Lissa Kristine

Is this an item from their self-serve food bar? My friend may be joining me in doing the Whole30 and there's a Whole Foods near her office so I'm brainstorming ideas for getting lunch together while staying on track and this may have to be on our list.

Now if only we can get them to swap out the oil for the barbacoa. That's my favorite!

I would love to hear more about why you're willing to abandon your vegan lifestyle in favor of eating meat on the Whole30. I would advise that you consider reintroducing animal proteins FIRST before starting on the Whole30. Start by adding small amounts of eggs or fish to your diet, then add in poultry (starting with lean meats like skinless chicken breast and gradually working your way to fattier meats). That way, your digetstive system has time to adjust. Going from ordering a burrito bowl with rice, beans, and guacamole to one with chicken and guacamole [I know the chicken at Chipotle isn't compliant; this is just an illustration since going from veganism to eating pork is likely to be a slower transition] is likely to be more difficult on the digestive system than going from eating a burrito bowl with rice, beans, chicken, and guacamole to one without the rice and beans. There are a few resources out there on transitioning out of veganism. I would definitely look into those, but the general concensus seems to be that you should add in the meat and THEN cut out the other stuff rather than just replacing all of your beans and grains with meat. Oh, if you're interested, Primal Kitchen DOES have a Whole30 approved vegan ranch dressing. There are also recipes out there for compliant mayonaises without eggs. Before anyone attacks me for sugestion vegan subsititutes, I just want to point out that it may help make the transition easier and there is also a chance that your body will not be able to tolerate eggs. (This also gives people with egg allergies an alternative to some Whole30 staples).

Shelf stable Whole30 options (assuming you eat them in their entirety as most leftovers should be refrigerated after opening): -Canned/pouched tuna, salmon,or sardines (check labels) -Individual packs or small cans of olives -Fresh fruit/vegetables including avocado (different items can stay out longer than others) -Approved meat bars/jerky. -Nuts/Individual packets of nut butters -Coconut oil/ghee (They sell some in individual packets OR you can get a full jar and a small container if you need to take some on the go. Then, you can add some healthy fats to the low fat dining hall meals) Of course, if finances and your school allows, getting a few kitchen tools would make a HUGE difference. A refrigerator/freezer and an Instant Pot would be two of my top choices. A microwave would probably be third on my list, but you can adjust to eating cold leftovers or you can use the Instant Pot to reheat food. It's a little slower/clunkier, but it WILL work if it's all you have. I'm just thinking about ways people stay compliant if traveling or staying in Hotel rooms without full kitchens. Some people travel with their Instant Pots and order a refrigerator to be sent to their rooms to store food. Unfortunately, the combination of having less food storage does have a few drawbacks: 1. Since a small refrigerator cannot hold a lot of food and freezer space is probably going to be non-existant, you'll likely have to eat the same foods every day. If you make enough stew to serve 6 people, you probably won't have room to store other recipes (nor will you be able to freeze any to keep some longer). 2. Lack of food storage means you'll likely have to make frequent trips to the grocery store for some items. Unfortunately, none of this addresses your current situation aside from giving you some suggetions for rounding out the options in the school dining hall. Perhaps, right now isn't the right time to embark on a Whole30, but that doesn't mean you need to live off of sugar. Try keeping compliant foods as snacks in your dorm for those late-night study sessions. Try to incorporate the items from the dining hall that ARE compliant in your diet, but don't feel like you need to eat them strictly. If you can tolerate gluten and dairy, then maybe there are days when you get a slice of pizza for dinner and serve it with a salad.

Honestly, I'm just going to have to get over it. I mean, I usually do eat breakfast at some point, but I'm also known to sit in bed for an hour or two. It's one of the hazards of unemployment. It's really more laziness than anything else. I know that there will be days that I'm going to eat a little later than what's "ideal." Sundays, for example, I usually get up around 7, but don't eat until closer to 9- after showering, getting dressed, and going to my WW meeting (I'm still attending the meetings and I like my routine of weighing in and then eating breakfast; I'm either going to skip the weigh in part or just weigh in and tell them that I don't want to know my results).

I eat out more than I should- mostly fast food type places. My mom works overnights, so at 2:30pm, we're often at a fast food restaurant picking up something (after picking my sister up from work). I'm definitely going to work on NOT eating out, but I'm also saving my 2 free Chipotle meals for those days when I just need a break from cooking or plans change. Maybe I have a last-minute afternoon babysitting job and the PLAN is to go home afterwards and eat dinner, but then I get invited over for pizza and game night at another friend's house. That might be when I'll pick up a salad at Chipotle. One of my biggest challenges is going to be eating first thing in the morning. I don't snack much, but I've gotten into the habit of skipping breakfast or eating my meals really late. Breakfast at 10 or 11, lunch at 3 or 4, etc. It's not that I'm not hungry in the morning; I just don't feel like getting out of bed to get food haha. The other challenge will be resisting the temptation to look at my weight at my Weight Watchers meetings. I rejoined before I decided I wanted to do this, and I can't cancel m membership without paying a penalty fee (plus I like the online community and meetings). I still plan on weighing in every week, but I'm going to tell them that I'm taking a 5 week break from the scale so I don't want to know anything. Hopefully they won't slip up and give me any reward charms (for 5 pounds lost, etc). (Of course, I'm speaking under the assumption that they won't let me get away with skipping the weigh in for a few weeks).

