If you're just joining me, I've already posted my Week #1, Week #2, and Week #3 daily journals while completing my first Whole30. I'm starting to reap some of the benefits, and the end is so close I can taste it! (Is that chocolate I taste? haha)
DAY #22:
I'm kind of tired today, maybe because I only had a little coffee with my breakfast this morning. I made egg, sausage, and pepper "muffins" (see photo with recipe in my previous post) last night so I could easily reheat them in the microwave each morning. It makes getting ready in the morning easier, but I do find it doesn't keep me quite as full as sausage & eggs does. You'll need to eat at least 2-3 or add a piece of fruit or something with it to hold you over until lunch. As I mentioned in a previous post, I also started cooking my sausages at the beginning of the week so they are easy to reheat in the morning as well. I'm trying to decide what breakfast after the Whole30 will be like. That change alone has been one of my favorite benefits of the program. I no longer grab a quick muffin or piece of toast as I'm running out the door; instead, I sit down with my breakfast and cup of coffee and start my day off right! (It helps that I have increased energy levels in the morning so getting out of bed is easy!).
Tonight's supper was the best recipe thus far. I will add this to my regular rotation of meals for sure! I made Romesco Garlic Shrimp with Zucchini Noodles. The sauce takes some time to prepare, so I made that last night when I had more time to let it simmer and then just reheated it on my stovetop while my zucchini noodles (zoodles) were steaming. The garlicky, nutty flavor in the sauce was the perfect addition to the shrimp and zoodles. Honestly, if you don't make any other Whole30 recipe, at least try this one. You won't be disappointed.
DAY #23:
I had a headache for most of the morning today, but it went away as I was eating my lunch so I'm not sure what that was about. Supper tonight was Cilantro Lime Chicken, mashed cauliflower, and asparagus with olive oil, garlic powder and salt/pepper. My recipe for the chicken was one I had made prior to Whole30, and didn't need much for modifications. I make mine with boneless, skinless chicken breasts, and it can be made in the crockpot, which I love! This is one of my go-to meals for freezing. I buy enough ingredients for several meals and then just pour them into gallon ziplock bags and freeze for up to 3 months. Then, when I'm ready to make them again, I just throw it all into the crockpot on low while I'm at work. Ta da! Supper in no time at all!
I've been enjoying almonds for snacks and fruit when I want something sweet. I never thought I'd be able to truly appreciate the natural sweetness in fruit! A cup of hot tea at night helps me to unwind and keeps me from wanting to graze after supper (the hardest time for most people is between supper and bedtime).
DAY #24:
I woke up with some digestive issues again. Hopefully it's just my body's way of processing food differently. I ate way too much for supper- leftover roasted chicken, sweet potato, grapes, and a hard-boiled egg, and I was way too full when finished. I do eat very quickly and I'm trying to work on chewing my food slowly and savoring every bite. I still have a lot of energy and feel good. Clear mind = happy me.
DAY #25:
Today was parent-teacher conference day so 12 1/2 hours was spent at work. They had chocolate chip cookies available, and many teachers ordered in tacos for supper. I brought leftovers and survived without the cookies. I am starting to surprise myself with the willpower I've found! However, after the whole30 I won't be able to blame the program for why I can't eat certain foods. I better work on a plan.
DAY #26:
I finally went out after work for drinks and watched my co-workers have some beers while sipping on my lemon water. It actually wasn't too hard, except that I knew I only had four days left so if I hadn't read the book and forums thoroughly and prepared myself for this day, I most likely would've thought "I'm close enough to 30" and given in. I'm so glad I didn't.
We went to a friend's house for game night and there were delicious-looking cupcakes and peanut butter treats. Very tempting. Sparkling water is becoming more and more tasty to me, and I'll bet pop will taste too sweet after my Whole30. I still have slight digestive issues but I feel amazing and I'm so happy!
DAY #27:
I'm ready to be done. I'm tired of having to plan meals so thoroughly and spend so much money on groceries each week. I want to skip right to the reintroduction phase so I can see what foods are my problem foods!
