Am I Eating Too Much?

[Hiker*Girl]

I don't know if I should post this in Meal Planning or in Troubleshooting....

 

My husband and I are on Day 21 of our first Whole30. We're liking the program a lot so far - enjoying cooking together and trying new recipes, no real cravings, sleeping better. However, I'm not necessarily feeling the "tiger blood" effect yet, and have had digestive issues all along (although this has somewhat improved by taking digestive enzymes and probiotics).

 

However, the last few days I've been very fatigued and emotional (depressed). Also, I'm concerned that I'm actually eating too much protein and/or fat (not worried about veggies). Here is what I've had for the last few days:

 

Yesterday:

 

Meal 1 (we have this every day):

 

Layered in a bowl - 

1 big handful of raw spinach

2 eggs fried in coconut oil

1/2 chicken apple sausage, sliced and sauteed in coconut oil along with julienned peppers

1/4 avocado

2-3 large spoonfuls of homemade "yum sauce" drizzled over the top, made from compliant mayo, peppers, cilantro, dates, spices

1-2 cups coffee w/coconut milk, cacao powder, and a little coconut oil

 

Meal 2:

1-2 cups spaghetti squash

1 link spicy chicken Italian sausage and a handful of mushrooms sauteed in coconut oil

3 large spoonfuls Whole30 pesto sauce

 

Meal 3:

4 oz grass-fed ground beef

1 cup steamed broccoli

1 cup roasted butternut squash

2-3 large spoonfuls of "yum sauce" (see above)

 

Tuesday:

 

Meal 1: same as above

 

Meal 2: 

Egg salad made from 2 hard boiled eggs, compliant mayo, compliant mustard, compliant dill pickles

Handful of baby carrots

 

Meal 3:

Shredded crockpot chicken made with compliant peperoncinos  

Mixed greens (spinach and baby lettuces)

4 cherry tomatoes

Compliant mango chili salsa

Guacamole

2-3 large spoonfuls of homemade avocado cilantro dressing

Cholula

 

Monday:

 

Meal 1: same as above

 

Meal 2:

Two big scoops of chicken salad made with compliant mayo, toasted pecans, juice sweetened cranberries and celery

Handful of baby carrots

 

Meal 3:

1-1/2 cups spaghetti squash

3 large spoonfuls complaint pesto (made with cashews)

Spicy Italian chicken sausage sauteed in coconut oil

 

Any insights or advice you can offer would be great. Thanks in advance!

 

[laura_juggles]

Honestly, you might not be eating enough. 

 

If eggs are the only source of protein, you should be eating as many as you can comfortably hold in your hand. For me, that's 4. For most women it's 3-4, so if you're eating 2 eggs as a protein, it's not enough. Everything looks a little light on the veggies too. Is a single sausage the size of your palm (length and thickness)? My hands say that a portion for me is two sausages. 

 

Your fats look okay, but everything else may need some bumping up. 

[SugarcubeOD]

I agree with Laura, some of your meals are pretty light and don't fit the template... have another look at it (linked in my sig below) and try and match your meals up.

I moved this to troubleshooting too so you can get more views...

 

Sorry, i just read back through more thoroughly and the reason you feel fatigued and depressed is likely because you are actually eating very little.

A handful of carrots is not 1-3 cups of vegetables... one chicken sausage is not enough protein, I don't know how 4oz of meat relates to your palm size and when you eat salad greens for your veg, you need more like 6-8 cups to get any substantial volume because it all breaks down to nothing when you chew it... 

 

Up the protein and drastically up your vegetables... the fats, I agree, look good.

[Hiker*Girl]

Wow, really? I can hardly finish my meals as is. I can't imagine adding more volume but I'll try.

 

For fats for one meal, you don't think sauteeing my food in coconut oil, adding coconut milk to my coffee, having 1/4-1/2 avocado, and 2-3 large spoonfuls of homemade oil- or mayo-based sauce/dressing is too much fat?

 

Thanks!

[SugarcubeOD]

Wow, really? I can hardly finish my meals as is. I can't imagine adding more volume but I'll try.

 

For fats for one meal, you don't think sauteeing my food in coconut oil, adding coconut milk to my coffee, having 1/4-1/2 avocado, and 2-3 large spoonfuls of homemade oil- or mayo-based sauce/dressing is too much fat?

 

Thanks!

Um... no, not really... fat is what keeps you full because it slows the absorption of the protein into your body... you may want to cut back a little but fat doesn't make you fat so it's fine, if that's what that meal is... the cooking fat doesn't really count because it mostly stays in the pan and the slosh of coconut milk in your coffee is negligible as well...

You feel that volume-wise 2 eggs in egg salad and a handful of carrots is too much that you can barely finish? It is possible that you are overdoing it a bit at breakfast that is keeping you full longer than necessary which makes lunch harder to eat... you want your meals to last you 4-5 hours... try taking out the avocado OR the sauce in breakfast and see if that helps make you hungrier for lunch but I can tell you right now that something is out of whack if you feel you can't stomach more than 2 eggs and some carrots for a meal...

[Hiker*Girl]

Hi @SugarCubeOD,

 

I probably should clarify that I had no problem finishing the egg salad meal. For that, I actually decided to eat a smaller lunch because I couldn't eat till 2pm due to a work meeting, and I knew I would be eating a larger dinner that night and wanted to be hungry for it. That's not my typical meal volume and was probably a bad example.

 

I do think that Meal 1 is rather large and keeps me full for a while, but I thought I read that breakfast is what "sets the tone" for the day and it's a good idea to have a hearty meal. I eat Meal 1 around 8:30-9:00am and am not hungry for lunch until about 1:00pm or so.

 

Here's a good example of another meal I've had twice for dinner:

 

1 large portion (bigger than a palm-sized, more like a full hand-sized) baked halibut which has been coated in a coconut milk/egg wash and crusted with crushed macadamia nuts & garlic

10-12 asparagus spears sauteed in olive oil

1/2 baked sweet potato

 

This meal was VERY filling and I really couldn't even finish it.

 

Thanks again for your advice and support.