Food, Food, Food, and FOOD!

I want to try a new food regime, just to experience what my body feels like without certain foods- like sugar, meat, or processed food to name some examples given the news about the negative effect these foods have on us. This would be a 30 day experiment.

Here are some options I'm considering:

1. Chris' food regime:
a. Breakfast: Green smoothie (we are already doing this)
b. Lunch: Tuna vegetable melt.  This includes canned tuna, frozen vegetable medley, melted shredded cheese (I worry about how co-worker friendly this is)
c. Meat salad: Chicken salad, steak salad, salmon salad with low calorie Italian dressing

*No sweets, no fruit, no real seasoning

Pros: low/no sugar, lots of veggies, protein, easy, Chris would readily do this --he developed it after all
Cons: very very boring! Can I eat the same thing everyday for 30 days?! Can I live without fruit?! Am I willing to be ostracized for heating up fish at work?

2. Whole 30 Program
At its core this program tells you to eat foods with few ingredients and with pronounceable ingredients, or no ingredients --- so basically natural and non-processed foods. It's a reset program. There is a serious no-no list though.

*No....sugar, alcohol (this one is easy), grains, legumes, dairy, and no foods that include carrageenan, MSG, or sulfites.

Pros: Ashley will be doing this, they have menus set up for you, it is well-established and written about,  could really be interesting working with different types of ingredients, could have positive long term effect on eating habits/ingredients.
Cons: Time consuming-requires a lot of prep,  could be expensive, I can see myself having melt downs without any grains and dairy or just being frustrated and unprepared. Have to convince Chris - this might be really hard.

3. Korean Temple diet
I don't think there is actually a program out there for people who want to try a temple diet.  I came to this idea on my own after reading this very very interesting article about a Jeong Kwan, a Korean monk and her cooking. I believe she will be featured on Netflix- Chef's Table soon.  I am very excited to watch that.  Basically Korean temple food is simple, vegetarian, and Korean :) If I am honest with myself, I am most intrigued by this diet- I think it has elements of the Whole 30 Program, because Korean monks aren't eating dairy, and they aren't eating a lot of sugar, but its not as rule based and it is something that I think I can easily integrate into my lifestyle for the long term.

* No meat, alcohol, dairy, probably none of those difficult sounding processed ingredients, low sugar.

Pros: Cooking vegetables Korean style (I think with a lot of fermented sauces), learning about Korean culture, cutting out meat, might have a chance at convincing Chris [going with the Korean element], no smelly lunches
Cons: Will have to do a lot of research- no idea what this entails (this could also be very fun), most likely time consuming, no meat---worried I might get tired quickly, or just miss In-n-Out burgers!

So those are the three programs I'm considering for the month of October...I am giving myself a couple of weeks to figure out which one will be the winner!