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Day 17 - serious lack of energy


subtlehue

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Hi all - on day 17 of my first Whole30. Not suffering from cravings or any real panic about the food adjustment but I'm seriously lacking in energy. I'm sleeping really well, drinking plenty of water and haven't eaten anything 'naughty'. I eat limited dried and fresh fruit. My appetite is pretty non-existent and I seem to have lost a lot of enthusiasm for food altogether. Wondering if I'm not eating enough? Saw and felt some great results in the first week but now I feel like I've plateaued. I usually exercise 5-6 times a week and play a physically draining sport but have struggled to have the energy to keep up these levels of physical activity. Have also had a pretty upset stomach this week too. Is all this normal Whole30 drama? Any advice? Thank you in advance :)

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Thanks for replying!

 

Here's what I've eaten the last couple of days:

 

Day One

9am Breakfast - omelette (2 whole FR eggs, 1 extra egg white) cooked with 1/2 T olive oil

12pm Lunch - leftover coconut flour crusted chicken tenderloins (x3) with baby spinach and a carrot

4pm - ate 2 dates and 6-8 raw cashews as I felt lightheaded

6pm Dinner - slow roasted beef cheeks (200g) in beef broth with onions, carrots, couple of baby potatoes and spinach

Water - I don't write this down but water is all I drink and I'd average 6-8 glasses per day

8-10pm Exercise - 2hrs roller derby training

 

Day Two

10:30am Breakfast - Banana with almond butter and 2 egg white omelette with olive oil

12pm Lunch - grilled salmon fillet (150g) with carrot and an apple

5:30pm Dinner - roast chicken (2 drums) with veg stirfried in coconut oil

Water as above

9am Exercise - weights class at the gym

 

I've slept 7-8hrs each night. 

This food is pretty typical of what I've been eating throughout the Whole30.

 

I'm thinking I may just be fighting off a bug?

 

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer :)

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I was just to post an almost identical post. It's day 18 for me, and the first week I felt amazing, second week quite good but for the last few days I've felt really really low energy. I did feel like I was fighting off a cold, which might be it but I'm finding it hard to stay motivated when feel so naff! I have also slept about 8-9 hours a day - come 10pm I can't keep my eyes open, and then when my alarm goes off at 7 I can hardly get out of bed. 

I always love my food but the last few meals I haven't felt hungry, but conversely I am finding it hard to resist the urge to snack and have had a couple of handfuls of nuts that I shouldn't have had. I exercise most evenings through aerobic activity such as swimming, climbing or aerobics class. 

My food last few days:

 

- 7.30am breakfast: chicken, cherry tomatoes, chopped sweet potato and zuchinni stir-fried in lemon, chilli and coriander, followed by a chopped banana and some nuts and coconut.  (handful total) 
- 12.30pm lunch: butternut squash soup with four rashers of compliant bacon on top (made with coconut milk)
- 5.30pm preworkout: 2 slices thick compliant ham and some nuts
- 60 minutes Aerobics & HIIT class

- 7pm postworkout: 4 slices ham and some nuts (not allowed I know, but couldnt resist)
- 8pm dinner: Fajita chicken, onions and peppers (made from scratch), lettuce, homemade salsa, homemade guacamole, sweet potato wedges


- 7.30am breakfast: pork, grilled peach, poached egg and oven roasted veg, coffee with coconut milk
- 12.30pm lunch: butternut squash soup and some cooked chicken (made with coconut milk) but also had some nuts

- 6.00pm preworkout: 1/3rd can of tuna and some nuts
- 90 minutes climbing

- 8pm postworkout: 2/3rd can of tuna and half sweet potato
- 8pm dinner: stirfried chicken & bacon with ovenroasted veg and olives

Every day I have one or two coffees before midday, either served with coconut milk if using fat for meal or black, plus lots of water and herbal teas. 

I need my energy back... help!

Edit: My portions are normally a full plate, but not heaping. For Soup, just a normal soup bowls worth. The soup is actually a change, my notmal lunch would be a massive massive salad with loads of compliant stuff on it, heaping off the plate so perhaps that is the difference. I don't feel hungry though!

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Have you been eating pre and post workout meals at all? If you add those in it may help stabilize your meals. Are there veggies in your breakfast? Breakfast is supposed to be to template like all other meals. Why are you just having the egg whites? The yolks have all the energizing properties and vitamins/minerals our bodies need. Are you weighing your meat? You should be using your palm as a guide if so, the idea with whole30 is to break away from all the "diet" standpoints and learn how much fuel you need with each meal. . Hopefully a moderator will chime in as well. 

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Thanks for replying!

