Bee Pollen & Almond Milk

[TBinSD]

I'm on day 10 now and I think I've been compliant. Two items I have questions on though are Bee Pollen, which I was adding to my morning smoothie and Almond Milk (Trader Joes unsweetened Vanillia). While I cut out the Bee Pollen for the time being I still use the almond milk daily -- are these items compliant?

[Derval]

I don't know aout bee pollen but smoothies & almond milk (unless homemade) are out.

[TBinSD]

Why is almond milk out?

[Derval]

Why is almond milk out?

If it's from a carton it nearly always has unwanted additives.

[JJB]

Caregeenan is the main one...although someone on another thread said just yesterday that she had found several varieties that did not have it. i was going to check that out myself; all of the almond milk I've ever looked at had sweetener and/or carageenan in it.

[TBinSD]

Yes, but no carrageenan, no sugar and nothing else I saw on the Whole 30 list of don'ts I've been quite dilligent with my label reading. I'm 10-days in and there's no way I'm starting over. I eat pretty much paleo anyway, so if the almond milk made me non-compliant, I'm not starting over again. I'll be pretty disappointed for sure.

[TBinSD]

JBB -- look at the Trader Joe's unsweetened vanilla (or plain). No carrageenan in it. In fact, most of the almond milk I've found doesn't have carrageenan in it, but a lot do have sugar. It's the coconut milk that seems to have carrageenan in it with every brand. That's why I switched to almond milk.

[bi0nicw0man]

Yes, but no carrageenan, no sugar and nothing else I saw on the Whole 30 list of don'ts I've been quite dilligent with my label reading. I'm 10-days in and there's no way I'm starting over. I eat pretty much paleo anyway, so if the almond milk made me non-compliant, I'm not starting over again. I'll be pretty disappointed for sure.

What's in the ingredient list?

[JJB]

Will do, thanks! My boyfriend has been dying to return to his old chemically/nasty creamer, and doesn't care for coconut milk. Maybe this will be an alternative for him.

[TBinSD]

[TBinSD]

One more thing: Why would smoothies be out? If that's the case, then this isn't the program for me. My smoothies consist of things on the grocery list from the Whole 30 site. Banana, strawberries, blueberries, some raw almonds and maca powder.

[Kirsteen]

The W30 is all about eating real food, not drinking smoothies. It has an ideal meal template. http://whole9life.com/book/ISWF-Meal-Planning-Template.pdf As you can see each meal should consist of 1 -2 palms of protein, 1 - 2 thumbfulls of good fats and fill your plate with veggies. Fruit and nuts should be taken occasionally in the amounts recomended.

Smoothies just don't really fit the template, sorry. They're low in protein, usually cause quite a sugar load because of the amount of fruit and our bodies handle liquids differently from the way they handle solids so I'm afraid smoothies just don't really meet the good food principles.

[TBinSD]

So even though all the ingredients are on the shopping list, just because I blend them, it's not Whole 30 compliant? I think I'm about to end this program. I feel great as it is and have been eating very well as far as I'm concerned, but I've been eating paleo-style for 5 months now. I've made significant changes already for this program but the nit-picking is enough for me to say this is too much.

[AToE]

I think the not blenderizing things rule is just about a mental shift towards eating whole foods, the rule (and other "nitpicking" rules) to help people who have had an unhealthy diet before the whole30 make the shift. That's how such was explained to me anyways, obviously blending real food is perfectly healthy.

[Tom Denham]

The Whole9 discourages smoothies because it interferes with healthy digestion, hunger signals, meal-timing, and maybe a few other things.

One more thing: Why would smoothies be out? If that's the case, then this isn't the program for me. My smoothies consist of things on the grocery list from the Whole 30 site. Banana, strawberries, blueberries, some raw almonds and maca powder.

Smoothies digest too fast and leave you satisfied too briefly in comparison to whole foods. The quicker digestion and brief satiation hinders getting your hormones into a healthy rhythm. In addition, fruit-filled smoothies are sugar bombs. They are not banned during a Whole30, but smoothies measure up as a second-rate food choice.

I think the not blenderizing things rule is just about a mental shift towards eating whole foods, the rule (and other "nitpicking" rules) to help people who have had an unhealthy diet before the whole30 make the shift. That's how such was explained to me anyways, obviously blending real food is perfectly healthy.