DAY #28:
I'm really starting to enjoy cooking for my family! I was always a baker at heart, but now my time in the kitchen is mostly spent on preparing homemade, great food for my family and that is exciting. I bought another pork shoulder (buying in bulk allows me to spend only about $1.75/lb vs. $2-$3/lb) and ground my own sausage. I found a recipe online for spices to add, and this is what I've been making into sausage patties for breakfast each morning. I make a bunch of patties and then freeze them in ziplock bags. Then, I just pull a bag out on the weekend and put it in the fridge to make throughout the week. This time, I kept some of the pork shoulder and made a rub. I added the rub to the piece of meat and it's sitting in my fridge to throw into the crockpot tomorrow morning so we can have pulled pork for supper. Tonight's supper? Basil Porkchops, roasted vegetables, and diced russet potatoes with herbs similar to a dry ranch seasoning mix.
Today I also felt confident enough to get my back of sweets and non-compliant foods back from my parents' house. I'm spending some quality time deciding what I want to do with my life after whole30.
DAY #29:
I'm almost there! I can feel the benefits of the Whole30- my skin is clear, my energy is high, and my dress pants are starting to hang off my body. Although I didn't go into this program to necessarily lose weight, I do think I lost a few pounds and for sure a dress pants size.
DAY #30:
I made it! I did it! I went 30 days straight with no gluten, soy, dairy, alcohol, or refined sugar. No slips, no cheats, and no special occasions. I will follow up with all of my "takeaways" in my next post. I'm ready for #lifeafterwhole30!
God's Blessings,
A Good Food Fanatic
Showing posts with label week 1. Show all posts
Showing posts with label week 1. Show all posts
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Week #1 of Whole30
If you're thinking about doing your own Whole30 and want to know what to expect, I've laid out a synopsis of what I ate and how I felt. If you haven't read my previous two posts, you can check out Whole30:What and Why and Preparing for Your First Whole30. Obviously, your results may be different, but like many others that have done the Whole30, my timeline was similar to what the book describes.
Weekly Preparations
My schedule allowed me to do my grocery shopping on Saturdays and some preparation for the week on Sundays. If you want to open up some time during the week, I would suggest preparing all of your lunches for the week at one time (for me, this was salads each day with different toppings to mix things up). I purchased these #MyLeftovers storage containers off Amazon, and I loved them! They held the perfect amount of salad for my lunches, they stacked well in my fridge, and they were dishwasher safe (and lined up neatly in my dishwasher as well!).
Each week, I also hard-boiled eggs to have on hand for snacks or to put on my salad lunches, and I baked several chicken breasts to add to my salads. To cut down on time spent preparing breakfast, I cooked sausage patties or made breakfast "muffins" similar to this recipe (omit cheese) to have on hand each morning. This way I could just pop them in the microwave for 30 seconds and I was ready to eat!
DAY #1:
It's my first day of doing the Whole30 and I'm feeling good, but really lacking energy. Temptation wasn't too bad- I easily passed on some cookies that were sitting in the teachers' lounge. I really craved sweets after lunch, but distracted myself with work instead. I also found that putting a slice of lemon in my water tastes great and makes me drink a lot more water throughout the day.
I found out I don't care for cooked spinach because the Spinach Frittata I made last night did not taste appetizing this morning. (A few weeks later I tried a frittata recipe similar to this one with just sausage, eggs, green pepper, and mushrooms and loved it!) My salad for lunch consisted of chopped romaine with chicken breast strips, a hard-boiled egg, and homemade vinaigrette dressing.
Note: After trying many different dressing combinations, I found my favorites were the Herb Citrus Vinaigrette and Homemade Ranch.
Supper was stuffed peppers. My whole family loved the meat mixture, but the kids didn't eat the actual pepper. I ended up chopping up their uneaten peppers and adding them to my scrambled eggs the next day. The sweet cravings were so unbearable after supper, I ended up eating a small container of unsweetened applesauce. I understood I wasn't going to break bad habits by substituting, but I had to start somewhere!
I have just the slightest headache, but not too bad. My "hunger" is really just my sweet tooth craving something to satisfy me. This is the hold that my sugar dragon has on me...
DAY #2:
Scrambled eggs with peppers and sausage patties made a fulfilling, delicious breakfast this morning. {You'll see later that this ended up being almost a staple for me, and I actually didn't get too bored with it}. Lunch was a spring mix/spinach greens with strawberries and chopped chicken breast. Supper was one of my favorites: Roasted Chicken, Roasted Vegetables (cut up squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, etc. drizzled with olive oil and kosher or sea salt and baked at 400 degrees for almost an hour or until tender), and a salad of mixed greens. My seven-year-old daughter said, "Mom, this eating healthy is yummy!" and I couldn't agree more.
