Is this a good plan for post Whole30?

[Jamie Ann]

I'm on day 18 and trying to put in place exactly what my lifestyle is going to look like after Whole30. My main goal with Whole30 was to develop healthier habits and what I had in mind was being mainly paleo afterward. I've read a lot about people using the 85/15 model for paleo - 3 non-paleo meals a week. That sounds reasonable to me. I know others scoff at that idea, but being 100% paleo isn't realistic for me. Here's my question:

 

When eating paleo, are your meals 100% compliant with paleo/Whole30? Example: at Moe's the chicken is grilled using soybean oil. My thought is that after Whole30 I would still consider a chicken bowl with grilled and fresh veggies a paleo meal even though technically it includes a bit of soy. I have been very strict about that on Whole30, but afterward it seems more reasonable to look at the context and think just because something is cooked in soybean oil doesn't mean I'm going to count it as a non-paleo meal. Does that make sense? I'm mostly thinking about eating out because at home I will still continue to always cook with coconut oil or ghee. I've found eating out on Whole30 nearly impossible ONLY because of the oils most restaurants use, not the food itself. Any thoughts on this approach to paleo?

 

 

[jent103]

You should do whatever works best for you. The reintro phase will be really helpful here - for example, even if you don't think you have any reaction to soy (or gluten or cheese or whatever), if you reintro it you might possibly find that you do. So you can use that information to inform your plan post-Whole30.

 

That said, my general approach is: I eat almost entirely Whole30-style when I'm cooking at home (which is a lot), with the exceptions of a little sugar in sausages and that kind of thing, and I just use grassfed butter instead of ghee. At restaurants, I try to choose restaurants where I generally trust the food (I'm fortunate to live in an area where we have tons of great restaurants with great ingredients), and I usually make generally paleo choices, but I don't stress about cooking oils or small amounts of additives because I've never noticed a reaction to them in small amounts. I'll also occasionally have cheese, because it doesn't seem to affect me much in occasional small doses. And then I'll have the occasional, worth-it, not-even-paleo-close choice. But I make sure it's worth it. I don't eat pizza anymore unless it's from the best place in town. I don't eat grocery store birthday cake, but I'll eat a piece of a great homemade cake on someone's birthday. That kind of thing.

 

Some people, though, have a reaction to any dairy at all, so they need to be more careful at restaurants than I am. Some people go off the rails at any dessert, so they choose not to have it at all. Gluten in large amounts makes me feel like a zombie, so I rarely have it, but others don't have a strong reaction and eat it more frequently. This is where you'll have to notice how you react to things post-Whole30 and make choices that make you feel best.

[MeadowLily]

Paleo is now a generic  branding term that can mean many things.   85/15.  80/20.  90/10.   There are no definitive answers for any of those categories.

 

A Whole 30 is clearly defined for 30 days.  Any approach you choose going forward should suit your needs.  You know what's "realistic and reasonable" for you.   When you reach Day 31, you may have more thoughts on the matter.   Good job on Day 18.