Will I ever get it? My eating plan is so broken

[guestdvp]

On 8/8/2015 at 0:35 AM, Tom Denham said:

The biggest failure of the Whole30 program is the large number of participants who fail to use the Whole30 experience to develop and commit to their own personal eating plan. We see people do repeated Whole30s without ever establishing their own program. So you have a lot of company with your on/off approach.

 

I did my Whole30 in 2010 and have never done another one. I may go for weeks at a time perfectly compliant with the Whole30 program, but I have never seriously considered doing another formal 30 days. It may be because my personal program works so well. Here is what the Tom Denham Program looks like...

 

I work from home, so normally eat all but 3 meals per week at home. That gives me a big advantage over people who work away from home or who go out a lot because everything I cook at home is Whole30-compliant. I am a great cook and have published more than 400 Whole30-compliant recipes. I could have published another 200-300 recipes by now, but I got bored with updating my recipe blog and don't. I mention this to explain that I eat like a king even though everything I prepare meets Whole30 standards. I highly recommend committing to your personal cooking being 100 percent Whole30-compliant. And then make sure you cook really tasty food. 

 

When I eat out, I continue to emphasize eating meat and veggies, but I eat rice in Thai restaurants, dairy in sauces, and occasionally eat a dessert if I am convinced it will be special. However, I eat large quantities of food, so usually have little room left for dessert. I never order anything sweet just to have something sweet. When I eat out, I don't ask about cooking oils, what is in sauces, etc. because nothing causes me serious problems. But I avoid pasta, bread, beans, etc. because I prefer to fill up on meat and veggies. I drank my first soda in 5 years two months ago when I stopped for food along the highway in a rural area. I might have gone another five years without drinking another one except last week I was in a town that was under a boil water advisory. I ordered a Diet Coke with my lunch. I enjoyed the coke, but I really may go another 5 years because I really like water with lemon as my beverage. 

 

I am a rare case, but the common mistakes I see people making after a Whole30 is indulging in anything that sounds good at any time. I think you have to commit yourself to eating meat and veggies most of the time and to eat other foods only rarely. By rarely, I mean no more than once or twice per week. And those times should be reserved for occasions when it is really difficult to find anything else to eat. 

 

I hope more people speak up on this topic because I don't think I am giving you as many ideas as would be useful.

Tom - this really hit me what you said about developing and committing to a personal meal plan.  can you share a little more what your process looked like for reintroduction and getting to a place where you knew your plan and haven't deviated back to the need for another whole 30?  did it take you a lot of trial and error as you were testing, or did you just go whole 30 and never look back?

[MeadowLily]

No one can speak for Tom Denham, of course.  He's one of my heroes.  Like for real. I hope we'll see him out there on the trail because he was the trail blazer for my change. 

[NoMoreCrunchyCravings]

On ‎12‎/‎29‎/‎2016 at 8:56 AM, guestdvp said:

Tom - this really hit me what you said about developing and committing to a personal meal plan.  can you share a little more what your process looked like for reintroduction and getting to a place where you knew your plan and haven't deviated back to the need for another whole 30?  did it take you a lot of trial and error as you were testing, or did you just go whole 30 and never look back?

@Tom Denham Yes, I'd like to know, too.

[ArtFossil]

1 hour ago, NoMoreCrunchyCravings said:

@Tom Denham Yes, I'd like to know, too.

Having read virtually everyone of Tom's posts, I think he summarized his approach nicely in the quoted post above:

Quote

I did my Whole30 in 2010 and have never done another one. I may go for weeks at a time perfectly compliant with the Whole30 program, but I have never seriously considered doing another formal 30 days. It may be because my personal program works so well. Here is what the Tom Denham Program looks like...

I work from home, so normally eat all but 3 meals per week at home. That gives me a big advantage over people who work away from home or who go out a lot because everything I cook at home is Whole30-compliant. I am a great cook and have published more than 400 Whole30-compliant recipes. I could have published another 200-300 recipes by now, but I got bored with updating my recipe blog and don't. I mention this to explain that I eat like a king even though everything I prepare meets Whole30 standards. I highly recommend committing to your personal cooking being 100 percent Whole30-compliant. And then make sure you cook really tasty food. 

When I eat out, I continue to emphasize eating meat and veggies, but I eat rice in Thai restaurants, dairy in sauces, and occasionally eat a dessert if I am convinced it will be special. However, I eat large quantities of food, so usually have little room left for dessert. I never order anything sweet just to have something sweet. When I eat out, I don't ask about cooking oils, what is in sauces, etc. because nothing causes me serious problems. But I avoid pasta, bread, beans, etc. because I prefer to fill up on meat and veggies. I drank my first soda in 5 years two months ago when I stopped for food along the highway in a rural area. I might have gone another five years without drinking another one except last week I was in a town that was under a boil water advisory. I ordered a Diet Coke with my lunch. I enjoyed the coke, but I really may go another 5 years because I really like water with lemon as my beverage. 

His approach was quite helpful to me in designing how I "ride my own bike" after Whole30.

[MeadowLily]

I agree, ArtFossil. He's answered every question you can think of over the years. Follow through his posts back to the beginning. It's all here. We want to see his face again. There. I said it. That's the reason I bumped the thread in the first place.  Come back to us.  Please. 

[MeadowLily]