Whole30
flippy1234
Posts: 686 Member
I just started doing Whole30. I am just curious to see if there are any of you out there trying it too or have done it and what your thoughts are...
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Replies
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If you like those foods and eat them to create a calorie deficit no problem then do it.
You're the one with a weight loss goal and you need to eat in a way you will eat for the rest of your life.1 -
Are you doing it for weight loss or as an elimination diet for health reasons?0
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I thought about it, once upon a time, but couldn't get my head around the fact that it wanted me to give up legumes, which I think are very healthy (and a great source of non animal based protein) and potatoes (although I think they changed it so that potatoes are okay).
I mostly cook from whole foods already, so the issue with cutting out legumes and potatoes (and whole grains, to some extent) would be my biggest issue, and I just don't believe there's any health benefit from that, for me.2 -
Are you just trying to lose weight, or do you have food allergy/sensitivities that you are trying to get a handle on?
If you are just trying to lose weight, then my thoughts are you are making this way harder than it needs to be. ALL weight loss comes from a calorie deficit. You shouldn't need to eliminate whole groups of food to accomplish that. Even if/when you do accomplish that with Whole 30, what does maintenance look like? Extreme measure for weight loss tend to backfire in spectacular fashion.
If you have food allergy/sensitivities then by all means. Use FODMAP or Whole 30 to figure things out.5 -
Whole30 is great for figuring out allergies and food sensitivities. For instance, my mother figured out that she has a sensitivity to any kind of legumes. They contribute to her knee pain. I did feel better eating whole foods however, it is not something long term that I could do. I still enjoy a ton of their recipes (coconut curried turkey meatballs was my favorite!)4
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I did it last year, I wasn't allergic to anything but I learned to drink black coffee. Giving up sugar was very hard.1
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I am only doing it for the 30 days. Yes, I want to lose some weight but I also want to clean out my system of sugar, alcohol, etc...I thought this may help and then I'll see where I am and how I feel in 30 days.10
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I’ve completed a round. I didn’t lose weight, but I ate some amazing meals. I didn’t do it for weight loss though, I did it to learn some good freedom and to learn to cook more wholesome meals.
If you are looking to lose weight I would cut out nuts, dried fruits, rxbars/larabars and fruit.
There is a misconception that whole 30 is a weight loss plan and it is not. In fact if you google it there are lots of people who stayed the same weight or gained - it still comes down to calories in/calories out
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I tried it once but found it too restrictive. Plus I got annoyed with the people on the Facebook group being mean and so stringent that when I mentioned I put a bit of milk in my coffee they insisted I went off plan and had to start over. I did do the 21 day sugar detox which is kind of paleo and lost 8 lbs but also found it too restrictive and it made me crave sugar more since I thought about it all the time.3
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flippy1234 wrote: »I am only doing it for the 30 days. Yes, I want to lose some weight but I also want to clean out my system of sugar, alcohol, etc...I thought this may help and then I'll see where I am and how I feel in 30 days.
Your body doesn’t need cleanses or detoxes. That is what your liver is for. Alcohol clears your system in 5-7 hours on its own. Sugar is used very quickly after digestion or stored for later use. You can’t clean your system of sugar. I think low sugar diets can be helpful to change habits and lose weight but it doesn’t cleanse your body.14 -
flippy1234 wrote: »I am only doing it for the 30 days. Yes, I want to lose some weight but I also want to clean out my system of sugar, alcohol, etc...I thought this may help and then I'll see where I am and how I feel in 30 days.
"Cleanses" are just a way to sell diet books, teas, and smoothies....a current fad. Your liver and kidneys already serve this function. Just think if our liver & kidneys never did this, some of us should be dead (because we never did Whole 30).
This post is really good - https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1159755/looking-for-a-detox-cleanse/p1
ALL weight loss is calories in vs. calories out, but Whole 30 should reduce some calories for you......because it's so very restrictive. Find something you can incorporate into maintenance, because that's a lifelong step #2.
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I have not done it, but some women in my running group are doing it this month. I don't think any of them are going for the elimination aspect, more of a mental/diet reset after the holiday food and drink. The recipes I have seen look really good, so at worst you might discover some amazing meals to add into the rotation.1
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I didn’t find whole 30 restrictive when it came to calories at all. Especially when increasing my healthy fats.
Whole 30 does not cleanse your body nor does it claim it will. First, it is an elimination diet that helps you see what foods may or may not be bothering your system.