Surprisingly, I felt good today. I was a tiny bit irritable at times, but that's not unusual. :) I ended the day with a cup of chamomile tea, which helped with the sweet cravings after supper. I knew that giving in to something like applesauce was going to be bad news for me. I think I could get used to having a cup of tea at night instead of dessert. Did I just say that??
At work today I couldn't stop thinking about sweets, and I had a hand full of almonds mid-afternoon, not because I was hungry but just because I couldn't stop thinking about food! Hopefully by the end I can retrain my brain and tame that sugar dragon!
DAY #3:
Still feeling good today! In fact, I keep thinking I'm going to wake up feeling miserable so every day that I don't is a blessing! Supper was Porkchops and Applesauce- yum! (Is it just me, or do you think about Brady Bunch every time you hear that combination?)
DAY #4:
I made it past my biggest temptation yet! I went out for supper with a group of friends and watched them enjoy bacon cheeseburgers, fries, and beer. This wasn't exactly a "fancy restaurant" (in fact, it was a small-town bar) so I went with sirloin steak and a plain baked potato. It came with a salad, but they had no olive oil or any compliant dressing so I had to eat it plain- gross! I brought along my one LaCroix sparkling water (highly recommend these- in fact, I may never drink a soda again!) and treated myself to a Larabar. I really enjoyed the sweet taste, and realized these could be dangerous for me. Note to self: limit these to special occasions only.
DAY #5:
My husband and I are both very irritable. (He has not read any of the books but is doing the Whole30 with me as my "support". Spoiler alert: hubby quits on day 7). We both have colds coming on, so that's not helping our moods. We had sweet potato and chicken hash for supper and loved it! I'll have leftovers with eggs for breakfast!
DAY #6:
I woke up with a headache this morning. I made fresh mushroom and sausage omelets and didn't even miss the cheese I would normally put in! Today we were out of town for lunch so I had to find a compliant option at a restaurant. I came up with HuHot- a perfect decision! If you've never eaten there, it's a place where you fill a plate with meat, seafood, and vegetables, then add your sauce and they cook it in front of you. I chose lots of beef, chicken, some crab, a ton of veggies (broccoli, red potatoes, some sugar snap peas) and then added just a bit of sesame oil for my sauce. I didn't feel like I was missing out on what everyone around me was having (we just passed on the white rice they normally bring to your table). I think the hardest part of doing the Whole30 is finding dine-out options. I have a whole new appreciation for anyone who has food allergies.
DAY #7:
Today I sat through my first bible class without sweets. We normally have some kind of sweet treat or carb option on Sunday mornings, along with coffee. I stuck with just coffee and had to explain my new "diet" to my extended family. My daughter came out from Sunday School with ice cream and lots of delicious toppings, and I really wanted something sweet! Today I mostly crave peanut butter, cheese, and of course, chocolate! I want monster cookies like you wouldn't believe. I started reading It Starts With Food and this has helped me learn more about what makes us crave these foods and what foods are most nutritious.
Breakfast consisted of leftovers with eggs and lunch was Sweet Potato Soup and sauteed kale with sunflower seeds. For supper we had Spaghetti Squash with Tomato Sauce and Hamburger. For being a huge pasta lover, I didn't even miss the real noodles!
My husband quit the Whole30 today (ok, he prefers I don't use the word "quit" so I'm going to say "failed" but really he's already learned a lot that he plans to continue so I wouldn't say that's a failure). I was 100% devoted to my decision to complete the Whole30 and really took my time preparing and listing goals for myself. He did not read the books and I think this was part of the reason he did not succeed this time around. Note: he does continue to eat compliant lunches and suppers with me, but might have a snack or bowl of cereal for breakfast from here on out. I'm still proud of him for making it 7 days and as of today (about two months after beginning the Whole30), he has yet to have a Mountain Dew. He used to have one daily, and that is a win in and of itself! FACT: The Whole30 authors say that it's 34% harder for soda drinkers to complete the Whole30.
Looking forward to my next post for Week #2!
God's Blessings,
A Good Food Fanatic
Weekly Preparations
My schedule allowed me to do my grocery shopping on Saturdays and some preparation for the week on Sundays. If you want to open up some time during the week, I would suggest preparing all of your lunches for the week at one time (for me, this was salads each day with different toppings to mix things up). I purchased these #MyLeftovers storage containers off Amazon, and I loved them! They held the perfect amount of salad for my lunches, they stacked well in my fridge, and they were dishwasher safe (and lined up neatly in my dishwasher as well!).
