Good Morning, Sunshines! How was your weekend? I’m coming off a food coma. I knew that Monday was comin and along with it a new month and the start of a new Dietbet, so I may have over indulged. We didn’t get Payton any Candy for Easter, but we did end up having pancakes for breakfast and Ice Cream after dinner. That’s all in past now though – I’m starting my Whole30 Today!
I’ve been looking into this for awhile now. I was sent the book It Starts with Food
So what exactly is the Whole30? Here is a basic rundown from their blog:
Eat real food – 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.
There is a whole list of things NOT to eat that can be found here. I’m really looking forward to seeing some amazing results in my body composition, weight, and performance. My biggest hang up with this program is the not weighing yourself part. Since I’m doing this along side a dietbet I may check in on my weight a few times, but I will mostly be reporting on how I’m feeling and performing. I am going to make a few allowances for my Half-Marathon next week, I know my Clif Shot Blocks aren’t exactly Whole30 approved but it is all I am used to using for long running. Other than that I plan on staying on target. I want to see great results. I want to break out of this 189-194 weight range I’ve been in for the last few months. I want to get stronger. I’m ready to make it happen.
Have you done a Whole30? Any tips? Would you do it?
Are you joining our dietbet?! There’s still time!
imperfectly courtney 
You’re going to do great! I’d say the biggest thing is being prepared and just powering through the first week or so. It can get tough, mentally, but you will rock it!
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It hasn’t been too difficult yet (knock on wood). You don’t eat that different than this normally right? What was the thing you missed the most?
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I eat pretty much “paleo” but am NOT strict about it most of the time – right now, I simply can’t get enough calories/protein if I am super strict due to some heavy/higher volume lifting.
I definitely missed having chocolate at night and wine! I really missed wine haha.
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Ugh- finding the balance between eating to fuel performance and losing weight is SO hard. Do you think you can do them both?
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I do think it’s possible, it is just very difficult – especially if you are looking to make large strength gains.
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Good luck girlie! I’m gluten-friendly and partially paleo so not sure how this diet works if I’d have tried it, but know it can’t be bad for ya!
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Thanks Kat!
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Looking forward to hearing about the challenge! I really struggled on Whole30.. I wasn’t fueling properly and it messed with my head. And then you get brainwashed and can’t un-learn things from ISWF, so I became very judgmental..
Anyway, it’s an awesome experience that everyone should try at least once. And like Gabby says, preparing is SO important!
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Good luck with Whole30!! I eat a soy, dairy(mostly), grain and legume-free diet and feel amazing! I’ve done the 21 day sugar detox and I believe it’s similar to whole30. Just make sure to eat enough of these wholesome foods and always be prepared when you go out of the house so you don’t get stuck and potentially make a bad food choice. You are going to do great!
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Thank you! I’ve got to figure out some good on the go snacks, I guess nuts?
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Nuts are good but be careful not to get carried away with them. I also ate apples, nut butters, carrots, cherry tomatoes, grassfed jerky, stuff like that!
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oh cherry tomatoes! Great idea!
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Glad I could help 🙂 I think I’m going to go have some of those babies right now!
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Good luck!! I lasted about 2 weeks on Whole30. It just wasn’t for me. My body needed to carbs for running, lol.
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I can see that being hard. I have been mostly grain free for awhile (with extra treats here and there… a little too often) and I ahven’t seen it affect my performance at all in a negative way. Here’s to hoping I didn’t just jinx myself for my race on sunday!
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I am extremely impressed by your motivated outlook! I have been on a Paleo diet now for 21 days. A nutritionist friend recommended to take a supplement for calcium (daily). I have Hashimoto’s and I have noticed vast improvement in how I feel. I had blood work done on day 10 of the Paleo eating and my thyroid levels were perfect (hasn’t occurred once since I have been on synthroid). I wake up ready for the day after only 6 hours of sleep, my back & hips no longer hurts, I no longer need anything (coffee) for the “midday” slump. The first three days were hell (not gonna lie) but once I got to day 5, I no longer felt starving or the want for sugar. I feel like I have will power now. Good luck on your journey and I look forward to reading more from you!
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When I did strict Paleo back in june I saw my best thyroid levels ever and I lost the most weight that way too. I eat mostly paleo anyway, but wanted to clean it up for awhile to see what effects me the most.
