Never adjusted to breakfast

[Guest]

So, my husband and I are in between Whole30s.  He was right there with me on the first one and ate breakfast with me.  I had it prepared about 45 minutes after I got up and 5 minutes after he got up.  So, when eating right away didn't feel very good to him, we pushed it to 30 minutes after he got up.  Having this meal together was important to us, but I ended up a little beyond my hour mark.  If I could remember, I would chew on some sort of protein while I prepped the food.  I could prep ahead, but I had plenty of time to get it done.

 

Post W30, whether the food is compliant or not, he says he simply can't stomach breakfast.  I noticed he had been snacking a lot, so I now pack a breakfast and a lunch for him and he eats 3 or 4 hours after waking and then 3 or 4 hours later.  Dinner is a bit after he gets home which is usually around 7:30.

 

Thing is, I haven't seen many people who couldn't break the breakfast barrier with a W30.  Are there any of you who can't do breakfast at all after giving it a shot?  I know he really toughed it out and I feel terrible that the effort failed and that I encouraged him to start each day in such an unpleasant way.

 

Compliant food is important to us, but so are the other bits.

[Love_running]

Hi Nico, I used to eat my breakfast 3 hours after I got out of the bed. I'm on day 18 and now I eat one or two walnuts on my way out and try to eat breakfast around 6:30 - 7:00 am instead of 8am. When I have less food for dinner I can't wait for early breakfast. I hope this helps a little.

[Renee Lee]

have you tried the "eat like a king for breakfast, prince for lunch, pauper for dinner" method? Hormonally, it's "ideal" if you're hungry when you first wake up...so if skimping on dinner helps that...maybe that's a way to get there?

 

But you guys aren't doing your W30. W30's like trying on a pair of pants. "follow these rules, see how it works. if it doesn't fit, try another pair"

 

If your hubby toughed out the 30 days with breakfast within an hour of eating and he still isn't on board? then let him do his own thing.

[Guest]

Thanks, Renee.  He has a night-time snacking issue, so we ate all of our meals pretty evenly.  He also has trouble going to be.  So, he wakes up tired and not hungry.  The idea of the hormonal reset sounds perfect, right?  Until it doesn't I guess. 

 

We're gearing up for another W30.  We tried one a few weeks back and he decided it was too much trouble to worry when eating out...somehow the second one seemed less official for us both.  Riding our own bikes is really hard.  So, we're putting the training wheels back on.  But he says no breakfast until midday because he doesn't want to be sick and feel like throwing up all day.  Makes sense to me, but then I wish that it didn't.

[Kirsteen]

Breakfast was definitely hardest for me when I came to W30, I hadn't eaten it since I was a teenager because, like your husband it made me feel like throwing up all day. so I can really sympathise. I found digestive enzymes and hydrochloric acid with my breakfast really helped. Without them it was as if my stomach just wasn't ready to start digesting food. I also sort of babystepped my way towards it, starting with breakfasts that were quite light and not nearly as big as I eat now.

 

i was really lucky though, in that I didn't have to rush out to work after it, I could just sit and let it start digesting. I really do think it helped reset the hormones but, at the end of the day, we can all only do our best. If he can't manage it, he can't manage it. I really wish you both the best. good luck

[Renee Lee]

if he wakes up tired and not refreshed he's probably got bigger issues than breakfast how's he handling his stress?

[Guest]

Thanks, Kirsteen!

 

Renée, all I can tell you is that we got the daily e-mails and read all about all of the other things.  With some serious injuries and time constraints (he can not walk for an extended period or ride a bike) he has not been able to exercise.  Some of his pain went away with the reduction in inflammation and the weight loss of W30 and we had hopes that he could kick that into a higher gear. 

 

Because of the topic of sleep hygiene, when he isn't travelling, he has been trying to turn off the screens earlier.  He's never been a morning person and used to arrive at work at noon.  That is his preferred schedule.  He's just beginning to unwind at the time when he would need to be in bed to be rested to be at work earlier.  Right now, he's working on not sleeping in on the weekends so that weekdays will be easier.

 

I think it was you who said you come back to W30 when everything else feels out of control.  For him, when other things become more hectic, Whole30 feels too restrictive with the kitchen clean-up and not being able to eat out.  We're simply not that good at it yet.  Add to it my persistent digestive distress and it feels stressful.  I'll do one without him with no problem, although I'll be doing the cooking and he works in town near Sprouts so he happily brings me ingredients.  (Relaxing on kitchen clean-up is a stress-reliever he has also been working on and I have been working on accepting that needing the clean kitchen is his need.)  I'm committed to no raw veggies, no salmon, no coconut solids, no dried fruits, and no other suspicious foods until I've had a good amount of time to heal before I reintro them in an extremely systematic way.  I wish I was thinking about food less by now, but I can honestly say that I am not.  In fact, I've developed a food insecurity because having a compliant and fully cooked meal ready all the time has been a bit of a challenge.  It is a stressor like I have not recently known, although there are some awesome benefits that I fully appreciate.  I look forward to the day when it is more like a visit with an old friend.

 

I sincerely appreciate your replies.