Whole 30 with us and you may win $50

Doing the Whole 30Shawn and I have decided that our family will undergo a challenge, and we  invite you to join us.  We plan to follow the Whole 30 program starting the second week of September, and we’re giving away a $50 gift card to someone who participates with us.  According to the program’s website, the Whole 30 is a “nutritional program designed to change your life in 30 days.”  It calls for the elimination of common problem foods such as sugar, grains, dairy, and legumes for 30 consecutive days (no cheat days!).  The website claims that doing so will promote the healing of your digestive and immune systems, the regulation of your metabolism, and the elimination of unhealthy cravings and eating habits.  Based on what we’ve read about the Whole 30 program, we believe that anyone who does it will experience tangible results.  That’s why we’ve decided to give it a try and see how our family’s health improves as a result.

What we like about the Whole 30 Program

  • The rules are simple.  The website tells you what foods you can eat and what foods you cannot eat.  There’s not a lot of guesswork required.  If you stick to unprocessed, whole foods it’s pretty straightforward.  It only gets complicated when you try to work in processed foods; however, if you don’t mind endlessly poring over ingredient lists then you can have some processed foods as well.  Plus there’s no need to count calories or points or weigh your food.  Just eat.
  • People have been freed from the bondage of various diseases from following this program.  Check out the Whole 30 testimonials page and find your ailment on the list.  Chances are somebody has written a testimonial about how the Whole 30 program has helped free them from the same thing that’s plaguing you.  Although I cannot vouch for whether each and every testimony is true, I believe that they are because I am convinced that most disease is preventable and reversible to some extent when the right foods are introduced and the wrong foods are taken out.  I’m not a doctor, a nutritionist, or a scientist, but I have common sense and I believe that counts for something.  We learned about the Whole 30 program from a pretty cool blog called the Clothes Make the Girl.  Check out her story if you need some convincing.
  • Pregnant and nursing mothers can participate.  Being that I just had a baby and am currently nursing, it’s good to know that I can follow a program without concern about whether it will hurt my baby.  Again, this program encourages you to eat a balanced diet without restricting calories.  As long as she eats a variety of the foods on the “you can eat” list, a pregnant or nursing mother will get all of the nutrients she needs and eliminate the junk that her she and her baby need to do without!  However, whether your body is feeding another human or not, common wisdom recommends that you talk with your doctor before making substantial changes to your diet or fitness regimen.
  • Checking your weight and body fat measurements during the program are BANNED!  You can weigh yourself before starting the program and after you finish, but during the 30 days, don’t you dare!  This makes sense.  Yes, following the program will likely cause you to lose weight, but constantly monitoring your weight and body fat only distracts you from the bigger picture, which is regaining control over your health.  Put your scale in the closet and use this time to focus on eating as many healthy meats, fruits, and veggies as you possibly can.  And I do encourage you to lean more on the side of vegetables and fruits over meats.  Vegetables and fruits are what possess the vitamins and nutrients that will help heal your body.  And try to get in a lot of raw veggies and fruits.
  • It’s only 30 days.  I like plans that have a clear start and end time.  You can pretty much endure anything as long as you know that there is a definite ending to what you’re going through.  The basic premise is nice: try this program for 30 days and if it doesn’t change your life in a good way, you can go back to your old habits.  In the words of Ronnie Coleman*, it “don’t get no better than that!”

How to join

To join the challenge, simply express your commitment to follow the Whole 30 Program for 30 days in the comments below by September 14, 2014 (i.e. say “I commit to do the Whole 30 Program with yourhealthatthecrossroads.com!”).  We also encourage you to subscribe to this blog from the homepage but that’s not required to join or win the challenge.  The challenge begins on September 15 and goes on through October 14 (we decided to be wise and give you time to get rid of your Labor Day leftovers).  The winner will receive a $50 gift card to the clothing store of their choice because we expect that anyone who is faithful to this challenge will experience some changes in their bodies that might require a new wardrobe (in other words, if you faithfully follow the program you will lose weight unless you are already super fit and eat a super clean diet, or unless something else is going on).

To be eligible to win the challenge, you must be over the age of 18 years of age and reside in the United States.

