SarahLou Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I have completed day 7 of my first whole 30. I feel encouraged to have actually stayed consistent, but otherwise not too different. I have had my share of headaches and fatigue this week, and I'm happy to say that those symptoms are gone. My #1 motivation is weight loss. I 'cheated' on day 2 (or 3--can't remember) and put my foods into my 'Fitness Pal' app on my phone, only to sadly see that I had eaten more than than the recommended calories for weight loss. I know I'm not supposed to count calories, and I resolved then to let the program work its magic and not worry about it. Not worrying is easier said than done. I really, really don't want to get to the end of this and be disappointed with the results. I really want this to be life-changing. Eating high fat/low carb is a paradigm shift, and I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around the idea that so much fat is good for me. This morning for breakfast, I blended up some coconut milk with frozen berries and 1/2 a banana. I had never had coconut milk before, and was absolutely BLOWN AWAY when I read the nutritional info on the back of the can. How can that much fat possibly be healthy?! Can someone explain in simple terms how this works? Since my main motivation is weight loss, is there anything specific I should or should not do? I already decided I should lay off the cashews. =) I exercise consistently (cardio and CrossFit) and drink plenty of water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BananaFannaFoFynn Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I can only speak from personal experience, but it wasn't until I seriously upped my healthy fat intake that I felt satisfied and lost the urge to snack between meals. I know when I didn't have enough fat at a meal because I get hungry more quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vickizee Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I am no expert but what I've gathered from all I've read is that by limiting carbs and increasing fat intake, our bodies now use stored fat for fuel instead of the carbs that are ingested when eating. I'm sure there are plenty of others here who can explain it better! I was worried I wouldn't lose anything either. I didn't "count" at all. I just made sure to eat correctly and enjoy my food! I had 20 lbs to lose and lost 5. I'm pretty sedentary and have other health issues so I'm happy with that (sort of!) But at least now I only have 15 to go! bEst to you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ann Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 SarahLou, I can really relate to how you feel, because I was exactly in your place a month ago. Here is a quote from the first day of my food log, 32 days ago: *gasp* I know we aren't really supposed to track calories, etc., but just finishing the first day, I was curious how it added up. I plugged my food into FitDay, and it looks like I ate 2365 calories, and 156 GRAMS OF FAT!!! That can't be good, can it?? (27 saturated, 21 polyunsaturated, 98 monounsaturated.) Good news: 49 grams of fiber, and 97 grams of protein, and according to FitDay I met the RDA on everything except calcium, iron (very low) and vitamin D. Definitely putting lots of spinach on tomorrow's menu. I never got a response to this post, but decided to take a leap of faith and stick with the plan. I didn't plug my food into Fitday again after that. When I woke on Day 31, I had lost 9.6#. I went to my doctor on Day 29 and had blood drawn, and am waiting for the cholesterol/blood sugar results, but I'm expecting they will be just fine (or maybe even better than they were a year ago!) Give it some time and see if you start getting positive results in places unrelated to the scale. My favorite thing was I started sleeping through the night within the first week Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Tom Denham Posted August 9, 2012 Moderators Share Posted August 9, 2012 Good fats are good for you. Bad fats are bad for you. The Whole30 recommends that you eat good fats with every meal and avoid all bad fats. The recommended portion size for fats is about the size of your thumb with each meal. Some meals may include more fat than others, but the idea is to let the overall fat you are eating balance out over time. Your body needs fat to absorb vitamins. People who eat fat-free meals can't absorb lots of the good stuff their bodies need to be healthy. That leads them to eat more – since they need nutrition – and they get fat. Ironically, they would have been happy to eat less if they had eaten more fat. Contrary to popular belief… Many people lose weight while getting more than 50 percent of their calories from fat when they are eating real, whole foods in proper portion sizes – protein the size of the palm of your hand, fat the size of your thumb, and the rest of the plate filled with veggies. Now let's talk about your breakfast… A berry-banana-coconut milk drink doesn't really measure up as a meal. Every meal should include protein, fat, and veggies. In addition, drinking your food is not a good practice. Drinking your food is a good way to feel hungry faster because the liquid does not provoke the same satiety response as whole foods and you are likely to eat again sooner rather than later. If you want do achieve the most from your Whole30, work on eating a good balance of foods at each meal and following the portion guidelines. It works! