Today officially marks day 17 of my first Whole30. Have you been following along on Instagram with the #bgbdoeswhole30? I must say that this has been an experience. Definitely not what I was expecting. But in the past 17 days, I have learned a LOT about food.
Let’s get to it.
Whole30 biggest takeaways (so far):
- There is sugar in errrthang. Literally. I have read more food labels in the past three weeks than I can count and cannot believe the foods that have sugar in them. Pasta sauce? Yep. Chicken sausage? You bet. Taco seasoning? Why not. I mean it is everywhere. And that is obviously not counting the sugar in soda, candy, chips, alllll the processed foods. It’s actually incredible. No wonder so many people are addicted to sugar!
- Meal planning and prepping is king. Each weekend, I would plan out my meals for the entire week, grocery shop, and meal prep what I could. It was a huge lifesaver. I knew what I would be bringing for lunch to work each day; I had smart snacks on hand. And making dinner was a breeze. Plus, it forced me to experiment more in the kitchen!
- I’m kinda over eggs. I have had eggs in some form every single day. And I am resolving to eat other things for breakfast. Why do we have to eat breakfast food for breakfast?? Why can’t I eat leftover turkey meatballs or salmon? Well I’ll over that social norm and will be breaking the “rules” from here on out.
- Eating real food – like REAL food – makes you feel amazing. No bloating, no stomach aches. Just giving my body the fuel it needs to recoup after workouts and get me through the day.
My favorite Whole30 meals:
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[one_half padding=”0 5px 0 28px”]Rosemary Chicken with Root Vegetables[/one_half][one_half padding=”0 28px 0 5px”]15 Minute Garlic Shrimp Zoodles[/one_half]
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[one_half padding=”0 5px 0 28px”]Most of my breakfasts have looked similar to this – steamed sweet potato, sauteed spinach, and two fried eggs.[/one_half][one_half padding=”0 28px 0 5px”]I made this epic hash on a Sunday morning for Pat and I – shaved brussels sprouts, sliced yellow pepper, pork, and a fried egg. I loved this so much I made another batch the next weekend![/one_half]
Whole30 meals I’m making in the next two weeks:
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[one_half padding=”0 5px 0 28px”]Crock Pot Pork Carnitas Tacos from Miss Allie’s Kitchen[/one_half][one_half padding=”0 28px 0 5px”]Sweet Potato Waffle Breakfast Sandwich from Fit Mitten Kitchen[/one_half]
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[one_half padding=”0 5px 0 28px”]Apple Cinnamon Sweet Potato-Oats from Little Bits Of[/one_half][one_half padding=”0 28px 0 5px”]Easy Paleo Greek Chicken Skillet from Physical Kitchness[/one_half]
Are you doing a Whole30 this month? How is it going? Is there anything you are struggling with?
Let me know in the comments below!
I’m not doing whole30 until my gymnastics season is over but i’m so excited to do it! It’s crazy how much added sugar there is is many foods that you would never think of like tomato sauce! Eating real food just makes you feel soooooooooo good!
It’s been pretty eye opening! And YES, eating real food makes you feel amazing!
I’m not doing a Whole 30, but I know what you mean about sugar being in everything. Sugar is such a delicious thing, but I don’t think it needs to be in everything. 🙂 GO ELLIE; you’re more than half way.
I totally agree! And thank you Emily – I can see the finish line 🙂
RIIIGGGHTTTT??! The sugar is crazy…like WHY! I’ve also discovered brands that I normally wouldn’t look to are stepping it up with clean ingredients. So, that’s a positive! OK, those SP oats are BOMB. I think I’m going to come out with a recipe for the chia pudding I’ve been making because I feel ya. Eggs get old fast. I think my gut was totally adjusting to all of the change but I feel GREAT! So glad to have you through this. Thanks for including me! I’m making your salmon tonight!
I’m floored with the sugar. It’s insane. Ahh I’m so excited that you’ve tried those oats! I came across them and thought they might be a little questionable, so I’m glad you’re giving them the thumbs up!! And of course – let me know what you think of the salmon! It’s super simple and pretty basic, but it’s my go-to recipe for a quick and healthy meal!
looooooooool how did i not know that BGB was doing whole 30. I was like… why is EVERYONE doing it all of a sudden? Makes sense. makes a lot of sense.
I enjoyed reading this, i love how creative everyone gets!!
Yea there’s a pretty good group of us, and THANK GOD because I don’t think I could have done this alone! Thanks Bev 🙂
When I was searching for chicken broth/ veg stock almost ALL of the brands included sugar in some form… rather annoying! And it is crazy how less bloated I feel. My energy levels pretty much feel the same, but I attribute that to me getting in 6am workouts this month. My skin however, does seem to be doing MUCH better. YAY REAL FOODS! Thanks for including my waffle sandwich! I am not sure I truly get sick of eggs… But finding different ways to enjoy them is fun 😀
So annoying! I definitely feel less bloated too, but I think that is because I was diagnosed with Celiacs mid-December and immediately noticed a change once I cut out gluten. On the whole, I feel pretty much the same but I’m assuming that’s because I lead a pretty healthy life before doing this. But! I’m excited to see what happens when we reintroduce foods in a few weeks. And of course – now I just need to buy a waffle iron!
I’m doing Whole 30 and am on day 18 today. I’ve been loving roasted sweet potatoes for breakfast. Really good with soft boiled eggs or cashew butter. I shared some other meal ideas and my general thoughts on my blog yesterday!
Oh I love roasted sweet potatoes for breakfast! Well any time really… but when I’m not on whole30, I love adding vanilla Siggi’s yogurt and almond butter!!
Hello, I have visited your site today b/c I have week 4 coming up of Whole 30. I AM SO OVER EGGS and Egg bakes!! I love your photo of weekend hash but don’t see where the recipe would be. is it your Brussels sprouts and pork has with a yellow pepper added? I am not huge into sweet potatoes so that’s proven difficult but i like mixing it with pork. Also, how did you make the pulled pork? I can’t seem to find something for that on your site. Thanks!
Hi Kathryn. First of all, congrats on making it through the first 3 weeks – the Whole30 is HARD! Yes, you are correct. I just added thinly sliced yellow pepper to my brussels and pork hash (added it in when I added the sprouts) and that recipe also had frozen grated potatoes (hash browns) in it too. The pork was pre-cooked and I purchased it from Costco – it’s Whole30 compliant. If you are a member, I highly suggest getting some. If you aren’t a member, I would simply look a pork shoulder in your slow cooker (with enough water to cover the bottom) on low for 6-8 hours and shred. Let me know how the hash turns out and if you have any other questions!