I HATE VEGGIES - and now I feel like I am doing this all wrong.

[saragrace13]

I am on day 14 on my Whole30 and am hitting a rough patch because I will just say it - I HATE VEGGIES. I always have. I mean I have grown up a bit and can now eat spinach (only with some salad dressing), onions (on my burgers, sandwiches, etc), some tomatoes (again on burgers or sandwiches, not plain!), asparagus, and a few other things hear and there. I have discovered the joy of sweet potatoes since starting wWhole30 - but even those must be done in moderation. But I am definitely not the type of person that can put a chicken breast on my plate and then fill the rest of it with broccoli, cauliflower, or even that asparagus that I kind of like. Eat some carrots? Sure, I will eat a few, and then I feel like I am chewing on paper... it isn't horrific, but after several bites I want to gag. 

 

These past 14 days I am finding that the majority of my Whole30 meals have been protein, fruit, some fats (avocado, a reasonable amount of cashews) and then the occasional veggies MAYBE every other night for dinner. 

 

Long story short - I feel like I am doing this whole Whole30 thing wrong and if I am doing it wrong, then what is the point?? It's not like I want to quit just to go binge on ice cream and cookies - but I just feel like I am doing this all wrong. 

 

I have had a headache nearly every day of Whole30. I have no increased energy - if anything I am wayyy more tired. I am getting married in 23 days and to be honest - I was just hoping to get a little slimmer for the big day and have more energy/be a better morning person over all. I know I may not have hit the point where I get to that increased energy just yet... but thus far I am not feeling so great and am just feeling like "what's the point??"

 

Help???

[CRCBN]

I'm sorry. But you really do have to follow the template if you want good results.

 

Do you like tomato sauce, red bell peppers, mushrooms, anything green other than spinich?

 

Worse case, I guess you can just eat spinich, a few carrots and sweet potatoes at every meal. It might get boring but at least you will be eating your veggies.

[Carlaccini]

Okay - I personally love veggies but I have another problem - many veggies give me stomach distress (but some I will eat anyways) So I have a tendency of leaning towards the veggies that cause the least problems. 

 

Honestly there is a reason why the program is written the way it is.  it's because it does work.  That being said don't be too hard on yourself here.  Let's work with what we've got.

 

Carrots - have you tried roasting them? They almost become sweet.

Asparagus - grill them on the BBQ

 

Once a month mom has a decent recipe that is acceptable whole 30 for carrot souffle.  Now just because it has eggs in the recipe, doesn't mean your covered for you protein and fat.  If you can saute some spinach and put it along side it + a protein you should be good to go.

 

Sweet potato - try making them all different ways. roasted with onions, cook together with some celery root and mash them up together, over baked with some coconut butter, and cinnamon...... I could go on.....

 

My favourite breakfast is seasoned ground meat, handful of shredded sweet potato, handful of spinach, cook the veggies down, throw in some eggs and scramble everything together.

 

What I am trying to say - work with what you like and find different ways of preparing them so you don't feel like you're eating the same way over and over again.

 

Since you like sweet potato - try some acorn, pepper, or buttercup squash.  Cut up and roasted in the oven with some fat + balsamic vinnegar + S&P - they taste pretty good. 

Spinach - you could try another veg from the spinach family - swiss chard - sauted with onions, salt and pepper, maybe if you want to get adventerous you can throw some raisins and toasted pine nuts (this works for spinach too)

 

Oh one more thought - if you like meatballs or meat loaf -- grate some veggies in them!  carrot goes well, zucchini goes well, sweet potato, cauliflower.  The veggies make the meat moist (not dry!) during cooking.

[Tina R]

1st Most people want to quit around day 10. You might be a little behind the timeline but this is natural.

2nd to me vegetables are all about texture in your mouth. If you are eating vegetables that have been boiled to oblivion, you are probably never going to like them.

3 - try to sneak veggies into your meals like Carlaccini suggests above.

 

Don't be too hard on yourself. This is a challenge and there will be days you want to throw in the towel. Hang in there you can do it for another 16 days!

 

You might want to try the unusual veggies and see if you like them. Here are some suggestions that may help. Spaghetti squash - the texture can be a little crisper than spaghetti but it works really well for tomoato sauce and meatballs. Zucchini boats - cut a zucchini in half length wise and put the flat side up. Spread some compliant tomato sauce and bake for 20 - 30 min at 350. Grill the zucchini for about 20 min. Roasted Veggies, Sweet Potatoes - make baked sweet potato fries. You can even have them with homemade compliant ketchup. Plantains - fry and make a nacho chip and dip in quacamole or make nachos with meat and veggies. Salsa - make your own home made salas with tomatoes, onions, jalapeno peppers, and cilantro. Stuffed mushrooms.

 

Have you tried veggies fresh from the garden or fresh from a farmers market? They taste so much better fresh. I am growing carrots in my garden right now and they are so sweet. How about raw veggies like sweet peppers, cucumbers, celery and tomatoes? Good Luck!

[ShannonM816]

Definitely try different ways of preparing your veggies. Roasted cauliflower is totally different than steamed or raw, and in my opinion much better tasting. In fact, whenever I'm not sure what to do with a vegetable, roasting it is my go-to method. Most of them are better that way.

 

You can definitely hide the veggies in your meats and sauces too. I don't like cooked spinach much (it's a texture thing, it seems a bit slimy to me), but since I can eat so much more of it cooked than raw, I found a way I don't mind. I put a bunch of spinach in my Ninja food processor/blender thing with three eggs and blend it until the spinach is tiny, tiny little pieces, basically liquefied with the eggs, then I cook the egg/spinach mixture the way I would cook scrambled eggs. They come out green, but they taste good and I don't have the texture thing to get past. And I made some meatballs inspired by a recipe I saw online that included chopped up sweet potatoes and mushrooms in the meatball (sorry, i don't remember what recipe, I didn't really follow it, I just saw it and thought, hey, I can put veggies in my meatballs!)

 

There's all kinds of recipes for vegetables out there too -- maybe look around and find some that sound good to you. Maybe start here with the veggie recipes from theclothesmakethegirl.com or here with the recipes from nomnompaleo.com. (Obviously, double check all ingredients, there are some recipes, especially on nomnompaleo, that are not W30, but most are or can easily be modified).

 

Anyway, if you try enough vegetables, you're bound to find a few you like.

[GoJo09]

Have you tried just drowning them in mayo? I eat a lot of vegetables I don't really love (hi, broccoli!) because it's good for me, and mayo makes everything better!

[mercuryhime]

I felt the same way about the protein.  On my first whole 30, I was so tired of having to eat meat or eggs at every meal.  I spiced it and cooked it in all sorts of different ways but I would literally feel like gagging as I forced the protein down my throat.  No matter what spiced you cover it with, it still tastes and feels like meat.  Long story short, I knew I needed to eat it, so I did.  You need to do the same with vegetables. 

 

You could try a pureed vegetable soup.  No need to chew.  maybe that would help you eat more without feeling like you're chewing on paper. 

 

caramelized onions make everything taste fantastic.  Add that to any salad and it's a real treat. 

 

Roasted vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, asparagus, onions, summer squash, eggplant, grape tomatos, etc) are amazing.  use plenty of oil and turn up the heat!  Let everything get brown and crispy.  Add some sliced garlic towards the end. 

 

Thai curry makes everything delicious!  You can cook the veggies to your preferred texture.  Use full fat coconut milk and a compliant curry paste.  A lot of them have sugar so  be careful. 

 

Talking about veggies make me drool!  Meat though...I still have problems with meat.  I still eat it though. 

 

Good luck.  You can do it.  You know you should if you want to feel your best.