Day 17 and still bloated, feel like I'm gaining weight

[lisakmoser]

Hello!

Ok, so I made it to Day 17 which I'm super proud of! No plans to quit, but definitely not feeling ANY benefits to this so far (I get it's a 30 day program...)

 

First of all I love coffee. Coconut milk was a little tough the first 2 weeks then we discovered the Califa Farms almond milk and it was SO GOOD. I used it for 3 days and by Sunday I felt like hell, throat closed up, itchy, dizzy, tired - yep I'm apparently VERY allergic to almonds. Something you don't notice with a spoonful of almond butter here or there. So I'm battling that and trying to clean out my system from nuts. Anyway here's some of the foods I have been eating, please let me know if I'm just doing this totally wrong. I feel like a cow.

 

Breakfast: Split half cantaloupe with daughter; 3 eggs sauteed with sweet peppers and lots of spinach, avocado on side (If I'm doing a workout I add a small sweet potato and save part of the eggs for post workout).

 

Lunch: Crockpot salsa chicken over cauliflower rice with avocado & hot sauce/ stir fry of spinach and carrots in coconut aminos

 

Usually a snack of a banana is somewhere between lunch and dinner, I have to wait for my husband to get home and it's a little later than I would like

 

Dinner: Homemade jalapeno turkey burger (1/4 pound), avocado; roasted white potatoes & carrots; sautéed spinach on side

 

Thoughts? Am I missing major components here? I might be eating too much fruit. It's hard now that I can't have nuts (or at least, mentally hard for me!)

 

Thanks in advance. I exercise a lot - usually 6x a week which includes spin, yoga & pilates. I have horrible allergies so I was hoping to see some help there. Anyway, would love to hear any insight!! That is just yesterda, I'm sure some days have been better/worse

 

[LadyM]

The bloat may be from still clearing out the nuts from your system. Or do you feel bloated after eating particular foods?

 

Are you drinking enough water? At least as many ounces as is half your body weight in pounds?

 

Your meals look pretty good, though ditching the banana as a snack would help. It would be best if you could beef up your lunch to keep you sated until dinner, though if it's more than 6 hours between meal and you need a snack, it should look like a mini-template meal complete with protein, veg, and fat.

[lisakmoser]

Thanks...I do feel better that my meals look decent. I eat a pretty large lunch. The cauli rice and chicken is a big portion, I could prob make a larger stir fry. It's hard as a mom of 2 kids b/c I'm running from school to soccer to teaching yoga after my husband gets home so sometimes I need something to hold me over and it's hard to make up a mini meal. What are some suggestions for that? B/c I despise hard boiled eggs and I know that's a big one

 

I honestly feel bloated ALL the time, minus first thing in the morning. This is so much more food than I'm used to. I don't know. I'm having a hard time undestanding my body's reaction to all this!

 

Thanks again!

[Karen_Suep]

I think pre workout is fat and protein so maybe some tuna salad with compliant mayo? Or a burger patty with mayo or guac?

[lisakmoser]

Ok, so I usually work out in the morning. I wake up, take my son to school, head to the gym with my daughter. So I would have already eaten 3 eggs with peppers & spinach, avocado and maybe something on the side like fruit or potato, usually fruit. And coffee. So would I just eat something post workout? But then it's almost lunch time! I think this is where I feel like I could have something small and I'm messing up...

[Karen_Suep]

It doesn't have to be a big meal. A few bites of protein and maybe starchy veggies? Something you can eat at the gym? And then just eat your lunch about 30 minutes later. Make sense?

[Kaelisan]

I felt bloated and horrible into the third week. Keep with it!

[jmcbn]

I'd agree with LadyM that the bloat could still be from the almonds working their way out of your system, BUT you are also eating a lot of avocado which can be problematic ofr some. I'd probbaly look at cutting that out for a few days & adding in some other fat sources - olives, home made mayo, compliant bacon, lard, ghee etc & see if things don't settle down. If it does try adding back in a smaller volume of avocado - you're currentl eating it at all three meals.

Pre WO I don't think you need given that you've eaten breakfast, although on the days that you train I'd add more fat rather than more carbs.

Post WO you're aiming for a lean protein & optional starchy carb - chicken is the handiest as it's good eaten cold but any lean protein will do - eat it as soon as you are done, and then move on to your next meal.

[lisakmoser]

Ok thank you!! Post work=out today I just had some of the salsa chicken cold and then made a mini stir fry with spinach & carrots that I normally eat iwth lunch but kind of feel too full after anyway. I am now having the salsa chicken over cauliflower rice with no avocado and a side of sweet potato & carrots roasted dipped in chipotle mayo (wow that was good). I will skip avocado today and see how that goes! I can prob skip tomorrow too based on my meals I have planned.

 

Dinner is zucchini noodles over a homemade bolognese sauce. Should I do no sides? What do you all eat with "pasta" aka zoodles or squash? What would work well with that to keep with the right template?

 

Thanks again! You all are so helpful

[tmhampton1]

I found some W30 compliant meatballs that I eat. 

 

I get really bloated if I eat too many starchy carbs. I was eating them 2 meals and once I cut back to just one it helped me lose the bloat. I also have digestive issues and had a really good response to including a digestive enzyme before my meals. 

[TheLadyD]

I find that I react to almond milk (a digestive express!) but am I'm fine with almonds. Maybe almonds just aren't meant to be milked.   

 

Either that, or I'm reacting to something else in the almond milk. I can live without it so I've never experimented with different brands / additives. 

[lisakmoser]

I got out my allergy tests from 2011 and sure enough almonds are there with 2 big plus signs meaning very allergic!! Also pistachios. Didn't say cashews but I'm assuming I'm allergic to those also The good news is I'm taking out my other allergens I usually eat every day (wheat, cows milk & corn) so hopefully by the end I will be feeling much better. Right now I can't breathe my allergies are so bad! But it's spring in NJ (kinda) so that could also be it.

 

I'm going to cut the potatoes to once a day. I just am in love with roasted sweets. Sigh. I'm having to take out all the foods I actually enjoy and it's a little depressing! Just started taking magnesium (I used to take daily but stopped with W30) but that hasn't really helped, hopefully soon. Thanks again!!

[jmcbn]

Magnesium is not going to help resolve bloating. It may help with sleep, or in regulating bowel movements as it acts as a muscle relaxant.

For the bloat, apart from removing the offending foods, you could look at taking a probiotic, or adding in something fermented like kombucha which will provide much more in the way of natural probiotics than a supplement ever will. Digestive enzymes can help, but generally not until such times as the bloat is gone, and are more for br.eaking down harder to digest foods such as animal proteins in the intestine.

Be sure to include some fat with those zoodles!

[lisakmoser]

Thanks! I will look into probiotics allowed on Whole30. I feel HUGE. I feel like I'm 4 months pregnant. I got rid of avocado and will work on eating potatoes once a day and see how that helps!! Thank you SO much!