DAY #1:
It's my first day of doing the Whole30 and I'm feeling good, but really lacking energy. Temptation wasn't too bad- I easily passed on some cookies that were sitting in the teachers' lounge. I really craved sweets after lunch, but distracted myself with work instead. I also found that putting a slice of lemon in my water tastes great and makes me drink a lot more water throughout the day.
I found out I don't care for cooked spinach because the Spinach Frittata I made last night did not taste appetizing this morning. (A few weeks later I tried a frittata recipe similar to this one with just sausage, eggs, green pepper, and mushrooms and loved it!) My salad for lunch consisted of chopped romaine with chicken breast strips, a hard-boiled egg, and homemade vinaigrette dressing.
Note: After trying many different dressing combinations, I found my favorites were the Herb Citrus Vinaigrette and Homemade Ranch.
Supper was stuffed peppers. My whole family loved the meat mixture, but the kids didn't eat the actual pepper. I ended up chopping up their uneaten peppers and adding them to my scrambled eggs the next day. The sweet cravings were so unbearable after supper, I ended up eating a small container of unsweetened applesauce. I understood I wasn't going to break bad habits by substituting, but I had to start somewhere!
I have just the slightest headache, but not too bad. My "hunger" is really just my sweet tooth craving something to satisfy me. This is the hold that my sugar dragon has on me...
DAY #2:
Scrambled eggs with peppers and sausage patties made a fulfilling, delicious breakfast this morning. {You'll see later that this ended up being almost a staple for me, and I actually didn't get too bored with it}. Lunch was a spring mix/spinach greens with strawberries and chopped chicken breast. Supper was one of my favorites: Roasted Chicken, Roasted Vegetables (cut up squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, etc. drizzled with olive oil and kosher or sea salt and baked at 400 degrees for almost an hour or until tender), and a salad of mixed greens. My seven-year-old daughter said, "Mom, this eating healthy is yummy!" and I couldn't agree more.
Surprisingly, I felt good today. I was a tiny bit irritable at times, but that's not unusual. :) I ended the day with a cup of chamomile tea, which helped with the sweet cravings after supper. I knew that giving in to something like applesauce was going to be bad news for me. I think I could get used to having a cup of tea at night instead of dessert. Did I just say that??
At work today I couldn't stop thinking about sweets, and I had a hand full of almonds mid-afternoon, not because I was hungry but just because I couldn't stop thinking about food! Hopefully by the end I can retrain my brain and tame that sugar dragon!
DAY #3:
Still feeling good today! In fact, I keep thinking I'm going to wake up feeling miserable so every day that I don't is a blessing! Supper was Porkchops and Applesauce- yum! (Is it just me, or do you think about Brady Bunch every time you hear that combination?)
DAY #4:
I made it past my biggest temptation yet! I went out for supper with a group of friends and watched them enjoy bacon cheeseburgers, fries, and beer. This wasn't exactly a "fancy restaurant" (in fact, it was a small-town bar) so I went with sirloin steak and a plain baked potato. It came with a salad, but they had no olive oil or any compliant dressing so I had to eat it plain- gross! I brought along my one LaCroix sparkling water (highly recommend these- in fact, I may never drink a soda again!) and treated myself to a Larabar. I really enjoyed the sweet taste, and realized these could be dangerous for me. Note to self: limit these to special occasions only.
DAY #5:
My husband and I are both very irritable. (He has not read any of the books but is doing the Whole30 with me as my "support". Spoiler alert: hubby quits on day 7). We both have colds coming on, so that's not helping our moods. We had sweet potato and chicken hash for supper and loved it! I'll have leftovers with eggs for breakfast!
DAY #6:
I woke up with a headache this morning. I made fresh mushroom and sausage omelets and didn't even miss the cheese I would normally put in! Today we were out of town for lunch so I had to find a compliant option at a restaurant. I came up with HuHot- a perfect decision! If you've never eaten there, it's a place where you fill a plate with meat, seafood, and vegetables, then add your sauce and they cook it in front of you. I chose lots of beef, chicken, some crab, a ton of veggies (broccoli, red potatoes, some sugar snap peas) and then added just a bit of sesame oil for my sauce. I didn't feel like I was missing out on what everyone around me was having (we just passed on the white rice they normally bring to your table). I think the hardest part of doing the Whole30 is finding dine-out options. I have a whole new appreciation for anyone who has food allergies.
