35 days ago, I was unfamiliar with The Whole 30. Today marks Day 30 for me, and I’m happy to say that I completed the program without a hitch.
I discovered the program while researching sugar elimination diets. Since quitting smoking almost 2 years ago, my sugar consumption has skyrocketed. An addictive personality + lots of candy to quell the cravings = a full-grown aggressive sugar monkey on my back.
The Whole 30 focuses on whole foods – lean proteins and fresh vegetables and fruits. This appealed to me because I love to cook and fresh vegetables are the focus point of every dinner at my place. I already try to eat minimally processed foods so this should be a breeze, I told myself. Hah.
So I jumped in head first without testing the water (like I tend to do) – I definitely could have benefited from a week or two of preparation. Thankfully, there are a lot of resources and support out there for this program, and on Day 3, when I felt like I was suffering from a massive hangover, I learned that it was to be expected.
The struggles:
-Convenience store/emergency snacks
-Finding sauces and condiments that don’t have added sugar. Seriously, it’s EVERYWHERE.
-Drinking coffee without cream
-Bacon
The benefits:
-More energy
-Better sleep
-No bloat
-All around increased feeling of well-being
30 days of zero sugars (including artificial), dairy, legumes and all grains. It’s time now to re-introduce some of these things, one by one, and see how I fare. Despite what I was thinking and feeling around Day 4 – I no longer have any interest in shoving my face into a plate of pasta with a side of bread.
Cheese. ALL OF THE CHEESE. Dairy will be the first to be re-introduced. Then legumes. The rest, I imagine, will be few and far between.
And because it’s always the first question everyone asks – I lost 16lbs. I tend to prefer measurements in lieu of the evil scale, especially in conjuction with weight training 4x/week, but this number seemed significant enough to mention.
I’m already considering a Round 2 of The Whole 30, I would call this journey a great success!
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