Food Freedom Forever: Letting Go of Bad Habits, Guilt, and Anxiety Around Food by Melissa Urban

Food Freedom Forever: Letting Go of Bad Habits, Guilt, and Anxiety Around Food Reviews

• 
  Ada-Marie

  So, I loved my Whole30 experience and have a serious girl crush on Melissa Hartwig, but I didn't love this book. The topic makes a great blog post thesis, but a 233 page book it does not make. The first third alone is a 'quick' rehash of Whole30. There are a few bright spots - I really enjoyed the section on willpower and sleep, but most of the book is just very repetitive.
• 
  Kelly

  I can sum up the book like this: When your diet has become unhealthy and/or you don't feel amazing, do the Whole30 again.
• 
  Amanda

  Reading this as a four-year, many-times Whole30 veteran, I think this book will be very helpful for newcomers. I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone doing (or thinking of doing) their first Whole30.
  
  So why only 4 stars? It frustrated me that the "food freedom" nirvana she speaks of reaching is kind of the same cycle I have been going through on my own since beginning the W30 lifestyle. I was hoping for some kind of profound wisdom that would eliminate my need completely to return to a reset a couple times a year. Melissa talks about walking to a cupcake place on her birthday, then turning around after deciding, nah, don't really want one after all. THAT'S where I want to be! I still want something sweet pretty much 90% of the time and when the craving's really tough, any junk is "worth it". How do you get to a place of deeming the 3 yearly creme eggs your mom sends as special, as exclusive? How do you NOT want to go to the store and buy some more when those 3 are gone? They ARE delicious, aren't they?
  I do suppose my expectations were a little high, huh? ;)
  All this being said, there are some really great tips. I want to make a business card-sized cheat sheet of the steps to go through before consuming an off-plan food. And like I said, I think this book is an EXCELLENT companion to the Whole30, especially for newcomers! I really wish I'd had all this info during my first W30 - especially the parts about dealing with friends, family, & coworkers.
• 
  Courtney Hatch

  FIRST--my 2 star rating does NOT apply to the concept of Whole30. I totally believe in and endorse the Whole30 concept, and I have greatly benefited from what I learned through completing a Whole30.
  
  The reason this is 2 stars, for me, is because there really isn't any new information here. If I had bought this book, I would feel a little taken advantage of because all of this information can be found in Whole30 blogposts. The first third of the book is a quick rundown of what the Whole30 is, while the second half is basically a list of mental tools you can use to increase your will power to continue to live a healthy post-Whole30 life.
  
  I looked into the Whole30 program because I have an autoimmune disease and was looking for ways to help strengthen my immune system, regulate my hormone levels, and correct vitamin deficiencies. It helped with all of these things! I expected this book to talk about a lot of these health benefits. I was disappointed to find that it talked mostly about losing weight and staying trim. For not being a "diet book," it felt a lot like a diet book.
• 
  Catfairy Books

  This was one of the best health books I have ever read! I love how it gives you very practical guidelines on how to start a healthy lifestyle and it helps you with navigating all the social pressures of food! Those chapters really helped me! This book can be for anyone that wants to embark a healthy lifestyle it's not just for people that want to start the whole 30 but it does give you a thorough explanation of the whole 30! The book really helped me to figure out what to do when I am exposed to temptation and how to explain to people your new healthy lifestyle!
• 
  Spuddie

  I received this book at a very opportune time--when I was struggling to get back on my eating plan, which is very similar to the Whole30 reset that the author co-developed. I haven't read her other books but was interested in this one, as I find myself continuing to label my food choices as 'good' or 'bad' and thinking of my choices in terms of moral decisions rather than just choosing what I am fueling my body with. I'm not someone who has historically paid a whole lot of attention to the psychological side of eating or my relationship with food, although I've thought about it some in the past, it's usually been within the context of how to trick myself into staying on track instead of actually THINKING about it and making conscious decisions on what to eat. As long as I "followed the rules" things went swell. And when I didn't, being an all-or-none type of person, things went pear-shaped...including me!
  