DAY #7:
Today I sat through my first bible class without sweets. We normally have some kind of sweet treat or carb option on Sunday mornings, along with coffee. I stuck with just coffee and had to explain my new "diet" to my extended family. My daughter came out from Sunday School with ice cream and lots of delicious toppings, and I really wanted something sweet! Today I mostly crave peanut butter, cheese, and of course, chocolate! I want monster cookies like you wouldn't believe. I started reading It Starts With Food and this has helped me learn more about what makes us crave these foods and what foods are most nutritious.
Breakfast consisted of leftovers with eggs and lunch was Sweet Potato Soup and sauteed kale with sunflower seeds. For supper we had Spaghetti Squash with Tomato Sauce and Hamburger. For being a huge pasta lover, I didn't even miss the real noodles!
My husband quit the Whole30 today (ok, he prefers I don't use the word "quit" so I'm going to say "failed" but really he's already learned a lot that he plans to continue so I wouldn't say that's a failure). I was 100% devoted to my decision to complete the Whole30 and really took my time preparing and listing goals for myself. He did not read the books and I think this was part of the reason he did not succeed this time around. Note: he does continue to eat compliant lunches and suppers with me, but might have a snack or bowl of cereal for breakfast from here on out. I'm still proud of him for making it 7 days and as of today (about two months after beginning the Whole30), he has yet to have a Mountain Dew. He used to have one daily, and that is a win in and of itself! FACT: The Whole30 authors say that it's 34% harder for soda drinkers to complete the Whole30.
Looking forward to my next post for Week #2!
God's Blessings,
A Good Food Fanatic
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Preparing For Your First Whole30
My previous post explained the Whole30 program and why a "skinny" girl would choose to go on a diet. If you haven't read about my decision yet, click here and come back when finished! This post will walk you through the steps I took to prepare for my first Whole30. If you're going to develop new habits, you really have to plan ahead. I found this helped remove unwanted stress, and helped me to stay committed to the decision I had made. Hopefully you find some helpful hints as well!
Day -2: Clear your pantry/freezer/fridge of anything that might tempt you to stray from your commitment. For me, this process included bagging up all of my bags of chocolate chips, frosting, and cake mixes and storing them at my parents' house, 15 miles away. The fact that I could fill an entire bag with all the junk laying around my house is a good indication of my "sweet tooth" problem. There were also some foods that I knew weren't compliant, but I wanted to keep around for my kids so I put them in our storage space in the basement so they weren't staring me in the face, yet were readily available for quick meals like Macaroni & Cheese. I know the Whole30 is supposed to be just as great for kids, but I wasn't about to change their habits on top of my own, especially since they eat school lunches. My kids and husband did eat the same supper as me most nights, since I was only cooking one meal and most were delicious! I never thought I would say this, but pouring that "fake cheese" into that pot about two weeks into my Whole30 made me really rethink my kids' food choices as well.
Day -1: Do your grocery shopping and start prepping anything you can make ahead of time. This might include making your own homemade sauces & salad dressing (I would recommend the basic mayo recipe and homemade ranch, homemade ketchup, and any of the vinaigrette recipes from the book if you plan on having salads for lunch like I did most days). If you did not purchase ghee or clarified butter from the grocery store, you will want to make your own. If you don't mind spending some extra time in the kitchen you may want to consider making some freezer meals. The extra time saved during the week is well worth the time spent preparing on the weekends. We also ventured out and ground our own pork sausage because the thought of just eggs each morning made me unhappy. I was able to add my own spices and make up patties that were ready for breakfast each morning. After a few weeks of this, I got smart and started cooking the patties ahead of time and just warming them in a pan or microwave the next morning to cut down my time spent making breakfast before work!
Day 0 (tomorrow is the big day!): Take measurements of your waist, hip, and thighs. Take pictures, including front, profile, and back. After weighing yourself, add the number to your measurements list and then pack away that scale! You can also use this time to look through your meal plan for the week and mark down any preparations you want to make ahead of time. For example, if I am planning on having something with ground beef on Wednesday, I will want to add "Thaw one pound hamburger in fridge" on my Tuesday agenda. I found that there were some sauces and other items I could make after supper to prepare for the next day's meal. You can also sign up for the free Whole30 newsletter!
