August Whole30 – Week 1 – The Inspired Oven

The end of summer for me is always a time where I start to reflect on my goals for the year, my progress, and generally how i’m feeling. It goes without saying that we’ve all been THROUGH IT lately and I know I’m not the only one who has been feeling out of control, especially with my food choices. Being isolated has definitely caused some of my unhealthy eating habits to resurface that I felt were more under control in the beginning of the year. Enter Whole30….

If you have not heard of the Whole30, it is an amazing program that can be used to help heal your relationship with food and learn how to fuel your body in a way that makes you feel great, inside and out. (I am not a doctor, registered dietitian, or certified Whole30 coach so definitely seek advice from your physician before starting any new eating plan! I am strictly writing about my experiences with the program.) Let me start by saying: IT IS NOT A WEIGHT LOSS PROGRAM! In fact, part of the 30 day program is to NOT weigh yourself throughout the 30 days. Since completing my first Whole30 back in 2018, I have almost completely stopped weighing myself. Of course I have goals I want to reach that include weight loss, but there are sooo many more indicators of progress (and these are the ones the Whole30 focuses on) including better sleep, clearer skin, less junk food cravings, better workouts, and generally feeling better.

The Whole30 website has an infinite number of resources if you want to learn more, but basically you eliminate grains, dairy, legumes, sugar, and alcohol for 30 days, then re-introduce each food group slowly to see how they affect you. It’s basically a self-experiment to find out how different foods make you feel and how to eventually build your ideal way of eating.

It sounds like you literally can’t eat anything, but trust me, there are so many delicious, healthy foods that you CAN eat, including all fruits and veggies, eggs, meats (even processed meats like bacon and sausage if they have no added sugar, nitrates, or additives) herbs and spices, and sauces. Since my first round, I have included Whole30 foods and recipes in my daily life consistently. I, fortunately, don’t have any food intolerances or anything but I definitely notice that I feel overall healthier when I clean up my diet in this way.

So here we are – Week 1 of my August 2020 Whole30! Yes, I am starting a week early because I am READY. I’m going to be sharing my meal plans, pantry staples, and grocery lists for the next four weeks as I complete the program. Planning is absolutely key to set yourself up for success on the Whole30, so hopefully this is a helpful guide! I also have several recipes on my blog that are Whole30 compliant as written or with small substitutions, and I’ll be sharing a few more in the coming weeks.

Please let me know if you end up using all or part of this meal plan! I’d love to see what you are making and find out if this is something I should continue doing in the future!