The idea for cutting out sugar isn’t about cleansing it out of your system but it’s about reducing cravings and making you aware of how much sugar is in processed food and how much you are actually eating
Whole 30 is not a diet, it’s a 30 day “reset” to help with cravings, realize food sensitivities and change your overall relationship with food.5 -
I tried it, wasn't for me. i don't do well with restrictions, its not realistic to sustain for the long haul for me personally. I have failed the "diet" thing for many years because the mindset of restrictions made me only want it more... I am weak minded I guess LOL I eat pretty much clean, but when I want a piece of fruit and some oatmeal, or yogurt with granola on it and CHEESE... I WANT IT lol
CICO have worked for me over the year and I have lost a good amount of weight doing it without feeling like I am on a diet. Which was key for me. Everyone is different, they do it for different reasons, dietary needs, allergies etc. But if you are simply doing it for the weight loss, its really not necessary to be so restrictive.
I still make a ton of the recipes I downloaded for the diet itself. Like I said everyone is different, what works for some may not work for others. Find what works for you and ROCK it!!!
Happy New Year, good luck!3 -
I didn’t find whole 30 restrictive when it came to calories at all. Especially when increasing my healthy fats.
Whole 30 does not cleanse your body nor does it claim it will. First, it is an elimination diet that helps you see what foods may or may not be bothering you lr system.
The idea for cutting out sugar isn’t about cleansing it out of your system but it’s about reducing cravings and making you aware of how much sugar is in processed food.
Whole 30 is not a diet, it’s a 30 day “reset” to help with cravings, realize food sensitivities and change your overall relationship with food.
The whole problem with a "reset" mentality though is it only helps you when you are on a diet. Cutting cravings is great for being on a diet, but that's just a temporary thing.
30 days wouldn't help me "change my overall relationship with food," that can't be solved in 30 days (it's much more complicated than that). I won't be eliminating "added" sugar, grains, alcohol, dairy, legumes, or "junk food" forever so I don't really see the point. This is why elimination diets fail long-term. We have to MANAGE cravings someday.
For allergies, food sensitivities.....that's different.6 -
I have not done it, but some women in my running group are doing it this month. I don't think any of them are going for the elimination aspect, more of a mental/diet reset after the holiday food and drink. The recipes I have seen look really good, so at worst you might discover some amazing meals to add into the rotation.
W30 is just not consuming certain foods which are not part of probably the vast majority of normal, non dessert recipes, so I wouldn't think one needs special W30 recipes or would have to be doing W30 to use the recipes. I am not paleo, but I look at paleo sites for recipes sometimes, and same with vegan sites.
I think W30 might be a useful incentive (it's a challenge! it's only 30 days!) if one is trying to encourage oneself to cook from whole foods, but I never understand why cutting out legumes and potatoes (although again I think potatoes might be allowed in the newest update) or oats is supposed to create a "reset" or why it's supposed to be better than just focusing on eating a healthful diet and (if you want) primarily or entirely from whole foods.
But whatever.0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »I have not done it, but some women in my running group are doing it this month. I don't think any of them are going for the elimination aspect, more of a mental/diet reset after the holiday food and drink. The recipes I have seen look really good, so at worst you might discover some amazing meals to add into the rotation.
W30 is just not consuming certain foods which are not part of probably the vast majority of normal, non dessert recipes, so I wouldn't think one needs special W30 recipes or would have to be doing W30 to use the recipes. I am not paleo, but I look at paleo sites for recipes sometimes, and same with vegan sites.
I think W30 might be a useful incentive (it's a challenge! it's only 30 days!) if one is trying to encourage oneself to cook from whole foods, but I never understand why cutting out legumes and potatoes (although again I think potatoes might be allowed in the newest update) or oats is supposed to create a "reset."
But whatever.
Yeah, I've found some Whole30 recipes on Pinterest that looked good, so I tried them. Usually mix them with naughty stuff like legumes and potatoes, but it's the same with any kind of recipe . . . if it looks good and includes things I eat, I'll give it a try no matter what special terms are attached to it.2 -
I love the Whole 30. It definitely changed the way I eat permanently since the first time I did it about 5 years ago. I now eat much more produce and less packaged/manufactured food. I also feel so much better physically after I've completed 30 days of it. I usually try to do a full 30 days strict about once a year just to kick myself back into gear of eating better.
I also learned a lot about what foods didn't work well with my body as I added them back in and noticed negative affects.
