Day 30 and no improvement :(

[Javagirl7]

Hi there,

I have just completed my very first Whole30. I am extremely proud of myself for completing it. I was eating semi-Paleo before and before that was "low-carb" for years but never took the deep dive to try heal my body and really focus on getting all the rights foods in; it was always about eliminating the wrong foods. I was SO excited to start. I listened to It Starts with Food on Audible, read the Whole30 and stocked my pantry. I was confident it was going to be pretty easy for me as I love meat and vegetables and I love to cook.

The Whole30 was pretty easy despite a few cravings here and there. I discovered amazing new recipes that I now like more than their non-Whole30 compliant versions and I realized I can live without dairy. Unfortunately, I have not gotten any of the other benefits that was described in the book; no boundless energy, in fact I was plagued with fatigue almost the whole time, no amazing skin and, to make it all so much more disappointing, I did not lose a single pound. I could have cried; actually I did.

I know the Whole30 lifestyle is not a diet but I really needed it to help me lose weight. I was truly hoping this way of eating was my answer to overcoming years of body abuse, body shaming, yo-yo (sometimes extreme) dieting and basic hatred of my body. I followed it to a T. I did overindulge in unsweetened banana chips a few days in a row back in week 2 when I quickly realized what I was using them for and threw the bag out. I have had NO sugar, alcohol, grains, legumes or dairy for 30 whole days...if you don't count several dreams about ice cream I kept my fruit consumption to 20-25 berries 1-3 days a week and only had 2 sweet potatoes, 1 acorn squash and 1/2 butternut throughout the 30 days. I measured nothing else except eyeballing palm size this and thumb size this. I overcame my original fear of fat and added coconut oil to cook in and made amazing mashed cauliflower with cream of coconut. I exercised 3 days a week mixing weight training and walking.

I am 5'6" and 180 pounds. I am a large framed woman with a curvy body type. I'm lucky to have a flat-ish stomach but I carry the all those extra lbs on my hips, thighs and arms. I am so sick of not fitting in my clothes. I am so sick of seeing my reflection in a window as I walk by and hating what I see.

I have about 20 lbs that I should lose to be in a normal weight range for my body but the weight will not bulge. I am so unhappy. Now that I have completed my 30 days, I was hoping there was some advice you could give me to help along my weight loss. I know I wasn't supposed to count calories on the Whole30 but should I start now?

Do you have any recommendations or advice?

I am going to keep going and try for Whole60 and see what happens but I wanted to see if you could give me some words of encouragement or advice that will help me move toward reaching my goal.

I appreciate you taking the time to read my post today.

Sample meal plan:

B: 3 eggs cooked in ghee with mushrooms and spinach. 3 cups black coffee

L: can of tuna with 2 tbsp primal mayo and 3+ cups salad, olives, 1/4-1/2 avocado, balsamic vinegar and olive oil (sub protein with chicken salad or grilled chicken). Sometimes a handful of blueberries.

D: large protein serving (beef, chicken, salmon, pot roast etc.) cooked in coconut oil or ghee and 2 heaping servings of vegetables.

Plenty of water - 80+ ounces/day

If I had a snack (rarely): handful of macadamia nuts or whole30 compliant beef stick

Thanks again!

[WholeMama]

i would try adding more starchy veggies - a fist sized serving a day. Being too low carb can mess with your hormones and thus mess with your energy, weight loss, etc. try a serving a day (or more) and you may be pleasantly surprised. I do better with sweet potatoes versus white potatoes, but that's just me. Without the starchy carbs, I feel like junk.

[SugarcubeOD]

You said in your post above that you were hoping that the whole30 would help you overcome YEARS (emphasis mine) of body abuse and yoyo dieting... It can do that, but sometimes 30 days is not long enough. Your body loses weight when it feels comfortable and hormonally safe to do so. If you have been punishing and mistreating yourself for years, you body may need more time to heal itself and trust this new way of eating before you drop pounds.

Your meals do look good altho it's difficult to know what 'large serving of protein' and 'heaping servings of vegetables' are... everyone's 'large' and 'heaping' is different... if these are to the meal template linked below (1-2 palms of protein and 1-3 cups of vegetables per meal) then great! Remember that leafy greens are not much when chewed or steamed down, so you need a LOT of them if that's your vegetable for the meal.

80oz of water is perfect if you weigh 160pounds... not sure if you do or don't, but 1/2 oz of water per pound of bodyweight is our recommendation.

The honest truth is that I think you just need more time.... some people do and that's nothing to be ashamed of or discouraged by... especially if you were planning on sticking with this way of eating. If you were expecting this to be a quick weightloss diet, then that would be different... as it is not actually designed to be a weightloss diet at all.

