Whole30 Getting Ready: 3 Small Changes for Success
When starting something new, like our Whole30 Challenge small changes made beforehand can help ease you into the bigger ones. Just because you say you are starting on January 22nd or February 1st doesn’t mean you can’t start something before your chosen date.
First, you’ll need to decide what kind of person you are – do you like to ease into things or go cold turkey? If you aren’t sure then think about the last time you went to get into a cold pool. Did you jump in or take it step-by-step? If you like to acclimate your body an inch at a time then small changes may be the way to go.
1. Mindset
Understand before you undertake this new way of eating that it doesn’t have to be complicated. You are essentially eating veggies, protein, and fat. That is simple. You can get overwhelmed with all of the Whole30 recipes out there. Those are not necessary. They can be fun. But they can also be time consuming and overwhelming. Remind yourself that roasted chicken and potatoes or pan-fried fish and steamed broccoli are A-OK, too!
2. Start Reading Labels
Leading up to your Whole30 begin reading every label and start deciphering what is compliant and not. Many many people have been tripped up because they didn’t recognize that something contained sugar because it was listed under another name. There are 61 names for sugar! Or knowing that some nuts are cooked in peanut oil!
It’s best to start googling the weird things on labels before you begin your journey. This is a small change with a big payoff. It will be a little time consuming at first but you will quickly become familiar with them. Or just stay away from packaged food for thirty days.
3. Easing Into Cooking
Some small changes to ease into your Whole 30 are to start making compliant meals before your date. As you countdown to your start date don’t replace groceries with non-compliant food. When you go grocery shopping just stick to your Whole30 list. If coffee will be a problem start weaning yourself off adding sugar and experiment with different creamers (coconut milk, almond milk, etc.) to find what works for you – or ease into drinking it black.
Whether you ease in or jump in we hope you find success and the lifelong changes that brought you to this Whole30 journey. If you have any small changes pre-Whole30 that helped you succeed let us know in the comments below!
