So what exactly is Whole30?

Last night I had dinner with a friend, and Whole30 came up (naturally).  She looked at me quizzically and asked, “what is Whole30 exactly?”  And it occurred to me…for all the talking about Whole30 that I do, not everyone knows what it is or what it entails.

So with my upcoming Whole30 group, I decided I’d put together some notes about Whole30. 

In its simplest form, Whole30 is the following:

• No grains
• No legumes
• No dairy
• No sugar (natural or artificial)
• No alcohol (that includes vanilla extract)
• Certain preservatives are off limits (for example: Carrageenan, sulfur)

So, naturally, your next question is “well then what CAN I eat?”  That’s simple too: fruits, nuts (except for peanuts, they’re legumes), eggs, proteins, potatoes (plain or sweet), olives, all the vegetables...

BUT... Whole30 doesn’t allow for substitutions for non-Whole30 compliant foods like pancakes, even if all the ingredients are OK on Whole30 (there is apparently some crazy famous recipe for pancakes made out of bananas and eggs…while those foods individually are Whole30 compliant, those pancakes are not).  It can get a little tricky.  

Whole30 also strongly discourages snacking.  Three meals a day, plus a pre- and post-workout meal if you exercise, and that’s about it.  Eat your meals till you're full, there’s no portion control, but once your meals are done, there’s no eating until your next meal*.

Oh, and you can't weigh yourself FOR THIRTY DAYS!  Yeah, there's that too....

Whole30 really does become a way of life, and while it may seem daunting at the beginning, it really becomes easier as time goes on. Case in point?  I wrote this entire blog post on my walk to work this morning.  Off the top my head.  If I can do it, so can you.

* There are obviously times for exceptions, but you shouldn’t be snacking every single day.