Guest Post by Shelly Criswell
I am happy to share the below story by Shelly with her experience with managing a Whole 30 diet.
Thinking about a Whole 30? You may have some unexpected benefits….
I just finished up my third Whole 30 and man, it feels good! For those of you wondering what Whole 30 is, let me explain.
Whole 30 is a way of eating for 30 days to give your mind and body a reset. January is a very popular month for Whole 30 as everyone is finishing up their holiday binge session and need to do something to get them back on track. I must admit, for me, it was more like a several month binge. I was tired of feeling bloated, tired, and unmotivated.
During your Whole 30, you cannot have any sugar (oh the horror!), dairy, legumes, grains, alcohol, carrageenan, sulfites, or MSG. This is harder than you think. Sugar seems to be in ALL THE THINGS. Food manufacturers manage to sneak it in things you wouldn’t even imagine.
What CAN you eat? Wonderful tasting, good for you, whole foods. All the fruit, vegetables, healthy fats, and protein you want.
As expected, I slowly started having more energy, felt less bloated, and more motivated to get things done. I haven’t had a single sip of caffeine in 30 days, but I have more energy than I ever had with a day full of coffee drinking.
But something else unexpected started happening. My entire family (and even a friend or two) reaped the benefits as well! I saw this quote and thought it was very fitting:
Doing good holds the power to transform us on the inside, and then ripple out in ever-expanding circles that positively impact the world at large. ~Shari Arison
A friend at work decided to eat healthy with me (not necessarily Whole 30, but just a healthy way of eating) and lost 20 pounds!! She has started to learn how to take it one meal at a time and make one good choice after another.
My family started eating our dinners at the table instead of in front of the TV! It’s amazing how a home cooked meal can bring together a family to gather around the table.
My husband lost 5 pounds just by eating my dinners! He didn’t change anything else in his routine other than eating the meals I prepped at night.
My oldest daughter started working out!
My youngest daughter started packing her own, healthy lunches. It opened up discussions about what a meal should consist of. She asked questions, like what is a carb, what is a protein, etc….
My kids unknowingly spent more time with me in the kitchen. They wanted to help with the cooking, chopping, planning. They learned how to peel, chop, dice, and mince like the pros!
I started a compost pile with all of the discarded produce bits. It’s going to make an amazing garden this year! And it reduced our overall trash and my family’s carbon footprint.
We saved MONEY! Everyone says eating healthy is so expensive. For my family, it saved us hundreds of dollars. We didn’t eat out at all during the 30 days, and only ate what I bought from the grocery store.
Now that my Whole 30 is finished, I plan to continue the good habits I have formed. I love the positive impact it has had on my family and my health.
If you want to learn more about Whole 30, visit my website at www.shellycriswell.com
Hey there, I’m Shelly, a lifestyle blogger at ShellyCriswell. Most days you can find me blogging when I’m not at my full-time job as a toxicologist. The things I am most passionate about are my family, learning and growing as a person, travelling, and blogging. I want to live a life of intention and hopefully, inspire others to do the same.
When I’m not busy working on my blog (or at work) you can usually find me spending time with my husband and 2 daughters. We love to hang out with our greyhound and 2 cats. We also love to go glamping (glamour camping aka camping in style). I also love to cook healthy recipes and find ways to maintain an active lifestyle.
