Dear Prospective Whole-30ers,
If you have been in a state of dependency on food--be it sugars, alcohol, chips, ice cream, just about anything--or if you have been unwell, unsuited to the world physically or emotionally--or, if you simply feel blah and would like to lose a little bit of weight--please consider trying this program. You might think, "I don't eat that badly! I eat a lot of whole foods!" which is what most people think of themselves (I sure did). But when you actually make a conscious decision to eliminate foods from your diet, you will see that even the small amounts of crap that you've been eating regularly matter. Prepare to be amazed. I sound like an evangelical, I know. It's a little embarrassing. But it is all true.
My fiancee and I did this together. It takes teamwork (if you have a family, you probably need to get them on board). It also will help if you can begin (or even complete) this diet when you have a minimum of social obligations--having office mates who eat a lot of cake or friends who drink a lot of booze WILL NOT HELP while you are on this program. Don't try to start this the week before Christmas if your family gathers to eat until they pass out. Be realistic about when you begin this. You must prepare a little bit and read the book ahead of time so you aren't just floating at sea. And, be aware: you will not be able to sufficiently screen foods made by other people!
But listen--we'd both been relatively inactive for years and each about 25 pounds overweight. Between the two of us we lost 34 lbs in 30 days and we are still going to keep up a serious commitment to Whole 30, with a few supplemental treats now and then. We feel better, we have new confidence about getting dressed in the morning, and we're more fit than in years, mostly because we have the energy to do more. The amazing thing is that you will NOT feel hungry if you hang in there and consistently prepare foods as per the cookbook/menus. There is also a very supportive and helpful forum online to supplement the book.
Realistic Details: I think that this will be more challenging if your culinary experience is limited. A lot of people complain about the difficulty of the recipes. The fact is that if you can make eggs and broil or barbecue meat, or even if you can turn on an oven and toss a salad, you will be fine. You might be a little bored with the food if you are not savvy in the kitchen, but it might help if you are really a novice to get the cookbook in addition to the guide.
Upsides: Has cured my chronic acid reflux completely. Completely changed my thyroid function and numbers for the better, have reduced medication dosage. Complexion better than in years. Lost a lot of weight and inches. Has helped to control cravings for many things. Has restored a more stable mental health balance and huge increase in energy levels. Dropping the weight has helped fitness levels immensely. AND if you can afford to buy Nutpods Creamers, these will allow you to drink coffee/tea within reason. This was the biggest bonus ever.
Downsides: Prepare for a bit of a rise in grocery cost. Prepared foods cost less than whole foods. This is American governmental ag subsidies in a nutshell. It's unfortunate and unfair, but true. Also, as others have mentioned, you will be in the kitchen more. Again, it helps if one of you cooks and the other cleans up. It's a little annoying to be sure, but the results are more than worth the annoyances. It is also very difficult to eat out. You pretty much are limited to places that are expensive and accommodating, delis where you know and trust the ingredients, or Chipotle. Again, the slight isolation (if you can do this or at least begin it when you have a little time to spare and don't have a lot of socializing) helped.
Another downside: If you have had chronic health issues (especially gut related), you may find that reintroduction actually teaches you that you're sensitive to most foods. It turns out peanut butter, gluten, and most dairy are now off limits. That rots!! But I'll live. I feel so, so much better without them, as I learned. And wouldn't you rather know why you feel crappy all the time?
But then again, when have you found a program that is ENTIRELY ONLINE AND MOSTLY FREE that changes your life? When you are in line at the checkout with your meat and chicken thighs and raw almonds, remember the money you are going to save by NOT joining another weight-loss program or hiring a life coach or drinking booze or going to the doctor for that blood pressure you really ought to monitor which is quite possibly linked to your diet. Dallas and Melissa, the authors, say that a craving usually lasts about ten seconds. Count and breathe through the french fries someone raved about at the office. Skip out for a tiny walk while everyone is hoarding that cake at work. Eat a little roast turkey and some oven-baked potatoes. Read more books with the newfound energies. If I--a bon vivant of the kitchen, believe me, hoarder of butter, lover of booze, cream, sugar--can give these things up for thirty days, anyone can.
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Added sugar and artificial sweeteners. All alcohol. All grains (even whole grains). Legumes, including peanuts and soy. Nearly all forms of dairy.Highlighted by 2,583 Kindle readers- “It is not hard. Don’t you dare tell us this is hard. Quitting heroin is hard. Beating cancer is hard. Drinking your coffee black. Is. Not. Hard.”Highlighted by 1,663 Kindle readers
- This is not hard. You’ve done way harder things. You can do this. It’s just one month.Highlighted by 1,323 Kindle readers
From the Publisher
Grilled Coconut-Curry Chicken from The Whole30
Serves 2 | Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes
Don’t pour all the curry sauce over the chicken; once the mixture has come into contact with the raw meat, you have to throw it out. Instead, place your chicken in a shallow bowl, and pour a little of the sauce over the chicken. Brush or rub it evenly over the meat, then flip and repeat on the other side. Save the extra sauce to drizzle over the top of this dish before serving, or use it to top tomorrow night’s chicken, shrimp, or vegetables.
To make the curry sauce, melt the cooking fat in a saucepan over medium heat and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. When the fat is hot, add the onion and cook, stirring, until translucent, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until it becomes aromatic, about 30 seconds. Add the curry powder and stir for 15 to 20 seconds, taking care that the garlic and curry powder don’t burn. Add the tomatoes and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Transfer the contents of the pan to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a mixing bowl and let cool. Mix in the coconut cream, salt, and pepper.
