Had to chime in and agree wholeheartedly with Robin.
One of the hardest things to do is to keep an otherwise smart person from overthinking. And when you assemble a whole bunch of smart people (like this community) then the temptation is to REALLY overthink things and even sometimes "co-overthink" things. (©co-overthink. New term. Thank you). which may explain 4 pages of forum posts on the relative merits of protein powder and bullet-proof coffee (not together). Not that I haven't enjoyed engaging in, and sometimes starting, those esoteric discussions.
I read a book a few years ago called "Younger Next Year" in which the authors break down their exercise and eating program into the phrase: "Move every day, don't eat crap". While I probably could have used a few more particulars about the "crap" I was supposed to avoid, the "move every day" part got me to the gym at 6:30 a.m. nearly every day for a year. Keeping it simple was exactly what I needed.
Michael Pollan's now famous prescription for healthy eating, "Eat food, not too much, mainly plants" is another reductionist, yet amazingly helpful mantra that helps me navigate through the often bewildering post-W30 world along with occasional re-reads of ISWF.
In fact I sometimes REALLYREALLY crave the simplicity of Whole30 because it was so simple. Even though I'm 90% on plan even now, it's still harder out here.
So to all newbies...enjoy the "freedom" of having a well-defined set of guidelines for 30 days. Try underthinking a little and just enjoy the not eating crap.
