- Marilyn Yaquinto, PhD
- Jan 10
- 9 min read
Updated: Jan 15
January 10 is known as "Quitters Day," when roughly 88% of people give up on their New Year's resolutions, from saving money to losing weight. I'm usually fired up enough about any resolution to make it through January. It's February and beyond that I start to falter.
University researchers suggest we heed the following advice to better the chances of keeping our resolutions:
Make them specific enough and comprised of smaller goals to allow us "to celebrate small wins" that keep us motivated.
Plan for known obstacles and create back-up plans for unknowns that might occur. (My add: if an obstacle temporarily trips us up, don't dwell on it, just get back to work.)
Be accountable: join a support group or "hire a coach."
Whole 30 has it's own "quitters" day. Or days: the program’s Days 10 and 11. For those who began on January 2, that means January 11 and 12. Those days fall on the same weekend researchers say most people resume going out again, their post-holiday resting period now over.
These are the "darkest" days, suggests Whole 30, as "the newness of the program has worn off," and significant benefits are yet to be realized. "This in-between place can leave you feeling impatient, anxious about whether it will be worth it, or tempted to self-sabotage."
The program provides a timeline that lets followers know what to expect and what will happen when. A newsletter went out on Day 1 to remind followers that Week 1 is all about adapting.
"While you'll likely to experience some early wins and non-scale victories (NSVs), it will also be your biggest period of physical and mental adjustment on the program." It further warned that Week 1 may include "headaches, lethargy, brain fog, and crankiness, especially in Days 2-5," with noticeable "dips in energy and focus as our metabolism adjusts."
In addition, we might feel "uncomfortable when faced with stressors" we formerly remedied with food or drink. Days 3 through 5 include the possibility of other symptoms of withdrawal from sugar and other missing food groups. We were suffering with colds in our house, so we weren’t sure of the source of our general wooziness.
Whole 30 also summarizes the attributes of those who stick with the program, and relevant for keeping any New Year's resolution, including a strong "why" for pursuing their goals. They're willing to examine their emotional discomfort and look for other ways to self-soothe, including exercising or meditating. Finally, they lean on the available support system for encouragement, advice, and accountability.
For Whole 30 followers who must abstain from alcohol, and others who do so as part of “Dry January,” National Geographic outlines a range of health benefits that accrue when we "go sober" for even one month. Participants report improved moods, healthier-looking skin, and better sleep. Most remarkable in that short a time is that our livers begin to regenerate and heal themselves.
Week 1: investing in creative cooking
Before starting Whole 30, I studied the materials available to me: guidelines, menus, shopping lists, including those tailor-made for Costco and Trader Joe's. There are also tons of YouTube videos, blogs, and Pinterest boards devoted to the program from other sources, including 40aprons.com, which I used for a few compliant recipes. Some sites that specialize in keto and paleo diets point out their similarities to Whole 30, encouraging us to continue "whole" eating (with restricted foods added back in) for the long term.
What it took to re-stock the pantry was overwhelming at first, having to buy compliant items that aren't always available at regular grocers. They also can cost more, as with organic foods in general. Since we never cooked before with coconut amino sauce or nutritional yeast (a Vegan staple that lends a cheesy flavor), it was interesting to discover a whole new world of tastes and textures.
What helped were the links to Whole 30 partners, around 100 of them, which sell many of the essential, compliant foods. Among them is Thrive Market, an online grocery store specializing in organic and specialty foods. Other local stores in our area (Whole Foods and Sprouts) also carry compliant product lines such as Kite Hill, plant-based, dairy-free products from yogurts to cream cheese. Whole 30 also provides easy recipes for making our own ghee (clarified butter), mayo, or salad dressings.
We mapped out the 30 days as best we could, knowing we'd have to make adjustments, substitute ingredients, swap out days when schedules changed, or to handle special occasions. Our wedding anniversary falls within the Whole 30 timeline, and we've opted for compliant steaks or seafood at home or in a restaurant. There are the usual restrictions of no added sugar, dairy, and grains. That also means substituting club soda or mineral water with lime instead of the usual champagne.
As with any menu planning, we were mindful of how involved the recipes are in terms of effort and time. Weekends are suitable for brunch-style breakfasts and also a time to pre-make frittatas and casseroles for easier weekday meals and to create leftovers for meals with no prep. Smoothies are great for busy mornings and pre-made snack packets are portable to keep with us while on the go.
Finally, for us, it was important to plan for variety to keep things interesting and us motivated. Know when to use new recipes so things don't get stale, and use go-to meals when there's too much on our plates. It's a balancing act between being proactive and reactive. Diets and resolutions fall apart when there's too much of one and not the other.
That's where support systems come into play. Whole 30 has a robust community on social media. For my family, to keep it fun as well, we're voting at the end of each week about which meal or recipe was our favorite. Likewise, what was the week's "miss." Throughout, we're keeping tabs on each other to avoid “close calls” with off-limit food and beverages, along with heroic acts of resistance worthy of our collective applause.
Again, having support or asking for help is one of the major factors in keeping a New Year's resolution or pursuing any challenging goal.
The point of Whole 30 or any new diet plan is to make whole and satisfying foods that have us focus less on what's missing and more on what's on the plate that we can enjoy. I once attempted to follow a vegetarian diet for a few months, and a vegan one that didn't make it to the end of the week. On each, bacon lured me back to being a carnivore. Thankfully, bacon (uncured and no sugar added) is allowed on Whole 30, but we’re using it mostly as a crumble on salads or an ingredient in a recipe. Certainly it’s not an all-you-can eat item as if we’re on a cruise ship with piles of bacon at an open buffet always there for the taking (I'm speaking from experience.)
