Happy new year, friends!
In celebration of our 1-year blog anniversary, we’re jumping into 2021 with our 3rd annual round of January Whole30 officially on January 2nd! The reason why we choose to participate in the January Whole30 program, is because we want to reset our diet and lifestyle by eating whole, unrefined, unprocessed food.
In all honesty, the holidays (starting from Halloween) along with shorter days and cold chilly nights make it easier to eat all the comfort food & sweet treats, pulls me into hibernation mode, and a few cocktails here and there during the zoom holiday gatherings throw my body out of whack by the time the new year comes. So by then, I’m definitely ready to reset and nourish my body with what it needs to rebuild a healthy gut and rid my body of the sugar demons and toxins.
If any of this sounds familiar to you, then please join me in this Whole30 reset! Scroll down and continue reading for all the deets.
In this post, we’ll discuss and share:
- What is Whole30?
- How does it work?
- What can I expect?
- Sign up for weekly meal plans and grocery lists
- Whole30 Recipe Round-up
WHAT IS WHOLE30?
The short answer: Eating real food for 30 days.
According to Whole30.com, real food means:
- Meat
- Seafood
- Eggs
- Vegetables
- Fruit
- Natural fats
- Herbs
- Spices
- Seasonings
- Foods with a simple or recognizable list of ingredients, or no ingredients at all because they’re whole and unprocessed.
The long answer: Head to Whole30.com for a full list of the Program Rules.
HOW DOES WHOLE30 WORK?
As mentioned in the section above, you’re eating only real food and avoiding the following ingredients for 30 days:
- No real or artificial sugar or sweeteners
- No alcohol in any form (not even for cooking)
- No grains (rice, corn, oatmeal, barley, amaranth, buckwheat, wheat, etc.)
- No on most forms of legumes (beans or soy)
- No dairy
- No carrageenan, MSG, or sulfites
- No junk-food, treats, or baked goods with Whole30 approved ingredients
Click HERE for the detailed list of ingredients and foods to avoid on Whole30.com
WHAT CAN I EXPECT?
I’m not gonna lie – if this is your first time participating in Whole30, it will be challenging, and part of it is all mental. Which is why I highly encourage you to prepare for the week ahead and do some meal planning, create a grocery list, and stock your fridge and pantry/cupboard with Whole30 approved ingredients and snacks.
You’ll also find a lot of creative ways to reinvent traditional recipes using clean ingredients, and you’ll start to notice the difference in taste and even how certain foods make you feel after eating them. The Whole30 program is an elimination diet, which is going to help you find out what your food sensitivities are once you’ve avoided the ingredients mentioned above after 30 days after you’ve reintroduced the food back into your system.
By the second week, you may feel like you want to quit, but this is the turning point, and the time where you want to reinforce and remember why you decided to do this in the first place. As long as you have a full stock of Whole30 approved meals and snacks surrounding you, and you’re able to hide the non-approved Whole30 ingredients – you should be fine.
Socializing and dining out will definitely work against your favor. If you’re living in an area like me where we’re on lockdown and social distancing is enforced, then this will remove the stress of trying to find something W30 compliant.
WEEKLY MEAL PLANS & GROCERY LISTS
For the next 30-days, we will be supplying you with the following:
- Whole30 Meal Plans where we’re covering everything from snacks, apps, mains, & sides that will make your mouth water and surprise you with how good the recipes are.
- Whole30 Grocery Lists with all the ingredients needed to prepare the meals, including pre-made meals if you’re short on time or don’t feel like cooking.
- Whole30 Eating Resources which includes tips on how to stay on track during Whole30, how to set yourself up for success by organizing your fridge and pantry, and how to properly store your fruits, veggies, etc.
Sign up to receive our January Whole30 newsletter at the very top of my blog page to receive all of this information!
WHOLE30 RECIPE ROUND-UP
- Roasted Sweet Potato Bites
- Vegetable & Sausage Frittata
- Top Sirloin Beef Kabobs
- Steak with Chimichurri Sauce
- Oven Fried Chicken
- Turkey Bolognese & Zoodles
- Instant Pot BBQ Pork Ribs (using Whole30 approved BBQ sauce)
- Lemongrass Pork Chops (omit the maple syrup or honey in the recipe)
- Pineapple Fried Caulirice
- Little Gem Salad (omit the cheese in the recipe)
And that’s all for now! January Whole30 officially starts for us on January 2nd and we hope you can join us! Tune into my Instagram stories and IG posts via @fullasamother for more details on a daily basis. This is going to be so fun and I can’t wait to share this journey with you, friends!
Good luck and I’m cheering you on!
-Jasmine