Whole-y 30: I Did This To Myself

Whole-y 30. Where do I begin. 

Today marks the start of Week 2 of the program and my thoughts are all over the place. As someone who is not a stranger to the juicing and dieting trends, I have to admit I'm still getting used to it. I think I like it so far. 

I initially heard about The Whole 30 Program awhile back but forgot about it until one of my coworkers said he was going to start it again. I shifted into research mode (mostly out of curiosity and partially because of my crazy sugar binges) and later found myself telling everyone I was going to do it too. [Insert big eyed emoji] Luckily I gave myself a week to mentally prepare for the torture that awaited me. This is not something to dive into on the fly.

Delicious things I'd like to eat but can't..

in-n-out [source: thrillist.com]

donuts [source: laweekly.com]

brunch [Republique]

happy hour

chinese food

wine

and more wine...

The basic concept behind The Whole 30 is to remove foods from your diet that are commonly allergens. That means no grains, legumes, sugar, dairy or booze. Yikes. But there were a few reasons I decided to take it on:

1. The percentage of my diet that was made up by sugar was wayyy too high. (my wake up call was when my teeth hurt the morning after eating half a box of sour punch straws..)
2. Part of my resolution to eat healthier included cooking more, which I was too lazy to ever do.
3. But mostly, I wanted to challenge myself. Obviously I could achieve the above two without committing to this program but I liked the idea of testing myself mentally and physically. (sorry tummy)

Now, I'm only one-and-a-half weeks into this program so I'm no expert, but I do want to share some of my notes for those of you who may want to try The Whole 30 too..

• Do your homework! The Whole 30 website has all of the resources you'll need to understand what you're getting yourself into. From program rules to shopping lists to meal templates, it's all there.
• Give yourself time to research recipes for the first week or so. Meal prepping can be pretty time consuming but in my opinion, it's a better alternative than being that person who asks for the chicken salad with a million substitutions. These are some of the recipes I've tried that were simple to make and delicious:
  • Tomato basil beef goulash with eggplant (I used turkey instead of beef)
  • Egg cups
  • Rosemary butternut squash fries
  • Whole 30 ketchup
• Once you've found the few recipes you want to try for the week, make a list of ingredients you need and hit the grocery store. I like to make enough food for 3-4 days so I don't get too bored.

Like I said, I'm still gathering my thoughts on the program and my cravings for sweets and carbs are as real as ever. 10 days down, only 20 more to go..

xo, elle