[Javagirl7]

Thanks to you both for your replies. I will try out adding some more sweet potatoes throughout the week and I'm definitely going to give it more time.

One question if you see this: is it possible that this won't work for me? Is it possible that I really shouldn't eat more fat and should go back to low carb/low cal/low fat diet? I'm so scared that this won't work. I'm riddled with anxiety about it all day every day. Do you know if anyone that this really just didn't work for?

Thanks again.

[WholeMama]

Thanks to you both for your replies. I will try out adding some more sweet potatoes throughout the week and I'm definitely going to give it more time.

One question if you see this: is it possible that this won't work for me? Is it possible that I really shouldn't eat more fat and should go back to low carb/low cal/low fat diet? I'm so scared that this won't work. I'm riddled with anxiety about it all day every day. Do you know if anyone that this really just didn't work for?

Thanks again.

It will work.  Anxiety and stress make it harder, though.  My first whole30 I was very worried about it, stressed (and ate too many nuts ).  I lost 2 lbs but still felt great.  This time around - I let GO of the stress about it, ate the template meals, focused on feeling great and NSV, and I lost 6 lbs and 2.5 inches off my waist.  You have to give it time and you have to let go of the old mindset.  It's amazing how we can get tripped up with the mental aspects.   It's not about weightloss but I do believe that the weightloss will come once hormones and metabolism are balanced, if your body is in a place that it needs to lose weight. 

[SugarcubeOD]

Thanks to you both for your replies. I will try out adding some more sweet potatoes throughout the week and I'm definitely going to give it more time.

One question if you see this: is it possible that this won't work for me? Is it possible that I really shouldn't eat more fat and should go back to low carb/low cal/low fat diet? I'm so scared that this won't work. I'm riddled with anxiety about it all day every day. Do you know if anyone that this really just didn't work for?

Thanks again.

Nope. It is not possible that eating whole dense foods in a balanced ratio is going to not make you healthy.

Low carb/lowcal/lowfat is often an extremely processed foods diet... it's almost impossible to sustain with real food because your body is going to start craving nutrients and if you stick to that type of diet, you'll be pulled back in the direction of these processed foods which MIMICK nutrients and create dependancy and addiction. The only way to make lowcarb/lowfat/lowcal food taste good is to add synthetic ingredients...please don't do that.

There is no one in the history of the world that did not benefit from eating whole foods. Sure, some people do better with more fat and less carbs, and some people do better with more starchy carbs and some people do better with chicken and fish over red meat etc... but the commonality is that all of these people are eating whole foods in the way their body does best.

.

[praxisproject]

Did you also eat the extra workout meals too? (template PDF) Undereating can hold back weight loss. If your body is afraid there isn't enough food, it's not going to throw away the emergency stores.

 

I'm riddled with anxiety about it all day every day.

 

This will also hold back your weight loss. Stress is hard on the body, it releases stress hormones like cortisol and puts your body on the defensive.

 

Weight loss comes when you're well and relaxed and your body isn't afraid. Spending time hating on your body isn't healthy (mentally or physically).

Be good to it, be good to you. Think about all the awesome things your body can do and all the things it's helped you do in life.

 

Try meditation, have some good belly laughs, spend some time with animals. Find some joyful activities

[leslie706]

I just finished my whole30 this weekend. I felt the same way as you! I was very disappointed in my lack of tiger blood and results. I lost weight, but in didn't feel "better".

That is until I went through reintroduction.

Now that I'm reintroducing foods, and seeing how crappy they make me feel, I realize how much better I actually felt, both physically and about myself.

[fganter]

Hopefully you can find some comfort in knowing you are not alone.  Multiple people, including I, have had similar results. 

 

Unlike the person that realized how much better he/she felt after reintroduction, this was not the case with me when I strictly followed the regime almost a year ago and started bringing foods back in.  While I ate pretty healthy and am already pretty lean, I did not see the multiple benefits I would have expected by significantly reducing sugar, dairy, etc.

 

While others may be able to help you determine if you're doing something wrong, I just wanted to chime in and say there are definitely others who follow the program and don't see the advertised results. 

 

Definitely do not feel bad about yourself! 

[praxisproject]

If you aren't seeing any differences after reintroductions, it's worth posting some specifics to the troubleshooting section.

 

While Whole30 makes a difference for a lot of people, if you have issues with FODMAPs, food allergies, food intolerances, deficiencies, medical conditions (including needing to take medication) etc, you may not get the results you are looking for. Some people need the AIP, some people need to eliminate Whole30 compliant items like nuts or eggs or nightshades as they aren't beneficial for them, some people need major changes to things like medications (I did).

 

It is also possible to eat according to the rules, but not meet the recommendations and some people need the recommendations to get results (I do).