  So i found this book very refreshing. Looking at doing a reset (Whole30 or otherwise) and then reintroducing...and failing, and developing strategies for using the slips as part of the process, of learning from it, and to give yourself freedom from basing your opinion of yourself based on what you eat or the amount of willpower you have. I got a lot out of the first reading, the author's humor and easy-reading style--and tough love--made it easy to get through. But it's a book I'll keep as a reference and keep referring to, because this really is a process.
• 
  Lisa Domeshek

  not a lot of new practical information. Not convinced she still does not have an eating disorder although I still love her and the whole 30
• 
  Lauren Morse

  Very disappointed. This could have been 100 pages shorter, and it's extremely repetitive. I love the whole30 program for the very reason that it is not a regular "diet," but a way to examine one's physical and emotional relationship with food. However, this book reads like any other fad diet propaganda, right down to referring to certain behaviors as "naughty" and encouraging people to set rules like "no dessert for a month." I got the feeling that Melissa Hartwig just wanted to put something else out there to keep momentum and publicity alive.
• 
  Kelly

  Nothing groundbreaking for me. The idea is something I'd come to myself: reset, reintroduce, and then continue to tweak my judgments about what is and isn't worth it. If I slip into poor habits, reset again. She mentions lots of things I am interested in, but not in depth: mindfulness, growth mindset, habit formation. And the social stuff wasn't helpful to me because people don't try to get up in my food business. I think this would be a good book for a newer Whole30er, though, and maybe someone newer to habit hacking.
• 
  Angela Juline

  I read this book because I love, love, love Nora McInerny from the podcast, Terrible Thanks for Asking, and she had recommended it in the Books of Your Life podcast. Well, I didn't love the book nearly as much as I love Nora. I find these way of life books to be too extreme and I have a hard time believing it can be a success story for any and all people. Perhaps, I just rationalize why it wouldn't work, because I know I'm not determined enough to try it. Hartwig offers lots of different reset options - I think I'd be most successful trying the energy reset. My biggest problem is I don't see how these work long term - and even she says it's not forever - expect to reset again. But, that's why I don't think it's a true change - if giving up sugar cures the sugar dragon, to the point where you don't want sugar, then why would eating sugar re-ignite it? Also, even though she attempts to address how to reset when you are married, I didn't think her explanations were realistic - she says don't make separate food for your significant other, but then your reset is affecting the other person if now that person is on his/her own for meals. Also, maybe it's not like this always, but it seems that the freedom you are supposed to gain is really just a lot of you controlling what you eat - I don't want to live like that.
  The things I did like: think about whether what you are about to eat is worth it - pause after you eat it - and don't just finish it because you paid money for it. Being mindful about food is a good idea. I also liked that she says not to preach about what you are doing. I agree - as with most things in life, lead by example - no one needs a lecture on why you are doing something. Do something and let people witness the benefits. She does a great job of breaking down food issues - and what foods cause those issues. I'm just not ready to give up cheese or sugar or...really anything I enjoy ;)
• 
  Katie

  This book is exactly what I've been looking for. The Whole30 program is great, but it's the tiniest little blip of your whole life. This book tells you how to live with food and talk to people about food and make decisions about food. lt really gives you tools to make good decisions about food. This book is encouraging and gives me hope.
• 
  Shaun

  Food Freedom Forever was written by Melissa Hartwig as a follow-up to her book The Whole30.
  
  An elimination diet, the Whole30 is designed to help individuals identify food sensitives and to better understand how certain foods impact their health and how they feel.
  
  As far as elimination diets go, it's nothing special, but for those who did not read her first book, the process is well covered in this book.
  
  Ironically, I'm not a huge fan of elimination diets, although I can appreciate how they are sometimes useful in certain circumstances. As the mother of a daughter with Celiac Disease, I am all too aware of how detrimental some foods can be to some people.
  
  That said, what I loved about this book was not her Whole30 program. It was everything else. Hartwig is extremely insightful when it comes to the pitfalls of dieting, and she offers some legitimate solutions to making sustainable dietary changes. For example, she encourages readers to stop making moral judgements about food, classifying them as good or bad. Instead she says that we should see our food choices as either consistent with our goals or inconsistent. She addresses slip-ups (or making unhealthy choices) and how to put them into context so that they don't spiral into the "What the hell" syndrome.
  
  She talks about will power, its limitations and how to stretch it. She explains why having a plan (an "if/then" scenario) can make a huge difference in how we respond in different situations. She stresses the importance of remembering we have choices and that those choices should be made based on a benefit/cost analysis. What does eating this piece of cake cost? What do I get out of it? Is it worth it? I also love that she says you might be better off to throw away something you don't like, rather than eat it because you feel committed after you take that first bite. I tell this to my clients all the time. Don't use yourself as a trashcan. If you have left over cake from the party, give it away. If that's not an option, throwing it away may be better than wolfing it down simply because it is there daring you to eat it.
  
  As a health coach, I find that many clients I counsel have an extremely unhealthy relationship with food, and the idea of "food freedom" is really what many of them crave and need if they are to ever truly achieve their goals. I also like the idea of a reset since we all need resets from time to time as it implies that eating healthy is generally an ongoing challenge, not something we master in 12 weeks.
  
  In fact, I found her insights so helpful that I am going to have a client read it as homework for our sessions.
  