 

Here's what I've eaten the last couple of days:

 

Day One

9am Breakfast - omelette (2 whole FR eggs, 1 extra egg white) cooked with 1/2 T olive oil

12pm Lunch - leftover coconut flour crusted chicken tenderloins (x3) with baby spinach and a carrot

4pm - ate 2 dates and 6-8 raw cashews as I felt lightheaded

6pm Dinner - slow roasted beef cheeks (200g) in beef broth with onions, carrots, couple of baby potatoes and spinach

Water - I don't write this down but water is all I drink and I'd average 6-8 glasses per day

8-10pm Exercise - 2hrs roller derby training

 

Day Two

10:30am Breakfast - Banana with almond butter and 2 egg white omelette with olive oil

12pm Lunch - grilled salmon fillet (150g) with carrot and an apple

5:30pm Dinner - roast chicken (2 drums) with veg stirfried in coconut oil

Water as above

9am Exercise - weights class at the gym

 

I've slept 7-8hrs each night. 

This food is pretty typical of what I've been eating throughout the Whole30.

 

I'm thinking I may just be fighting off a bug?

 

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer :)

 

Do you have a copy of the recommended meal template?  For best results, have each meal consist of 1-2 palms of protein, 1-3 cups of veggies and the appropriate amount of compliant fat.  Breakfast is missing vegetables: don't let fruit push veggies off your plate. And yes, eat the whole egg.  :) 

It looks like you're having meal 1s later than recommended. The recommendation is to eat meal 1 within 1 hour of waking, for proper hormonal balance throughout the day.   Since you're exercising 1st thing in the morning, have a pre WO fuel of protein and fat as recommended by the template.

 

You may need to increase the portion sizes at your meals. The idea is to have meals satiate you for 4-5 hours. If you're genuinely hungry in between meals, have a mini-meal that consists of protein, veg and fat. Nuts are a fat source on a Whole30.

Also, to further help with the energy, have at least one carb dense vegetable serving daily. Sweet potatoes, winter squash, carrots, beets, jicama, rutagbaba, parnsnips and plaintains are among your choices.

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I always love my food but the last few meals I haven't felt hungry, but conversely I am finding it hard to resist the urge to snack and have had a couple of handfuls of nuts that I shouldn't have had. I exercise most evenings through aerobic activity such as swimming, climbing or aerobics class. 

My food last few days:

 

- 7.30am breakfast: chicken, cherry tomatoes, chopped sweet potato and zuchinni stir-fried in lemon, chilli and coriander, followed by a chopped banana and some nuts and coconut.  (handful total) 

- 12.30pm lunch: butternut squash soup with four rashers of compliant bacon on top (made with coconut milk)

- 5.30pm preworkout: 2 slices thick compliant ham and some nuts

- 60 minutes Aerobics & HIIT class

- 7pm postworkout: 4 slices ham and some nuts (not allowed I know, but couldnt resist)

- 8pm dinner: Fajita chicken, onions and peppers (made from scratch), lettuce, homemade salsa, homemade guacamole, sweet potato wedges

- 7.30am breakfast: pork, grilled peach, poached egg and oven roasted veg, coffee with coconut milk

- 12.30pm lunch: butternut squash soup and some cooked chicken (made with coconut milk) but also had some nuts

- 6.00pm preworkout: 1/3rd can of tuna and some nuts

- 90 minutes climbing

- 8pm postworkout: 2/3rd can of tuna and half sweet potato

- 8pm dinner: stirfried chicken & bacon with ovenroasted veg and olives

Every day I have one or two coffees before midday, either served with coconut milk if using fat for meal or black, plus lots of water and herbal teas. 

I need my energy back... help!

Edit: My portions are normally a full plate, but not heaping. For Soup, just a normal soup bowls worth. The soup is actually a change, my notmal lunch would be a massive massive salad with loads of compliant stuff on it, heaping off the plate so perhaps that is the difference. I don't feel hungry though!

 

Bacon, while technically a protein, really isn't satiating.  It's closer to a fat.  Try swapping out the bacon at lunch for a lean protein like chicken breast or fish.

Pre workout: instead of ham, go for a leaner protein like chicken breast or fish.  Post workout, the recommendation is lean protein and carb, no fat.  Nuts are a fat source on a Whole30.  The tuna and sweet potato is a much better choice.

 

I would continue to play with your protein, veg and fat portions at your main meals until they satiate you for 4-5 hours.  Recommended portions are 1-2 palms of protein, 1-3 cups of veggies and the appropriate amount of compliant fat per the template.

 

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I've noticed that during this last week I haven't eaten a banana with breakfast (which I had done almost every morning since I started the Whole30). Have started eating them again and boom - mental clarity and physical energy have returned!

 

Isn't the effect of certain foods bizarre (and miraculous)!

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