Now, sit back and relax. The next thirty days is going to fly by!
God's Blessings,
A Good Food Fanatic
Give Yourself Time
If you've just learned about the Whole30 program, please take my advice and don't dive head-first in and start that same day. Or even the next day. You owe it to yourself to become educated on why you're making such a drastic lifestyle change, and you are much more likely to stay compliant if you do your research ahead of time and carefully plan out at least the first few days/weeks.
I learned about the program in late December, but didn't start until the beginning of February. This gave me time to read the books, prepare my body/mind, clean out the pantry, and check my calendar for a 30-day time slot with the least interruptions. In fact, this may be the hardest part- finding thirty consecutive days to commit to healthy eating with no cheats, slips or special occasions. It's highly unlikely you will find an entire month where you don't have at least one birthday party, work event, or weekend getaway planned. So just do your best to find one that you know you can work with.
As I previously mentioned, reading the Whole30 Book, in my opinion, is vital to your success. You're going to be faced with temptations, and this book helps you think through how you will deal with these when they happen. Unless you're a hermit, you will also want to think through how you will handle questions and comments from co-workers, friends, and family when you start changing some of your food habits. It's unrealistic, at least it was for me, to think that you will be able to go thirty days without anyone noticing the changes you've made. But I welcomed respectful conversations about what I was doing. I saw this as an opportunity to educate others (without judgement of course), and I also figured the more people that I had confided in, the more people that would know if I decided to cheat. I wasn't going to let 10 close friends and family think I was a failure!
The Final Countdown
In addition to reading the book, here's my to-do list leading up to Day 1. I'll label the day before I started the program Day 0, and each day before that -1, -2, etc. You obviously don't have to do these in the same order as I did; in fact, you may not even choose to do all of these. But by reading through my list, it may spark something you hadn't previously thought of.
At least a week before: Mark your calendar for Day #1. Start prepping your family/friends/co-workers, or whoever you think you need support from. If you are taking any medications, you will want to talk with a doctor about beginning the Whole30 and how your diet may affect your health condition.
Day -7: If you haven't finished reading the Whole30 book, do so in the next couple of days. You'll want that information when you start trying to remember why you did this to yourself.
Day -6: Look through your refrigerator and pantry to see what (non-compliant) foods you may want eat up over the next few days. For me, this included yogurt, my favorite dark chocolate I had stashed in my drawer, and some wine/beer that I didn't want tempting me. Because, let's be honest, sometimes wine just screams "Drink a glass of me!" after a long day at work. :)
Day -5: Spend some time looking through the Whole30 forum and educating yourself on what to expect. Start looking through recipes to find what you will want the first few days. The book has a meal template for the first week and step-by-step instructions for preparing the first week of meals. If you're not comfortable in the kitchen, this is a perfect starting point. Eventually, you'll get the hang of this "cooking stuff" and you might even enjoy it! I also plan on posting about my experiences as well, so feel free to look through these for more ideas on what you have to look forward to!
Day -4: Check local grocery store ads to see what deals might save you some money as you stock your fridge/pantry in preparation for your first Whole30. The first time you spend money on some "whole30 staples", you might be surprised at your bill. I happened to have a 10% off my entire grocery bill coupon I had been saving up so I was able to save about $20 on my groceries. Meat is probably the most expensive, so any chance you have to buy in bulk (this might mean SAMs or Costco, or if you're lucky like we are, my husband's uncle raises cattle so we buy a quarter or half cow at once and always have beef in our freezer).
Day -3: Make your final grocery list. This might include spices, seasonings, pantry items, etc. that you know you will use over the next thirty days and beyond, along with some fresh foods (meats, dairy, fruits, vegetables) that you will use over the first week or two. You really don't want to buy too far ahead of time for those fresh foods, or you'll end up wasting money on expensive food that spoils before you use it. I planned only a week out for the first two weeks (hitting up the grocery store on Saturdays and cooking on Sundays), and then eventually was able to just buy a few salads, fruits, and vegetables once I got the hang of cooking whole30 dishes. Looking through this resource might help you decide what you will add to your grocery list.
At least a week before: Mark your calendar for Day #1. Start prepping your family/friends/co-workers, or whoever you think you need support from. If you are taking any medications, you will want to talk with a doctor about beginning the Whole30 and how your diet may affect your health condition.