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jotartare Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I don't know if this was helpful to the original poster, but this thread was very helpful to me! Thank you all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lola Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I don't know if this was helpful to the original poster, but this thread was very helpful to me! Thank you all! Ya, me too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whoisjulene Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I have a question re: all the fat -- in multiple places it's mentioned my fat source should be 1-2 thumbs worth. Yet the diagrams show a healthy sized pile of olives in a hand. Can anyone explain this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAK911 Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I assume olives aren't 100% fat, and you don't eat the pits, so that might account for the difference. For the OP: I had some similar thoughts starting my Whole 30, but my Whole 30 and a few mostly compliant weeks after, I've dropped my triglycerides by about 60 points and continued to lose weight. (I lost 16 pounds during the initial Whole 30). The weight thing is nice, but the triglycerides are really something I'm excited about, as I'd been really struggling to figure out a way to get that number down. The recommended protocol from my doctor's office and a bunch of places is to cut animal products, up whole grain consumption, eat fish, yada yada. That was how I was already eating, and it was clearly not helping. Going back to eating meat with every meal (which I hadn't done in over a decade of being pesce-vegetarian) and seriously upping my fat consumption seemed to get my numbers down to the almost normal range. I suspect if I had my blood drawn again now after another month of eating mostly compliant, I'd find my triglycerides were normal. Healthy fats do all kinds of good things for you -- as explained above -- and I think the proof is in the pudding for a lot of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee Kosowan Posted August 9, 2012 Share Posted August 9, 2012 I too am struggling with this whole concept. But I figure give it 30 days and what have I lost? a few pounds? great! if I don't lose weight or inches then I back where I started and can pick up on my old habits (which weren't helping any pounds disappear). (I am on day 8 and I have already noticed my clothes fit looser and my body feels tighter so it must be doing something!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahLou Posted August 10, 2012 Author Share Posted August 10, 2012 Thanks, everyone. Yes, I am noticing my clothes a little looser too. I'll stay the course, and be cautious on the uber high-fat stuff. As in I won't make it an every-day thing. Tom, thanks for your advice on breakfast. My typical breakfast is more like you recommend, and I'll keep the 'protein/veggie/fat' mantra in mind for all of my meals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emily Posted August 10, 2012 Share Posted August 10, 2012 FWIW, my triglycerides also dropped 30 points and they started at a point the docs consider healthy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ifjewel Posted August 10, 2012 Share Posted August 10, 2012 I started The Whole30 pretty slender already, but did suffer from bloated insides and achy joints. My partner started 30 lbs overweight. We figured out at some point along the way, second and third week probably, that she needs more fat than I do in the diet. She craved and enjoyed them, so we upped the amount to the 2 thumbs worth per meal. The weight has dropped off of her. She barely eats fruits and has low starch vegetables, turnip, squash and very little sweet potato. It has been amazing. Her energy is better than mine right now (day 27!). Good fat is your friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen Roy Posted August 10, 2012 Share Posted August 10, 2012 There's a reason it's called GOOD fat! It goes against everything we have been told for years about healthy eating, but after completing a whole30, I can say-trust the whole30 plan-it works. Your body feels fuller after a meal with protein, veggies and healthy fat. I ate a lot more food at each meal the first week or so than I did the last three weeks-it all leveled out and I was satisfied by eating enough-and nothing more! Even better, I stayed satisfied till the next meal! Hardly any snacking at all! I lost 15 pounds during my whole30. And I ate fat at every meal and I NEVER felt hungry. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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