Too much fat?

[risingsprings]

I'm on day 27, and overall I'm satisfied with my progress.  I was quite taken aback by a dr visit weigh-in yesterday, (showed minimal wt loss when I truly felt that there was more), and my husband and I have been talking about why that might be.

He feels that even though I've been eating fairly clean for the past 2 yrs (lost 70# last year), I did not eat much protein or fats overall.  He thinks that the main reason for limited wt loss (I'm at about 30% body fat) is due to my increase in protein and fats.  I keep looking over the forum and have only found encouragement to "eat more fats"...

Breakfast:  I usually have 3-4 eggs cooked w/ 1 T lard, and veges w/ clarified butter for breakfast OR 3 eggs w/ a whole avocado and sw pot w/ c. butter and/or coconut oil (either added on top or cooked in it). 

Lunch:  Plenty of veges w/ c. butter, usually a sw pot w/ c. butter and/or c. oil, and palm size of protein.  If it's the salmon cakes I drizzle olive oil over them as they're a bit dry.  If I have a salad, I usually add an egg or two, evoo, and some days an avocado.

Supper:  Usually start w/ a handful of mixed nuts (macadamia, almond, hazelnut) because I'm hungry after work, protein, veges w/ c. butter, and/or salad mix w/ evoo and vingar.

If I have a snack at night, dependent on the time/activity, I will have an apple w/ almond butter.

 

SOOOO, after all that, am I eating too much fat?  I'm quite active at the gym and have really struggled to find ways to eat before and after, but since I work out at 4 and eat my lunch at 12, I'm never hungry before, and as soon as I am done working out (about 5:30ish) I go home and cook dinner so there's no real time to fit in another meal.  I also need to say that I was at 1200 -1500 cal for the past 2 yrs, so I also know that my body is like "wth are you doing feeding me all this food??? (although healthy!)"

I'm working through the emotions of wt loss, which is a necessity for me and why I did the Whole 30 to begin with, along w/ hoping for some relief w/ inflammatory pain.  I am def still a work in progress and believe that my Whole 30 will last many more days!  Thanks for any insights....

[missmary]

Coming from a diet of 1200-1500 calories a day it makes sense to me that there would be an adjustment period when you finally start providing the nourshment your body needs. It is as if your body is saying "this is great! but what if she starts starving us again? we better hold on to this!!" The beauty of the whole30 way of eating, is that it takes away the stuff that confuses our natural hunger and satiety signals and allows us to really tune into what our body needs. It took several months of consistency for me before the lbs started coming off eating this way. If I were you, I would resist the urge to restrict and give this a bit more time.

 

good luck!

[amberino21]

I'd like to know how your measurements have changed - at the end of your 30 days, these will be a much better indicator of a change in body composition. Weight really isn't the best indicator, as it can fluctuate dramatically for various reasons and the reason you're asked not to weigh yourself.

What other benefits have you noticed? After so long on quite restricted calories, your body may go through a transition - it takes time for it to realise you aren't going to keep starving it! You may also take longer to feel relief of inflammation, depending on your background. Hopefully there are other benefits you've noticed along the way?

Looking at your meal plan, it's hard to get a good grasp on exactly how much fat you're eating - how do you feel though? Are you satisfied between meals? (I'd suggest not as you mention being hungry...)

The things that stand out to me are the snacks, pre-dinner nuts, and the lack of pre/postWO nutrition. You shouldn't be hungry between meals, or need a late night snack, and you should be having pre/postWO. Pre isn't so important if you're working out close to a meal, but post (meal sized portion of lean protein, starchy vegie carbs and no fat) will help you refuel and recover. This can be taken with you, eaten on the way home, then have meal 3 when it's ready. You eat starchy vegies regularly, you could try eating some of them postWO instead? They are more beneficial around training to assist your body recover.

"Quite active" perhaps suggests working out too much and not getting adequate rest. Considering your sleep habits is also important - are you getting a full night sleep?

