My Whole30 meal plan: What I ate for every meal on every day of my Whole30. Recipes included.

What I ate on Whole30. Photos and recipes included.

I recently completed my first Whole30, and I feel great!

I know that many of you are also doing Whole30, so I thought it would be helpful to post the meals I ate, with links when possible. Enjoy!

What I ate on Whole30: Recipes, tips, and snack ideas included.

Day 1

  • Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with a side of salsa
  • Lunch: Strawberry fields salad (lettuce, grilled chicken, walnuts, and strawberries with balsamic vinaigrette)
  • Dinner: Grilled chicken, grilled fajita vegetables, and avocado
  • Snack: Apple and almond butter

Day 2

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, sautéed mushroom, and avocado sauce on top
  • Lunch: BLT unwich from Jimmy John’s
  • Snack: Thai fried cashews and apple + almond butter

Day 3

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, fried peppers, and leftover chicken
  • Lunch: Gyro salad (lettuce, gyro meat, kalamata olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, and Greek dressing)
  • Dinner: Butternut squash soup (use coconut cream instead of half and half) and meatballs
  • Snack: Kind bar (less than 5 grams of sugar)

Day 4

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, sautéed vegetables, sausage, avocado
  • Lunch: Lettuce salad, leftover butternut squash soup, and leftover meatballs
  • Dinner: Roasted Brussels sprouts and bacon, homemade tater tots (at restaurant for New Year’s Eve)

Day 5

Day 6

  • Breakfast: Veggie omelette
  • Lunch: Leftover chicken salad + almond and apple butter
  • Dinner: Chicken tortilla soup (minus tortilla) + olives on the side
  • Snack: Coconut cream cocoa (sugar-free)

Day 7

  • Breakfast: Omelette with peppers
  • Lunch: Leftover tortilla soup + guacamole + cucumber + apple
  • Dinner: Greek gyro salad
  • Snack: Fried plantains

Day 8

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, avocado and salsa + Whole30 muffin
  • Lunch: Leftover Greek gyro salad
  • Dinner: Paleo pad thai
  • Snack: Kind bar

Day 9

Day 10

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, fried veggies, hash browns
  • Lunch: Leftover kale and Brussels sprouts salad + bacon-wrapped dates
  • Dinner: Chicken wings + fried green beans
  • Snacks: Whole30 muffin + Kind bar

Day 11

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, bacon, and fried veggies
  • Lunch: Leftover kale and Brussels sprouts salad + bacon + pomegranate seeds
  • Dinner: Sausage and potato soup from restaurant
  • Snack: Kind bar (less than 5 grams of sugar)

Day 12

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, kale, and bacon
  • Lunch: Strawberry fields salad (lettuce, grilled chicken, walnuts, and strawberries with balsamic vinaigrette)
  • Dinner: Chicken lettuce wraps
  • Snack: Grain-free banana bread muffin

Day 13

  • Breakfast: Coconut cream + flax seed bowl (a paleo-friendly alternative to oatmeal)
  • Lunch: Thai basil beef and vegetables
  • Dinner: Crab cakes and homemade tarter sauce + purple cabbage on the side

Day 14

  • Breakfast: Creole eggs Benedict with hash browns at a restaurant
  • Lunch: Apple and almond butter
  • Dinner:  Crock pot pulled pork and cabbage

Day 15

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, kale, and zucchini
  • Lunch: Caesar salad
  • Dinner: Hamburger with no bun + sweet potato fries
  • Snack: Kind bar (less than 5 grams of sugar)

Day 16

Day 17

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, fried zucchini and onions
  • Lunch: Sushi spring roll from work cafeteria
  • Dinner: Butternut squash soup (made with coconut cream instead of half and half+ meatballs

Day 18

  • Breakfast: 2 egg omelette with zucchini and sausage
  • Lunch: Leftover butternut squash soup + coleslaw
  • Dinner: Caesar salad
  • Snack: Kind bar (less than 5 grams of sugar)

Day 19

  • Breakfast: Tabasco baked eggs
  • Lunch: Strawberry fields salad (lettuce, grilled chicken, walnuts, and strawberries with balsamic vinaigrette)
  • Dinner: Kung pao chicken + sweet and sour soup
  • Snack: Kind bar (less than 5 grams of sugar)

