This January, my husband and I are tackling our first Whole30 challenge! If you’re curious, you can read more about my “why” in this post (and get a summary of what whole30 is!). Each week I’ll be sharing a short and sweet recap as well as tasty recipes and clever hacks that help us get through the challenge!

Week 1 Recap

One week down, three to go! Let me be blunt- the sucky-ness of the first week is entirely proportional to how crappy you ate beforehand. So, the first week was relatively easy for me since I already ate pretty healthy. For my husband, it was a real different story. He had headaches, felt tired, his knees hurt, and he was a mess.

What Went Well

• Way less meal prep goes down when you’re not eating 5 meals a day. I really like not being in the kitchen for 2+ hours on Sundays.
• Three solid meals a day actually kept me full- I think my daily mid morning and mid afternoon snacks before Whole30 may have just been out of boredom.
• I noticed that my energy through the afternoon got steadier, and I no longer got home at 6 p.m. feeling totally drained.
• I really haven’t had many cravings for sweets like I thought I would. (insert me knocking on wood)
• Groceries really weren’t as expensive as I thought they would be. I plan on doing a whole post on doing Whole30 without spending an arm and a leg.

What Went Not So Well

• Sleep. Oh man, did I sleep terribly last week. I tossed and turned almost every night. I’m hoping this improves.
• Days 3-5 under “what went well today” in my Day by Day journal, I simply wrote “I survived.”
• On Day 5 at 4 p.m. my husband simply texted me, “I hate everything.” 😂 It’s been tough for him, but he’s been a trooper.

Favorite Whole30 Recipes This Week

• We ate this Paleo Turkey Chili on top of sweet potato noodles and it was simple and so good. (Can we talk about the fact that my husband ate sweet potato “noodles”…I was shocked)
• These Savory Stuffed Turkey Burgers will definitely be added to the rotation. Be sure to cook these on a George Foreman grill, because ground turkey just doesn’t hold up in a patty like ground beef does. We paired this with roasted sweet potatoes and homemade chipotle mayo.
• Saturday for lunch I made a Whole30 approved Cobb Salad that rocked my socks. You can see it here. I thinned the chipotle mayo with a little water and used that as my dressing.

Kitchen Tools/Resources/Tips I’ve Loved This Week

• This Whole30 Day by Day book has been my bff. I love reading what to expect each day, and there is so much satisfaction in checking off a box at the end of each day to signal another day of Whole30 is completed.
• They say you do a lot of dishes on Whole30, and they’re right. To avoid a disaster zone kitchen and piled high sink, I’ve been trying to clean as I go. It’s nice finishing dinner and not turning around to face a mountain of dirty dishes.
• I’m writing a whole post on my coffee routine, but I’ve been loving the Ninja Coffee Bar my husband got me for Christmas. I’ll brew freshly ground beans, add Nutpods creamer (yes it’s compliant!) and get a foamy finish with this awesome $10 frother.

On the forecast for Week 2, according to our handy Whole30 calendar, is “pants fitting tighter” (I’ll explain that one!), “the hardest days”, and “I dream of junk food”. We’re ready!

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