Place the chicken in a shallow bowl. Pour some of the sauce over the chicken and brush it on each side.
Preheat a grill to high heat (500°F).
Remove the chicken from the curry sauce and discard the extra sauce. Add the chicken, breast-side down, to the grill and sear until golden brown, about 2 minutes. (When the meat is properly seared it will pull off the grates very easily, so don’t rush this step.) Turn the chicken over so the bone side is down and place over indirect heat. Cover with the grill lid and continue to cook until the internal temperature of the chicken is 160°F, or the breast meat springs back when pressed with a finger. This will take 10 to 15 minutes, depending on thickness.
Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes. Serve with a squeeze of lime juice and the reserved curry sauce.
Note: Coconut Cream: To make coconut cream, take a can of full-fat coconut milk and put it in the refrigerator for an hour or two—although we recommend leaving at least one can in the fridge at all times for emergency coconut cream situations. (That is something that can actually happen on the Whole30.)
When you open the can, the cream will have risen to the top and become solid, while the coconut water remains at the bottom of the can. Just scoop out the thick stuff at the top and use it in recipes that call for coconut cream. You can also find prepared coconut cream or “culinary coconut milk” at some health food stores, but why would you pay extra when the only thing required to make your own is opening your refrigerator?
Note: If you don’t have a grill, you can bake the chicken in the oven. Turn the oven to Broil (or 500°F), and place the raw chicken in a baking dish. Sear the chicken in the oven for 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F. Brush the chicken with the curry sauce and finish cooking in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes (depending on thickness), until the internal temperature reaches 160°F.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons cooking fat
- 1/2 onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
- 1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
- 1/2 cup coconut cream (see Note below)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1.5 pounds bone-in, skin-on, split chicken breasts (2 pieces)
- 1 lime, quartered
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Customer Review: This is a brilliant book!
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Great book! I highly recommend it
Aminadav Feigenboum
Ok folks- I don’t typically write reviews but this book has literally given me new life. Today is the start of day 11, and I have never felt better in my life! Thank you to the Hartwigs!Background: I’m a 39 year old, full time single mom with my own consulting business (so working around the clock) and come from the Personal training/Body building world. I had previously lost 155 lbs with hard work and good food (eating 6x a day and training) almost 20 years ago and have sustained numerous injuries and had several surgeries in just the last five years or so. Add to that stress and just life, and I’m 35 lbs heavier than my average healthy weight.I thought I knew everything I needed to know in order to get back to my “fit” self and yet here I was struggling with the simplest things. AND I seriously disliked cooking!!In all honesty, I initially skimmed through the book (after a friend recommended) because I have the background in healthy eating. What did it for me (and I have alllll of the clean eating books but never cared for them) were the recipes. Something about them just got me excited! I’ve been cooking like a machine and enjoying it! My very picky 8 year old son is even curious to try things and wants to cook with me!I have been using a few hours on Sat or Sun to prep and cook most things and then I don’t have to just have leftovers but I can have a variety of leftovers throughout the week including roasted cauliflower, coconut cauliflower rice, baked brussel sprouts and sweet potatoes with a reduced balsamic vinaigrette, salmon with ginger, garlic, and green onions, sweet potato crusted quiche, frittatas, etc etc etc! I’m thoroughly enjoying making all of these things and sharing them with friends and family. So so so so so feasible to do and so delish!CHANGES SO FAR: I used to sleep 1-3 nonconsecutive hours. I am now easily sleeping 6-7.5 and SOUNDLY. I easily get out of bed before the alarm sounds at 5 am. My chronic back pain is GONE. My gastrointestinal issues and literal FEAR of eating because I didn’t know what my stomach would do, is GONE. My stomach has NEVER been flatter and I am DOWN almost 12 lbs in just these first 10 days ( you’re not supposed to weigh yourself but I saw and felt such a difference, I was too impatient to wait but I won’t get on again until the end of the 30 or even 45 days if I choose to extend). And by the way, I NEVER see myself going back to how I ate before which was actually considered healthy so this is just adapting a health-IER lifestyle!! My energy levels are through the roof, they were not lying when they said in the book that your mood will be happier!! And for you ladies who have terrible premenstrual weeks, this will do wonders for you!CHALLENGES: I am VERY often at work functions that include lunches and dinners and have happily and boldly packed my own lunches and told people that I’m dealing with some food allergies so trying to avoid certain things/ eating out. It’s not always easy but I don’t even crave or look twice at that other food. This is not to say I don’t see myself every indulging here and there.Finally, I described this “diet” to my friend the other day as such because he was saying it would be too difficult to do: if God forbid you suddenly got sick and were given 30 days to live, but then told that if IN those 30 days, you followed this guidance, you would extend your life (andYour family’s) by years -HEALTHY years- would you even think twice??I hope some of you find this review helpful. I am so excited for the next 20 days, 100 days, and lifetime of eating WHOLE-some-ly!Some pics attached!
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Sam
2 weeks in, I'm feeling amazing
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on October 25, 2018Elaine
Very informative and very easy to follow
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 29, 2018Kirst
The only healthy eating/ diet book you need
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on May 12, 2020Marie
Buy it today, it’s great!!!!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 24, 2019