How to win

Each week, either Shawn or I will write a post that requires a response from you.  To qualify to win the $50 gift card, respond to each of those posts with a substantive comment.  In addition, we encourage you to make additional comments on this post throughout the challenge and share your feelings and experiences as the time progresses.  Feel free to share what you’ve eaten on a particular day or some food temptation that you withstood.  Give updates on how your feeling or symptoms that you previously experienced but went away after you started the challenge.  The Whole 30 Program website discusses the importance of building your support team.  We hope that those who participate in the program through this blog can serve as your support team as you go through the program.  Shawn and I will choose the winner based on the number of comments a participant makes and the substantive quality of the comments (i.e. we’re looking for comments that took some thought to make).

Commit with care

Before you commit, carefully read about the Whole 30 program here and make sure that you count the cost.  And of course, before you start any new diet program or regimen, you may want talk with your doctor to see if it’s ok – especially if you have a major health condition.

*start the video at 2:15.  My referring to this link does not constitute an endorsement by yourhealthatthecrossroads.com of the products advertised in the video.

Shawn McClendon
Shawn McClendon is an author, podcast host, fitness entrepreneur and owner of Back to Basics Health and Wholeness LLC, an organization dedicated to empowering people to take responsibility for their own health.

23 Responses to “Whole 30 with us and you may win $50

  • I’ve looked into Whole30 before… I think I want to do this but let me think some more and then officially commit.

  • I’m up for the challenge. Let’s talk about it when you’re able.

  • “Day 1: I started the Whole30 challenge. After my third mouthful of plain whole wheat oatmeal, I began to eye my rommates strawberry frosted Poptarts. This emptiness in my mouth yearns for excitement. I attempted to plop a few organic blueberries inside, but they rolled off of the dry, barren surface. Theres no solace, even for someone like me who is trying to ride the road to happiness. My tongue weeps, but I digress…”

    If it isnt expensive, Ill do it to support people that actually need it. *Summoning the Facebook roundtable*

  • Geraldine McClendon
    10 years ago

    Greg and I are seriously considering a commitment to the Whole30 challenge.

  • I commit to do the Whole 30 Program with yourhealthatthecrossroads.com! This is gonna be rough but I’m in. Norman where you at!

  • Geraldine McClendon
    10 years ago

    Lets do this!

    • Yep, let’s go! We are definitely pumped, ready, and prepared to do this challenge.

  • Geraldine McClendon
    10 years ago

    For breakfast Greg and I will start with a fruit salad and almonds.

  • Geraldine McClendon
    10 years ago

    TodayI had one baked chicken leg for breakfast and throughout the day I had veg soup, baked fish steamed cabbage, grilled trout turnips green beans sweet potato, unsweetened apple sauce and almonds.
    Yesterday wasn’t too bad because we went to a restaurant that had lots of choices so it went very well.

    I found this recipe:

    No Cream Creamy Broccoli Soup

    3 tablespoons/42g low calorie margarine
    1½ lbs/675g fresh broccoli
    1 large onion, chopped
    1 large potato, quartered
    Salt and freshly ground black pepper
    4 cups/1 liter chicken stock/vegetable stock
    Shredded cheddar cheese
     

    Instructions
    Melt the margarine in heavy medium pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, and saute until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
    Add the broccoli, potato, chicken stock, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
    Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft enough to blend.
    Remove a cup of the liquid and set aside.
    Using a hand/stick blender blend the soup to your desired constancy (adding some of the stock a bit at a time if necessary).
    sounds good huh?

    • It does sound good. For Whole30, I’m guessing the margarine would probably need to be replaced with maybe coconut oil, and the cheese would need to be left out, but based on the recipe, it looks like the cheese is an add-on after the soup cooks.

      We might need to try this out!

  • MrsMcClendon
    10 years ago

    My meals for the day:
    Breakfast: scrambled eggs topped with sauteed onions and peppers, a half of avocado, and salsa along side a peach and some red grapes.

    Lunch: grilled chicken on top of a greek salad (hold the feta cheese)

    Dinner: garlic lime baked chicken, oven roasted sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts

    I’m actually enjoying this quite a bit.

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