It Starts With Food

I borrowed the title of this post from a New York Times best selling book of the same name by Dallas & Melissa Hartwig. It Starts With Food describes the eating plan known as the "Whole 30." It is a 30 day strict Paleo diet that is meant to be a "nutritional reset."

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In a nut shell, the Whole 30 can easily be described by this little graphic: 

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Oh, and the biggest thing:

My husband & I completed the Whole 30 challenge in July. Here are the questions we had before we started along with my honest answers. I wish I had had an honest resource like this before starting...so, if you are here because you are thinking about doing a Whole 30... you're welcome. 

*Disclaimer: Please know that I think the book It Starts With Food is an awesome (the best) resource and you should defiantly check out the website that goes along with the book before undertaking such a drastic change in lifestyle. It explains all of  the reasoning & science behind the rules. The following advice/answers to common questions are from MY personal experience.

Was it hard? Yes. 
The Whole 30 isn't something you just take on lightly. It requires first and foremost, the right mindset. You need to go into this committed to not cheating, sticking with it for 30 days, and knowing it may not be easy. It also requires careful menu planning, grocery shopping, food preparation, portion control, and if you are like me...budget planning. 

Why budget planning? This program does not allow the "cheaper" filling food such as whole grain pasta, brown rice, quinoa, etc. I'm not going to lie and say eating only fresh vegetables, fruit, eggs, & meat is a cost effective plan for a growing family. For us, this way of eating costs at least 50% more than our normal grocery budget.

Did we hate it? Sometimes. 

Here is a very accurate timeline of the ups & downs you will feel while on the Whole 30. Go ahead and read it...

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Now that you have read the timeline &  have an idea of why we sometimes hated this challenge, I have one word for you: patience. 

Have patience with yourself, patience with your spouse (if they are doing it, they are most likely feeling the same way as you!), and patience with the process...this is not an overnight change.

What did we eat? A lot of delicious REAL foods & a TON of veggies. 

We learned to LOVE vegetables.A plate full of raw veggies at breakfast alongside some eggs was something I actually looked forward to, seriously!  Pinterest was a great resource (be careful though, a lot of things are pinned as "whole 30" then upon further inspection they are not!), a blog called clothesmakethegirl has amazing recipes (she also has 2 cookbooks out), and then there were days we kept it basic & simple...no fancy recipes just a portioned piece of grilled meat & a plate full of vegetables. 

Did you cheat? No, but kind of. 

What does that mean? Well, we kept with the rules 100% except we had pureed frozen bananas with cinnamon & almonds on top maybe once a week as a late night snack. For us, we did not feel we were cheating ourselves by having this. Let me explain: 

Part of the rules of the Whole 30, is not to create "off limit" foods with "allowed" foods...they call this "SWYPO" (...Sex With Your Pants On...read the book for a further description of the rule.) In our case, what we were consuming would be considered "Banana Ice Cream." It totally wasn't that for us...it was fruit in a different form. It didn't mess with our heads or make us think we were having a "treat." If either of us were addicted to ice cream before we had started the Whole 30, and were using this snack to replace an off limit food it would have then been a problem. 

Did you see results? Yes! 

I personally lost, 15 pounds and 4.5 inches around my waist. I also cut my daily diet coke habit completely, which was huge! 

Did you stick with it after the 30 days were over? Nope, I basically fell of the wagon & was run over by the truck towing said wagon. 

This past year has been insane. I haven't slept through the night once since the baby was born, we have 3 kids, I'm still nursing the youngest, I have so many household responsibilities...I could go on & on. 

But the hard truth is this: 

I didn't stick to this way of life because I didn't respect myself or the sacrifices I made during the Whole 30. .I let "life" get in the way, I allowed the "easy way out" to win...even though I saw the results I wanted & felt the benefits that came from taking care of myself.

It had nothing to do with feeling deprived, not liking to food, or not being able to afford it. 

I didn't (don't?) value myself enough to stick with it & get the long term results I KNOW this program can deliver!

So long story short, about 5 days after our Whole 30 ended we ordered a pizza & bought a bottle of wine....fast forward 4ish months later & I have gained back the weight plus an extra 2 pounds. (hey, I told you this was going to be an honest resource...) 

 Okay, with all that info, I'm ready to publicly announce that I'm starting the Whole 30 lifestyle on December 30th. 

((Notice I didn't say "I'm starting another Whole 30"? That was intentional. I'm not setting a limit on this next "Whole 30"...it could be a "Whole 45" or a "Whole 108"...I'm honestly not sure!))

I'm back at square-one (+2) & I am blogging about all of this to invite you to re-start this journey with me. 

What's in it for you if you join me?? Well, three things...

First:: You are giving yourself the gift of self-care, which I have recently learned is so important. For most of us so many issues in our health, our hormones, and our emotions are in directly related to our diet. It truly does, in my opinion, Start With Food.

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Second:: I'm personally planning out 30 days of family friendly Whole 30 compliant meals for you. You read that right...I will have seven "dinner" meals, along with breakfast & lunch ideas, including a shopping list,  posted once week in advance. These meals will also have suggestions of simple side dishes for those who are not on the Whole 30. 

Third:: I will be blogging about my experience as an encouragement to you! Every Saturday you will get an honest recap including the physical, emotional, & spiritual aspects of my week...along with tips & bonus recipes to get the most out of your own Whole 30! If I get brave I may even try to video blog these updates! 

And I know you may be thinking, "Wait... she wants me to start BEFORE the New Year?"

 The simple answer is yes. 

I will tell you why tomorrow...