  Bottom Line:
  
  The Whole30 program is not for the faint of heart. It may also not be for everyone (or even most people). Elimination diets are not easy. And while they may be useful, they may also set you up for failure. If you really intend doing an elimination diet, I would highly suggest you do it under the guidance of a nutritionist or dietician.
  
  However the Whole30 aside, this book is filled with great insight and lots of useful advice. For example, the last portion of the book which deals with support structures is extremely helpful. Her analysis of why some people may want to help you while others may seem less than helpful was spot on. Lots of good information.
• 
  Amanda Espinoza

  This book was perfect to read during my first Whole30. I've been following Melissa Hartwig for a while on Instagram and her humor and straightforward tone shines in this book.
  
  This book may not be for people who are already know a lot about Whole30. It also may not be for people who have already been studying nutrition and the effects of food on our bodies. However, this book was perfect for someone like me. I know about some of the effects of processed foods on my body, but I haven't really thought about my emotional relationship with food.
  
  This book is great if you want to explore what cravings are and why we have them. There is a lot in this book about how to talk to people when you are changing the way you eat. Melissa does a good job of explaining common food triggers and gives suggestions on how to overcome them.
  
  I found the explanation of the food freedom cycle helpful. This book gave me a vocabulary to talk about food, nutrition, and how my body feels. I think I will be talking about "sugar dragon," "triggers," "Worth it foods," and "foods with no brakes" for a long time.
  
  I found this book to be very encouraging and doable. I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in Whole30.
• 
  Incognito

  Two Melissa Hartwig audiobooks down, and 45 days following her food advice, and I have to say, I'm a fan! I've read a lot of diet and nutrition books, but I don't think I've ever laughed so often while reading one. Granted, I listened to this, and part of it is her deadpan delivery, but you've gotta love a woman who says, "if you want your next meal to be vodka and ice cream sandwiches, it can be!" (or words close to that) She says this in the context of explaining a 12-step-like, one-meal-at-a-time approach to "food freedom," that seems to make a lot of sense. Tough love + a whole lot of compassion = win, win, as far as I can tell. But, I guess I'll continue to find out, one meal at a time.
• 
  Ashley

  I’m a big fan of Melissa Hartwig and the Whole30, and I came to Food Freedom Forever while doing my first Whole30. Food Freedom Forever is the “what comes next” part of Whole30–how you manage your daily eating decisions outside the rules of the Whole30 program.
  
  Much of what’s in Food Freedom Forever will be extremely familiar if you’ve read The Whole 30 or used Whole30 Day by Day. In fact, sometimes entire passages are copied or just barely rewritten, which is the reason for my 3 star rating. I was simply hoping for more new information.
  
  But if you’re totally new to the Whole30 (or really, any health-based elimination diet like AIP, FODMAP, SCD or the like), this book will be extremely useful to you. Hartwig does a fabulous job of explaining why you’d want to do a temporary elimination diet (and I do need to stress temporary, as so many people wrongly assume Whole30 is meant to be a long term weight loss program), HOW to do that elimination diet, how to reintroduce food groups at the end of that diet, and once elimination is over, how to decide what to eat on a daily basis.
  
  There’s also tons of practical advice on how to talk to your family, friends, and coworkers about your new healthy choices, how to evaluate whether a less healthy food choice is really worth it for you or even if you actually want it, and how to return to an elimination diet if your healthy habits have slipped too far off track. She goes so far as to provide specific conversation scripts, stress management action items, and decision making tools.
  
  It’s an extremely helpful guide on how to make healthy choices in a realistic and sustainable way and I recommend it to anyone who finds their self frustrated by yo-yo dieting or an all or nothing mentality when it comes to their health.
• 
  Kim Burie

  I'm kind of surprised at how much I got out of this book. I've done a few rounds of Whole30 and also of doctor-mandated elimination diets. I have no trouble following those because they are very black and white, no decision making involved. I also have no trouble remaining gluten free after 4 years since it does very severely affect me (I have other sensitivities that aren't so severe, where if I eat it, I might not feel great, but I also won't suffer as badly or for as long). Where my trouble is --- defending myself to others who seem to think they know better than me (or better than my endocrinologists). I even have pictures on my phone that show some of the more outward and obvious physical damage eating the wrong thing causes me, since sometimes that's the only way to get people off my back (and sometimes that doesn't work either!). I manage to let myself be bullied in the gray areas...and that is where I found the book to be helpful. I also realized that maybe I should cut other people some slack. I get pretty irritated when someone tells me they are gluten free....and then I see them eating things that are not. I need to realize that everyone has their own thresholds of what they can tolerate, and their own reasons for eating what they do. I liked how this book advises handling these situations, and I will be using the suggestions there.
• 
  Angela Pineda

  Edited for second re-read: this book is still fabulous. Even if you’ve never done a Whole 30, you’d get something (a lot I think) out of it. As I complete my sixth round of Whole 30 (technically I’m on Day 32 but I’m getting close to reintroduction), I knew I needed a FFF refresher. I took my time reading this one, and even took notes along the way - because I’m that kind of nerd. I’m glad I re-read it: definitely taking everything from FFF and putting it into practice.
  