Having said that, I agree that having such a strict nutritional lifestyle is not for everyone and once I'm done with the strict 30 days I will add things back here and there, but it makes me much more conscious about making decisions of what to add back and when.1 -
I'm doing it this January, first time. I'm not trying to lose weight on it or do any kind of "reset". I want to see if it resolves my IBS and chronic hives. I should then be able to gradually reintroduce foods and see what happens. Anyone is free to friend me for mutual support x
By the way, potatoes of all kinds are allowed now. Else I'd be really struggling ;-)3 -
I tried it once but found it too restrictive. Plus I got annoyed with the people on the Facebook group being mean and so stringent that when I mentioned I put a bit of milk in my coffee they insisted I went off plan and had to start over. I did do the 21 day sugar detox which is kind of paleo and lost 8 lbs but also found it too restrictive and it made me crave sugar more since I thought about it all the time.
But you did go off plan, and if you were doing it for it's actual purpose, you probably should have started over. They were following the rules of the elimination diet, which means removing the specified items completely for the 30 days. Adding back in even a little bit can stuff it up for someone who's actually trying to assess if they have intolerances.
I take it you weren't actually doing it to see if you had food sensitivities?
It's not being mean to point out to someone that they aren't doing what they say they're doing. It's the whole point of a group for it, and I think it's good that people are making sure that newcomers know that to get the proper intended effect, they need to follow the rigorous rules.
I'm actually a member of the Whole30 forum and plan on doing it as part of Febfast, and it's frustrating to see how many people join and ask questions or share recipes or make statements about the diet which are wrong but they've been on FB or Pintrest and have seen these bastardisations. At his heart, it's a super strict diet.4 -
Re doing it for IBS -- I am not discouraging it, but I'd recommend working with a dietitian as a better approach. My sister largely resolved her IBS (which was a HUGE problem for her in her teens and 20s) by finding her trigger foods, and all of them would have been 100% permitted on W30. (Avocados, melon, and a variety of vegetables raw, but not cooked, were some of her issues.)3
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lemurcat12 wrote: »I have not done it, but some women in my running group are doing it this month. I don't think any of them are going for the elimination aspect, more of a mental/diet reset after the holiday food and drink. The recipes I have seen look really good, so at worst you might discover some amazing meals to add into the rotation.
W30 is just not consuming certain foods which are not part of probably the vast majority of normal, non dessert recipes, so I wouldn't think one needs special W30 recipes or would have to be doing W30 to use the recipes. I am not paleo, but I look at paleo sites for recipes sometimes, and same with vegan sites.
I think W30 might be a useful incentive (it's a challenge! it's only 30 days!) if one is trying to encourage oneself to cook from whole foods, but I never understand why cutting out legumes and potatoes (although again I think potatoes might be allowed in the newest update) or oats is supposed to create a "reset" or why it's supposed to be better than just focusing on eating a healthful diet and (if you want) primarily or entirely from whole foods.
But whatever.
I don't think people "need" to do Whole30 to use the recipes, I said that some of the food looks good and the OP might end up with some good recipes out of the experience. Many people I know who have done it have said that they tried foods they wouldn't have tried otherwise because they were on the plan and didn't have the option of falling back on foods they would have normally chosen.
As far as the reset, I think it has less to do with the actual food than just getting back to cooking versus parties and drinking. Everyone following roughly the same plan just makes it easier for support and accountability, and these are runners, they like trying out challenges just to see if they can do it. No one seems to care about why some foods are included and others are not, and if they do, they either didn't join or are cheering them on like they would with any other goal a member is trying to reach.0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »I have not done it, but some women in my running group are doing it this month. I don't think any of them are going for the elimination aspect, more of a mental/diet reset after the holiday food and drink. The recipes I have seen look really good, so at worst you might discover some amazing meals to add into the rotation.
W30 is just not consuming certain foods which are not part of probably the vast majority of normal, non dessert recipes, so I wouldn't think one needs special W30 recipes or would have to be doing W30 to use the recipes. I am not paleo, but I look at paleo sites for recipes sometimes, and same with vegan sites.
I think W30 might be a useful incentive (it's a challenge! it's only 30 days!) if one is trying to encourage oneself to cook from whole foods, but I never understand why cutting out legumes and potatoes (although again I think potatoes might be allowed in the newest update) or oats is supposed to create a "reset" or why it's supposed to be better than just focusing on eating a healthful diet and (if you want) primarily or entirely from whole foods.
