Whole30?

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nikki_dw
nikki_dw Posts: 126 Member
edited December 2015 in Food and Nutrition
I want to hear from anyone who has completed Whole30? How successful was it for you in regards of both weight loss and positive lifestyle changes? How difficult was it? I find it hard to stay committed to strict diets (NO CHEESE??). But I know that I need to change my relationship with food to be healthier!

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  • MelaniaTrump
    MelaniaTrump Posts: 2,694 Member
    edited December 2015
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    I have lost so much weight eating beans, skim milk, and grains that I could not fathom living without them. Counting calories does work, just give it a try.
    Have you ever tried Quinoa?
  • Katiebear_81
    Katiebear_81 Posts: 719 Member
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    I had good success the first two times, and didn't lose at all the third. I didn't count calories.

    If you're not going to maintain that eating plan for life, you'll only gain the weight backstage some point, IMO.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    nikki_dw wrote: »
    I want to hear from anyone who has completed Whole30? How successful was it for you in regards of both weight loss and positive lifestyle changes? How difficult was it? I find it hard to stay committed to strict diets (NO CHEESE??). But I know that I need to change my relationship with food to be healthier!

    Whole30 is an elimintation diet to identify food intolerances, not a weight loss diet.
    If you have trouble sticking to strict diets (and who don't), it is not for you. Your dr can run tests.
    If you want to eat better and improve your relationship with food, just eat better. Start implementing small positive changes, like always eating breakfast, cooking dinner at least three times a week, eating one more fruit and vegetable every day etc.
  • tnm7760
    tnm7760 Posts: 109 Member
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    I've done 3 rounds and really like it. I don't think it's great for weight loss unless you have extremely bad habits or lots of weight to lose. I lost about 4lbs every round and gained 1-2 after reintroducing foods (I only have about 20-30lbs to lose, so I'm sure my loss would be more substantial if I was heavier). But I wasn't doing it for weight loss. I was doing it mostly to prove to myself that I could. I've sort of doubted my ability to stick to any regimented "diet" because I've started numerous times and always give up. I wanted to do it to prove that I could--to prove I was strong enough and in control enough to sacrifice for an end goal.

    I would say it changed my relationship with food, my ability to look beyond "I want it now" or "I need to eat (fill in the blank). It also reaffirmed to me that nothing feels as good as being in control of your indulgences and choices, and that I CAN make any change I want to if I work hard enough.

    I think it's a fantastic way to eat, I felt AMAZING, and I do try to incorporate the principles of real food, less processed stuff, less "rewarding myself" with food, etc. But, for me, I need a little more leeway with my everyday eating (yes, I know Whole30 isn't meant to be a long term program). So, I'd say I try to incorporate sort of the 80/20 idea in my every day life. But, the 20% can add up really quickly and wipe away any deficit if I'm not careful, so counting calories still works best for me.
  • nikki_dw
    nikki_dw Posts: 126 Member
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    Thanks for the feedback! I've decided that I don't think it's for me right now. I'm going to try to incorporate the real food principles into my diet, but I think I'd be setting myself up to fail with such a strict elimination diet. I've already mostly eliminated gluten from my diet after my neurologist and I identified it (along with caffeine) as a migraine trigger.
  • Asher_Ethan
    Asher_Ethan Posts: 2,430 Member
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    I gained weight when I completed the whole 30. It was expensive and not worth it in my opinion.
  • M111111111
    M111111111 Posts: 269 Member
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    If you gained weight during whole30 it obviously had nothing to do with anything except the fact that you were eating too much. Which would
    Be the case in any diet you were following.......
  • BlindDancer
    BlindDancer Posts: 3 Member
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    For me whole30 wasn't about weight loss but about my relationship with food. I am not an big meat eater, or ever really eat eggs. I had gotten into a funk of living off mostly protein shakes and bars and fruit salad with yogurt. So having to rethink the way I ate was really amazing. Yes, it was hard, anything you do which totally changes your routine is hard.

    I think it was really worth it. I learnt a lot about my food cravings and what triggered them, I also learnt a lot about my body in terms of how it could feel if I fueled it differently. After whole30 I went paleo for a bit over a year and found it to be really amazing for my system. I wasn't neurotically strict though so would eat out ocassionaly, eat sushi etc.

    I think the big takeaway is changing your approach to food.:D
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
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    kommodevaran wrote: »
    nikki_dw wrote: »
    I want to hear from anyone who has completed Whole30? How successful was it for you in regards of both weight loss and positive lifestyle changes? How difficult was it? I find it hard to stay committed to strict diets (NO CHEESE??). But I know that I need to change my relationship with food to be healthier!

    Whole30 is an elimintation diet to identify food intolerances, not a weight loss diet.
    If you have trouble sticking to strict diets (and who don't), it is not for you. Your dr can run tests.
    If you want to eat better and improve your relationship with food, just eat better. Start implementing small positive changes, like always eating breakfast, cooking dinner at least three times a week, eating one more fruit and vegetable every day etc.

    That's not what I got from the book. It is not necessarily a weight loss diet either but they do promote it as such.

