Average time from you body to turn from carb burn to fat burn

[san628]

I was wondering if there is an average length of time for my body to make the switch from burning carbs and sugar to burning fat? Will I know when it happens? Will I have to stay strictly whole 30 compliants for extra days of could I add a few things in like a little dairy here and there? I m on day 19 and know it hasn't happened yet. Just trying to prepare for the not so distant future

[Snappy Shark]

Took me about 3-4 weeks.

[san628]

Wow! That's a long time...but then again if you are reversing years of bad patterns it's not that long. How did you know when it changed? Did you start losing rapidly? Did you feel better? Will I know? Did you stay whole 30 compliant longer? Sorrry for the questions but just don't want to be one of those people who experience lousy results. Maybe some of us have to go a little longer

[Susan W]

Wow! That's a long time...but then again if you are reversing years of bad patterns it's not that long. How did you know when it changed? Did you start losing rapidly? Did you feel better? Will I know? Did you stay whole 30 compliant longer? Sorrry for the questions but just don't want to be one of those people who experience lousy results. Maybe some of us have to go a little longer

You do know this is not about weight loss correct? It's a "get healthy" plan. Often people will lose weight, but that's not the primary purpose. Sometimes people don't lose weight, but they lose inches and clothing sizes and realize that the scale means nothing.

[san628]

Yes. I realize it's about getting healthy and having a healthy relationship with food. However, the book described me to a T.... So much that my trainer actually signed me up to the get the emails. I am a carb addict. I want to change that. I also am extremely overweight despite the fact that I exercise and have tried numerous times not to be. I want to feel energetic instead of lethargic. I am an older mom of an active 5 year old and want to be here for him and have the energy to keep up with him. So yes, I realize it's not about weight loss.

[Runningforme82]

The big clue for me was when I was able to go from breakfast to lunch to dinner without snacks in between. I used to have to eat every few hours, but I do not HAVE to anymore. There are many times when emotions get the best of me and "healthy" snacks make it into my mouth, but that is not a carb burner vs. fat burner issue

[Robin Strathdee]

Yep, that was my cue, too. I found that I wasn't thinking about food between meals and actually (not purposefully) skipped meals without noticing the "crash" feeling. I'm also able to "re-fuel" with small fat/protein snacks if I need to.

[san628]

I'm not hungry between meals at all. I have been eating three meals fine with no snacking and sometimes a small post workout snack as my workout is at night. I just don't feel like my body is using the fat storage as fuel yet because I still don't have a lot of energy and my workouts have actually declined instead of increased. Do some people just take longer? My husband is doing this with me and was a severe sugar addict. His diet consisted of sugary cereal, peanut butter and fluff sandwiches and various sugary snacks. I watched him detox the first week and now he seems to have more energy (though he wouldn't admit it) and you can visibly see his stomach has got a lot flatter and he seems happier.

[Snappy Shark]

Wow! That's a long time...but then again if you are reversing years of bad patterns it's not that long.

I guess that might seem like a long time, but I mean something very specific when I say that I fully transitioned to fat burning - during my Whole30 I experienced a perceptible shift in my body's ability to process fat and protein, after three weeks of slight, gradual improvements. I'm fairly athletic, and it wasn't until I was fully in fat-burning land that I noticed a marked improvement in my ability to run faster and lift heavy things better. In fact, I couldn't do any exercise at all for the first two weeks of the program, because my body had no idea how to fuel itself with what I was eating. About fifty days into clean eating, my stomach is flatter and I'm leaner, but to be honest, I probably gained a necessary couple of pounds during my Whole30 - I'd bet that I'm closer to my body's "set point" than I was when I started.

My habits prior to starting the Whole30 weren't "bad" in terms of eating processed foods (I was already eating 10+ servings of produce per day), but I definitely used my first few weeks to reform my seriously flawed relationship with food. If you're curious, you can read my whole story here: http://forum.whole9l...7368#entry27368

My point is, it's helpful to take on a "zen" approach during the thirty days, because it's so, so much more than inches, pounds and even energy. It's about reading your body's feedback to what you fuel it with. That eventually translates into better moods, improved PRs and faster sprints (which I suspect will be the norm when you're fully fat-adapted) but all of that takes time. When you're there, you will know. Try not to stress about how much time, and enjoy the ride and friggin delicious food as much as possible.

I'm glad you're enjoying how you're feeling - I bet that you're not going to want to go back to "dirty" eating by the time you reach Day 30 (I sure didn't)!