My record was 5.5 days. At the time, I was working at a daycare center. On day 6, we had an open house event where I was put in charge of making cotton candy. So, I'm somewhere in between the "Kill all the Things" and the "I just want a nap stage" of the program as I am in a room with little bits of sugar floating around my head. This was back in 2012 and I still haven't been able to get through. My most recent attempt lasted a day before I realized that I just wasn't ready. Fortunately, finding compliant groceries is a LOT easier now. In 2012, I had to order my mayonaise online. Now, Primal Kitchen mayo is sold at my local grocery store (and we're talking a NORMAL grocery store- not a specialty store). (I've never tried making my own mayo. To be honest, I've never been a fan of the stuff, but I'll use it to make deviled eggs. Primal Kitchen mayo is the only stuff that doesn't make me gag when I open the jar). My mom and I have decided on January 27 as our start date which means we'll be doing it from January 27 to March 2 [at least I will since I want to start on a Sunday and end on a Saturday]. I'm not sure what kind of reintroduction I want to do, but I feel like slow-roll will probably be more of my style since I want to learn to eat more intuitively and forcing myself to eat food based on a reintroduction schedule seems to contradict that. My mom, on the other hand, may do better to follow the classic reintroduction schedule since she's looking to identify which foods are causing her issues. One of the things I've been doing is looking at different restaurants and seeing what my options will be. I've come up with a plan for Smashburger (my mom has a Smash pass so she can get a free burger or salad every day) and Chipotle. I even have a plan for Starbucks. (Which is to go to a place like Smashburger or Chipotle or even the local grocery store to pick up food and then just get an iced tea at Starbucks haha.) I like to come up with a list of "What if's?" What if we go out for Sushi? (I'm currently searching for compliant wasabi; I've already emailed the sushi place to ask about riceless rolls). What if I have a last-minute babysitting job and don't have a chance to cook dinner to bring with me before going? [Quick grocery sore trip to grab frozen veggies, chicken apple sausages, and some olives or an avocado dependng on what looks good. I can throw together a quick, compliant meal using those ingredients plus a few pantry staples from the house I'm babysitting at. While not ideal, I can even just heat everything in the microwave if using a stove/oven isn't an option]. What if the parents tell me to take the kids out for dinner? (I'm working at coming up for a plan for IHOP and Applebee's so I know what to order before going).

So, before I was planning on starting up with this Whole30 thing, I bought a silicone egg bite mold to make copycat egg bites (similar to the Sous Vide ones at Starbucks). I'm just struggling with how to recreate a Whole30 compliant version. The eggs and veggies are all good, and I can live without the flavor of the cheese. The issue is the cottage cheese. The recipe calls for 1/2 cup of cottage cheese to be blended with the eggs resulting in a smooth, creamy egg. (Unlike the drier, spongey result that can happen with egg bites). I'm just not sure what what would work to help recreate that creamy texture. Any suggestions? Coconut cream? Maybe NutPods?

The bulk bins at Whole Foods may have juice-sweetened cranberries.

I know fruit juice is allowed. But apparently popsicles when used to soothe a sore throat are not allowed. How about the fact that I tend to get a cold/sore throat once a month? Around that time of the month, I'll prepare. There are times when it HURTS to swallow. That's when I like having something like a frozen fruit juice popsicle, but fine. Hot liquids like tea or soup are not soothing, so I'll continue to leave them out. There's a difference between slowly eating a popsicle and trying to swallow a mouthful of water. No medicines allowed. I can't take most cough/cold medicines so I usually go for natural remedies. Those all have honey, so I can't have those. So, if I get sick, I can't take anything for it. Good to know.

Chocolate (pure cacao) does not contain sugar. And what's wrong with the Maple bars? They don't contain any added sweetener. The maple flavor comes from maple water.

Interesting... I would've thought that gummy vitamins would be considered SWYPO. After all, I was told that I can't take 100% apple juice and freeze it into popsicles to soothe a sore throat because that's SWYPO even though there are no actual medications in existence that contain 100% compliant ingredients. Why is a gummy ok when used as a vitamin and not candy, but frozen juice isn't allowed when used as medication and not as a dessert?

So, I'm getting ready to start a Whole30 in a few weeks, but there's one thing that I haven't been able to figure out: What do I take if I get sick? Normally, I try to combat things like mild coughs/colds (it is flu season after all) with quick disolve elderberry tablets, Maty's or Zarabees cough syrups,and Zarabees losenges (usually only in places like church where I don't want my coughing to disturb anyone. These are all drug-free , but sweetened with honey or sugar. I do try to drink extra Kombucha (GT's brand which is compliant) and I have no issues with eating soup made of bone broth, meat, veggies, and plenty of garlic and tumeric, but what do I do if that's not enough and I need to take medicine. It was hard enough to find cough/cold medicine that doesn't contain artificial sweeteners or alcohol. My normal approach to getting a cold (which tends to happen monthly around my time of the month) is: 1. Kombucha 2. Soup (when it's cold... I can't do soup in the summertime) 3. "Natural" medicines- mainly when I need to function. I'll take a single cough drop during church so I don't disturb others, but that's it. 4. Popsicles (frozen juice) to soothe a sore throat. What do I do when I can't have numbers 3 (not made of compliant ingredients) and 4 (SWYPO?) And what about painkillers? I haven't been able to find a single pill (Tylenol, Advil, Motrin, etc) that does not contain artificial sweeteners.

SmartyPants Adult Gummies with Fiber (ONLY this variety) seem to be compliant based on ingredients, but I can't help thinking that gummy vitamins may be SWYPO.

Gaea has prepackaged olives that use olive oil instead of sunflower. I've only had the Lemon and Oregano flavor, but it's one of my favorites. The Trader Joe's Just a Handful single-serve olive packs are also compliant.