the whole30
program rules

“Here is the truth: six weeks ago, I weighed 346 pounds, walked with a cane because of terrible joint pain, and took 16 units of NovoLog (injectable insulin) three times a day. I started the Whole30 and committed. Today I weigh 294 pounds, my sugars are level with no insulin, and I have tolerable pain with no cane!”

—Dave S., Chandler, AZ

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The first step in your journey is to familiarize yourself with the Whole30 program rules. These are the guidelines you’ll be following for the next 30 days, and the better you know the rules, the easier it will be to make good food choices out there in the real world.

We’ll spend the vast majority of this book, from our shopping list to our recipes, explaining in great detail what you will be eating for the next 30 days. We’ll even simplify it here: basic cuts of meat, seafood, and eggs are always compliant. All vegetables except for corn, peas, and lima beans are compliant. All fruit is compliant. Healthy fats are outlined in detail on our shopping list. And if you have more questions about specific foods or drinks, we’ll go through them one by one in our Can I Have? section.

Now, let’s get the “no” items out of the way. Read through this list in detail a few times, so you’re crystal clear on exactly what to avoid during your Whole30.

Here are the most basic guidelines:

YES: Eat meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruit, and natural fats.

NO: Do not consume sugar, alcohol, grains, legumes, or dairy. Do not consume baked goods or “treats.” Do not weigh or measure yourself.

The Whole30 Program Rules

We ask that you dedicate yourself to following these rules 100 percent for the duration of your program—no slips, cheats, or special occasions.

• Do not consume added sugar of any kind, real or artificial. No maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, coconut sugar, Splenda, Equal, NutraSweet, xylitol, stevia, etc. Read your labels, because companies sneak sugar into products in ways you might not recognize.
• Do not consume alcohol in any form. No wine, beer, champagne, vodka, rum, whiskey, tequila, etc., whether drunk on its own or used as an ingredient—not even for cooking.
• Do not eat grains. This includes wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, rice, millet, bulgur, sorghum, sprouted grains, and all gluten-free pseudo-cereals like amaranth, buckwheat, or quinoa. This also includes all the ways we add wheat, corn, and rice into our foods in the form of bran, germ, starch, and so on. Again, read your labels.
• Do not eat legumes. This includes beans of all kinds (black, red, pinto, navy, white, kidney, lima, fava, etc.), peas, chickpeas, lentils, and peanuts. No peanut butter, either. This also includes all forms of soy–soy sauce, miso, tofu, tempeh, edamame, and all the ways we sneak soy into foods (like soybean oil or soy lecithin). The only exceptions are green beans, snow peas, and sugar snap peas—refer to Can I Have?.
• Do not eat dairy. This includes cow, goat, or sheep’s milk products such as cream, cheese, kefir, yogurt, and sour cream. The only exceptions are clarified butter or ghee—refer to Kitchen Fundamentals.
• Do not consume carrageenan, MSG, or added sulfites. If these ingredients appear in any form in the ingredient list of your processed food or beverage, it’s out for the Whole30.
• Do not recreate baked goods, “treats,” or junk foods with approved ingredients. No banana-egg pancakes, almond-flour muffins, Paleo bread, or coconut milk ice cream. Your cravings and habits won’t change if you keep eating these foods, even if they are made with Whole30 ingredients. (Refer to Treats, Food Fixations, and the Scale for more information.)
• Do not step on the scale or take measurements. This is about so much more than just weight loss, and to focus on your body composition means you’ll miss out on the most dramatic and lifelong benefits this plan has to offer. So, no weighing yourself, analyzing body fat, or breaking out the tape measure during your Whole30. (Start on Step 5: Toss that Scale for details.)

The Fine Print

These foods are exceptions to the rule, and are allowed during your Whole30.

• Clarified Butter or Ghee. Clarified butter or ghee are the only sources of dairy allowed during your Whole30. Plain old butter is not allowed, as its milk proteins could impact the results of your program.
• Fruit juice as a sweetener. Products or recipes including orange, apple, or other fruit juices are permitted on the program, although we encourage you not to go overboard here.
• Green beans, snow peas, and sugar snap peas. While these are technically legumes, they are far more “pod” than “bean,” and green plant matter is generally good for you.
• Vinegar. Most forms of vinegar, including white, balsamic, apple cider, red wine, white wine, champagne, and rice, are allowed during your Whole30 program. The only exceptions are flavored vinegars with added sugar, or malt vinegar, which is thought to contain gluten.

