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There are those who eat to live, and then there’s me—who lives to eat.
It’s a hobby, really. You like to paint or play guitar? I spend my time cooking, eating, and LOVING food. Now, imagine you take away the red, yellow, and blues from your painters palette. Or remove the C and D cords from your guitar. That’s what the Whole30 felt like.
It was a creative challenge as much as it was a dietary one. I’m glad I had this blog as an outlet to make Whole30 meals more fun and exciting. Boy was it daunting and discouraging at times, but in the end, I got what I set out to do. To tune into the wisdom of my body as well as test my cooking skills.
Would I do this again? NO WAY JOSÉ. It’s too restricting even for just 30 days. If anything I would eliminate just one food group instead of all 5. I love food too much to diet. So instead of transitioning to the Reintroduction Period, I finished it cold turkey with another, more rewarding challenge—homemade croissants (plain AND chocolate).
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PROS
- Never had a day when I felt like crap (bloatied, fatigued, etc..).
- I could eat as much as I want without feeling guilty.
- My energy did spiked.
- I learned how to roast whole chicken (and died from pure poultry joy).
- I learned almost everything pre-packaged has added sugar.
- I learned it’s possible to make W30 dishes fun and original with new ingredients.
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CONS
- Too many rules for me, I adapted them to the needs of my lifestyle.
- Weird bodily changes happened: very gassy, early period, lost a lot of hair…
- l felt like I lacked a sense of culinary freedom.
- Meal planning/prep SUCKED and stressed me out.
- It was expensive.
- I cheated a lot because I work at a cheese shop and restaurant where I have to taste in order to learn.
- When it was over, I craved sugar and grains more than before I started.
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~*~ W30-APPROVED INGREDIENTS ~*~
- black garlic
- blade mace
- cassava
- chickpea flour
- dragon fruit
- kiwi berries
- maté
- ’nduja
- okra
- passion fruit
- Penzey’s 6 Spices
- pork jowl
- prickly pear
- pumpkin seed oil
- tomato oil
- Trader Joe’s 7 Salts
- turban squash
Cheers to no dieting.