My name is Vicki and I'm a personal trainer in the UK, so fitness and nutrition are a big part of my job. I always try my best to keep up to date with the most recent "fad" diets and trendy classes or keep fit gadgets, but don't always agree with what they have to offer. I've always believed that the best diet is the cleanest, least processed diet, this includes choosing full fat over low fat (which usually has loads of sugar in it), and trying to avoid added sugars. Most of the foods in today's western diets are processed and offer little nutritional value for our bodies.
I rarely follow the diet plans I research as I eat a mostly healthy diet anyway, however when I came across the Whole30 for the first time around a year ago, the alleged health benefits had me intrigued (more about that later). The other aspect of the Whole30 that appeals to me is that it's not a diet, rather an elimination programme. So I'm hoping that the majority of the foods I currently feel I can't live without, will actually be perfectly fine for me to reintroduce (rice, hummus and oats for example).
What is the Whole30?
The Whole30 is a 30 day programme which you will need to commit to 100% - No cheat days! IT IS NOT A DIET. The Whole30 is more of an experiment into finding out both how your mind and your body reacts to food. Our diet can often be directly linked to many illnesses, diseases and symptoms including but not limited to:
- High blood pressure
- High cholesterol
- Allergies
- Skin conditions
- Migraines
- Fibromyalgia
- IBS
- Type 2 diabetes
- Joint pain
- And much more
By removing certain triggers from the diet, many people have found their symptoms either reduced or completely vanished. The idea is that by doing the Whole30, your body gets a deep reset, a fresh start and begins to heal. At the end of the 30 days you gradually begin to add the food you've removed back into your diet, carefully assessing for any side effects. It may be that this is where you realise you have an intolerance to a particular ingredient. You'll need to cut out all grains, alcohol, added sugar, dairy, legumes/beans and eat a diet high in clean foods such as meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds. Very similar to paleo, but completely different too. There is a reason behind cutting out each of these food groups, which I'll write about in more detail in another blog post, as well as common concerns about calcium and cholesterol. It's all covered in the book "It Starts with Food", and makes for an interesting read!
Why am I doing it?
Why am I doing it?
I'm currently at the end of day 11, which according to the official Whole30 timeline is the second of the "Hardest Days" where you're most likely to quit the programme. I sit here typing with a sense of achievement for getting this far, but feel it's time to start writing up some of my experiences so far to share with anyone who's interested.
What made me finally start? It's a combination of a number of factors, my job being a big part of it (I like to practice what I preach), but also I turn 30 this year and am sooo fed up with still having poor skin. I've had acne since I was 11, and since then have never had clear, glowing skin. So I'm hoping I'll find the trigger to my acne and can cut that out of my diet as much as possible. I also suffer with quite bad IBS, and sometimes a lack of energy and headaches, sinus problems, allergies and some other medical conditions, all of which the Whole30 claims to improve if you follow their plan. Sceptical? So was I, and still am to an extent.
I've been reading "It Starts with Food" which is basically the science behind the Whole30, and if you're thinking of doing this I'd highly recommend you read this to get a full understanding. In fact, even ask your friends and family, perhaps colleagues to read it to because people love to judge you, and judge the Whole30 (diets in general), and judge you doing the Whole30. This will let them know why, and hopefully enable them to support you better.
A lot of the reasoning behind the programme makes so much sense, however, having only completed 11 days I'm still not really seeing any of the benefits, but I'm sticking with it! I've come too far to quit, but I'd really love some hummus right now (you're not allowed chickpeas)!
On the 29th August I posted on Facebook about wanting to do the Whole30 and who'd like to join me (really recommend you gathering some troops), and amazingly within 24 hours, I had set up a group with 40 members in it! Since then, we've been sharing ideas, supporting one another and ranting a little bit about the negative effects so far...
So here I sit, writing my first blog on my Whole30 experience, having completed 11 days. I think that's enough about me for now, but I'll be back with another post within a couple of days to explain more about the Whole30, and what I've been eating so far along with how I've been feeling.
If you're interested in learning more here's three things to do:
1) Go to the official Whole30 website to learn more
2) Purchase a copy of It Starts with Food to get a better understanding of WHY you'll be doing it
3) Purchase a copy of The Whole30 and get planning!
I look forward to bringing you more of my Whole30 journey soon!
Vicki
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