Hi! I'm Jenni Cole, and welcome to Whole Lotta Yum! I'm a recipe developer, macro tracker, foodie traveler, wife, and mom living in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
When I'm not creating recipes or behind the camera lens, you'll find me giving people life advice they didn't ask for, working to de-frizz my curly hair, shopping at Trader Joes, or memorizing ABBA songs.
How it all started
I started Whole Lotta Yum as a part-time creative outlet back in 2018 during one of those life chapters where everything felt like a lot.
I was dealing with autoimmune issues, trying to get off the sugar craving rollercoaster, and juggling family—all while helping care for my mom and mother-in-law, both of whom were experiencing memory decline.
My husband had just started keto to lose weight, and while my body personally needs some carbs, eating healthy fresh foods became a shared focus as I started adapting family favorite comfort foods with natural ingredients and whole foods. Everything we were cooking and creating was put on the website with the intent on sharing these recipes to help others looking for easy low carb recipes.
I ❤️ protein
In 2023, I hit a point where I couldn’t ignore my own health any longer. Due to an unexpected hysterectomy caused by fibroids, which triggered hormonal chaos and forced me to finally face the burnout I’d been carrying for years. After decades of putting everyone else first, my own health had taken a backseat.
I had already spent years trying to eat gluten-free, dairy-free, no processed foods, and no sugar to support my immune system (yet still became pre-diabetic)—but something was still missing. My constant food cravings and lack of discipline didn't help.
In fall 2023 I started working with a trainer who taught me the importance of eating more protein. I started building macro-balanced meals that were easy and family friendly, plus creating daily routines for myself that supported my mental and happiness. This included even learning how to exercise while traveling!
That’s when everything started to shift—my energy improved, my cravings calmed, and I finally felt like I had a healthy relationship with food again. ✨
Eating high protein macro friendly meals will permanently be a way of life for me, it had a significant and instant impact on my physical and mental health. Issues I've had for decades disappeared within 2 weeks of switching to tracking macros, and eating more protein instead of calories.
Most of the meals I create for Whole Lotta Yum and how we eat at home are high protein lower carb since I still have a little weight to lose and am working to build muscle.
I am NOT against carbs at all and think they're essential to our energy levels, brain health, and overall well-being. However, I'm also a firm believer in people needing to do what's best for their own bodies and health since we all have different systems.
Thank you for being here!
What started as a part-time blog during a chaotic season of life has grown into a thriving community within 2 years with over 1 million monthly readers, 70,000+ email subscribers, and more than 600 healthy recipes. Our site focuses on high-protein, low-carb meals that are simple, easy, and don't taste like diet food! 🍽️
My husband kickstarted his weight loss with keto using recipes from this site (he lost over 30 lbs!) and now follows a high-protein, low-carb routine that works for real life. Over the years, I’ve heard from so many readers who tell me the same thing: these meals make healthy eating feel manageable—not overwhelming. We use real ingredients and try to stay away from expensive speciality products unless it's for a special occasion.
Foodie travel 🌍
Travel has always been one of my biggest inspirations—especially when it comes to food. In the past three years, I’ve had the chance to extensively travel to places like Japan, Scandinavia, and all over the Mediterranean, and it completely reshaped how I think about healthy eating. The fresh ingredients, simple meals, and the connection to local culture and community really inspires me every day in so many different ways.
My daughter Madi lives in Spain now (our WLY social media extraordinaire!) and sends me plenty of food pics and market snapshots that keep the global inspiration coming.
Lately, I’ve been bringing more of those global flavors into the recipes I create—while still keeping them high-protein, low-carb, and easy to make at home.
What you’ll find on Whole Lotta Yum:
🥩 Macro friendly protein packed meals that are easy, healthy, and great for building muscle
🥑 Low carb + keto recipes for readers who feel their best keeping carbs low
🍳 Easy cooking methods like healthy air fryer recipes, the Crock Pot, Instant Pot, and sheet pan dinners — all of which make meal prepping for your week or freezer meals even simpler
🍲 Comfort food made healthier—because you shouldn't have to give up the foods you love
🌍 Global flavors, especially recipes influenced by the Mediterranean regions, Japan, and Mexico
🤝 No judgment, no “one right way”—just support, good food, and a whole lotta encouragement while juggling life and your own health goals
Whether you’re here to lose weight, eat more protein, or find healthy recipes your family will actually eat, I’m so glad you’re here. It’s a Whole Lotta Yum 💛
Featured in
We've been featured on sites such as MSN, Yahoo News, Parade, CafeMom, Yummly, Reddit, Forkly, and many more!
Connect with us
If you need to reach us, our email is [email protected], we would love to hear from you if you have any questions or comments!
Come connect with us on Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram! Don’t forget to sign up for emails so you don’t miss a single thing, sign up for either our low carb email list OR our lists for healthy protein forward meal prep recipes, air fryer, or Instant Pot recipes.
Thank you for stopping by to visit, it's a WHOLE LOTTA YUM!
Cheers! Jenni