk for my regular half and half and it worked out fine for me. I'm debating on not going back to half and half now that I'm done with Whole30, however I haven't fully decided what program I'm going to follow post Whole30. Honsetly, day 31 was pretty scary because the rigid rules were my crutch and now it's all on me if I choose to eat unhealthy. Luckily, I found this great article on life post Whole30 and am slowly finding my way with food choices.

So, let's talk about my results. I honestly hadn't planned to share my full results, because putting your weight out there on the Internet is a bit scary. Everyone has an opinion and they can say anything behind a computer screen, but you know what I'm gonna be brave today and share everything. One of the none-food rules of Whole30 is you aren't allowed to weigh yourself until you finish the program and man was it hard not to step on the scale. But I loved seeing the big drop in weight at the end instead of just a few elbees here and there.

As you can see, I lost seven pounds and a total of eight inches overall, which to me was a phenomenal result. I've been at a huge plateau for the past year and this was the kickstart I needed to get back to where I feel happy. NOW, this program is NOT designed as a weight loss program, but most people see a little bit of change in their bodies because they have cut out a big group of processed foods. Watching numbers decrease is amazing but even more amazing are the None Scale Victories [NSVs]. My NSVs were better sleep, healthier skin, lack of cravings, more energy and a better understanding of what good food can do for my body. Experiencing the 'tiger blood' was pretty epic, too!

You can do this, I promise. It won't be easy and there will be days it's not fun, but the finish line is worth every moment. I cannot describe the pride I experienced on day 31. I set a goal and accomplished it and y'all can too. Yes, the do not eat list is big but you can still eat really delicious food while on Whole30. I plan to continue to share more Whole30 recipes as I cook them, to show you clean eating is still yummy eating.

Fresh arugula, chicken, grapefruit salad; salmon with avocado-mango salsa and compliant dimsum stuffed mushrooms; sliders with sweet potato fries an green beens; cracklin chicken with zoodles and smashed cauliflower.

Here are a few of the recipes I have on my radar right now. Hopefully I'll have a few of them for you in the coming weeks. There are so many out there, I can't wait to try them.

Compliant Homemade Ranch dressing 

Not So Shepard's Pie

Crab Salad with Roasted Avocados

Everyone is different but here are my tips for completing Whole30:

Have someone to hold you accountable or to do the program with you. - I am 90% sure I would have failed if Le Husband hadn't participated in Whole30 with me. There are multiple people that I've seen finish the program without their spouse/significant other participating but that can make the program harder. I would suggest enlisting a trusted friend or family member as your go to when you're feeling weak or when you just want to complain. Having someone that knows what you are going through is immensely helpful. ***If you need someone, I'm here for you, promise***

Prep, prep, prep, and plan, plan, plan. - Failing to plan is planning to fail. Even when you are tired and just want to go to sleep, drag your butt to the kitchen and make your lunch for the next day. Failing to prep breeds feeling overwhelmed when it's time to eat and increases your chances to cheat. Eating out on the road is tough, but if you look at the menu and talk with your server you can easily find compliant food.

Believe in yourself and reach for carrots/fruit when you feel down. - Even though snacking is 'discouraged' if you're hungry eating a bag of carrots or a banana will NOT derail your success. Eating whole foods is better than reaching for something isn't compliant, so just eat the snack.

DON'T QUIT! - No matter HOW tough it feels, no matter how many people say 'just give in' DON'T DO IT! The high feeling at the end of the program is worth every single lil doubt and missed 'meal'.  You will learn so much about your body and will feel soooooo fulfilled when it's all said and done.

So there you have it, my Whole30 experience in a nutshell. I tried to cover all of the quetsions I received but if I didn't please do not hesitate to email me or leave your question in a comment. I am a huge proponent of this program and would love to help you succeed. #wholefoods #youcandoit

Ps.com: Most of this post was written last week, but I did some finally editing on Monday. I also decided to try the Starbucks Birthday Frappucinno yesterday because it sounded pretty amazing. Well, I was only able to get halfway through a tall before I was hit with a huge headache and a slight tummy ache because of the sugar bomb. I couldn't even finish it because I felt soooo off and the drink started to taste fake. I used to be able to drink these things like water and now they don't even taste good. Talk about a tastebud reawakening.

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