My “Whole 30” Experience

I’m frequently looking for ways to improve my health and fitness habits. A few months back I was specifically looking for a way to detox my diet a bit. I was eating a pretty balanced diet as it was, but I was bored of eating the same things daily, and I wanted to take it to the next level. I decided to take the plunge and try The Whole 30. If you haven’t heard of it before, The Whole 30 consists of eating a paleo diet for 30 days. No cheats, no slip ups, no mercy. The idea being that you completely detox yourself from things like dairy, added sugar, grains, processed foods, etc. Then after the 30 days is up you slowly reintroduce things into your diet, making it easy to tell if your body has any resistance or negative reactions to certain foods. 

If you’re unfamiliar with what a paleo diet is, it’s often referred to as the caveman diet. It consists of eating as it is assumed the hunters and gatherers did, way before fast food and microwave meals. The diet prioritizes meat, seafood, eggs, and vegetables. Snacks include fruit, nuts, and seeds. Dairy is not allowed, so no cheese, milk, yogurt, or *gasp* coffee creamer. 

It was a huge adjustment at first. I cleaned out the entirety of our cupboards. I’ve never seen so much boxed food in one place. I got rid of all of the pasta, popcorn, oatmeal, chips, crackers, and the dairy. We went grocery shopping and stocked up on vegetables, fruit, almond milk, nuts, eggs, and fish. I learned a lot about cooking. I had to. On The Whole 30 there isn’t much choice.

 I missed flavored coffee, and pizza. I ate more eggs in that month than I did in my whole life, and honestly, I didn’t feel much of a change. A co-worker of mine was doing The Whole 30 and told me she felt better than she had in 20 years. She loved it. I thought for sure that my energy levels would sky rocket and any fat would melt right off. Sadly, I had no such luck. It may be because I was eating a healthy diet as it was, but the The Whole 30 wasn’t a life-changing event for me.

I did reintroduce dairy and grains into my diet, with no adverse reactions at all. I understand the idea that by eating simply, we’re going easy on our bodies. However, I also believe that just because a caveman did it, that doesn’t make it the best choice. I do think there are positives to including grains in your diet.  I don’t think there is anything wrong with eating chocolate or peanuts.

Now, don’t let me completely turn you off from trying The Whole 30. While it didn’t cure my every ailment or leave me feeling 10 years younger, I will say that my diet improved in a lot of ways even after the month was up. 30 days without cereal made me realize that I don’t have to have it as a snack every night. Going without coffee creamer made me enjoy the taste of coffee without 20 grams of sugar in it. I’ve consumed significantly less bread in general, and I learned to include vegetables in every single dinner. 

If I had to go back and do it again, I probably wouldn't. It didn't necessarily live up to the hype for me, but it seems to have been life changing for many others.  If there is one thing from the Whole 30 I would suggest, it is eliminating the dairy. I think the main key to a healthy diet is limiting refined sugar, excess fat, and processed foods. And always up the fruits and veggies!