Whole30 Recap and My Experience
So my husband and I just completed a Whole30 together. This was the first round he’s ever done. I’m super proud of him and he got some amazing results. I wanted to take a moment and take you back to how I found Whole30, my experience since then, and my food philosophy today.
I found Whole30 at the end of 2014 right before I got married. I had been going to a crossfit gym and after completing a 30 day challenge, my trainer suggested Whole30 as a way to continue my results. I bought “It Starts with Food” and devoured it. I honestly came to Whole30 for weight loss, but found that the food philosophy just resonated so well with me. I remember thinking, “this is how we should be eating!” It just made sense.
Round one of my Whole30 went awesome. I loved it, got into my groove and was super successful. Reintroduction….I have no idea. I don’t even know if I completed it to be honest. This is a part I have struggled with the most. It took me a few rounds before I realized how important reintroduction was. In the past I would try to do the slow roll version but would fall off the rails before completing. Now I do the fast track reintroduction, planned out, without fail. It’s the only way that works for me.
So since 2014 there have been a couple of events that have really changed how I see food and Whole30’s in general. I was diagnosed with migraines with aura, I had an ectopic pregnancy, I gave birth to my daughter, and I got really sick with E.Coli And Salmonella on a trip to Mexico. All that culminated and resulted in an extended Whole45 in January of this year. This was the first time I extended past 30 days. I had done a few over the years and had a few starts and stops. That round was truly life changing. I had clearer skin, slept better, cleaned up my gut, had more energy, lost weight, and took a hard look at my relationship with food. I know I have an emotional attachment to food and that’s tough for me. Treats are a slippery slope and I have an extreme sweet tooth. But the biggest lesson of all was that I want to change that example and relationship with my food for my daughter. I don’t want her to eat out of boredom, emotion, punishment, or reward. I want to break that cycle with her and take a hard look at what she’s nourishing her body with. That lesson I can’t be thankful enough for.
Here are some key takeaways I’ve learned from completing Whole30’s:
Always complete reintroduction (you learn so much about what you can tolerate and what you can’t)
Food is more than physical, pay attention to the psychological
Keep track of your NSV’s (non scale victories), weight is not an indication of health
There is no such thing as a “perfect” Whole 30 (this is tough if you have completed a few)
Trust your body, if you feel hungry it’s ok to eat
These things take time, you cannot reverse years of poor habits in just 30 days
So really my family eats a modified paleo or Whole30 style predominately now. I focus on whole, clean, real food. We buy organic meats especially. I try to get fresh and organic produce when possible. We limit our grains and dairy. I pay attention to added sugar and additives. I READ LABELS. We don’t calorie count or limit our portions. I limit alcohol and choose gluten free. I don’t freak out about what my daughter is exposed to outside the home but try to keep it clean inside the home for her. It’s not perfect and it’s still a journey but it’s been fun learning and I’m glad to be on it.
If you have questions I’d love to hear from you! Email me at heather@eatcleanplaydirty.net or DM me on instagram @ https://www.instagram.com/eat_clean_play_dirty/