Deep Breath

We know this seems like a lot to remember, but we promise you’ll get the hang of it fast. It’s easy to avoid big categories of foods, like bread, cereal, pasta, and beans, and if you’re buying foods without a label (like ground beef, spinach, or apples), you know you’re in the clear. The key to success with pre-packaged foods or processed meats that may or may not be compliant is learning how to read your labels. If you’re buying broth, canned tomatoes, turkey burgers, or coconut milk, take a look at the ingredient list. If it contains anything off-plan, it’s out for your program. This may require a little detective work, though—companies sneak sugar into products under a variety of names, and chemical-sounding ingredients may be unhealthy or totally harmless. Download our Guide to Sneaky Sugars and Common Additives Cheat-Sheet at www.whole30.com/pdf-downloads to help you translate your labels with ease.

Give Us 30 Days

Your only job during the Whole30 is to focus on making good food choices. You don’t need to weigh or measure, you don’t need to count calories, you don’t need to stress about organic, grass-fed, pastured, or local. Just figure out how to stick to the Whole30 in any setting, around every special circumstance, under any amount of stress, for 30 straight days.

Your only job? Eat. Good. Food.

The only way this will work is if you give it the full 30 days: no cheats, slips, or “special occasions.” You need such a small amount of any of these inflammatory foods to break the healing cycle—one bite of pizza, one splash of milk in your coffee, one lick of the spoon mixing the batter within the 30-day period and you’ve broken your health and healing “reset,” and have to start over again on Day 1.*

You must commit to the full program, exactly as written, for the full 30 days. Anything less and we make no claims as to your results, or the chances of your success. Anything less and you are selling yourself—and your potential results—short.

It’s only 30 days.

*This isn’t us playing the tough guy, attempting to ruin your life, or trying to turn the Whole30 into a hazing. There is science behind this. See the FAQ for details. BACK

It’s for Your Own Good

Here comes the tough love—perhaps the most famous part of the Whole30. This is for those of you who are considering taking on this life-changing month, but aren’t sure you can actually pull it off, cheat free, for a full 30 days. This is for the people who have tried to make lifestyle changes, but “slipped” or “fell off the wagon” or “just had to eat _______ because of this ______.”

We say this with love.

• It is not hard. Don’t you dare tell us this is hard. Beating cancer is hard. Birthing a baby is hard. Losing a parent is hard. Drinking your coffee black is. not. hard. You’ve done harder things than this, and you have no excuse not to complete the program as written. It’s only 30 days, and it’s for the most important health cause on earth—the only physical body you will ever have in this lifetime.
• Don’t even consider the possibility of a “slip.” Unless you physically trip and your face lands in a box of donuts, there is no “slip.” You make a choice to eat something unhealthy. It is always a choice, so do not phrase it as if you had an accident. Commit to the program 100 percent for the full 30 days. Don’t give yourself an excuse to fail before you’ve even started.
• You never, ever, ever have to eat anything you don’t want to eat. You’re all big boys and girls. Toughen up. Learn to say no (or make your mom proud and say, “No, thank you”). Learn to stick up for yourself. Just because it’s your sister’s birthday, or your best friend’s wedding, or your company picnic does not mean you have to eat anything. It’s always a choice, and we would hope that you stopped succumbing to peer pressure in seventh grade.
• This does require a bit of effort. Grocery shopping, meal planning, dining out, explaining the program to friends and family, and dealing with stress will all prove challenging at some point during your program. We’ve given you all the tools, guidelines, and resources you’ll need in this book and our website, but you also have to take responsibility for your own plan. Improved health, fitness, and quality of life doesn’t happen automatically just because you’re now taking a pass on bread.
• You can do this. You’ve come too far to back out now. You want to do this. You need to do this. And we know that you can do this. So stop thinking about it, and start doing. Right now, this very minute, commit to the Whole30.

We want you to participate. We want you to take this seriously, and see amazing results in unexpected areas. Even if you don’t believe this will actually change your life, if you’re willing to give it 30 short days, try it. It is that important. We believe in it that much. It changed our lives, and we want it to change yours too.

Welcome to the Whole30.

Change your life?

It’s funny how many of our testimonials start with, “When you told me the Whole30 was going to change my life, I thought, ‘Yeah right. Whatever.’ But it totally did!” Our own stories were pretty dramatic, and we have hundreds of readers’ stories and testimonials on our website (www.whole30.com), but if you’re still skeptical about the whole “life-changing” thing, that’s OK. Just keep reading.