Looking for Whole30 inspiration? My friend Rosa is sharing her Whole30 story and best cooking/prepping tips today.
(The Whole30 program eliminates grains, dairy, legumes, sweeteners and many additives from the diet for 30 days. People use Whole30 as a diet reset and to boost nutrition and health. It is also a moderate elimination diet to help tune the body into foods to which it may be reacting negatively.)
What were your reasons for doing The Whole30 Program?
Whole30 is not a weight loss program, but that’s why I did it – to lose weight. Plus, having done it before, I knew that I felt amazing inside week 3 and later. Mood lifted, energized, positive, proud – it really works.
How did you feel when you completed the The Whole30?
My body and mind felt amazing. But the first time I did it, I was fearful at day 28 – after so looking forward to reaching that sacred Day 30, it’s common to feel scared to go back to eating poorly and feeling less than fantastic.
It’s important to read the reintroduction instructions. The first time, I went bananas after day 33 or so, and it was not good. Last time, I just ate sensibly and purposefully, and it was great!
What were the biggest challenges?
Social situations. When I do W30, I can sometimes feel sort of isolated because I’m so focused on healthy eating that I tend to skip outings with friends, etc. For those 30 days, it’s more important to get myself on track and feel good, but it’s still challenging. The second time I did a W30, I did it with committed friends – so.much.fun.
Breakfast is my most challenging meal – you can only make eggs so many times before getting bored, so don’t forget to prep breakfasts that you enjoy (smoked salmon, tomatoes and avocado, for example. YUM)
What are your best tips for someone who is new to Whole30?
Make the decision that you are doing this no matter what. Period. As Melissa says in the book, “This is not hard.” (Fighting disease is hard, mourning a loved one is hard. Eating healthy is not hard.) Just make the decision and go.
PREP.
If you already eat relatively healthy, then the planning will be the biggest key. If you have both planning and major diet changes to overcome, then you have to focus on both. But, if I had one piece of advice it would be to spend the time – INVEST the time – to PLAN out every meal for 30 days and cook everything you can as far in advance if you can. Because life happens, and you have to engineer/plan for success. Plus if everything is planned, you aren’t focusing on the food too much. It’s amazing how much time it saves to cook in advance – frees up so much brain space and time throughout the week.
Batch cook and keep it simple. That way, you can have something for dinner one night and eat it for lunch or even breakfast the next day…and maybe the next too. Or, make a sheet pan meal and eat it for lunch for three days. Easy peasy!
Keep a healthy snack in your car in case you get stuck.
Actually, you might consider leaving one dinner a week as a wildcard – that way, when you see a fun recipe you can have fun with it and cook it/enjoy it in real time.
Hello! My name is Natalia. I’ve been drawn to nutrition and natural healing since I was a young child, growing up in a Russian and Dutch home. I remember my dad theatrically convincing me to love head cheese (with horseradish and lemon!) and learning to make herbal tinctures from my mom. 
