How I Prepped for My First Week of Whole30

I just started my 3^rd Whole30.

The best part about Whole30, Round 3? 

Less Anxiety, More Anticipation

No kidding. My first Whole30, I was a wreck for at least 2 weeks before we started. Partly because I’m a rule-following people-pleaser who lives in fear of “messing up” or “doing something wrong."

**Yes, I am one of those people who dreamed about cheating on my Whole30. I dreamed I drank a Coke. It was awesome, but I woke up in a panic. I also came close to licking peanut butter off my finger while making sandwiches for the boys…that scare probably took a good six-months off my life.**

But this time around? I’m psyched. I’m so psyched we started earlier than we had to. (Our FFCF family isn’t starting until Monday). What? I know! It’s insane. But I feel gross from way too much holiday indulgence and I didn’t want to wait any longer. If you’d told me last summer I would be excited about doing this—for the third time—I’d have laughed, probably hysterically…maybe with a few tears from the stress of it all.

So, if you’re getting ready to embark on your first Whole30 and you’re about to need anxiety meds…I UNDERSTAND.

Take a few deep breaths. Remember that everyone was brand new to this once. Even if you “mess up” you can view it as a learning opportunity and get right back on track. No worries. While this is a rigid plan, it’s not intended to make you miserable. It’s intended to help you feel better. Just ask as many questions as you need to and Whole30 on!

I've already shared my Top 10 Tips to prepare for your Whole30, but people keep asking me exactly what I'm doing, so I thought I'd give you the run down of what I did to prepare for our first week.

I prepared a little bit differently than I did the first time through, and I'm more efficient in the kitchen than I was six months ago, but I’m not gonna lie….I spent most of Saturday afternoon in the kitchen. (Thank goodness for the Harry Potter weekend on ABCFamily!) 

Here’s what I focused on:

1. Making sauces. I’ve already talked about how important Whole30 compliant mayo is. I made 4 batches. I made some Whole30 compliant Hoisin sauce (from Well Fed 2) because I needed it for a salad dressing and I will need it for a recipe later this week. I also whipped up a huge batch of Cilantro Ranch dressing (take this recipe, use cilantro instead of parsley, leave out the paprika and thin it with some water). This stuff will make your veggie intake so much more enjoyable!

2. Making breakfast a breeze. I prefer to have a nice leisurely breakfast with fried eggs, a few pieces of compliant bacon, half my plate filled with peppers and onions and a half an avocado with a splash of salsa. But most mornings, I don’t have time for that. So I made some egg muffins that will get me by in a pinch. I like these because they are loaded with veggies. I had some this morning with salsa (I like Mateo's salsa that I buy at Costco, but it's really not that hard to find compliant salsa), some avocado, and a cup of bone broth. 

3. Experimenting with a new recipe. I found this recipe for spinach, sausage and potato soup on Pinterest and it was awesome. It’s going in the rotation. Pinterest is a great source of Whole30 recipes, but be careful. Just because Pinterest says it's Whole30 doesn't mean it is. With this recipe, I used compliant sausage and full-fat coconut milk in place of the heavy cream to make it fit within the guidelines. 

4. Grilling lots of meat. We grilled chicken wings, a pork tenderloin, some compliant Italian sausages, and eight chicken breasts. It’s always a great idea to grill multiple foods as longs the big green egg is fired up, and it will help our evenings go more smoothly when the kids and I don’t have to wait for Brian to get home, change clothes, start the grill, wait for it to heat up….you get the idea.

5. Making bone broth. I keep reading about how awesome bone broth is, so I’m adding turkey broth and beef broth to my repertoire. So far, I like it.

6. Stocking up on Whole30 staples. I hit Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Publix. I bought coconut aminos (great sub for soy sauce), sparkling water, compliant pickles (Trader Joe’s brand has some good ones) and mustards (mustard with horseradish will be a great sub for BBQ sauce with that pork tenderloin), plenty of veggies and some fruit.

I also hopped online and ordered jerky, Primal Pacs and Red Boat fish sauce because I already know I can’t find that stuff around here. Check out Whole30.com for their approved sources and affiliate links if you’re worried about getting something that is non-compliant. 

7. Making sure Day 1 goes off without a hitch. We already knew we would be out of town through late Monday evening. So before we left on Sunday, I made sure we had options to get us through Day 1 without any drama. No scrambling for a compliant lunch or having to cook in order to eat. We’ve got all that grilled meat plus we have a few salads in mason jars, so we are set. 

There's nothing magical about my prep. I've done this several times now, so I know where I'm likely to run into trouble (no time for breakfast, starving at lunch, running out of mayo ...) and my preparation is designed to minimize that. Your prep will look different from mine. Just spend a little time thinking about your week and your life and try to minimize the challenges as much as you can.

If you're gearing up for a Whole30, feel free to ask questions in the comments. I'm not an expert, but I'll be happy to help any way I can! 

Click to Tweet: Gearing up for Whole30? Here's how I prepped for Week 1.

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Coming In Last

Coming in last.

I hate it.

Really hate it.

Maybe you do, too?

Have you ever thought about why you hate it?

I have and I’ve boiled it down to a simple statement.

I’m afraid.

Ick.

It’s safer to say that we hate to come in last. It doesn’t sound quite as pitiful as admitting that we’re all grown up and we’re still shaking in our boots.

Afraid we will fail. 

Afraid people will think less of us. 

Afraid we’ll make an idiot out of ourselves. 

Afraid we’ll blow it so badly that others will be able to see our weakness.

