30 Reasons to Whole30
Between the two of us, we’ve conquered a bunch of Whole30s, some more successfully than others. They’ve all had different results, but one thing has stayed the same: they’ve all been enlightening in some way. Sometimes, we’ve done Whole30s because we’ve had a huge emotional shift, or maybe because we need to look good (upcoming wedding much?). Sometimes, we go for it because we desperately need to feel in control of some aspect of our crazy kid-filled lives. Other times, we just need to put the V in Victory in each and every day.
If you’ve never tried giving up your boozy brunch or protein shakes, it can seem overwhelming! There are a lot of things to think about! And a lot of potential “what do I eat/buy/cook?” Giving up some of your favorite foods (or dranks)— and having to explain to your friends/students over and over again why “Ms. Simonds only eats apples and drinks water” (Thanks for telling your Mommy that, EL)— is potentially awkward. The thing is, if you don’t try it, you’ll never know.
You have so much to gain AND so much to lose! (See what we did there?) We’ll tell you our 30 reasons for doing a Whole30, but we know there are tons of reasons why you might want to begin a Whole30, share YOUR motivation in the comments below!
1. Nerd Spoiler Alert : “To sleep, perchance to Dream.” When sugar is out and protein/fat is in, you sleep the sleep that even Hamlet dreams of.
2. Bouncy, trouncy, bouncy, trouncy, fun fun fun fun fun! At some point, you will experience steady, Ti-doubleguh-ER abounding energy.
3. You’ll wake up feeling focused and optimistic. To the teachers out there, waking up at 5 am is NEVER going to be fun, but it can be easier and require a lot less coffee.
4. You’ll drink more water! Everybody knows it’s great to be well hydrated!
5. You will become a Jedi. That’s right, Luke. Kidding. Sort of? When your blood sugar is stable, you will be calm, happy and focused for hours on end.
6. You’ll get to know vegetables besides baby carrots and kale.
New York, aren’t you sick of Kale by now? Think like a certain fruity snack and Taste That Rainbow Chard.
7. You’ll find new favorite foods. Who knows which veggies, proteins, and spices you might actually like. Listen to your mom on this one, “How will you know if you’ve never even tried it!” When you get rid of the familiar “quinoa cooked in chicken broth with some veggies mixed in,” who knows what you’ll discover.
8. Potatoes are in now. In the first version of It Starts With Food, white potatoes were a no-go. Lucky for you, book’s been updated and potatoes are officially #Whole30 approved vegetable. Mash ‘em, bake ‘em, sauté ‘em, just don’t le fry them, oui?
9. You’ll learn to cook!
Both of us have always loved to experiment in the kitchen, but Whole30 forced us to seek out, try out and best of all TASTE new recipes.
10. You might shed some pounds.
We won’t lie. For both of us, this was an initial draw. And quite honestly, it has worked. Rachel is officially down 30 pounds! CELEBRATE!
11. You might gain some muscle.
All that new protein and no puffy grains might make those biceps bulge!
12. Your skin will glow and your hair will be so healthy it shines. Sleep + water + vegetables + fat + protein + no sugar = clear, beautiful skin and Eva-Longoria-in-Pantene-commercials hair.
13. Your tummy will be flatter. The end-of-day bloat from dairy and legumes is gone. White. Mesh. Bikini.
14. Your workouts will feel invigorating. Workouts fueled by real food are the best. Just ask Rachel. We kid, we kid!
15. You will escape the imprisonment of your scale.
That said, just as importantly, you will no longer be able to weigh yourself compulsively every morning after you go to the bathroom, clip your toenails, before you shower, wearing nothing but your tightie-whities. Since there is no weighing or body measuring for the duration of the Whole30, you’ll learn to appreciate your body’s changes in other ways.
16. You will learn the difference between real hunger and your emotional appetite.
You know that time you were watching all the seasons of Grey’s Anatomy on Netflix alone on a Friday night and the entire roll of thin mints was gone before McSexy saved someone’s life? Yeah, we do too.
