If you haven’t heard of the #whole30 diet, it might be time to get with (or should that be “on”) the diet program. Here’s everything you need to know to get up to speed.
Move over Paleo, there is a new diet sweeping the Insta-sphere. The #whole30 diet has wracked up nearly 1.2 million hashtag posts and generated over 50 other related hashtags (think #whole30challenge and #whole30approved). And far from being a fad, this diet is based on real nutritional science. We thought: worth having a look into.
Created back in 2009 (yes, really) by certified sports nutritionists Melissa Hartwig and Dallas Hartwig, the Whole30 diet is based on omitting “psychologically unhealthy, hormone-unbalancing, gut-disrupting, inflammatory food groups” from the diet for 30 days.
Focused on eating “real food”, the Whole30 diet encourages followers to eat meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruit, and good fats such as those found in oils, nuts and seeds. On the banned list is real and artificial sugar, all alcohol, grains, legumes, dairy, carrageenan, MSG and sulfites.
“There is no caloric restriction, no counting, weighing, measuring, and no pills, powders, or shakes,” says Hartwig. “In fact, you’re not even allowed to step on the scale for 30 days, to encourage you to pay attention to all of the other amazing changes that are happening to your energy, sleep, digestion, mood, chronic pain or fatigue, athletic performance, and cravings.”
The focus is not about weight loss, but changing what goes into the body will ultimately have an effect on the waistline. From a skin perspective, it’s also a great way to help combat those stubborn chronic issues found in many modern-day clients.
“Improving your blood sugar regulation and metabolism, healing your gut, and changing your relationship with food does promote safe, sustainable weight loss,” reveals Hartwig.
#whole30