For the past year, I’ve faced this fear every single time I walk into Five Forks CrossFit. 

For the first three months, I was so nervous that my stomach would do somersaults from the time I woke up until the WOD was over. In my mind, I had no business joining a CrossFit. I was out of shape, overweight, and not in possession of any particular athletic prowess. 

Truth be told, in the first few weeks, there were multiple events that tempted me to turn tail and run.

• My first week, I fell off a box and messed up my wrist. I came in last.
• For the first month, if the WOD (workout of the day) included burpees, my coach automatically cut the number in half for me. I still came in last.
• As new people joined our box, I watched as they went from not having a clue to killing the WODs. All while I continued to come in last.
• Particularly frustrating were the women, the pregnant and/or brand new moms with 6-week-old babies at home, who lifted more, ran faster, jumped higher, and finished way before me. The girl who finishes last.

Guess what? It’s been a year and I'M STILL COMING IN LAST! Not every time, but a lot of the time. 

But guess what else?

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What's Your Hoodie? (Or, what happens when a chubby, Jesus-loving girl joins CrossFit)

Yep. That's me. Deadlifting 190 pounds.

I joined Five Forks CrossFit in November.
I know. I’m surprised, too.

My husband’s been doing CrossFit for years, but when a new box (that’s what a CrossFit facility is called) opened a few miles away, he finally convinced me to give it a try.
I love it.

Well, except for the 8-20 minutes of the WOD (workout of the day). During the WOD, I hate it with every twitching muscle fiber that is begging me for mercy.

But other than that, I love it and I keep going back. All through our renovation, even one day in the snow, I’ve dragged myself out of bed well before dawn, pulled on my compression pants and my dry-wick shirt, laced up my CrossFit nano 3.0 shoes, and walked through those doors.

My sweat has dripped on the mats, my shins have the scrapes, my collarbones have the bruises, and my hands have the callouses that come from Olympic lifts, and my body has changed enough that people have noticed.

So why is it that every time I pull on my Five Forks CrossFit hoodie, I have to remind myself of all of that? I have to talk myself into putting it on and wearing it out the door?

Because there’s a part of me—the deepest, most insecure part of me—that wonders if I have any business portraying myself as a CrossFitter, because I don’t look like a “CrossFit Woman.”

Have you seen these images on Pinterest or your Facebook feed? The pictures are almost always of women in sports bras and boy shorts, with knee socks and chalk on their thighs. They’re doing pull-ups and one-armed handstands and no one can question that they are physically elite.

I just can’t compete with that.

I look like a woman who has three children and a serious sweet tooth. I can’t do a pull-up or a handstand, much less with one arm. And I try to keep as much of my skin covered as possible, because no one wants to see me in boy shorts.

With that said, there is another part of me that knows that I’m just as much a CrossFit Woman as those elite athletes are. Not because I can do what they can, but because I’m in the game. I’m learning. I’m using muscles I never knew I had and I’m not the same woman I was four months ago.

So I remind myself of that, put on my hoodie, and walk out the door. And when someone says, “You do CrossFit?” I look look them straight in the eye and say, “Yes! And I love it!”

I’m wondering if you feel the same way about your Christian walk? I know I do.

Sometimes I’m terrified to speak truth into a situation. I feel sick to my stomach in the first few hours after I post a blog. And when I’m with friends, sometimes I know I should say, “Let’s stop talking about it and start praying about it,” but I rarely do.

Why?

Because I don’t look like an elite Christian Woman. Have you heard of these women? They always do the right thing. They never yell at their kids, their husband, or dog. They don’t cuss when they burn dinner. They know exactly how to respond to every parenting dilemma or family crisis.

I just can’t compete with that.

I’m a woman who has a temper. Who likes things done the “right” way—by my definition of “right” thank you very much. I fight my pride, my fear, and my tongue.
EVERY. SINGLE. HOUR.

Satan loves to whisper in my ear that I have no business claiming I love Jesus, especially after that fiasco of a morning we just had.
But the Holy Spirit says different.

He reminds me that while I have a long way to go, I’m in the game. I’ve been saved by the blood of Jesus Christ. My sins are forgiven. By His grace, I’m not the same woman I was ten years ago, or even ten months ago. I’m learning, changing, becoming more and more like Him every day.

I know when I wear my FFC hoodie, there may be a few people who look at me and think, “There’s no way that chubby thing does CrossFit,” but what I’ve discovered is that most of the time, it opens a door. Someone who might be nervous about trying it looks at me and thinks, “If Lynn can do it maybe I can, too.”

My FFC Hoodie

Maybe that’s all the Holy Spirit is asking of us.

Just to put it out there. Not because we are elite. Not because we’ve achieved perfection.
Precisely the opposite.

If God can speak to us and through us when we are such a mess, then maybe He can do that for them, too.

I don’t know what your “hoodie” is. Maybe it’s telling a co-worker what God showed you this week or sharing a book you’re reading with that mom who sits beside you at gymnastics. Maybe it’s as “simple” as getting out of your house and meeting your neighbors, asking God for the opportunity to be a light in your cul-de-sac. Whatever it is, God wants you to put it on now.

Be brave enough to let His light shine, and when someone says, “So, you’re a Christian?” you can look them in the eye and say, “Yes! I love Jesus! He’s changing my life.”

Satan just can’t compete with that.



TWEETABLES:

What happens when a chubby, Jesus-loving girl joins CrossFit. (Click to Tweet)

What's your hoodie? (Click to Tweet)

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