Whole30 as a (mostly) ovo-lacto vegetarian: Doable? Advisable?
December 22, 2015 12:51 PM Subscribe
Please help me figure out ways to make Whole30 work for me, if at all possible. Snowflakes inside.
What it says on the tin. I'd like to improve my eating habits, especially as a diabetic, and several friends have pointed me to Whole30. They all eat meat, though, and I'm not sure I can make it work for me given my constraints:
- I'm (mostly) ovo-lacto vegetarian. It's a texture issue, so basically anything but ground meat, sausages, or bacon is out.
- I hate salads and avoid them as often as I can. Occasionally, I'll eat a salad from Trader Joe's in an attempt to eat healthy and hate every minute.
- I'm in grad school and don't have a huge amount of time, money, or freezer space.
Given all of this, should I even bother? If anyone's done a vegetarian whole30, any tips?
What it says on the tin. I'd like to improve my eating habits, especially as a diabetic, and several friends have pointed me to Whole30. They all eat meat, though, and I'm not sure I can make it work for me given my constraints:
- I'm (mostly) ovo-lacto vegetarian. It's a texture issue, so basically anything but ground meat, sausages, or bacon is out.
- I hate salads and avoid them as often as I can. Occasionally, I'll eat a salad from Trader Joe's in an attempt to eat healthy and hate every minute.
- I'm in grad school and don't have a huge amount of time, money, or freezer space.
Given all of this, should I even bother? If anyone's done a vegetarian whole30, any tips?
I think a better way to get a handle on your eating habits as a vegetarian diabetic (buried lede here, I think) would be to talk to a dietitian. Whole 30's cutting out beans and grains won't jive with the current establishment thoughts about diabetes, but that doesn't mean they won't necessarily work with you in that framework if you like.
Your friends want you to be healthy and happy, which is rad, but I don't think it makes sense to just blindly jump into what worked for them when they have such a different situation. You may have access to, if not a dietitian, at least a nutritionist for some reasonable amount of money through your school.
posted by hollyholly at 1:08 PM on December 22, 2015 [10 favorites]
Your friends want you to be healthy and happy, which is rad, but I don't think it makes sense to just blindly jump into what worked for them when they have such a different situation. You may have access to, if not a dietitian, at least a nutritionist for some reasonable amount of money through your school.
posted by hollyholly at 1:08 PM on December 22, 2015 [10 favorites]
Its rules are stupid and will not improve your eating habits. Cutting out entire food groups for no reason is orthorexia, not nutrition.
I am trying to find something scientific to back me up, but failing, because what amounts to "a bowl of muesli is bad for you" is bollocks and nobody has felt the need to refute it. "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence" and all that; the burden of proof is on the Whole30 quacks, not me. (Digging through the site I am finding grammatical errors, but not evidence.)
I (vegetarian) have been dealing with a vitamin deficiency problem this year and have been sick as hell, with possible permanent damage to my health. Having felt the effects of a possibly non-rounded diet, I can't say enough bad things about the idea of a fad diet, especially as a vegetarian, especially as a diabetic. Do the people suggesting this to you even know that you are a diabetic vegetarian? The advice you are getting seems bizarrely misguided.
posted by kmennie at 2:02 PM on December 22, 2015 [12 favorites]
I am trying to find something scientific to back me up, but failing, because what amounts to "a bowl of muesli is bad for you" is bollocks and nobody has felt the need to refute it. "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence" and all that; the burden of proof is on the Whole30 quacks, not me. (Digging through the site I am finding grammatical errors, but not evidence.)
I (vegetarian) have been dealing with a vitamin deficiency problem this year and have been sick as hell, with possible permanent damage to my health. Having felt the effects of a possibly non-rounded diet, I can't say enough bad things about the idea of a fad diet, especially as a vegetarian, especially as a diabetic. Do the people suggesting this to you even know that you are a diabetic vegetarian? The advice you are getting seems bizarrely misguided.
posted by kmennie at 2:02 PM on December 22, 2015 [12 favorites]
Wait, so you'll eat ground beef? Then it's much easier. If you want to do this buy a few pounds of ground beef and fry it up in a pan with some spices at the beginning of the week. Portion into tupperwares. Buy some frozen vegetables once a week from trader joes (broccoli, spinach, bell peppers, carrots, mixes, whatever) and microwave some frozen veggies and ground beef for lunch and dinner meals. Add in an avocado with lime and salt for some adventure. If you want carbs, buy a sack of sweet potatoes and bake or microwave them as a side instead of vegetables. Add salt and coconut oil. Eat eggs for breakfast. If you don't mind being bored it will be easy as anything. The worst part of the Whole30 is that if you don't enjoy cooking it's extremely boring because you can barely buy anything at a restaurant that's not a steak or a salad.
The things that the Whole30 cuts out are not nutrients you can't get anywhere else. Beans, rice, and pasta are not full of nutrients you can't get anywhere else. Honestly I see them mostly as carb-y filler. Especially if you'll eat ground beef the lack of dairy won't hurt you.
posted by permiechickie at 3:01 PM on December 22, 2015 [5 favorites]
The things that the Whole30 cuts out are not nutrients you can't get anywhere else. Beans, rice, and pasta are not full of nutrients you can't get anywhere else. Honestly I see them mostly as carb-y filler. Especially if you'll eat ground beef the lack of dairy won't hurt you.
posted by permiechickie at 3:01 PM on December 22, 2015 [5 favorites]
My boyfriend and I did Whole30 and ate a loooot of ground turkey (tastes like ground beef to us) and nitrate-free chicken sausages. We had nearby stores that carried both. We'd eat one of those with some roasted or sautéed veggies most days.
Lots of eggs, almond butter and tinned sardines and salmon. The first two are not so difficult for you, I would think?
In theory Whole30 is something I would usually hate, but I wanted to lose some extra pounds and tried it out. I, too, felt amazing afterward.
posted by easter queen at 11:26 PM on December 22, 2015
Lots of eggs, almond butter and tinned sardines and salmon. The first two are not so difficult for you, I would think?
In theory Whole30 is something I would usually hate, but I wanted to lose some extra pounds and tried it out. I, too, felt amazing afterward.
posted by easter queen at 11:26 PM on December 22, 2015
Oh and avocados and sweet potatoes all the damn time. Sweet potato + almond butter = pretty damn good. (We'd have this with a pan-seared steak or pork chop on "fun" days.)
posted by easter queen at 11:27 PM on December 22, 2015
posted by easter queen at 11:27 PM on December 22, 2015
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I have completed three Whole30s myself. I have zero freezer space and no patience for complicated food prep. My meals were basically protein +veg, and I'd always make double so I could have lunch the next day. You can always "cheat" with things like plantain chips+guac as a meal which requires little prep on your end. Just read labels and don't be too hard on yourself if you accidentally get "dosed".
posted by Brittanie at 1:00 PM on December 22, 2015 [1 favorite]