Read our Whole30 series:
Week One | Week Two | Week Three | Week Four | 10 things we learned
Well, we survived the first seven days. It wasn’t easy: a few kitchen disasters, painful grocery bills and a trying weekend at the Baton Rouge Blues Festival made it a struggle. But so far, we’ve stuck to the plan, tamed our sugar dragon and managed to only have a couple of meltdowns.
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How our week went
Kaci Yoder, staff writer: I was going to write that I found the first week surprisingly easy, but then I remembered frantically ordering a bag of Crio Bru on Amazon Prime two nights ago after spending way too long staring longingly at a bar of dark chocolate in my refrigerator. You could say I’m definitely missing sweets, especially since I’m an avid baker when I’m not depriving myself of grains, dairy and sugar.
But other than that, I haven’t found the week horribly difficult. It’s definitely been a challenge: Jenn and I went to Blues Fest on Saturday, and walking past all those food trucks and booths was basically an obstacle course of temptation. But because we planned out our meals ahead of time, stuck to simple recipes that could last over several meals and stayed flexible in how closely we followed the menu for the week, I stayed pretty energized with what I was eating and cooking. I also started challenging myself to style and photograph my meals, which made it more fun. But the dishes … God help me if I have to do one more dish this week. And the cost of groceries has me just snacking on leftover smoothies and guacamole until I get paid on Friday.
Physically, I’m feeling pretty great. I’m in a constant battle with PCOS and insulin resistance, so I struggle a lot with what I want to eat versus what my body wants/needs to be fed. Cutting out pretty much all the problematic foods for my medical problems means I’m feeling less bloated, less fatigued and less stressed about my conditions. I also have ADHD, and I even feel more focused right now. I ran into a doctor friend over the weekend, and he says he thinks a Whole30 or paleo diet is a great idea for me. So why don’t I just eat like this all the time? Because I love brownies and cheese fries, OK? Shut up.
In all seriousness, though, I will say this week has me seriously thinking about going paleo for a while. I could never give up baking or sweeteners like honey and maple syrup for good, so I don’t think a Whole30 lifestyle is for me longterm, but both of those things are allowed on paleo. But I also love dairy… and pasta… OK, we’ll see how I feel in another week.
Jenn Tormo, editor: There has been a lot of yelling in my kitchen this week. I’m a mess when it comes to cooking: I have bad hand-eye coordination, which means I drop things constantly, and my prep/knife work is excruciatingly slow. I burn things. I break things (already three glasses this calendar year). A few years ago, my roommate and I even had the fire department come out to our apartment because we nearly burned the kitchen down making pork.
I even get stressed grocery shopping. I almost broke down in the aisles of Whole Foods last week shopping for my first Whole30 meal plan. It took me an hour to find everything I wanted, I accidentally bought $27 worth of chicken from the meat counter, and I paid $12 for ghee butter. By the time I found the maca for my smoothies and saw its $15 price tag, I actually had tears in my eyes.
Unfortunately, all of this means I avoid cooking. Why would I want to waste time on something I’m bad at? But taking the dive into Whole30 has forced me to confront this. And while there have been a lot of messes in my kitchen this week, I can feel myself making slow progress. Maybe by time this thing is over, I can make Whole30-approved bacon without burning it.
Items/meals that saved us
Kaci: Major shout out to my personal savior, Applegate Naturals Uncured Beef Hot Dogs. About three days in I remembered how crucial it is to have pre-packaged foods that you can just microwave or unwrap and eat, because let’s face it: cooking and doing dishes constantly gets exhausting. These guys are lifesavers. I packed a zippie of them for Blues Fest, and the snackability was worth how much Jenn laughed at me when I whipped them out of my purse in front of God and everybody.
Another shoutout to the genius Madeline Ellis of Mimosa Handcrafted for saving us at Blues Fest. We stopped by her booth (so I could finally buy the bee necklace I’ve been coveting) and complained about our Whole30 struggle, and she cheerfully informed us that she is always low key living Whole30 (HOW? We’re convinced she’s superhuman.) and that she loves The Big Squeezy because they’ll tailor some of their drinks to your dietary restrictions if asked. We walked down to the shop and managed to score some compliant smoothies to drink while we sat in the grass to watch Kenny Neal, and it actually made us feel like we got to fully participate in the festival experience.
Jenn: I have burnt my tongue so many times this week. Partly because I’m always hungry, and when a plate of food ends up in front of me I turn ravenous. But it’s also partly because all the meals have been so good that I can’t stop eating them. Like, really, genuinely, surprisingly good. This tomato basil soup (butter omitted)? Life changing. Paleo chicken nuggets –Raising Cane’s, who? (Just kidding; I really miss Cane’s. These paleo chicken nuggets are awesome, though!)
But the real lifesaver for me has been sauteed apples cooked in Red Stick Spice Co.’s blood orange avocado oil, nutmeg and cinnamon. First of all, I’m obsessed with that avocado oil. Obsessed! I can’t wait to go back to Red Stick Spice and try other flavors. I first cooked the sauteed apples in coconut oil, and they were just OK. But that avocado oil makes everything taste better, and I make the apples as a snack daily now.
It’s really amazed me how delicious food can taste even without sugar and all kinds of cancer-causing additives. My new dream for the world: that more restaurants would make meals following Whole 30 guidelines. Week one has taught me that you can still make meat and tomato sauce and dessert taste good without slowly killing yourself in the process.
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How we’re feeling about the next week
Kaci: As my Cajun mother would say, pou-yaille. In other words, bracing myself for a difficult week. I’ll be spending Easter weekend at home with family (including three tiny nephews) in what is certain to be my own personal hell of chocolate bunnies, jellybeans and incredible home-cooked meals I’m not allowed to have. I’m planning to bring an arsenal of compliant groceries with me, but I know it’s going to be tough. I’m hoping to make it through this week without cheating—and without feeling bitter about watching my nephews chow down on their Easter baskets.
Jenn: Time to address the elephant in the room. I’m going on vacation Friday through Wednesday, which means I have the worst Whole30 timing ever. I’ll nervously say that I’m going to try to stick to Whole30 while I’m out of town. But deep down I know it’s very, very unlikely, and I’m probably going to have to start all over again when I get back. (Whole30 rules say that if you accidentally consume vanilla extract on Day 27, game over. You have to start all over again to get the full effect.)
I’m going to California for Coachella, so I Googled “Whole30 Coachella” to see if it’s ever been done and basically got no results. Ha! Because obviously you’d be crazy to try and do that. Just look at this food. Plus, half the reason I love to travel is so I can try things like this. I’ve basically been waiting a year for another one of those milkshakes. Pray for me, please.