A few weeks ago my husband and I completed a Whole 30. To learn more about what a Whole 30 is you can read more
here. But, basically it is a detox/body reset. Long story short we ate meat, eggs, fruits, veggies and nuts. No grains, sugars, or processed anything. I had several reasons for wanting to give it a try but more than anything I was hoping to find something I would stick with. I have tried every diet out there... for about 5 minutes. I tend to do better with "all or nothing" type situations so after reading A LOT about the Whole 30 and other people's experiences I decided I really wanted to give it a try.
Surprisingly, my husband agreed to give it a try with me and I think one of the biggest contributors to our success in completing 30 days was doing it together. Also, knowing that if we cheated even the tiniest bit we would have to go straight back to day one helped a lot too!
I am not an expert on this at all but I thought it would be fun to share what I feel were the pros and cons of doing the Whole 30 and then answer if I would do another Whole 30!
Pros:
- I lost 12 pounds in 30 days (the hubs lost 13). That was super exciting. I also lost a lot of inches and went down a pants size.
- I felt great. I often have tummy aches (and really didn't think much of it) but duirng our Whole 30 I never did.
- I felt GOOD after eating. I didn't just feel "not bad". I felt good. I felt better for having eaten. It was strange.
- I slept really well.
- I was hardly ever hungry between meals. This is big for me. I always felt like no matter what I ate I was hungry a few hours later. During our Whole 30 I had to remind myself to eat sometimes. I also rarely had "seconds" of anything.
- I thought about food a lot less. Since my eating was so structured and somewhat limited I didn't spend time daydreaming about pizza or ice-cream. I really didn't have to think about food. It was amazingly freeing.
- I knew I was eating things that were good for me. I often find myself just avoiding things that are "bad" for me. But, during our Whole 30 pretty much every single thing we ate was good for us and nourishing our bodies. It was kind of cool.
- Our kids did not do the Whole 30 with us but I know that they ate a lot healthier during this as well.
- I learned a lot about myself. I realized how often I turn to food for reasons that are not hunger and how I look to certain foods for comfort.
- I did not miss things half as much as I thought I would. Even if it was hard to not eat something in the moment I never later regretted not getting to eat something.
Cons:
- You aren't supposed to weigh yourself at all during the Whole 30 and that is really hard. Honestly for me that was the very hardest part.
- It is really hard to eat out or at other people's houses. So, socially it was challenging because our culture is all about food!
- It was hard to get used to.
- I wanted to keep things pretty simple so our meals did get a little "boring" after awhile (but this was also a good learning experience because when did we decide that every meal has to be "fun" and "exciting"?)
So, as you can see, the pros really outweighed the cons. But, would I do it again...
Maybe. I think so. It was such an awesome experience and I learned so much about myself. At the risk of sounding odd it was really good for me spiritually and I felt that God really used the Whole 30 to teach me some very important things.
Our plan going forward is to eat this way most of the time. We just feel better and know that it is better for us. But, it is a little bit harder for me when I don't "have to". Like I said, I am kind of an all or nothing girl! So, I will keep you updated!
So, that was our experience. Please let me know if you have any questions! Or if you would like to know some of my favorite ways to stay on track or anything like that!