  
  I'm a bit biased: I love everything Melissa writes. I'm a Whole30 enthusiast - but I'm also someone who has struggled with food my ENTIRE LIFE. So much of what she said here clicked for her - including how social food is how much willpower life takes (before you even think about food). If you read/liked/follow anything she's written before - including It Starts with Food and the Whole30 books - you'll love this book too.
• 
  Kym

  I've done Whole30 and eat about 80% Paleo. I read this book because I love the Whole30 concept and the way it uses non-inflammatory foods to address aches and pains caused by inflammation. In addition, a new level of general health is achieved. I don't have "bad habits, guilt or anxiety around food," but I am very mindful of what I eat. This book, in a nutshell, says that if you are comfortable with what your food choices, feel free to occasionally deviate if it seems worth it. Ok. Thanks, I will.
  
  For those who haven't done a Whole30 cycle, there is some information about that. I'd recommend just getting the Whole30 book instead. It offers much more information.
  
  Those looking for someone to give them permission to occasionally eat treat food may find this book useful.
• 
  Candi

  I wish I had read this during my first round of W30. I failed spectacularly on the reintroduction phase. Even though I successfully completed three rounds in 2 yrs, I realize now that I wasn't really thinking of the process in way that would change my relationship with food - I was only changing what I ate during the reset. That's not my goal now. I used the stress of a hard year as an excuse to indulge in "WTH" behavior that undermined several years of hard work on my relationship with food and body image. There are some real tools in this book. She pinpointed many of my patterns and excuses, and then gave ways to combat them. A nice combo of tough love and "letting good enough be good enough."
• 
  Kristie Mubarak

  Really interesting way of reviewing your attitudes toward food.
• 
  Vaclav Kocian

  Celá kniha se dá shrnout asi takto: když začnete ujíždět do oblasti nezdravých potravin a/nebo je vám blbě a necítíte se nijak skvěle, dejte si znovu Whole30. Plus zde najdete několik nástrojů na posilování vůle, když člověk nemůže odolat svádění dortíků a čokolády. Rozsah informací je fajn na delší post na blog, ale na celouh knihu je neobhajitelný. Případně by obsah patřil jako závěrečná kapitola na konec skvělé knihy o Whole30, Jídlo na prvním místě.
  Jídlo na prvním místě mohu jen doporučit, tuto knihu ne, je to poněkud ztráta času.
• 
  Jenny

  I resisted reading this book. I bought it when it came out because I instinctively knew that “freedom” from certain foods is something I want. However, the idea that a skinny, super fit woman could understand my struggles with food seemed unlikely. I was wrong. She gets it and she has good advice on how to approach the process of changing your relationship with food. This is not a diet book or a quick fix. This is about understanding how certain foods impact your health and the lifelong process of being more intentional with your food choices.
• 
  Brittani Allen

  There was some good info and tips in this book. I felt myself disagreeing with some things though.. I think it might just be because my goal right now is to lose weight, not maintain so these methods won’t all work for that. There were some tricks I can employ when I feel like I’m missing out somewhere where I can’t eat what everyone else is and I can definitely come back to this book when I am maintaining my weight. I feel like it was also really repetitive especially since I just read the whole 30 book last month.
• 
  Julie Johnson

  A nice jumping off point for making lifestyle dietary changes. A little repetitive and not the best written book but makes up for it in its conversational tone and tools. Some skimming needed over redundant points.
• 
  Claire Perko

  I'm so happy I read this book. I'm on day 30 of my second Whole30 and I am happy to have all the information this book provides. It really helps connect the dots between resets and every day healthy food choices.
• 
  Christine Fay

  For me, this program has helped me to figure out exactly what is triggering my IBS so I can adjust my diet accordingly. It’s amazing what I’m learning through this program. It’s helping me to live a more comfortable life. I’m grateful for being introduced to this by a colleague. Thanks JT!
  
  
• 
  Amanda

  Good strategies
  
  I love the approach Melissa takes in Food Freedom Forever. Every time I’ve tried to get healthy before, I’ve found it hard to have any middle ground. I’m looking forward to experiencing true food freedom.
• 
  Debbie

  A great read that addresses how to take the benefits and knowledge the Whole 30 can bring to your life into the REST of your life in a sustainable, less restrictive way. Here's to enjoying "worth it" foods in a healthy way!