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I wish girl!!! GOOD FOR YOU, because I can relate to the thyroid struggle! I was dx’d as HYPO 10 yrs ago…. Been following paleo to a T (minus 1 glass of red wine here and there) for the past 24 days now… I have seen minimal fat reduction and my acne is worse than ever, hair loss and exhaustion and muscle pain are still there… 😦 I am so glad you have found help. BEST OF LUCK TO ALL OF YOU!
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That sounds awesome! I will be looking forward to seeing your results, I kind of did something similar with the Advocare 10 day cleanse- it requires clean eating and no dairy products as well, I felt AMAZING and actually plan to try to eat that way from now on with a cheat meal a week for sanity sake!
Good luck to you! 🙂
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Oh I heard about advocare – thought about that too but I read the book It Starts With Food and it really made sense with my Hashimoto’s to try to eat this way anyway!
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I did a Paleo diet, which I believe is pretty similar to the Whole30 last year and lost 11 pounds. I felt so much better, but unfortunately have let grains and dairy creep back into my diet.
My advice is to plan/prep your meals! This was ultimately my undoing (and still is). Good luck to you, can’t wait to hear how you do!
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I eat mostly paleo anyway – but without guidelines I let myself have way too many “treats” – I’m looking forward to dropping weight and gaining strength!
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I did a Whole30 in January and have just started another one today, too.
For your running, make sure you are getting enough carbs in the way of sweetpotatoes and squash, especially. And you can use dried fruit while running such as raisins or dried crans instead of the sugary Shot Bloks.
I think for me, the 2 things that are most important are:
Planning and food prep to make sure you always have something on hand to eat
and
Reminding yourself often why you are doing this
I hope you have great results.
I love Whole30 and the paleo food plan in general. I blogged about my experience and lots of recipes, weekly, in January.
And check the #whole30 hashtag on twitter too for great ideas and links to recipes.
good luck
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Oh awesome!! We are going to do a blog link up on Monday to see how we all did the first week, so be sure to come back! Oh, great idea on the raisins – I hate to try it on race day but it may be my best option. Have you raced while on whole30?
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Definitely always be prepared! And don’t let people try to talk you into eating anything not compliant; for me, sometimes it was easier just to say I wasn’t hungry, or had just eaten, than to try to explain Whole30 or why I was doing it or why I didn’t want to eat ________. Anyway, it’s only 30 days and I look forward to reading your updates 🙂
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I’m already pretty good about my weird diet, so I’m not worried about saying no to anyone else… more to myself! ha. Gotta get better at planning!
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I did the Whole30 in February after reading It Starts With Food and while it was challenging, it was totally worth it. I saw how my body reacted to different foods (sweet potato, dairy, and grains make me bloat and have an upset stomach), my relationship with food completely changed for the better and I learned about when I was really full versus when I just wanted more food for whatever other reason. The first week or two is really hard (for me anyways) but the key is meal prep! You can’t find a lot of whole30 approved meals at restaurants so I couldn’t rely on going out for lunch if I happened to not meal plan. I plan on doing another whole30 if I ever need to reset my body again – LOVED it!
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So awesome to hear great stories about it! I’m doing good so far. I don’t mind winging meals for myself- but I feel bad not planning out “other” meals for the hubs and daughter. Tomorrow is my meal planning day so I’ll figure it out!
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I did a Whole30 a year ago. I LOVED my results and learned a lot about eating more to stay full. I’m actually thinking about starting one next week when I get back to my apt. I might try and start tomorrow – I’m visiting my brother and SIL so am a little stuck. Good luck! Can’t wait to hear how it goes! 🙂
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Did you blog about it? I’ll have to look it up. I’m hoping for some amazing results. Thats what I keep telling myself when I want chocolate!
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I love the idea of a link up! I can’t wait to follow along with you. How was your day one?! Mine was a little rough… I need to plan better! 🙂
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Let’s do it! What day? Mondays I guess since thats when we started? My day was good! I didn’t plan well either but still managed to do ok. Made a dinner tonight that was just ok. Blah. Gotta get into meal planning mode!
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Lindsay did a bunch of Whole 30 posts/recipes/recaps: http://fitandawesome.com/tag/whole30/
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THANK YOU! I’ve been winging it these first few days because i’ve been so busy I haven’t had time to sit down and plan. Tomorrow is the day!
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I’m doing a Whole30 in April also, it’s my fourth…I can’t seem to shake the sugar dragon 😦 Looking forward to reading about your Whole30 journey.
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I love the idea of this diet. Very natural. I think one of the biggest keys is being able to eat food that makes sense while avoiding all of the processed foods. Better body homeostasis and better energy. I’ll have to read the book. Sounds right up my alley.
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