[risingsprings]

I work out after work and I'm hungry at 5:30 which is 5 1/2 hrs after my last meal.  I'm rarely "hungry" which has been a great advancement for me to realize!  I'm not tempted to eat snacks anymore as I'm not hungry.  The nuts sometimes as a preclude to dinner are my way of dealing w/ real hunger and not hitting up the chips/pretzels that I used to.  My problem w/ post wo meals is that if I eat it on the way home at 5:30ish, then I'll never be hungry for dinner and if I wait a few hrs, then I'll never have a few hours before bed.  ????

I've recently added more of the yams b/c of ongoing constipation issues (& that has been resolved along w/ my taking magnesium).

I work out 3 days a week doing ladies bootcamp, and generally do another 2 or 3 days of cardio (running, swimming, biking).  I've been doing this for almost 2 yrs.  Before someone says it's too much, please let me explain:  I've been diag w/ Fibromyalgia and yesterday that dx was chgd initially to undifferentiated connective tissue disease.  What that means to me is that once I start moving in a workout I feel soooo good that I want to keep going.  Once I stop, I get very stiff and sore.  My only true relief is working out.  I've cut back from about 9 hrs earlier this summer to my current 5-7.  My rheumatologist told me yesterday he understands this "need" and is completely ok w/ my routines.  I get a good 8+ hrs of a sleep a night.

That's prob more than anyone needed to know...haha...but it's my reality and doing the Whole30 was my attempt to feel better overall.  Knowing that additional weight is hard on joints anyway, I had also hoped for more on this end.  My body loves to keep what it has, that's for sure!  =)

Thank you ever so much for your replies!  It's so nice to have a safe place to ask questions and read about experiences that can help oneself through the journey!

[Tom Denham]

I don't think you are eating too much fat. I agree with what Miss Mary said, your body is probably still adjusting and needs more time to get in a good rhythm. The other thing I would mention is that 30 percent body fat is not bad for a woman. The owner of a CrossFit gym I know was pissed when we measured body fat on the same day and I was about 10 percent and she was near 30 percent. She is much stronger, fitter, and hotter than me. I am serious, this is a hot woman and her body fat was/is closer to 30 percent than 20 percent. 

 

The science here may be a bit intimidating, but J. Stanton has published a series of articles showing that the concept of a calorie is a calorie is completely false. Here is his latest which includes links to earlier articles...

 

http://www.gnolls.org/3559/calorie-cage-match-sugar-sucrose-vs-protein-and-honey-there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-calorie-part-vi/

[trigirl]

Coming from a diet of 1200-1500 calories a day it makes sense to me that there would be an adjustment period when you finally start providing the nourshment your body needs. It is as if your body is saying "this is great! but what if she starts starving us again? we better hold on to this!!" The beauty of the whole30 way of eating, is that it takes away the stuff that confuses our natural hunger and satiety signals and allows us to really tune into what our body needs. It took several months of consistency for me before the lbs started coming off eating this way. If I were you, I would resist the urge to restrict and give this a bit more time.

 

good luck!

I am on Day 26 of my first Whole30.  During my 3rd week I began to get bigger.  Pants where tighter.  I had been consuming about 1.5 portion sizes of protien and veggies and probably (if I'm really honest) about 2-4 portion sizes of fat.  I'd end up feeling really full after each meal.  I kind of realized I had a fear of being hungry before my next meal.

At the beginnig of my 4th week I reduced my portions of veggies and protien to 1 portion and my fat to about 1 portion. I begin to get hungry about 30 mins to an hour before my next meal.  I'm just full after may meals. 

Oh...and I've become constipated this week. (that's how I found this topic)

 

So after reading this thread I am left wondering if I should have stayed with how I was eating in the beginning?  Would it be helpful to add more fat back to my meals? 

Any thoughts. 

And I follow the Whole30 exactly as it's written...no snack...nothing off track.

 

Thanks

[Robin Strathdee]

If your body had gotten used to more fat, and then you reduced it, it may take some time to adjust back to it's regular schedule. Extra hydration, cooked veggies and probiotc/fermented foods could help.