Costco 30 Day Challenge

Haylie Gallacher, Reporter

I eat Costco food for lunch at least twice a week. It tastes good, it’s cheap, and it’s fast. But is it healthy? Not at all. If I ate more of it, would I notice a decline in my health? Possibly. So, I decided to challenge myself to a Costco 30-day challenge to see if I could notice a difference in my physical and/or mental health. I decided to begin my challenge on Sunday, November 26th. The challenge was simple: To eat a Costco lunch for 30 days straight. The lunch could include any of the Costco food court items: Pepperoni pizza (my favorite), hot dogs, turkey sandwiches, etc. I’m not going to mention the salad, because that’s just not an option for me.

 

At the beginning of the challenge, I felt great, both mentally and physically. I weighed 110 pounds but expected to add to that number by the end of the challenge. However, I wasn’t sure how I’d feel. My first lunch of the challenge was a deliciously greasy slice of pepperoni pizza and a mountain dew. I still felt great after my meal, even though the pizza alone was 710 calories. I decided to have a hot dog for my second lunch of the challenge. It was kind of gross, but aren’t all hot dogs? While the hot dog was less calories (600) than the pizza, it made me full faster. I still felt pretty good afterward, though. I went back to pizza for the third lunch. Cheese this time. It was good, and I felt great!

 

This continued on through most of December. After the first 5 days, the thought of eating Costco food for lunch was a bit nauseating. Usually, once I took my first bite, I was fine, though I opted to not eat the hot dogs for the duration of the challenge. I still felt pretty good physically throughout the challenge, but it took a toll on me mentally. By the 29th day, I vowed to never eat Costco food again. I didn’t actually gain any weight, which I owe to my super fast metabolism. Without that, I’m sure the daily 600-800 calorie lunches would have packed on the pounds. In the end I decided that eating Costco for lunch is okay in moderation. Eating too much of it may not have a negative physical impact, but it will sure make you never want to step foot in a Costco food court again. Oh, and in case you are wondering, I did not make it to day 30 of my challenge. Day 30 actually fell on Christmas Day, and nobody should ever eat at Costco on Christmas.