We have almost completed our second round of the Whole30! It has been a great experience but I am excited to be done. Some days are definitely easier than others. I thought I would share some of our best Whole30 Tips and Meal Ideas!
The food is actually great on the Whole30. We enjoy the meals. I just get bogged down by the planning and preparation. It is totally worth it though!
I already shared some tips on how to prepare for the Whole30. These are just some additional ideas that have helped us throughout the journey.
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Dining out on Whole30
One of the hardest parts about Whole30 can be dining out. I started right after the kids got back into school. After spending a great summer with them, I was so ready to have a lunch out with friends.
Luckily I discovered two great options for eating out. I didn’t want to ask a ton of questions about how food was prepared or what questionable ingredients might be hiding in entrees.
Zoes Kitchen actually has multiple items on their menu that are Whole30 Approved. I was able to get my favorite Greek Salad without feta cheese and pita bread.
Another great dining out option I found was Chipotle! Their carnitas is Whole30 approved. The other meats are not. All the salsas are also okay expect for the one with corn.
I was able to get a Salad Bowl with carnitas, salsa, and guacamole. It was delicious! I wasn’t even tempted by the chips my friend was having.
You don’t have to completely avoid social gatherings.
Tis the season for game day parties and tailgating! Yes, Whole30 can make these social situations tricky. It is still possible to attend these fun events though.
If it’s a cookout you are attending, bring your own hotdogs! Applegate makes a super tasty Whole30 Approved hot dog. It is great wrapped in lettuce served with veggies and guacamole.
Another idea is to bring your own dish. We really enjoy the Apple Nachos picutred above. You can also check out our whole list of Whole30 Approved Party Food for more ideas.
Try some new recipes!
Obviously you will need to try some new recipes! Since we also have two kids to feed, I try to find recipes our whole family can enjoy.
Two of our favorite new recipes on this round have been the Baked Almond Chicken Nuggets (pictured below) and Oven Roasted Potato Wedges. I think I could eat those two things every night and be happy!
We have decided to keep those items on the menu even after our Whole30 round. They are saved on my Whole 30 Pinterest board along with lots of other amazing looking recipes.
Go ahead and buy some condiments.
Having some good ketchup and ranch dressing has definitely been a life saver for me! My two favorite brands are Tessemae’s and Primal Kitchen.
The Primal Kitchen Mayo is really good. It allowed me to make cole slaw for our bunless hotdogs. Then I also made a really good chicken salad recipe with it.
Thre are many great DIY recipes out there. I felt like I was already cooking and cleaning dishes all the time though. It was nice to have these items already on hand and ready to use!
Grill yourself a steak!
Food Boredom is a real thing! By the end it can get really hard to keep eating the same foods. Every weekend we would grill steaks for dinner and hot dogs for lunch.
Having your favorite compliant meals can definitely combat food boredom. It also helps you to feel less deprived. I always say it’s best to focus on the foods you CAN have.
Give Kombucha a try!
As a wine drinker, giving up alcohol for 30 days can be challenging. Not all kombucha is compliant so it is very important to read the labels. The one we have really enjoyed is from GT’s Living Foods.
There are a variety of flavors. Our favorites have been Passionberry Bliss, Trilogy and Cosmic Cranberry. I love the fizzy flavor of this beverage and plan to continue drinking it even after we are done.
Whole30 Meal Ideas
Coming up with meal ideas can be tough after a while. Everything on Pinterest starts to look the same! I just wanted to share some more of our favorite meals that may help!
Breakfast
We actually enjoy eating eggs and add them to multiple meals. Our go-to breakfast on the weekends is definitely omelettes with sauteed veggies.
During the week, eggs were also on the menu. I would boil a lot of eggs during meal prep to make a quick and easy breakfast. We also really enjoy fried eggs cooked in ghee.
One of my favorite simple breakfasts is a banana bowl with almond butter. I would slice up a banana and add a scoop of almond butter, blueberries and nuts.
Lunch
Leftovers from dinner actually make the best lunches. I always bake extra potatoes and cook extra veggies to make sure we have enough for lunches.
It’s also good to make a big batch of soup. We really like this Healthy Hamburger Soup. I put it in individual containers to make it easy to grab for lunch. If for some reason we don’t eat it within a couple of days, I can throw it into the freezer for the next week.
I also made a few Bento Box Lunches that were really good. These are great if you aren’t able to heat up your lunch. I used boiled eggs, Applegate turkey wrapped cucumbers, spicy mustard, apple slices, and celery with almond butter and raisins.
Dinner
I’ve already mentioned some of our most favorite dinners. The chicken nuggets with potato wedges and the steak dinner rank at the very top!
We also really enjoy taco bowls. I’m not a big fan of riced cauliflower but I can eat it in a taco bowl. I prefer to use shredded cabbage or iceberg lettuce though. Then I top it with taco meat, jalapenos, diced cucumber, salsa, and guacamole.
Bunless burgers are also a great option! We use iceberg lettuce and add bacon, jalapenos, mustard, ketchup and guacamole. This meal is great served with sauteed veggies, roasted potatoes, and brussels sprouts.
Another favorite dinner is Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Sweet Potatoes. The chicken is cooked in the slow cooker. Then I use it to stuff sweet potatoes. I add diced avocado and ranch dressing to mine.
I hope these Whole30 Tips and Meal Ideas are helpful! If you are looking to get a jump start on clean eating, this is a great program. I am nervous about the reintroduction phase. Hopefully we will not go right back to bad habits!
