Surviving Whole30 as a (Working) Mom
Let’s face it…Whole30 requires a lot of cooking. Which requires a lot of dish cleaning. Both of which require a lot of help if you’re a mom—working or not. Gone are the days when I have 3+ on Sundays to meal-prep to my heart’s content. Even a well-planned and timed day turns chaotic when there’s a little one involved.
So how do you find time to cook, take care of children, work, and take care of the house?
I’m going to share the tips that work for me to surviving the Whole30 as a busy mom. Let’s be clear though mamma. Perfection is NOT the goal. There’s a reason the title of this blog is “surviving.” This leads me to my first tip….
Meet yourself where you’re at.
As a classroom teacher, my goal was always to reach every child, even if that required modifications. Its the same for you in this Whole30, mom. You probably don’t have time (or desire) anymore to rice your own cauliflower, or dice three pounds of sweet potatoes by hand. So don’t.
Recognize that this is a really busy season of life, and give yourself the gift of time, and buy these things ready to go if it’s in your budget. If this is a financial stretch, consider buying them frozen, which can reduce the cost, buying at a place like Trader Joes if there’s one nearby, heading to a bulk store like Costco or Walmart, or going “non-organic” if its less expensive.
Another potential time-saver is getting groceries delivered, or packed for you. Most major grocery chains will deliver, or at minimum will meet you car-side with your bags ready-to-go. Use these services, proudly. You do not have to take your screaming newborn/toddler/seven year old in to the grocery store if you don’t want to, and you don’t have to feel ashamed about outsourcing this.
Also consider getting your proteins delivered. Places like Acabonac Farms or Butcher Box will deliver proteins that you choose (or send a mix) and then all you have to do is defrost and cook! For our January clean up, Michael and I are committing to Daily Harvest smoothies every day, for breakfast. That way we can ensure we’re getting some vegetables and fruits first thing, and we don’t have to plan, prep or make it.
I’ve seen chopped sweet potatoes, squash, pre-zoodled zucchini, riced cauliflower, cooked rotisserie chickens, pre-portioned burgers, pre-cooked sausages and more, all of which are Whole30 friendly.
Make a Plan.
This is a major key. There’s two different strategies here:
First, you can prep ingredients instead of meals. Pick one protein like ground chicken, one starch like white potatoes, and one green veggie like broccolini and throw them together in different combinations. How about a take on Zuppa Toscana. What about Chicken Burgers with oven fries? How about a breakfast for dinner situation with hashed browns, chicken sausage patties and broccolini eggies? You could form the sausage patties and chicken burgers at the same time, just throw in different spices, and cook them right then, or wait until you’re about to eat them and sear them in a skillet. You could roast the potatoes and broccoli all together, and then just throw them in some broth to simmer and it’s a soup.
And second, you can pick a few recipes. Take 20 minutes to visit your favorite food blogs, Instagrams or cookbooks, and write down a few recipes. On the days when I’ll have more time, I pick a more elaborate recipe, but on the days when I know it’s going to be jammed, I pick a simpler one. The bonus of having a plan is you don’t go blindly in to the grocery store, and don’t spend time staring wide-eyed in to your stocked fridge. You’ve got a plan; all you have to do is execute.
Cook once, eat three times.
Next tip is never ever ever ever cook and have it be one meal. Always roast as many veggies as your oven can fit at one time. Always double a recipe. Always keep fresh greens in your fridge to bulk up leftovers by throwing them over a salad. That way, you’re not cooking 21 meals in 7 days. If you’re cooking enough at once, you can cook one meal and eat it three to four times.
Repeat go-to meals.
I love this tip. There are certain recipes that we always pull out when we do a Whole30, because they’re easy and because they’re GOOD…no matter how many times you do them. Anything that you can make habitual removes the stress from the frontal lobe of your brain, and then you don’t waste energy doing ACTIVE thinking…you just do it. Also, literally no one is going to complain that you are having tacos too much. NO ONE.
For example, what if you always do a Taco Tuesday? That way, every week you know on Tuesday night you’re sauteeing up some cauliflower rice and ground beef in taco spices, throwing it over lettuce with some store bought salsa and guac. Boom. Meal done. Oh yeah, did you make enough for leftovers? You go mom, lunch is taken care of.
Some of our favorite go to meals are Salsa Chicken (throw frozen cauliflower rice, frozen veggies and chicken cubes in a saute pan with 2 jars of salsa), Burger Salads with roasted potatoes, Zoodle Bolognese (ground beef, sausage, chicken, turkey, over zoodles and wilted greens with compliant store-bought tomato sauce), Chocolate Chili, Burrito Bowls with Mexican “Rice”, Kale Salad, and Stir-Fry (use any combination of protein and veggies with coconut aminos, fish sauce and boom).
Make Your Kitchen Multitask.
Let’s face it, ever since you became a mom, you’re probably a master multi-tasker. Take advantage and get your oven, stove top, instant pot or slow cooker all going at the same time. Chop veggies and roast three pans at once, and throw the rest in a soup in your instant pot. While those are going, saute some chicken in coconut oil, and use it to throw on salads or in a stir-fry later in the week.
There’s no such thing as a perfect Whole30.
You don’t win any points for eating eggs every single morning, and making a beautiful roast every Sunday. You are in a time crunch, and if that means you are eating an RX bar for breakfast every morning, so be it. Eating the Chipotle Whole30 salad at least three times a week? So what. It’s there for a reason. Making a meal out of proscuitto wrapped around bell pepper spears? More power to you for not reaching for that office candy. If you are eating foods made from compliant ingredients, you are doing Whole30. That’s all you need to know.
I hope these tips are helpful. This is what we’ll be doing for our January clean-up. You got this, mom.
With love and lettuce,
Anna