    I did the Whole 30 because my husband wanted to and he does all kinds of crazy stuff for me. I am not a fan of eliminating food/food groups for no reason. I do have to say I loved it. I enjoyed all the food, I wasn't hungry, I lost weight without counting (I did follow the portion suggestions). That said - it was hard because quick meals are hard unless you prepare ahead. And while I didn't miss most of the foods I cut out temporarily, it wasn't something I could sustain forever.

    I still build my meals similar to their suggestions - ie protein source, fat source and lots of veggies, but I no longer eliminate foods.
  • fruitydelicious
    fruitydelicious Posts: 664 Member
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    I did well on whole 30, but had done a no-sugar, no-flour 30 day Challenge a couple months prior to whole 30. Completing that successfully helped me to complete the whole 30 successfully. It is a challenge and was exactly what I needed at the time. My sugar/bread cravings dissappeared. I would recommend it, but strongly advise to read book first and do a whole bunch of protein prep for your freezer.
  • takethatTM
    takethatTM Posts: 29 Member
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    The Whole30 for me was about my relationship with food and about improving my health. When I did the program last Jan/Feb, I really struggled until I found my groove. I have mild neuropathy from a condition called transverse myelitis that is accompanied by fatigue. I did the Whole30 to try to reduce inflammation and gain energy. It really worked, but it took longer than 30 days... so it was more like a Whole60 for me. Within six weeks of the Whole30, I was off all of my pain meds for neuropathy, I was sleeping better, and I was off my two blood pressure meds. I ended up losing around 30 lbs during that time, and then another 15 eating fairly clean for the rest of the year. Kind of like paleo with occasional cheats and weekend alcohol. After a blowout December where I really fell off the wagon, my neuropathy came back and so did the fatigue. So I'm back on the Whole30 now to improve my health. To really get what the diet is about, it's best to read the book. I found that sugar and certain dairy are really triggers for me and cause serious inflammation and gut problems.
  • MamaMc3
    MamaMc3 Posts: 213 Member
    edited January 2016
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    I have done a round of Whole 30. If you have a lot of cravings, it can be helpful with getting rid of them. It's tough to stick with for the full 30 days, though, and I think you could accomplish the same things without such a restrictive diet. It's definitely not a "weight loss" plan. It's more just to get you on the healthy eating wagon. Hope that helps!
  • MaternalCopulator
    MaternalCopulator Posts: 125 Member
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    nikki_dw wrote: »
    Thanks for the feedback! I've decided that I don't think it's for me right now. I'm going to try to incorporate the real food principles into my diet, but I think I'd be setting myself up to fail with such a strict elimination diet. I've already mostly eliminated gluten from my diet after my neurologist and I identified it (along with caffeine) as a migraine trigger.

    There is hope! yay!

  • senecarr
    senecarr Posts: 5,377 Member
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    kommodevaran wrote: »
    nikki_dw wrote: »
    I want to hear from anyone who has completed Whole30? How successful was it for you in regards of both weight loss and positive lifestyle changes? How difficult was it? I find it hard to stay committed to strict diets (NO CHEESE??). But I know that I need to change my relationship with food to be healthier!

    Whole30 is an elimintation diet to identify food intolerances, not a weight loss diet.
    If you have trouble sticking to strict diets (and who don't), it is not for you. Your dr can run tests.
    If you want to eat better and improve your relationship with food, just eat better. Start implementing small positive changes, like always eating breakfast, cooking dinner at least three times a week, eating one more fruit and vegetable every day etc.

    So it's stealing the branding shenanigans Paleo has been doing to argue why it doesn't matter if it actually has anything to do with paleolithic diets?

    If a diet claims to be about eliminating food intolerances and doesn't start with eliminating shellfish, it isn't evidence based in its approach because that's the number one allergen.
  • Larissa_NY
    Larissa_NY Posts: 495 Member
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    I tried Whole30 once. It didn't go well. It's such a restrictive diet that it was just easier not to eat, so I averaged like 500 calories a day - total, not net. I lasted for 11 days before I hit the point of being such a physical and emotional wreck that I called it off.
  • anetap2000
    anetap2000 Posts: 116 Member
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    nikki_dw wrote: »
    Thanks for the feedback! I've decided that I don't think it's for me right now. I'm going to try to incorporate the real food principles into my diet, but I think I'd be setting myself up to fail with such a strict elimination diet. I've already mostly eliminated gluten from my diet after my neurologist and I identified it (along with caffeine) as a migraine trigger.

    I did it once and it was the first time when I didn't have migraine with my period . I had terrible migraines for years, and always with the period..so I have learned that sugar was a trigger.
    I lost 6 lb ( I weight 136). While I was on a program, I could totally control what I eat . Now, Christmas happened and I can not stop eating. So I'm back to the begining. I gain only 3 lb because I started working out.
  • kingscrown
    kingscrown Posts: 615 Member
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    I did a LOT of healthy changes long before I did my Whole30. I think it would have been too restrictive in the beginning of my "health kick" as everyone likes to call it. Just hit my 4 year no soda anniversary. Getting off of artificial sweeteners helped a lot with sugar cravings. Getting off of sugar amazingly killed my sugar monster or at least put it into deep hibernation. That's worth it's weight in gold. I reminded myself it was the Whole30 not the Whole365. I'm doing a 2nd one right now. I found out with the last one that I may have a problem with dairy, but the holidays hit right after I did my Whole30 and reintroduction and I need to find out for sure.

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