We've just completed Week 1 and so far the meals we've made have been delicious. Cheese is off limits, but we're learning to use nut-based products, coconut creams and clarified butter (ghee) to lend creaminess to recipes. And there's no skimping on olive and avocado oils to add depth and fullness.
Yet, we all have our strengths and weaknesses when it comes to following any diet. For my husband and me, it's snacking, especially between dinner and bedtime. We love football and it was hard not to reach for the usual snacks when our hometown Lions won on Sunday, January 5, the last NFL game of the regular season. The absence of a beer or two didn't go unnoticed either. We're trying to plan for these moments, our personal “obstacles," by having healthier snacks always at the ready.
Whole 30's approach to snacking, though, is confusing. Try not to, but go ahead if we have to. Compliant foods only, of course. Many people have the same trouble with Weight Watchers' concept of "free foods." At what point do "free" foods add up and become costly?
One Whole 30 tip that helped me figure out the difference between hunger and habit is to picture the same (healthy) food we had for dinner, perhaps steamed fish, broccoli, and air-fried potatoes. Now consider if we're hungry enough to eat more of any of that. If that's not appealing, then it's probably not hunger. It's most likely a craving, and the search for something to eat out of habit because the clock says it's snack time.
How compliant do we really have to be on Whole 30?
Turns out, according to Whole 30 guidelines, we're all in or we're out. With most eating regimens, mistakes mean slowing down the rate of weight loss. On Whole 30, it means starting over at Day 1. This level of strictness has prompted mental health experts to warn that Whole 30 may be especially difficult for people with eating disorders.
Its policy dictates that followers must be 100% compliant for the entire 30 days. No exceptions (not even for wedding anniversaries!). If we do slip up, no matter how unintentional or small the infraction (a trace amount of an off-limits additive or a mouthful of rice), we must start over because the "elimination" experiment has been compromised.
This rule can be a gut-punch for most Whole 30 followers. But for those with eating disorders, it may mean wiping out any perceived progress, perhaps exacerbating their vulnerability about an inability to control issues related to food.
I've already faced one of those non-compliant mistakes myself. After the first five days of following the program to the letter, I discovered that I'd eaten about a tablespoon of a garlic dip containing trace amounts of maltodextrin, an off-limits additive made from corn. Being somewhat of a perfectionist and a classic over-achiever who often thinks "good enough" is only a couple of notches above failure, I completely panicked.
I tried to research my options before taking any action. I revisited Melissa Urban's complicated reasoning for starting over. She borrows from Gretchen Ruben's book, "The Four Tendencies," which categorizes people by their tendencies: those that uphold, question, oblige or rebel against the rules. I think we know which one I am, but this approach didn't really help me make an informed decision.
I then turned to social media, where at any given moment, thousands of Whole 30 followers are chatting about the program and, more importantly, slip-ups like mine. I found out I'm not alone and responses ranged from starting over (or quitting altogether) on one extreme, and, on the other, those who cheat regularly and didn't give a hoot about compliance. (Why are they even on the program?) I found my answer somewhere in the muddy middle.
I'll offer this person's sage words: "For me, it's not about those 30 ... perfect days but it's about ... [a] changed relationship with food, making a decision and sticking to it all the days and years of good food choices that come after it." Or this wisdom: "Your health (mental and physical) is definitely a priority and there's no need to trigger other problems over this [mistake]. Most convincing of all: "Calm down and Whole 30 on." So I am.
Focus on living purposely, beyond dousing brush fires
I've experimented with eliminating foods before, and for a lot longer than 30 days. It started with the fall-out from a stressful job that dominated my life. With my already spotty record of less-than-mindful eating and a profound lack of sleep, I eventually developed health problems, including GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), IBS (gastrointestinal disease), and dangerously high blood pressure.
After a battery of tests, I was told these conditions were treatable if I eliminated certain foods and let my body heal. I subsisted on small bites of bland food, with antacids and other meds at the ready. Armed with a list of low-FODMAP foods, I stopped eating difficult-to-digest fruits and vegetables, fried foods, dairy, sugar, grains, and nuts. Coffee, liquor and carbonated beverages were off-limits too. Through trial and error, I learned the hard way which foods most upset my system.
I lost 20 pounds in a matter of months but not in the healthiest manner, as my sparse meals were short on so many nutrients. Yet, doctors were pleased with the dramatic drop in my BP and cholesterol numbers that accompanied the loss of weight and removal of processed and fast foods, notoriously loaded with sugar and unhealthy fats.
Once I eventually healed (and left that job), I resumed my "normal" behaviors. I went back to eating (and over-eating) all the stuff that had made me sick in the first place. Remember, I'm an over-achiever (working on being less so) and soon found something else to stress about. When flare-ups happened, I'd again eliminate certain foods until symptoms subsided, putting out brush fires, often masquerading as heartburn.
When I moved to the DC metro area in mid 2024, new doctors reiterated that I'm overweight and need of stronger meds to control my blood pressure and rising cholesterol levels. A new twist, I'm pre-diabetic. This may be the moment I fully comprehend that healthy eating should be the norm, leaving indulging for special occasions, before any further warnings of irreparable harm show up.
I'm also adding more "movement" to my regimen. We all know exercise is as much an investment in whole living as what we eat. Here's what I've done so far.
In the next update, we'll see how we navigated Days 10-11 and beyond, including what happens after Whole 30 ends. Over-eating and under-exercising go hand in hand, so we'll explore exercise as a part of the commitment to healthy living.
Meanwhile, let all of us stick with our resolutions, as, ultimately, they're commitments to ourselves and investments in our full potential. That's not only worth safeguarding, it's also worth taking a vow to quit quitting on this day, of all days.
If you need help with anything that was shared in this blog, book a discovery call below. Remember I'm here to listen and help you map your path forward.
