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Welcome all newcomers, welcome back vets, and for those of you who never left...welcome to this post. I just wanted to pop in here and remind you all to take a deep breath before you dive into all the questions about what you can and can't have. The program guidelines are clear on what you can and can't have (grains, dairy, W30 muffins), but things get a little grey when people start talking about what you should and shouldn't have. Please don't over think think this. You don't have to address every food related issue you have, break every bad habit, and shun every food that gives you comfort to succeed with your Whole30. If you need to you can always extend or repeat the process, and things will get better each time you do. My advice to you is this: Stick to the rules like they are your port in a storm (really, they will become that). Take the Moderators responses seriously (we know what we're talking about). Take community members suggestions as advice from those who came before, but keep in mind they are not the rules and not the Mods. Everyone here is well-meaning, and everyone here wants to see you succeed, but everyone here is at a different place in this journey. And finally, take comfort in these words (from Melissa Hartwig, on another forum post): Here's the thing (and this is an interesting discussion)... there are Whole30 "rules," which are strict, clearly outlined, and very well defined. No grains - and here are all the things we consider grains. No dairy - and here are all the dairy items excluded. No Paleo-fied food choices, and here's what those look like. Then, there are Whole30 suggestions for success. They're not part of the official rules, but they're things that we've seen really help (or harm) people as they move through the program. Fruit smoothies for breakfast - not a good idea. Skipping breakfast - not a good idea. Eating every two hours, all day - not a good idea. These things won't necessarily affect your Whole30 results (although they might), but if we can give you additional suggestions that will make your transition and your program easier and more effective, we're going to give them to you. Keep Calm and Whole30 On.

Please can someone help me find a compliant brand of olives?! I love love love olives and would most likely eat them as my "fat" portion with most meals however I can't seem to find any that don't include a bunch of ingredients. I have Unico Stuffed Manzanilla in my fridge right now but I don't know if I can eat them. Here are the ingredients: Olives, Water, Salt, Minced Pimento, Lactic Acid, Sodium Alginate, Guar Gum, Potassium Sorbate, Calcium Chrloide (this was the ingredient I really wasn't sure of), Citric Acid. Since I don't recognize a lot of those, I've been trying to use the "when in doubt, leave it out" rule however I'm having trouble finding a fat source to go with every meal and since I love olives, it'd be awesome if I could have them. If anyone could help, that'd be amazing. I'm in Ontario, Canada by the way.

Folks, What's the consensus on packaged foods that have the perfectly compliant ingredient list until *dun dun dun!!* you see "Contains less than 2% of the following...." and proceeds to list "cane sugar" "deroxide-foxide-ix" "soy lechitan" etc... Ahem...many Applegate products.

Hello All, I will be traveling mid July and eating at this restaurant. This is going to be a tough one, but I am looking for suggestions on how to find a whole30 complaint meal within this menu? I can probably bring along my own oil/ vinegar for dressing if needed. Menu is attached. -Chesney Indianapolis.pdf

Are these Whole30 compliant?

We all know eating out on Whole30 can be challenging, frustrating, and even embarrassing asking a million questions about each menu item. For those of you in the DC, Maryland, Virginia area, I recently found a great new option! Lebanese Taverna, with multiple locations in the DMV, has a number of Whole30 compliant options! I emailed today and Grace is actually a Whole30 Alum!!!! She sent me these links to their facebook page that explain the available options! What to eat at the Restaurant! What to eat at the Cafe (and an awesome dressing recipe!)

These two have a long list of ingredients. Anyone got any word? The magnum primer is supposed to be the bees knees if you are highly active.

Yesterday, I went to the grocery with my mind not in a good place. Oh, was it hard to stay on the outer edges of the store and not give in. I went to the frozen foods section looking for quick fix veggies because veggies are required. I am not a veggie or salad eater by nature. It is really forced, and any indication that I am enjoying veggies is just a lie. Sorry, but that's the truth of it. Anyway, I found Green Giant Riced Cauliflower and Sweet Potatoes and thought that looks easy enough and might be pretty good. It's in a steamer bag, but I don't trust that - the whole plastic in a microwave thing just doesn't work for me. After microwaving the contents and dishing out a whole CUP (50 calories!!!) I added salt and a little ghee. Oh my goodness was that good. I had visions of becoming a vegetarian for a few brief moments. (LOL) I also bought the roasted cauliflower which I will try today. AND on the label of this little gem there are two ingredients listed - cauliflower and sweet potato. Nuttin' else! WHOOT!

Hi team, I've just started my Whole30 today! And I'm looking to find a compliant coconut milk to put in coffee, there are tins of it at the supermarket but they seem more for just the cooking side..so I was looking at ones that are made for drinking, like almond and soy milks. BUT, I get really thrown by some of the ingredients...are the ones I've copied in below compliant? Ingredients: Filtered water, coconut cream (min. 8%), inulin, mineral (calcium, phosphate), emulsifier (471), vegetable gum (407, 418), natural flavours, sea salt. If not, does anyone know of a good one you can get in NZ? I had already decided to not worry about coffee while I'm doing this, but figured if I can find a good milk I could give it a try. Thanks!! Leah.

Hi everyone! I searched (the many!) sausage related posts here but didn't find an exact answer to the question I'm looking for. I'm on day 11 of my Whole30, and at the beginning of this process I bought a package of sausage. I carefully checked the ingredients list to ensure it had no added sugar. It does have sodium erythorbate, but I read this from this forum before I bought it and made the executive decision that it was probably okay, in moderation. (I'm not eating 10 sausages at a time here, just cutting up one or two to use in something like a sausage/shrimp stirfry type thing which makes several servings.) But yesterday I was talking to a friend and she asked what I was having for supper. I sent her the link to the recipe (which included sausage) and she said that pretty much all sausage contains gluten as a filler, and shouldn't that be a hard no on Whole30? I had no answer for her, and immediately thought "oh man, did I just screw up hard enough to have to start over?" I'm concerned enough about that that I made an account on this forum just to ask - do I have to start over because my sausage wasn't expressly listed as 'gluten free?' (There were no grains etc listed on the ingredient list) I thought I was pretty confident in the rules etc but now I just feel like I might've messed the whole thing up LOL. Help. Thank you!

I have purchased a Perderson's Natural Farms Smoked Sausage from my local grocery store. While it has no sugar in the ingredients, it does not show up on their website as "Whole30 Approved". The Smoked Sausage Kielbasa listed on their page does say it is Whole30 Approved, but I cannot find this Smoked Sausage (non-Kielbasa) product anywhere on their website. Does anyone have any experience with this sausage?

I searched the forums for this particular restaurant but didn't find it anywhere, so I hope I'm not reposting! I have a dinner devotion at McAlister's on the 22nd and I need to know if I can actually attend and stay compliant! Can some more experienced W30ers check the menu and see if there is anything on there I can have? Soup was my first thought, but their soups are always changing and I don't want to get there and not have any approved soup available! When I called it also sounds like most of their soup is non-compliant anyway. So then I looked at the salads, she said their grilled chicken has no added sugar so would that be my best bet? A grilled chicken salad with oil and vinegar dressing? Do I need to dig further on their chicken to see if it's compliant? Is there anything else on the menu I might possibly be able to eat? TIA! http://www.mcalistersdeli.com/