But whatever.
I don't think people "need" to do Whole30 to use the recipes, I said that some of the food looks good and the OP might end up with some good recipes out of the experience.
I just think referring to food that fits the W30 model as "Whole30 foods" is odd since so many are just standard, normal, common meals -- salmon, broccoli, sweet potato is something that is not a W30 meal, and you can do an entire W30 just eating normally like that. The food is not really all that different than what anyone eats, IMO, except that you are cutting out grains, legumes, and dairy (and added sugar, and much packaged stuff), which are not part of plenty of non W30 dinners.Many people I know who have done it have said that they tried foods they wouldn't have tried otherwise because they were on the plan and didn't have the option of falling back on foods they would have normally chosen.
If it helps you think outside the box, that's great, but you can try those foods without doing W30 too.
You can also focus on cooking from whole foods or eating healthfully without doing W30.
I just hate the message that somehow doing what is specific to W30 (no legumes, grains, or dairy) makes a diet more healthful, as that is not actually true. IMO, my own diet is more healthful when I include legumes and whole grains, and those are not actually foods I tend to overeat.
Focusing on cooking from whole foods or trying to eat healthfully or being open to trying new foods or specifically new vegetables or whatever are all things that are great, but not specific to W30 or something that you only can do on W30.1 -
Alatariel75 wrote: »I tried it once but found it too restrictive. Plus I got annoyed with the people on the Facebook group being mean and so stringent that when I mentioned I put a bit of milk in my coffee they insisted I went off plan and had to start over. I did do the 21 day sugar detox which is kind of paleo and lost 8 lbs but also found it too restrictive and it made me crave sugar more since I thought about it all the time.
But you did go off plan, and if you were doing it for it's actual purpose, you probably should have started over. They were following the rules of the elimination diet, which means removing the specified items completely for the 30 days. Adding back in even a little bit can stuff it up for someone who's actually trying to assess if they have intolerances.
I take it you weren't actually doing it to see if you had food sensitivities?
It's not being mean to point out to someone that they aren't doing what they say they're doing. It's the whole point of a group for it, and I think it's good that people are making sure that newcomers know that to get the proper intended effect, they need to follow the rigorous rules.
I'm actually a member of the Whole30 forum and plan on doing it as part of Febfast, and it's frustrating to see how many people join and ask questions or share recipes or make statements about the diet which are wrong but they've been on FB or Pintrest and have seen these bastardisations. At his heart, it's a super strict diet.
They were mean. So one tablespoon of milk will totally ruin the diet but not putting ghee in your coffee? I was not doing it for intolerances just to lose weight but I pave learned that restriction diets are not for me. I have friends on AIP for legit reasons. The problem with Whole 30 is the premise that certain groups of foods are bad for humans as a whole for reasons not proven by research. Having legit medical issues is a different matter but Whole 30 comes off as trying to convince people that legumes or dairy or grains are inherently bad for you when in all likelihood they are not unless you a medical condition.
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Alatariel75 wrote: »I tried it once but found it too restrictive. Plus I got annoyed with the people on the Facebook group being mean and so stringent that when I mentioned I put a bit of milk in my coffee they insisted I went off plan and had to start over. I did do the 21 day sugar detox which is kind of paleo and lost 8 lbs but also found it too restrictive and it made me crave sugar more since I thought about it all the time.
But you did go off plan, and if you were doing it for it's actual purpose, you probably should have started over. They were following the rules of the elimination diet, which means removing the specified items completely for the 30 days. Adding back in even a little bit can stuff it up for someone who's actually trying to assess if they have intolerances.
I take it you weren't actually doing it to see if you had food sensitivities?
It's not being mean to point out to someone that they aren't doing what they say they're doing. It's the whole point of a group for it, and I think it's good that people are making sure that newcomers know that to get the proper intended effect, they need to follow the rigorous rules.
I'm actually a member of the Whole30 forum and plan on doing it as part of Febfast, and it's frustrating to see how many people join and ask questions or share recipes or make statements about the diet which are wrong but they've been on FB or Pintrest and have seen these bastardisations. At his heart, it's a super strict diet.