17. You will become a planner.
Whole30 does require a lot of planning and forethought. This will magically transfer into other parts of your life and help you find time for all of the things you now think are important, like cooking real, delicious food.
18. Real food tastes good.
Melissa tells a story about a seminar she gave. A woman asked her “how will I make my strawberries taste sweet if I can’t put Splenda on them?” Wow. Aren’t strawberries supposed to be sweet? With your desensitized palette, you might not even taste their natural goodness anymore. We both ate Hershey Kisses almost immediately after finishing. We are HUGE chocolate fans, but they tasted like pure chemicals.
19. You’ll savor your food more. You worked hard for this meal. Likely you had to plan, shop, and cook before you could eat it. Just like all things you worked hard for, it feels good.
20. You’ll become Bill Nye. Whole30 gets you in to the kitchen and on to blogs searching for and playing with recipes. Some experiments turn out better than others, but this time, don’t listen to your mom. Go ahead, play with your food!
21. You’ll become more organized. To some degree, the Whole30 requires you to embrace planning to ensure your success, and that level of organization can trickle into other areas of your life, too.
22. You’ll learn about true “willpower.” Willpower is a muscle that can be exercised, but it can also be exhausted. Most of us tend to blame ourselves for “lack of willpower,” but the truth is that much of our mindless eating is driven by our hormones. When we manage our hormonal response by eating the right foods, the correct messages about hunger are delivered through our bodies. You can save your “willpower,” for other more important things.
23. You’ll learn about your body. This is a two-fold win. First, by understanding the principles of the science behind the Whole30, you’ll learn a bit about how human bodies function, and second, you’ll learn how you – a special, special snowflake – work in particular. When you focus on YOUR habits and mind for 30 days, you’ll learn all kinds of things, including what triggers your emotional or real appetite, what you need for self-care, what time of day you go to the bathroom, and what time you need to go to bed!
24. You’ll slay the Sugar Dragon. That’s one of our favorite Whole30 phrases. Vanquish that bad guy! And then, later, if you tangle with the Sugar Dragon again, you’ll know you can make like the Paper Bag Princess and outsmart him with your wit and logic!
25. You’ll make new friends. “HAIIIIIIIIII!” There’s a huge community of Whole30 participants online and offline, and during your Whole30, you can tap into their support, knowledge, sense of humor, successes, and challenges. You also just met us, so that’s cool!
26. You might have some really fun food dreams. People talk about super intense cravings in their dreams for foods they don’t even typically like. Here’s one for ya: I dreamt that I was eating truffle covered goat cheese while swimming in the turquoise Cannes. I woke up crying because I thought I had really cheated on my Whole30. I cried out of happiness when I realized it was just a dream.
27. You’ll become a role model. You never know who you’ll inspire or who will want to know more. We kept getting questions from friends and family about “how to do this thing you’re doing,” so here we are!
28. Your body image will improve. There is an undeniable connection between treating ourselves well and how we feel about our bodies. Check Anna’s earlier blog post if you need a refresher on that one. Whole30 is an act of self-love. You learn to accept, love and celebrate your body and how it feels and all it can do for you by paying such careful attention to it for thirty days.
29. Food will become both more important and less important. Food used to be my worst enemy and my best friend. I used to barter with myself for “extra” of the foods I loved and then I overate them until I was stuffed just in case all the grocery stores in the world ran out of peanut butter. I was SAD at the end of each day when the eating was over. After completing the Whole30 and learning about my hormonal responses to certain foods, that changed. Food is sacred and loving—I still love it, but I don’t fear it anymore because I know that when I am hungry, I am capable of finding or preparing a delicious and healthful meal.
30. We’ve said it before: Food Freedom.
You’ll stop dieting and just eat.This might be the best reason of all. When you take out the weirdo foodsfood and replace it with real food, you can stop over- analyzing how much, when and where you eat. Quantities still matter to some degree, but you will get rid of the restraints of calorie, step, macro, nutrient counting and punishment, and just eat with a peaceful mind and a happy belly.
With Love and Lettuce,
Anna and Rachel
