Get back on track this year with the Whole30 image

New Year- New You!

Each year, 40-50% of Americans make the resolution to exercise more and eat better- ultimately hoping to lose weight, feel better, and look better. They start the year off strong but then, come middle of February, they start losing focus and motivation and fall back into old patterns. Don’t let this happen to you! Take charge of your life, your health, your well-being and join me on a 30 day challenge to reset your body and mind!

Take the Whole30 Challenge!

This past January, my fiancé and I committed to 30 days of eating a whole food based diet to let our bodies reset after the indulgent holiday season and we could not have been more happy about the decision to do so. 30 days may seem like an impossibly long time to make such a change but it is absolutely worth it and you won’t regret it. No cheat days, no slip ups and no ‘just a little bite.’ The reason for 100% is completely backed by science in the time it takes to create new habits and to allow our bodies to completely reset from our old dietary toxins and allergens. 30 day elimination diet allows your body the time it needs to fully reset from the most commonly problematic foods in our western diets. Then, after the reset, you can re-introduce the foods you choose to and see how you feel. How does your body respond? Then decide if you like the way you feel or not and whether it’s food you want to keep in your diet or not. It’s that simple.

There are endless challenges that arise in our lives; birthing a child, fighting cancer, losing a child, losing a marriage… saying no to that cookie on the breakroom table is NOT hard and you can do it! This diet is not about weight loss or a number on the scale- it’s about feeling your best! In fact, one rule of the protocol is NO STEPPING ON THE SCALE for 30 days!

Here’s the rules:

EAT REAL FOOD-

Eat meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables and fruit; natural fats; herbs, spices, seasonings.

Eat foods with simple or recognizable list of ingredients, or no ingredients at all because they are whole and unprocessed

AVOID FOR 30 DAYS-
  • No added sugars, real or artificial: includes (but is not limited to) maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, coconut sugar, date syrup, monk fruit extract, stevia, Splenda, Equal, Nutrasweet, and xylitol
  • No alcohol, in any form (not even for cooking). No tobacco either
  • No grains: includes (but not limited to) wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, rice, millet, bulgur, sorghum, sprouted grains, and all gluten-free pseudo-cereals like quinoa, amaranth, and buckwheat. This also includes all the ways we add wheat, corn and rice into our foods in the form of bran, germ, starch, and so on…
  • No legumes: includes beans of all kinds (black, red, pinto, navy, white, kidney, lima, fava, etc.), peas, chickpeas, lentils, and peanuts (including peanut butter) and all forms of soy: soy sauce, miso, tofu, tempeh, edamame, and soy lecithin
  • No dairy: includes cow, goat, or sheep’s milk products like cream, milk, cheese, kefir, yogurt, sour cream, ice cream or frozen yogurt
  • No carrageenan, MSG, or sulfites:
  • No baked goods, junk foods or treats - even those with “approved” ingredients: recreating sweets and treats, even if technically compliant, is missing the point of Whole30 and won’t lead to behavior change. This includes commercially prepared chips and french fries
  • No stepping on the scale or taking body measurements of any kind- you may weigh in on day 0 and day 31 but not in between. Focus on how you feel.

If this is scary or intimidating, we’re here to help! Call Bodywise today to set up your initial consultation for nutrition coaching and get back on track to your best self!

Written By:

Halley Tollner

Certified Nutrition Coach

Physical Therapist at Bodywise Physical Therapy Boulder/Westminster

Hartwig, Melissa, and Dallas Hartwig. The whole30: the 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015.