They were mean. So one tablespoon of milk will totally ruin the diet but not putting ghee in your coffee? I was not doing it for intolerances just to lose weight but I pave learned that restriction diets are not for me. I have friends on AIP for legit reasons. The problem with Whole 30 is the premise that certain groups of foods are bad for humans as a whole for reasons not proven by research. Having legit medical issues is a different matter but Whole 30 comes off as trying to convince people that legumes or dairy or grains are inherently bad for you when in all likelihood they are not unless you a medical condition.
not to mention that for some it can take more than 30 days to figure out if they have allergies and intolerances to certain things. If you are cutting out several foods groups at once how are you supposed to know which one is giving you issues, if at all? unless you slowly add one food one by one in, Thats how I knew that eggs were giving me issues. I took them out of my diet, waited several months and then ate them again, had some issues,tried another brand and had no issues but then down the road the issues came back, so now I can only eat them in a limited quantity.
I try to avoid them as much as I can. I didnt need the whole 30 to tell/show me that I had issues or intolerances. I took foods out one by one and slowly reintroduced them back in later on to see if I had the same reactions. bacon is another thing that I cant eat. sometimes a combo of foods eaten together can cause a weird reaction,sometimes its an ingredient in food like an additive(like fillers) or an added vitamin or mineral.0 -
Thank you all for your input. I have decided to eat mostly the Whole30 way just because I do much better losing some weight without the carbs like breads. It's hard but that is one thing I can do. But, I'm not going to kick myself in the butt if I eat some.0
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I've done other elimination diets like Whole30, but usually for a longer period of time and often more restrictive. I think they're fantastic. It really helps you learn how certain foods affect your body. You may find you thrive on foods many people are miserable eating, but have other foods nobody else has an issue with that really cause you pain or misery. Just pay attention to how you feel and add in the eliminated foods very slowly and one at a time once your elimination period ends.1
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I didn’t read all the posts, so I may have missed someone else mentioning this...Whole30 is not long term diet. It’s about addressing your relationship with food, discovering what foods make you feel good vs. not (allergies/sensitivities) and the learning to reintroduce foods that were initially restricted. The foods eliminated, for just 30 days, are those typically associated with allergies it sensitivity. It DOES NOT mean you are to never eat that food again. Whole 30 is not a calorie restriction, you eat until satiated. You are simply changing what you eat for a short period. Many does lose wright as a side effect from putting more fresh, unprocessed foods into their body. Whole30 isn’t about weight loss as focus.
With that said, I did a Whole30 before and discovered foods that don’t make me feel well, experienced a physical change in energy etc.
I know calorie deficit is corner stone of weight loss, its true. But, the quality of food you fuel your body with matters in how you feel and look. I can eat a boat load of crap under my calorie limit and not look or feel good while losing weight. I’m never going to knock something that encourages people to eat real, clean, whole, unprocessed organic foods. That will never ever be a bad thing. And I found eating that way it more satisfying in my personal experience, but it’s certain events, sights, smells—things that make my relationship with food blur with other life experiences—rather than about hunger.
It’s about your relationship with food...which is HARD to work through. Whole30 is one of the views out there that forces you to explore your relationship with food in the process. Melissa Hartwig, one of the founders, developed the program borrowing from methods she learned and practiced in recovering from her heroin addiction. Do the Whole30 because you want to explore your relationship with food, determine your trigger foods and lose a sugar addiction. Don’t do it simply for weight loss, it missed the point.
P.S. I don’t love the Whole30 zealots you will find in their online community. No a splash of milk won’t cause me to throw 20 days of elimination diet out the window...unless I’m severely allergic(which I would discover right away). The program doesn’t make you reset for that because it’s all about learning about you and your body.
PSS- I think most people skip the reintroduction phase, which almost makes the first Whole30 moot. There is slow reintro to eliminated foods, it just doesn’t seem to get most attention.2 -
https://health.usnews.com/best-diet/whole30-diet
"Health & Nutrition
No independent research. Nonsensical claims. Extreme. Restrictive. The slams against Whole 30 came in strong from our panelists, and it tied with the Raw Food Diet as the worst of the worst for healthy eating."
Michael Hull went through and examined the claims in the book in detail: https://nutritionasiknowit.com/whole30/2 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »https://health.usnews.com/best-diet/whole30-diet
"Health & Nutrition
No independent research. Nonsensical claims. Extreme. Restrictive. The slams against Whole 30 came in strong from our panelists, and it tied with the Raw Food Diet as the worst of the worst for healthy eating."
Michael Hull went through and examined the claims in the book in detail: https://nutritionasiknowit.com/whole30/
Awesomeness.2
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