Sometimes it also needs more tweaking to the individual, taking into account other lifestyle factors (some people think they're eating enough, but need more due to levels of exercise or other factors).

 

http://whole30.com/2015/01/rules-recommendations/

 

Some people also need more time, especially if they have a number of factors they are managing.

[Javagirl7]

If you aren't seeing any differences after reintroductions, it's worth posting some specifics to the troubleshooting section.

While Whole30 makes a difference for a lot of people, if you have issues with FODMAPs, food allergies, food intolerances, deficiencies, medical conditions (including needing to take medication) etc, you may not get the results you are looking for. Some people need the AIP, some people need to eliminate Whole30 compliant items like nuts or eggs or nightshades as they aren't beneficial for them, some people need major changes to things like medications (I did).

It is also possible to eat according to the rules, but not meet the recommendations and some people need the recommendations to get results (I do).

Sometimes it also needs more tweaking to the individual, taking into account other lifestyle factors (some people think they're eating enough, but need more due to levels of exercise or other factors).

http://whole30.com/2015/01/rules-recommendations/

Some people also need more time, especially if they have a number of factors they are managing.

[Javagirl7]

I'm back, it's day 41 and still no weight lose.

I'm seriously discouraged. Do you recommend food allergy testing?

I've even started a more structured exercise regiment. Previously cardio and some (emphasis some) weight training 2-3 times week. Now 4 times a week, alternating muscle groups weight training plus 3 times a week moderate cardio for 30 minutes. Do I need more?

I'm still concerned I'm eating too much.

Yesterday:

Water -100+ oz

B- 3 eggs with tsp ghee, 2 slices sugar free bacon, spinach and mushrooms

L- 1/4 pie- quiche Lorraine made with coconut milk, and almond flour crust. Spinach salad, mushrooms, cukes, carrot peels and balsamic & olive oil

PreWO snack- closed handful nuts

D- 1-2 palm size protein (1/2 lb grass fed ground beef last night), 2 cups steamed Broc with ghee, 1/2 cup sautéed mushrooms with onions

There are some days when a closed handful of nuts becomes 2, occasionally 3. Should I eliminate nuts since they are causing overeating?

Fruit is not a problem for me. 2-3 times a week, easy to keep to 1 serving.

Any recommends?

Also I started a probiotic this week. That has caused some diarrhea (sorry tmi) followed by constipation and bloat.

I know he Whole30 is a lifestyle change and I'm willing to put in WHATEVER effort I need to but I have a vacation coming on May 1st and I need to lose about 12 lbs by then. I want to I've this time but I don't want to wait so long and then be really unhappy when I can't wear a bathing suit on vacation. I have lost 3 lbs in 41 days. Something is just not right.

Please help me!

[Javagirl7]

Full disclosure:

I had 3 glasses white wine on day33.

I had 1 glass red wine and 3 skinny onion rings on day 38

I had 2 tbsp regular ketchup last night.

That's it for non-whole30 foods though for 41 days.

[Brewer5]

There are some days when a closed handful of nuts becomes 2, occasionally 3. Should I eliminate nuts since they are causing overeating?

 

Yes.

 

Anything that is food without brakes for you should be eliminated.  Nuts often fall into this category.  Sorry.

 

I know they are tasty little dudes.  Oh, do I know...      

 

But they will also undermine your efforts.  They will take over and replace other, healthier options.

 

Many, many people have had to ban them completely.  

 

The first day or two will be hard, as you scramble to find enough replacement fats, and those cravings call to you.  But after those first couple of days ~ you will be SO glad you broke free.

[GFChris]

 I have lost 3 lbs in 41 days. Something is just not right.

 

 

Why is losing 3 lbs in 41 days not right?  Tom Denham lost 2 lbs in 30 days and kept losing at that rate, every month, for 15 months. You seem to be right on pace with how he did it.

 

What if you kept on losing weight at that pace?

 

In reviewing your food, drop anything made with almond flour crust - that's off limits on a Whole30.

And if you're truly committed to losing weight, keep on Whole30'ing to all the rules (including no wine and sugar) until you get there.

 

[praxisproject]

Sticking to the Recommendations as well as the Rules may also give you better results.

 

You may want to re-read the template for Pre & Post WO meals, nuts aren't a good choice.

[Javagirl7]

Thank you for the responses. I will keep going and eliminate nuts from now on and recommit to continuing whole30 with no reintroduction.

I do have to say it was nice to hear of someone that this diet did work for but not right away. You hear the thousands of success stories where 30 days changed their life. And on this forum you see people just finished and struggling but you rarely hear about the people who had to stick with this for 2,3...6 months before they got their benefit. It was making me question whether this works for everyone. I would love to hear more stories from people who did had to continue on and wait for their results, BUT their results did come!

