A lot of you have been asking how I’m feeling and I have to admit, after my first week of the Whole30 program I honestly didn’t notice much of a difference. That may sound disappointing, but considering all the warnings I’d read about many people feeling pretty awful in the beginning I feel lucky to pass through unscathed! I think it helped that I was already eating pretty clean before I started Whole30 and had already reduced gluten in my diet quite a bit, so those changes weren’t quite as dramatic for my body.
By the end of week 2 I was still thinking I didn’t feel any differently…but then I realized it was 9pm and I felt awesome – not tired or sluggish at all! I’m definitely happy to report that only halfway through this 30 day challenge it appears I’ve gotten my energy levels back on track! I’ve always been a pretty good sleeper so I haven’t noticed much of a difference there, although I have been waking up earlier on my own (no alarm clock or 3 year old needed) and feeling well-rested and ready to start my day, so that’s fantastic! Overall, I’m loving these results so far!
During the Whole30 program meals center around meat, seafood, eggs, tons of vegetables, a little bit of fruit, and plenty of good fats from oils, nuts and seeds. Foods that are off-limits include added sugar of any kind (this includes maple syrup and honey), alcohol, grains (including wheat, rice, oats, corn, quinoa), legumes (beans, soy, lentils, peanuts), dairy, corn and white potatoes.
Here’s a look at the meals (and recipes) I enjoyed during Week 2:
Meal 1: Scrambled eggs with kale and scallions and Wildtree’s Fiesta Salsa Mix.
Meal 2: Kale, lettuce and carrot salad with grilled chicken, topped with homemade garlic ranch dressing and chopped cashews.
Meal 3: Salmon with Lemon Dill Sauce (I made it according to this recipe, but substituted Wildtree’s Dill Dip Blend for the fresh chopped dill and it was amazing!) and Roasted Winter Veggies (carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, and rutabaga).
Meal 1: Celery Root, Kale & Avocado Slaw.
Meal 2: Scrambled eggs and bacon.
Meal 3: Wildtree’s Spanish Style Garlic Shrimp (part of my new “Refresh, Reset” Whole30 and Paleo-compliant freezer meals workshop) and carrots seasoned with Wildtree’s Rancher Steak Rub.
Meal 1: Egg, kale, and scallion frittata seasoned with Wildtree’s Rancher Steak Rub.
Meal 2: Wildtree’s Spanish Style Garlic Shrimp and Celery Root, Kale & Avocado Slaw.
Meal 3: Apple slices with Spiced Cashew Cream Dip.
Meal 1: Egg, kale, bacon, scallion frittata seasoned with Wildtree’s Rancher Steak Rub.
Meal 2: Grilled mahi mahi topped with guacamole, and apple slices with Spiced Cashew dip
Meal 3: Taco salad with beef, red and green peppers, and guacamole.
Meal 1: Roasted Pumpkin & Bacon Soup.
Meal 2: Taco salad with beef, red and green peppers, and guacamole.
Meal 3: Paleo Buffalo Chicken Sweet Potato Skins.
Meal 1: Roasted Pumpkin and Bacon Soup.
Meal 2: Paleo Buffalo Chicken Sweet Potato Skins.
Meal 3: Almond Chicken Soup with Sweet Potatoes.
Meal 1: Almond Chicken Soup with Sweet Potatoes.
Meal 2: Balsamic roasted Brussels sprouts and broccoli, and apple slices with cashew dip.
Meal 3: Grilled steak salad with kale, scallions, toasted pine nuts, and homemade vinaigrette.
UPDATE: Continue following along on my Whole30 journey here:
Hey Dusty,
I’m the one who comment-bombed your original post about Whole 30 regarding starting a Ketogenic diet a few months back. The thing that is so surprising to me now is that I have essentially zero sugar cravings, and although a normal coffee-loving “whore”, I find myself looking for it less and less, and thirdly bread products tend to taste like cardboard now. Very strange concepts to me.
That’s so wonderful, Karen! Congratulations to you on your continued success with Ketogenic – I love hearing success stories like this. I hope the rest of your family is continuing to feel fantastic, too!
YUM! This is such an inspiration because I”m always trying to find other healthier meals to make everyday and especially for snacks. Keep at it!
http://jax-and-jewels.blogspot.com
Thank you so much, Heidi!
These recipes look awesome!! But I do have one question, do you eat any snacks in between meals? My sister has been talking to me about doing this, but I think I would be hungry :/
The links to some of the recipes appear to be broken -the link to Martha Stewart- for example the cashew dip…
I don’t know the if this has been asked before but does Kate eat the same things you eat? I know she eats healthy too but I’m curious to see if she eats most of the same you things you do or if you change things a bit for her.
Great question, Katalina! No, I don’t eat any snacks between meals – I’ve found I haven’t needed to. My understanding about Whole30 is that you should be eating enough at breakfast, lunch, and dinner that you don’t need snacks in between. If you find yourself hungry before your next meal, that’s a cue that you should’ve had a more substantial previous meal. I’ve definitely found this to be true for myself!
Oh no, I’m so sorry! I know some of the recipes I posted are Whole Living recipes and that company folded earlier this year (but the website has stayed up). I’ll see if I can find other links to use. I’m so sorry about that, Kristin!
I wish she ate what I ate! No, sadly she is a super picky 3 year old. When we have family meals I don’t make anything separate for her, but I do put at least one thing on her plate that I know she’ll eat. My rule (for food she doesn’t want to eat) is its her choice what she eats but all her food has to stay on her plate. She used to shove it off her plate or push it away from her if she didn’t want to try it. I like it to stay in front of her in hopes that SOMEDAY (after seeing it enough) she will finally give it a try. We’ll see!
Hi Kristin – I just checked the links again and they appear to be working. Hopefully it was just a temporary glitch when you tried them!
Hey Dusty! Do you have a recipe for your homemade garlic ranch dressing?