Background:

• I have 3 kids, at the time of my first Whole30 they were 7, almost 3 and 9 months
• I was still breastfeeding at the time of my first Whole30.
• I worked full time, outside of the home
• I worked out 4-ish times a week
• I was the only one in my house to do it
• I never read the “it starts with food” book
• The real reason I did it: to trim down, maybe lose a few pounds to achieve my ultimate goal of fitting in my wedding dress by my 10th wedding anniversary

Favorite Resources:

• Whole30recipes on Instagram was awesome. Every week they feature a new food blogger that shares tips, recipes, etc.
• PDF Downloads on the Whole30 website. I used this area to do the bulk of my research before pulling the trigger. It includes a helpful shopping list download, how to eat out and more.
• The day by day breakdown. This gave me a decent guide to know what to expect as I went.
• Pinterest, of course.

Meals:

• For breakfasts during the week I ate egg cups that I cooked the weekend before. Eggs, sausage, bell peppers and asparagus. Sometimes I’d eat a side of berries, sometimes not. They say you’re not supposed to eat at your desk…but well, ain’t nobody got time for that.
• I’d always do some kind of “big dinner” on Sunday night like roast a chicken, or pork roast. I’d do a giant pan of roasted garlic potatoes and then portion out the leftovers to go with my breakfasts for the next few days.
• Making my own mayo was super easy and definitely a MUST. I really liked mixing it with salsa and using it as a dressing for taco salads or a dipping sauce for homemade fries.
• I hardly used any coconut milk and coconut oil. This is an interesting point because SO many of the friends/people I followed that had done a W30 in the past raved and raved about both of those things. So naturally, at first I thought that meant I was doing something wrong.
• Lunches were typically leftovers from the night before
• I got really good at modifying meals that were already family favorites.

Favorite Meals (mostly because the entire family ate the SAME thing):

• Taco Tuesday! Either as taco cups in butter lettuce, a taco salad or a burrito bowl over cauli-rice.
• Cauliflower rice
• Roasted chicken, roasted red potatoes, cooked carrots and brussel sprouts
• Turkey burgers on butter lettuce topped with guac and my mayo/salsa mix, oven-roasted fries and fresh fruit
• Spaghetti made with jarred (compliant) sauce and zucchini noodles

Burrito bowl: taco seasoned ground beef, lime-cumin cauli rice, bell peppers, avocado, cilantro, salsa // Steak, sauteed mushrooms, baked potato, asparagus // Southwest flavored turkey burger, guac, salsa/mayo mix, bell peppers, fries

Favorites Snacks: So technically, you’re not supposed to snack during Whole30, but a) I was working out a lot, b) I was still breastfeeding and c) I didn’t really care.

• Lara bars. For the record they taste nothing like the “cookies” and “pies” they claim to in their names. But my favorites were the cashew cookie or the lemon bar. I ate one nearly every day.
• Sparkling water. There are all different brands, but La Croix has a great variety of compliant flavors. Lime, Coconut , Grapefruit and Cherry-Lime were my go-to flavors.
• Dry roasted almonds. Got them from Costco and a handful of them were a great way to put something in my stomach before my lunch time work out.
• Apple & almond butter. This was always a good mid-afternoon snack.

Other tips:

• Try to get someone to do it with you. I had a coworker, and a whole slew of online friends, doing it with me.
• Pre-planning is everything.
• Summer is a great time to do it because SO MUCH FRESH PRODUCE! and Grilling!

Things I learned:

• I love black coffee. It’s still all I drink.
• I LOVE BRUSSEL SPROUTS!
• I ate a lot of meals out of bowls.
• Good or bad, I am a serious creature of habit.
• I didn’t really miss the bread or dairy.
• I DID miss the sugars.

The results:

• I lost 5-ish pounds.
• I lost 5.5″ between my butt, belly button, true waist and hips.
• I fit back into my wedding dress 6 weeks before my goal date!
• Since I completed my first round, one of my sisters has done it twice, my mom has done it and now my other sister is doing it!