Three Things We Learned About Teamwork on the Whole30 Diet

We talk a lot about being better together and how our differences make us stronger. But if we’re being real, when it comes to eating, we have NOT been better together. We each independently have bad eating habits. Those bad habits became terrible habits when we got married and began living together. Insert Whole30.

The purpose of the Whole30 diet is to eliminate types of food that may be causing other health issues for you. You can read more about it on the Whole30 website.

A common benefit? Weight loss. Yeah, we are super pumped that we collectively lost 20 pounds.

Another benefit? I learned that eating bread makes me feel bloated. I can indulge every once and while, but only once. No bread binging for me.

But the best benefit? We learned how we as a couple can build better eating habits. For us to change habits, we knew it was key for us to do it together. We kept each other committed, accountable, and motivated.

Here are three key things we learned about teamwork while on Whole30:

Sometimes you just need someone to introduce you to something new to bring out the best in yourself.

We’ve always had some sort of sparkling water in the fridge, but Billy never had one until Whole30. His beverage choice was always a Red Bull or a Dr. Pepper. Often his first sip of water was at night when taking a pill before bed. He now swears he could go through life never drinking a soda again.

A little motivation can get you over a speed bump.

Everyone has a weak point when changing bad habits. Previously, when one of us was eating well the other would convince them to eat something bad (typically pizza). But when on Whole30, we realized those weak moments are key for the other person to step up and be strong. It isn’t always easy because who can really say no to pizza?!

Strong teams know how to complete each other.

We like staying busy. And often we used this as an excuse for our terrible eating habits. Quick meals are a key to our success in Whole30. If it isn’t quick, we can easily revert back to our old habits.

Cooking meals rarely takes us more than 20 minutes… because we do it together. Billy excels at grilling, but hates chopping. I hate touching raw meat, but love rinsing and chopping veggies. We have gotten in a great routine of Billy cooking our protein (usually steaks, chicken, or salmon) and I handle the sides. 

We continue to follow the rules of Whole30 even after the initial thirty days. It really challenged us to break our bad habits and replace them with some better ones!

Want to know what two busy professionals eat in a week on Whole30? Get your free download of our shopping list and a week of meals.