So Many Whole 30 Thoughts

I did not want to be that person on Whole 30 who couldn't have a conversation without mentioning Whole 30... but not all wishes come true, haha! I was constantly thinking about what food I needed to prep and felt the desire to share how the program as a whole was impacting me. Hopefully you're actually interested in hearing about Whole 30 if you've read this far, so here are some of my takeaways:

Things I learned and will carry forward

- Almond butter! Such a treat I never have tried before. Now this will be a pantry staple for me.

- Having eggs vs. a smoothie for breakfast made me feel fuller for longer. I used to make a smoothie most week days for breakfast and would be starving by 10 or 11. No more smoothies in the morning for me!

- I actually don't need cheese to feel satisfied! I thought this would be the hardest thing to give up but I felt fine. I had a lot of avocados instead of cheese in dishes. It can be difficult to find a ripe one that doesn't cost $10 but it was worth the search (okay i'm exaggerating about them being $10 but why are they sooo expensive?).

- I really got my portion control under control. I ate a lot of my meals out of smaller containers, paid attention to how my body was feeling and if I was full or not.

- Kitchen is closed at 7! This wasn't a Whole 30 rule but I implemented this and it helped me not have late night snacks when I was probably just bored.

- I don't always have to drink if others are. I love my wine but will survive if I don't drink when others around me are.

- I ventured out and found some new La Croix flavors I liked!

- The Chipotle Whole 30 salad was really good! I didn't miss the rice or beans but did miss my smokey Chipotle Tabasco.

- Hard boiled eggs are delicious! I used to only like them if they were deviled eggs but they were such a great snack either plain or with a little mustard, EBTB seasoning, and some diced pickles or with some guacamole. I made hard boiled eggs with my new instapot and they were SO much easier to make and each one peeled easily.

Things that weren't my fav

- Having to pack sometimes up to 5 meals to bring into work. I normally bring in breakfast and lunch but if I had plans after work, I needed to bring in dinner too. It was annoying carrying in so much food.

- I felt anti-social. I feel like I would've felt better doing Whole 30 in the spring/summer when there are more outdoor activities and less drinking events.

- Doing Whole 30 solo is hard! Having a roommate or partner do it with you would be so much better!

- Not a lot of restaurants provide Whole 30 approved menu items or at least Google didn't show many options. I only ate out 3 times and twice were at Chipotle. I could've done more research but it felt easier to just make most of my meals.

- I didn't experience the Whole 30 emotions! Luckily I didn't get the headaches or non-approved food cravings but I also missed out on Tiger Blood! At first I wondered if I was doing the diet incorrectly, but I think begin gluten free already meant this "diet" wasn't as much of a shock to my body.

In summary, I thought the eating was pretty easy. I lost 10.5 pounds which I was really happy about. Would I do Whole 30 again? No. Would I eat Whole 30 approved meals on a regular basis? Yes, I would love to strive to eat according to Whole 30 ~80% of the week but don't want it to stop me from eating out with friends or having a drink at a cocktail party. I can cross this off my fake bucket list!