Day 20

  • Breakfast: Whole30 muffin
  • Lunch: Potluck with friends: Baked chicken + kale and Brussels sprouts salad + roasted vegetables
  • Dinner: Yucca fries, brisket, creamed spinach from restaurant
  • Snack: Pecans

Day 21

  • Breakfast: Omelette + hash browns
  • Lunch: Butternut squash soup
  • Dinner: Roasted Brussels sprouts with homemade pickled ginger

Day 22

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with kale and bacon
  • Lunch: Spiced pecans
  • Dinner: Greek gyro salad

Day 23

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, kale, and salsa
  • Lunch: Leftover Greek gyro salad
  • Dinner: Red Thai curry with vegetables and chicken
  • Snack: Whole30 muffin, Kind bar

Day 24

Day 25

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs and sauteed kale
  • Lunch: Salad with rotisserie chicken, grapefruit, pickled ginger, pecans, pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate seeds + olive oil dressing
  • Dinner: Hunan chicken + sweet and sour soup at Chinese restaurant

Day 26

  • Breakfast: Omelette with sauteed kale
  • Lunch: Vegan broccoli cheese soup
  • Dinner: Buffalo cauliflower (omit water from recipe) and celery

Day 27

  • Breakfast: Omelette
  • Lunch: Leftover buffalo cauliflower and celery
  • Dinner: Burger without a bun and fries

Day 28

  • Breakfast: Scrambled eggs and sauteed vegetables
  • Lunch: Kung pao chicken
  • Dinner: Tilapia + oven-roasted potatoes + cabbage

Day 29

  • Breakfast: Whole30 muffin
  • Lunch: Buffalo spaghetti squash
  • Dinner: Spaghetti squash pizza crust with pineapple, mushrooms, and pepperoni + leftover buffalo cauliflower

Day 30

  • Breakfast: Hard-boiled egg,  grapefruit, and Whole30 muffin
  • Lunch: Leftover spaghetti squash pizza
  • Dinner: Chinese fast food (kung pao chicken and steamed veggies)
  • Snack: Leftover buffalo cauliflower + pistachios

Notes

  • While I did my best to stick to the plan, I wasn’t perfect. There were days that I was so filled up from breakfast that I really wasn’t hungry for lunch or dinner. That’s why there are a few days where my lunches are unusually light.
  • French fries were apparently my weakness. I play bar trivia once a week and we always get French fries to share. It’s hard to say no to a basket of fries!
  • Most days I ate scrambled eggs for breakfast, which I fried in either olive oil or butter.
  • Towards the end, I started getting tired of egg-based breakfasts. Now I’m to the point where I cannot eat scrambled eggs. If anyone has any suggestions for alternative breakfast foods, please let me know!
  • I had coffee every day, but did not note it above.
  • I had snacks on many of the days. I know that the Whole30 rules say no snacking, but this rule seems counterintuitive to me. I went to a nutritionist last summer who recommended a paleo diet with plenty of snacks to help maintain blood sugar between meals. If someone with a degree in nutrition recommends between-meal snacking, I’m not going to argue!
  • I lost a total of 7 pounds. Not a crazy amount, but I’m happy and I feel better. And I am already starting my second round.

Tips For Doing Whole30 On a Budget

I spent more on groceries this month than I usually do. Fresh vegetables, fruits, and meat can be spendy. And without the usual “fillers” (bread, pasta, rice, etc.), I felt like it took more food to fill me up.

Fortunately, I was able to come up with some ways to do Whole30 on a budget:

  • Focus on affordable vegetables: Plan your meals around affordable vegetables like cabbage, sweet potatoes, kale, squash, celery, etc. When appropriate, use frozen vegetables.
  • Stretch your meals: Make a larger portion of a dish and eat leftovers the next day.
  • Eggs, eggs, eggs: Eggs are affordable and versatile. Make scrambled eggs, omelettes, hard-boiled eggs, omelettes, egg bake, and other egg-based dishes while on Whole30.
  • Shop around: I did most of my shopping at ALDI, but you may need to shop around to save money on food.

50+ Paleo and Whole30-friendly snacks. Don't go hungry between meals!

It’s snack time! Check out 50+ snacks for paleo and/or Whole30 diets.

Follow along for more Whole30 meals as I move into round two: Follow me on Instagram