Regarding your question whether if I kept losing at the 2 lbs a month Pace? Unfortunately I think that is very discouraging. I'm working so hard. I don't understand why I'm not losing more when I watch my best friend drop 16 lbs on the whole30 that she didn't even need to loose (5'9" 135lbs)! She also ate significantly less fat and protein than is recommended so it makes me question everything.

Of course in the end, even though my answer was that it's very discouraging, I am going to have to accept it at this point. I don't have a choice. I could back to weight watchers but I really wanted to pick the health conscious diet not the weight conscious diet this time.

Thanks again for taking the time to answer me.

[JulieP757]

I am a slow loser - always have been.  I lost 30 lbs. back in 2011 eating low carb/paleo.  It took and entire year - 365 days.  Torturously slow.  The good news is when you lose that slowly, your eating is become a lifestyle and you are less likely to gain it back.  5 years later, I'm within 2 lbs. of my goal weight - still.

 

Don't measure your success against others' - it will only discourage and frustrate you.  And your friend is not doing herself any favors by undereating.  She may have lost a few pounds, but I doubt she has experienced the numerous other benefits of properly nourishing your body.  

 

Stick with the template and stop focusing on the number on the scale.  In fact - put it away for a while.  Write down all the non-scale victories you get along the way and focus on those.  As for WW, do you really want to go back to tracking every bite?  I know I don't

[GFChris]

Regarding your question whether if I kept losing at the 2 lbs a month Pace? Unfortunately I think that is very discouraging. I'm working so hard. I don't understand why I'm not losing more when I watch my best friend drop 16 lbs on the whole30 that she didn't even need to loose (5'9" 135lbs)! She also ate significantly less fat and protein than is recommended so it makes me question everything.

 

Ok, I would respectfully counter that your friend's approach is not the healthier way to go.  She's losing weight that she doesn't need to: it actually sounds like she's undernourishing and underfeeding herself.  It doesn't sound like that's what you want, if you truly want a healthy way of eating.

We are all individual snowflakes, with different health histories and various factors at play in our physical makeup, which will affect our pace of change.  As you commented earlier, you've had years of health challenges with your body: it's unrealistic that would completely turn around in a month's time. So, you inch forward  for now: give your body the care and time it needs to heal.

 

Can you love you and your body now, no matter what the number on the scale says?

In the most gentle way possible, I advise you to please stop comparing yourself to others and focus on your progress and how you feel in your overall health, excluding the number on the scale.  This article may help put things into perspective.

What feels hard to you?  Maybe folks here can offer suggestions for taking the pressure off.

[Javagirl7]

JulieP757, thank you, You're right. I don't want to track every point again. I did that for 3 years. I do want to live a lifestyle where healthy eating is my "normal" and I am not a slave to a scale... or a bathing suit anymore.

Congratulations on your success. I am more hopeful that 1 year from now I can be a success story too!

And GFChris, you're right as well. If I lose 2 more pounds before my vacation, well, I'll have to be thankful that I lost 2 more pounds! And that my husband thinks I look great at this weight and realize it's not about the scale but how you feel. Thank you for the article. It definitely puts things in perspective.

[QuilterInVA]

How much weight did you gain each week to get where you are? Probably not more than a pound or 2 a month. Why should it come off so much faster than it went on?

[fganter]

How much weight did you gain each week to get where you are? Probably not more than a pound or 2 a month. Why should it come off so much faster than it went on?

 

Answer is quite simple conceptually... If someone is doing what they perceive to be radical changes in eating habits (i.e. cut all processed sugar, cut all dairy, etc.), they expect to see radical results.  Especially if someone consumed a lot of sugar, etc. prior to Whole30.

[DivaCarla]

JavaGirl, I feel for you. I am still working my first Whole 30, and my body is working hard to adjust to everything. May I encourage you in non-food ways?

 

Would you be willing to whole-heartedly celebrate your marvelous self? Between now and vacation, buy yourself a new outfit that makes you look and feel like a million bucks and a sexy goddess!

 

Maybe even get a photo shoot. If a pro photographer is out of reach, maybe a trusted friend could take some pictures of you being you and loving you body and yourself as you are. I've had to do some work on this for myself over the years, and these things helped me. 

So in addition to celebrating your achievements on Whole30, celebrate your awesome, beautiful, healthy, talented self as you are right now. 

This quote moved me to tears and I even made a poster of myself with these words from a photo I liked. 
 

I said to my body softly, “I want to be your friend”. It took a long breath and replied, “I have been waiting my whole life for this.” ~Nayyirah Waheed

 

You will get to your desired weight and body form when you and your body start playing together as friends. Best wishes!