Eating to feel great

*I want to note that I am not an expert or a doctor. Please consult your physician before committing to a regimen different from what you’re used to.

I will mostly be discussing the Whole30 style of eating on my page – because that’s what I like and what has worked well for me.

On the Whole30 program you eat meat, seafood, eggs, veggies & fruits and natural fats. You do not eat any added sugars, alcohol, grains, most legumes, or dairy. For a full overview of the program please visit their site here: Whole30

I don’t like using the term “diet” and I don’t want to promote or endorse diet culture. I prefer to look at ways to improve my health by means of eating things that work best for MY body. Everyone is different. I have found that the Whole30 style of eating works well for me. Specifically, it cuts out many foods that I have allergies to or that negatively impact my body in some way.

That being said, I do not eat strictly Whole30 all the time. I am doing a full Whole30 this month (January 2021) to help reset my body and more importantly reset my habits after eating a bunch of things that weren’t great for me over the last few months and the holidays. I do it to feel better.

It’s important to eat and do what works best for you personally, and no one should feel pressured to lose weight or to look a certain way, even though I know we all have insecurities around body image.

I always want to encourage body positivity and self-love, especially since it’s something I struggle with myself.

Whole30-style eating habits have helped me to have more energy, better digestion, better skin and just feel better overall.

HOWEVER – It is not sustainable for me to eat this way all the time. I need a glass of wine and a chocolate chip cookie sometimes, most of us do! But when I’m doing Whole30 I feel better, and that’s really the point of making any changes to your health regimen.

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Okay so now I’m going to share an overview I actually wrote almost two years ago when I first tried Whole30. A few friends had asked me for information so I put this together to help them get started.

Here is my Whole30 Rundown:

• No Booze
• No Dairy
• No Grains (wheat/bread/rice/corn/quinoa, etc.)
• No Sugar (no honey/syrup or “natural sweeteners” either)
• No Legumes (beans/peanuts/soy, etc.)
• No Baked Goods with “approved ingredients” (Don’t try to bake a cake out of approved ingredients)

• You can eat most meats (be careful with sausages or deli meats though as they are usually off limits and have additives that aren’t compliant)
• You can eat potatoes and sweet potatoes (really what else do you need in life?)
• You can eat fruits
• You can eat almost all veggies (no corn)
• You can eat nuts

Again, here is the actual guide: Whole30

Substitutes

• Use Ghee instead of Butter
• Use Coconut Aminos instead of Soy Sauce
• Use Avocado Mayonnaise instead of regular mayo
• Use Coconut Milk instead of other milks
• Use Cauliflower rice because it’s actually amazing and sops up yummy sauces well 🙂
• **Make sure any Dijon mustard you purchase is W30 compliant and doesn’t have White Wine in it

Remember

Don’t forget, you can have potatoes and sweet potatoes! Make them in a variety of ways and get comfortable exploring the glory of the potato! I usually have 1/2 a sweet potato with cinnamon with my breakfast and it is delightful! We will often make some roasted potatoes with fresh herbs and garlic as a side dish for our dinners.

If there aren’t vegetables included in a recipe then I always add my own or add a side salad. I like to try to eat as many vegetables as I can. Another *hot tip* is to always start with your vegetables when eating. This is something I’ve done most of my adult life to ensure I always eat the most important thing on my plate.

There are plenty of Whole30 compliant dressings out there but you can also always make your own – personally I love just a little olive oil and S&P.

Although Whole30 is its own program I’m also still super aware of portion control to make sure I don’t go overboard on anything. I try to have 4-6oz. of meat for lunch and dinner, 1 cup of veggies 3x a day and keep my potato/sweet potato consumption to about 3/4 a cup 1-2x a day.

**We always make enough of whatever we cook for dinner to have leftovers for lunch the next day. I can’t stress enough how much this helps and makes everything easier for lunchtime.

Breakfast is often a tough one for people but there are a lot of breakfast casserole recipes and ideas out there, and eggs are your best friend on W30 so scramble some up or make a big batch of hard-boiled eggs to have on hand for the week! If you don’t like eggs, don’t fret! There are lots of other options out there, too. Sweet potatoes and berries / fruit are another great breakfast option if you’re not into eggs.

Snacks

One of my favorite snacks has been celery and carrot sticks dipped in guac! I prep a Tupperware filled with chopped celery and buy a big bag of baby carrots. I love the Wholly Guacamole pre-portioned cups from Costco – but you can make your own guac or buy a big tub from Whole Foods or most other grocery stores, too!

Nuts are another wonderful snack that really help me if I’m on the go. I like to make my own mixed nuts because I never find a pre-made mix I like. I purchase almonds, cashews, walnuts, pecans and Marcona almonds from Costco and then mix them together myself in a Tupperware or baggie and then I can easily throw that in my purse when I’m out and about for a quick and compliant snack.

A great mid-morning snack if you feel you need one is usually fruit like a banana or an apple with almond butter. Hard-boiled eggs are a super easy go-to snack so I always have a bunch prepped and waiting in my fridge…I’ll share my secret to making these on the recipe page!

Dessert

Sugar cravings can be REALLY tough to get through, so one trick is to have a cup of strawberries or mixed berries right after lunch. I’ve found that helps a lot with my sweet tooth 🙂

Another great option is to have two dates – they are delicious and I use dates in my cooking a LOT on W30.

Now for the best – if you love ice cream then I recommend having a half a cup of FROZEN blueberries! It’s like eating a sorbet, love love love this snack/dessert option so much. My amazing husband actually introduced this healthy “dessert” to me years ago and it’s always a favorite in our house.

Dining out

I know many of us are not dining out due to the pandemic but if you order food for delivery or plan to dine out in the future here are some tips on that too:

It’s always best to check the restaurant’s menu before you go to make sure they have things that are compliant. Don’t go in blind, have a plan.

The best/easiest thing I’ve found is that almost every restaurant has salmon on their menu, so I’d often just order grilled salmon (without any sauces or butter or anything but dried herbs/seasonings on it) with a salad or grilled veggies. I’ve also ordered a lot of omelettes.

Always ask what dressings are made with if you order a salad to make sure it’s compliant. If not, there’s always the balsamic + EVOO option.

Whatever you decide to order, it’s always easier if you’re prepared and have previously viewed the menu.

Not necessarily Whole30 related but here are a few of my personal philosophies when it comes to healthy eating

• Drink. Water. It’s one of the best things you can do for your health. Cut out all the crap and sugary drinks, and just drink more water.
• IF you’re going to drink a soda, go for the real stuff. Don’t drink “diet”- whatever with artificial sweeteners and aspartame – and do it in moderation. I love a good coke-a-cola every once in a while, but I drink the mini 7.5 oz cans and can’t even usually finish one. **Of course you can not drink sodas on Whole30.
• I think one of the biggest things people don’t realize is the excessive amount of sugar they consume regularly. I love sugar, too. If you know me you know that I douse my waffles with so much syrup it’s really just syrup with a side of waffle. But I don’t eat waffles every day or even every week. There are so many hidden sugars added especially to dressings, sauces, prepackaged foods – and it really adds up if you’re not paying attention. So read labels, limit your sugar intake and try to find ways to regularly appreciate foods with natural sugars in them like berries/fruit instead.

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Final Thoughts

Finally, I want to share my favorite quote from the Whole30 website with you because it really resonated with me and has helped me to better shape my attitude:

Okay now on to the other fun stuff, a collection of my favorite W30 recipes is linked below! I will continue to update as I gather more recipes over time, I’m always finding new ones! 🙂

xoxo

Miss Mariss

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