Tell me it's not all about to come crashing down?!

[DP8301]

So... I had an interesting start to my Whole30 journey because I've been on antibiotics and having been unwell I had NO appetite or cravings... until today.

 

Today is Day 7 and I finished the course of antibiotics on Day 5. I spent days 1-5 forcing down compliant meals, dealing with a slightly dodgy tummy, nausea and some tiredness which I largely put down to being unwell and on antibiotics BUT I was so grateful not to have had the headaches, extreme tiredness or grouchiness that the timeline says you will probably have. 

 

On Day 6 I spent a lot of time reading the forums (fora?!) just for fun and realised that 1) I am not drinking nearly enough water and 2) my meals probably aren't quite big enough even though I was aware of and trying to follow the template.

 

So today, I had 3 eggs for breakfast instead of 2 (how on earth do people eat 4 in one sitting?!) and am chugging down the water. My breakfast was definitely compliant in terms of size. A big sweet potato rosti and sauteed pepper, onion and mushroom, with the three eggs - all of which cooked with an amount of coconut oil that still galls me - all of which went in my belly!, and the 3 eggs. But 3 hours later I was starting to get hungry and now I have a headache because I'm forcing myself to wait a little bit longer before I have lunch.

 

Can I expect to feel now on Day 7 the way other people feel on Days 2-3?! I'm not going to fall off the wagon, no worries there, just a bit concerned that I haven't actually made any progress in 7 days (apart from discovering that the sweet potato rosti is the BEST FOOD EVER, which actually makes the programme worth it all on its own). I was really enjoying the lack of hunger/cravings!

 

I suspect that any responder is going to tell me that 3 eggs isn't enough protein... :-)

[ultrarunnergirl]

Yes, our recommendation if eggs are your protein alone is the number you can hold in your hand without dropping -- usually at least 4.

It can be tough to eat 4 or 5 eggs in one sitting.

Many of us have found it is easier to eat enough when you have a little meat with your eggs -- leftovers from the night before, compliant sausage, Aidells chicken apple sausage (always read your labels!). 

[jmcbn]

Is this the first time you've had sweet potato at meal one?

[DP8301]

I started having the sweet potato for meal 1 on Sunday (Day 5), but also had a bowl of soup as part of meal 1 on Saturday and that had sweet potato in.

[jmcbn]

Some people report that fruit and/or starchy veg at meal one can cause them to feel hungrier sooner due to the impact on blood sugar levels, although it could of course just be that now the AB's are finished your appetite is returning.

As ultrarunnergirl said it's much easier to get enough protein on board when you mix the sources - like eggs & ground beef for instance - I'd also suggest adding a little more fat such as avocado, olives or home-made mayo. IME liquid fats just don't provide the same satiety levels as something more solid.

[Tom Denham]

I eat 3 eggs for breakfast, but I buy Jumbo eggs. I'm not a fast cracker and want to get it over quickly.

 

It is hard to predict where you might fall on the timeline, but I would expect things to become gradually better as you advance from the end of using antibiotics. 

[GFChris]

Yes, our recommendation if eggs are your protein alone is the number you can hold in your hand without dropping -- usually at least 4.

 

To piggy-back on this post, the egg serving is relative to your hand size.

My hand can only hold 3 eggs, so that's my serving size, and it works fine for me.  Use satiety to guide you in your portion sizes.  You want to get to a place where your meals of protein, veg and fat satiate you for 4-5 hours. If you're only lasting 3 hours, then play with your portion sizes until you get there.

Also, we don't expect you to wait to eat if you are genuinely hungry between meals (litmus test: you could eat something bland like steamed fish and broccoli). If that's the case, have a mini meat of protein, carb and fat.

 

[DP8301]

Thanks all :-) much appreciated. It feels like so much food already but I suppose it's just something to get used to.

 

I will add another protein at meal one and try swapping some of the veg at meal three with the rosti at meal one and see if that helps.

 

Onwards and upwards!

[ladyshanny]

I've been Whole30'ing for a couple years now and last week was the first time I've ever been sick and on antibiotics in years. And let me tell you.  Being that sick and horking down all the antibiotics, advil, migraine pills and cold medication absolutely knocked me on my Whole30 rear!  My normally predictable appetite was all over the place, my typically wonderful sleep was completely trashed (leading to messed up hunger signals) and all I wanted when I could eat was carbs.  Three days post-antibiotics and mostly recovered, I still feel pretty awful, headache, moody, wacky hunger.  

 

All that to say: during the time that you are recovering, even though you aren't on the medication any more, your body is still going to be prioritizing its healing.  Rebalancing gut bacteria, patching up whatever body systems were affected by your illness, still needing extra sleep/rest and a good chance its needing extra food in general.  Honor your body, follow some of the tips above and in general, if you are hungry, eat nutrient dense foods!  

[Doge1117]

I can choke down a lot more eggs if they are hardboiled, mushed finely, and sort of a "dressing" on veggies with mustard/Primal mayo.

[Xandra]

Antibiotics are wonderful for what they do, but it's no secret that they ravage your gut. Toss the timeline until your gut has a chance to return to some semblance of normalcy. You might come out of this fog right on schedule and straight into Tiger blood, which would be a great thing. Keep up the good work following the template.