Day 22 - no real change in body shape / weight (it seems) yet

[stefmbrown]

So I'm starting day 22 and feeling pretty good.  On the plus side - sleeping soundly and more (dreaming each night and remembering them) and not waking up at 3 or 4 am like I often did before, plus I feel more consistent and stable in terms of energy, focus, productivity, and emotions.  Not having the caffeine / sugar spikes and crashes (I'm off caffeine for the most part - Diet Coke was my source so that's obviously gone and I don't like coffee, occasionally have a caffeinated tea but maybe once a week).  I haven't really felt that "tiger blood" I've been reading about, but I'm ok with that.  

 

I've cooked more in the last 22 days than in the last 2 years and have learned it's actually fun at times, and definitely feel a sense of accomplishment at what I've learned.  I can actually feed myself and don't have to rely on packaged stuff or restaurants / take-out.  Joined a CSA recently too - so will be able to experiment with new veggies.  And I've survived several social situations surrounded by people eating and drinking while I "enjoyed" my sparkling water and then went home for dinner (or brought dinner to work before the function).

On the negative side, my face is still breaking out quite a bit which I hoped would be clearing up by now.  And I don't feel like my weight has decreased, at least not from what I can tell about how my clothes fit (the scale is still tucked away!).  I'm going to push on of course and hope that I'm just a "late bloomer" as mentioned in the book and some of the daily emails, but I will admittedly be a bit disappointed if after 30 days I haven't lost any weight.  I can't really even think how that's possible given drinking calories alone!

 

I cook a lot of the recipes found online as recommended by the daily emails as well as starting into Well Fed 2.  Breakfast is typically a quiche with some protein, veggies and eggs (so I can make it ahead and just re-heat before work).  Lunch could be left over chicken chili which has a bunch of veggies and some guacamole, or brussel / kale salad with a protein (baked chicken or tuna), etc....  Dinner is similar to lunch in terms of what I've made over the weekend and have as left-overs.  One thing I do find is that if I eat lunch at 12, I'm hungry again between 4-5 so I have been eating a "snack" - often celery and/or an apple with almond butter, sometimes hard-boiled eggs, and typically a handful of cashews.

 

I also have not been working out - I know, I know....  Although I did get back to the gym yesterday and it's my goal to incorporate it back into my life 3-4 times a week now that I feel like I have the cooking and food part down a bit more.

 

In addition to getting more exercise, I'm also going to try and get rid of the end of work day snack unless I'm heading somewhere after work that will make me eat dinner later - I think it's becoming more of a habit and I'm sure I can wait until I get home to eat dinner.  And reduce nuts and nut butters (which I read in other posts may be part of my break-out issue) and see how that goes.

 

That being said, are there any thoughts out there about things that may be keeping my body from being more in line with what others have experienced?  

[Carlaccini]

Okay - first of all stop beating yourself up with regards to the not working out.  Really.  Yes exercise is important - I will not deny that - but what I suggest yourself to do is quit stressing over it.

 

Also please consider that you are more than a number on a scale.  You are gaining valuable information on what your body needs vs what you want it to do. Let's face it.  Sometimes our bodies will not do what we want it to do.  We have to help it along.  You are indeed helping it.

 

Yes I agree with you to think about eliminating nuts, and nut butters. I would do this first.

 

 Some other foods that may affect you are eggs and nightshades (tomatoes, peppers, eggplant. potatoes)  If you are eating too many nightshades it might be giving you some skin issues.  You might see a vast improvement just by cutting back on these foods - not out and out eliminating them.

[Tom Denham]

Your body has its own schedule based upon hormonal rhythms. Some people develop a good rhythm quickly and some take 4-8 weeks of doing everything right before their metabolism speeds up and their hormones start supporting weight loss. When that happens, weight starts to shift. Until that happens, sometimes you just march in place. The sad thing is that many people try to force the issue when they don't see results. They do things like reduce the amount of food they eat or increase the exercise they do significantly. Unfortunately, these adjustments can delay changes to the metabolism and hormonal rhythms. I am not suggesting you not exercise, but it is important that you begin with a modest volume of work and not try to jump start change by pushing too hard. 

[stefmbrown]

Thanks for the thoughts Carlaccini and Tom - yes I know that I've learned a lot during these 22 days (soon to be 30!) that will make me healthier overall in the long run.  So if I'm just marching in place for now while my body, metabolism and hormones catch up, then so be it!  And I'm definitely not going to go overboard on exercise, but I also hate paying for a gym that goes unused, and it was definitely time to get back to it to help supplement the healthy food choices.  Thanks again for the reassurance I'm moving in the right direction!

[LadyM]

You have a great attitude, Stef. I'm so glad you can see all the amazing positive shifts you've experienced even if your body hasn't shrunk (yet) in the ways you'd like. Hang on to that awareness and remember all those results.

 

The body has its own wisdom and priorities with healing. Trust that. And trust the program. And continue to tweak as needed. By that I mean yes, cut back on nuts and nut butters and when you're hungry between meals, eat a proper template mini meal, and work on figuring out how to tweak your previous meal (more food? more fat? more protein? more veg? add starchy veg?) so you can comfortably last until your next meal.

 

Instead of fretting about "working out," why not just start walking more? It is the perfect movement for our bodies.

 

And remember: it's a Whole30, not a Whole22. You have more than a week left. Who knows what you'll experience in the next 8 days?! And maybe you'll choose to continue after that. I've extended every one of my official Whole 30s because I was feeling so good at the end I didn't care to reintro anything until later. Plus, I wanted to keep discovering the benefits of sticking with it longer.