Have you heard of the Whole 30 Diet?
I’d never heard of Whole 30 until a childhood friend posted his opinion of it on Facebook. Because of his super-positive experience, he wanted to share it with friends.
He posted pictures of himself looking trim and fit. And although Whole 30 is not a weight loss diet, he said he lost weight without exercising.
Additionally, he also said that his aches and pains were gone.
My friend attributed his successful weight loss and lack of body aches to the Whole 30 Diet.
Incredible! His success story was so amazing that it made me curious.
The Whole 30 Book
I – am – all – for just about anything that improves health naturally – I decided to read the book.
In the forward of the book, the authors make a rather bold, yet convincing testimonial.
One of the authors claims that their sister greatly benefited from the Whole 30 Diet.
They said she no longer suffered from pain caused by rheumatoid arthritis. (This is to the best of my recollection. You may have to read the book to confirm this.)
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Quite an intriguing story to capture the reader’s attention!
Moving forward, let me briefly explain the gist of the book.
The diet is designed to help you clean up your eating habits while cutting out foods that may be hurting your health. (You can read the official Whole 30 rules on their website.)
I took the Whole 30 challenge.
Except for dairy, I avoided everything on the Whole 30 do-not-eat list.
(As a small-boned woman over 60, I consider dairy essential for maintaining bone health. I’ve never had any lactose intolerance or any other problem with dairy).
For 30 days, I did not eat legumes, grains, bread, pasta, any type of sugar (including honey), sweets, alcohol, or processed food.
Despite that, I did eat lots of wholesome food – a variety of meats, fresh vegetables, and fruit.
After my 30-day experiment, I noticed a difference.
My belly and gut felt better than usual. I didn’t have random stomach pain or cramps.
Perhaps the clean diet improved my digestion – I had less irritating intestinal gas.
There’s no denying the resulting benefits.
Does Whole 30 help with joint pain?
Joint pain wasn’t my problem and I would be remiss to say that it works to completely eliminate joint pain.
However, as mentioned earlier in this article, my friend clearly expressed that his aches and pains disappeared after going on the diet.
Not wanting to leave it at that, I did some research.
I wanted a testimonial from at least one person who wasn’t my friend and who wasn’t on Whole 30’s forum.
A Testimonial
I found an article written by William, at Fitness for Back Pain.
The coolest part about the 30 days is that I can safely say that it has made an impact on my lower back inflammation. I didn’t notice it at all until the end of the 3rd week when the headaches stopped, the cravings subsided and I was actually diggin the plan. I was sitting with my wife the other night talking about how I have been doing all the same things I would normally do but this time without any real noticeable pain. I stood for 60% of my day as well as sat for 40%, sat in traffic or drove around for over 30-45 minutes in my truck every day, twice. Simply stated, I didn’t really change anything the whole 30 days as far as my activity. Now about 26 days into the program I have noticed a HUGE difference in the pain in my back. – Direct quote from Fitness for Back Pain
He gives a very positive review of the Whole 30 Diet. He goes over the health-giving benefits he realized on the diet, including pain relief.
Health and well-being are all about balance.
There are so many diets out there purported to be the best for this or that ailment, it can be a bit mind-boggling knowing which one is right for you.
This is where common sense comes in.
You don’t want to find yourself in a position like my cousin who swore by Forks Over Knives for over a year until she realized that the diet was making her feel bad.
We all need to listen to our bodies and do our research before taking action that could be harmful to our health.
For me, health and well-being are all about balance.
I stay active and eat a variety of wholesome nutritious foods.
However, life is too short to miss out on all of its sweet goodness – I enjoy having a treat now and then.
The Whole 30 diet is a great way to balance out your diet and cut out common allergens and unhealthy foods. Testimonies from people such as my childhood friend, William’s testimony, and the authors of the book, have shown that the Whole 30 diet can bring a variety of health benefits. While it may not be the answer for everyone, it is certainly worth looking into. So why not give this clean eating plan a try and see how it works for you? After all, your health is worth it.
Yoga Photo by RDNE Stock project
Nuts and Berry Bowl Photo by Jonathan Borba
Photo by Maarten van den Heuvel
Last update: 01/24/24
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