Whole foods that have been converted into a smoothie do not function the same way in the body as they would if you ate them as bites of food instead of drinking them as a liquid. The blending makes the food pass through faster and that messes with your hunger signals and make it easy to over eat and then be hungry sooner than you ordinarily would have if you had eaten whole foods.

[TBinSD]

AToE -- thanks. I think I'm just looking for the green light on my approach to the Whole 30. I've kncoked out everything on the list they've provided: alcohol, soy, dairy, grains, added sugars, etc. Plus the MSG, carrageenan and sulfites. The fact is I want to finish this thing -- and I know I can without a problem but I don't want to start over again because I add a cup of almond milk to my smoothie every morning. Beyond that I pretty much follow the plan -- mostly chicken and salmon with a little beef each week and tons of veggies. I drink my coffee black and consume mostly water beyond that. Now, I didn't by the book, but from what I've read I feel like I am compliant, but the responses I'm gettting here are making me doubt myself. Perhaps they should have a more complete list of the 'No's' more readily accessible?

[Moluv]

So even though all the ingredients are on the shopping list, just because I blend them, it's not Whole 30 compliant? I think I'm about to end this program. I feel great as it is and have been eating very well as far as I'm concerned, but I've been eating paleo-style for 5 months now. I've made significant changes already for this program but the nit-picking is enough for me to say this is too much.

The smoothie thing is a suggestion, not a diehard rule like "no sugar". No one would say you are not compliant because really when it comes down to it compliancy is about the ingredients not the delivery. If you read the emails and other threads on this topic, many a moderator has said smoothies are discouraged but not non-compliant. If you ask a bunch of members they are going to say "don't do it". You are fully capable of making your food choices within the boundaries of the program. There are no gold stars either.

[JJB]

Think of it this way...is the amount of fruit and everything you put in that smoothie an appropriate amount of food to have with a meal? It's probably more dramatic for juicing than smoothies, but still...fruit is generally recommended to be somewhat limited on this diet anyway (1-2 servings per day). Is your smoothie the only thing you have for breakfast, or IS it your breakfast? I wouldn't call it nitpicking...they have solid reasons why they discourage it (as Tom mentioned above). I don't think it's a reason to give up the program though. Even if you decide to have your smoothies (hopefully along with some solid food), you can still do the W30 and expect good results if all of your ingredients are compliant.

[Derval]

Sorry if I gave the wrong impression re smoothies, maybe "out" was too strong.

[TBinSD]

Thanks Tom! I just can't add smoothies to my 'don't do' list, so I can live with the 2nd rate choice as long as I'm compliant. The rest of my meals are meat & veggies, so that's decent enough news for me. Do you know about Bee Pollen? That I have cut due to the honey restriction.

[Tom Denham]

Nothing on this list is off-limits during a Whole30, but come on... This is not a good food choice. The number of ingredients listed is a good warning that this is processed food. There are 12 ingredients here and most of us cannot pronounce half of them.

I ate food like this for years and never thought twice about it. But now that I have learned a few things about food and health, I don't want to eat food like this. Honestly, I still might eat food like this in a pinch. I did when I was on vacation in Washington, DC last year because it was convenient to eat the processed food my hotel made available for breakfast. But I would never choose food like this when I am shopping for myself or anyone I am cooking for.

[TBinSD]

I just want to be compliant with the program, so I really appreciate everyone's input. I probably should have started here first, but I thought I had things under control until a couple of questions popped up. I'm trying to use the guildlines to create a plan that works for me, so if some choices aren't the best, well that's okay. Maybe on my next run I'll try to be a bit more disciplined with regard to the smoothies, but I just don't have the patience to re-start from this point.

[Moluv]

You might find canned coconut milk with only one or two ingredients that is widely used and recommended for w30.

[angekfire]

I don't know if smoothies are strictly off limits, or if they are just advised against.

But I believe the reason is that liquid calories don't get registered the same way as solids, and therefore your body may handle them differently.

The other thing to keep in mind is that you are supposed to limit your fruit to maybe 1-2 servings a day, and with that many fruits in 1 drink, might be stretching that limit a bit.

[TBinSD]

Tom -- thanks! I went to your site, so I'll grab some recipes from there for sure. And Mulov, I'm already using coconut milk in a bunch of stuff (the canned kind) -- I even tried some in my coffee . . . and I'll stick to black.