Day -7: If you haven't finished reading the Whole30 book, do so in the next couple of days. You'll want that information when you start trying to remember why you did this to yourself.
Day -6: Look through your refrigerator and pantry to see what (non-compliant) foods you may want eat up over the next few days. For me, this included yogurt, my favorite dark chocolate I had stashed in my drawer, and some wine/beer that I didn't want tempting me. Because, let's be honest, sometimes wine just screams "Drink a glass of me!" after a long day at work. :)
Day -5: Spend some time looking through the Whole30 forum and educating yourself on what to expect. Start looking through recipes to find what you will want the first few days. The book has a meal template for the first week and step-by-step instructions for preparing the first week of meals. If you're not comfortable in the kitchen, this is a perfect starting point. Eventually, you'll get the hang of this "cooking stuff" and you might even enjoy it! I also plan on posting about my experiences as well, so feel free to look through these for more ideas on what you have to look forward to!
Day -4: Check local grocery store ads to see what deals might save you some money as you stock your fridge/pantry in preparation for your first Whole30. The first time you spend money on some "whole30 staples", you might be surprised at your bill. I happened to have a 10% off my entire grocery bill coupon I had been saving up so I was able to save about $20 on my groceries. Meat is probably the most expensive, so any chance you have to buy in bulk (this might mean SAMs or Costco, or if you're lucky like we are, my husband's uncle raises cattle so we buy a quarter or half cow at once and always have beef in our freezer).
Day -3: Make your final grocery list. This might include spices, seasonings, pantry items, etc. that you know you will use over the next thirty days and beyond, along with some fresh foods (meats, dairy, fruits, vegetables) that you will use over the first week or two. You really don't want to buy too far ahead of time for those fresh foods, or you'll end up wasting money on expensive food that spoils before you use it. I planned only a week out for the first two weeks (hitting up the grocery store on Saturdays and cooking on Sundays), and then eventually was able to just buy a few salads, fruits, and vegetables once I got the hang of cooking whole30 dishes. Looking through this resource might help you decide what you will add to your grocery list.
Day -2: Clear your pantry/freezer/fridge of anything that might tempt you to stray from your commitment. For me, this process included bagging up all of my bags of chocolate chips, frosting, and cake mixes and storing them at my parents' house, 15 miles away. The fact that I could fill an entire bag with all the junk laying around my house is a good indication of my "sweet tooth" problem. There were also some foods that I knew weren't compliant, but I wanted to keep around for my kids so I put them in our storage space in the basement so they weren't staring me in the face, yet were readily available for quick meals like Macaroni & Cheese. I know the Whole30 is supposed to be just as great for kids, but I wasn't about to change their habits on top of my own, especially since they eat school lunches. My kids and husband did eat the same supper as me most nights, since I was only cooking one meal and most were delicious! I never thought I would say this, but pouring that "fake cheese" into that pot about two weeks into my Whole30 made me really rethink my kids' food choices as well.
Day -1: Do your grocery shopping and start prepping anything you can make ahead of time. This might include making your own homemade sauces & salad dressing (I would recommend the basic mayo recipe and homemade ranch, homemade ketchup, and any of the vinaigrette recipes from the book if you plan on having salads for lunch like I did most days). If you did not purchase ghee or clarified butter from the grocery store, you will want to make your own. If you don't mind spending some extra time in the kitchen you may want to consider making some freezer meals. The extra time saved during the week is well worth the time spent preparing on the weekends. We also ventured out and ground our own pork sausage because the thought of just eggs each morning made me unhappy. I was able to add my own spices and make up patties that were ready for breakfast each morning. After a few weeks of this, I got smart and started cooking the patties ahead of time and just warming them in a pan or microwave the next morning to cut down my time spent making breakfast before work!
Day 0 (tomorrow is the big day!): Take measurements of your waist, hip, and thighs. Take pictures, including front, profile, and back. After weighing yourself, add the number to your measurements list and then pack away that scale! You can also use this time to look through your meal plan for the week and mark down any preparations you want to make ahead of time. For example, if I am planning on having something with ground beef on Wednesday, I will want to add "Thaw one pound hamburger in fridge" on my Tuesday agenda. I found that there were some sauces and other items I could make after supper to prepare for the next day's meal. You can also sign up for the free Whole30 newsletter!
Now, sit back and relax. The next thirty days is going to fly by!
God's Blessings,
A Good Food Fanatic
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