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Am I eating enough?


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Hey fellow Whole 30-ers!

I'm 12 days in to my first W30, and I'm starting to feel great. I have PCOS and I can already feel a difference in my body composition, energy levels and mental focus. Huzzah!

 

 

However, I just had a consultation with a personal trainer who suggested that I should be eating around 1800 kcal per day, and that currently I was undereating by a fair amount (I'm consuming around 1400kcal per day).

 

I NEVER track cals, and I know it's not in the spirit of the Whole 30, but it did get me thinking about how much I'm eating.

 

Today, for example, I've eaten: 

 

Breakfast:

3 x eggs, scrambled, cooked with 1/2tbsp coconut oil

Handful of baby carrots

Half a red pepper

Handful fresh cherries

Black coffee

 

Lunch:

1 small chicken breast with curry powder, turmeric & ginger cooked with 1/2 tbsp coconut oil

1 cup coconut cauliflower rice, made with onions, coconut milk (full fat) and coconut shavings

1/2 cup aubergine and tomato curry, made with 1 tbsp coconut oil and spices

1 cup watermelon

Black coffee

 

Dinner:

2 x organic, 100% pork sausages 

Kale salad, made with 1 tbsp oil, avocado, lemon juice and a handful of walnuts

Handful of cherries

Black coffee

 

 

I'm totally satisfied, and not at all hungry, but this dude mentioned that for the sake of my PCOS, I should probably aim to eat another 400 kcal per day. 

Help! Am I eating enough?

Thanks millions for wisdom

A x

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 I can already feel a difference in my body composition, energy levels and mental focus

...

 

I'm totally satisfied, and not at all hungry,

^^^this

 

Use your own personal non-scale victories and satiety as your guide.

What are you doing for exercise?  Depending on intensity, you could also add a pre and/or post workout meal.

Are you drinking enough water?  We recommend 1/2 an ounce of water per pound of body weight, daily.

 

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First, calories are not created equal so the calories that they are referring to are more than likely based in a diet that consists of things that come with an ingredient list or a nutrition panel.  Protein, veggies and fats are different. They are used properly and efficiently by the body and there is no number that we assign to that, it's personal based on each person's context.  The 1800 that the trainer got is based on people other than you and formulas that are created without taking into real account the fact that you are an individual human.

 

Also, needs fluctuate so you could find yourself hungrier in 3 days and eat twice this much and then it ramps down again. Humans aren't static and assigning a number to your intake mutes the message coming from your body.

 

As for your outline, overall you could do to add more fat. Cooking fat is often left behind so we recommend an additional source; ghee, mayo, avocado. Also, when salad is your veggie, either add a couple cups of cooked veggie or eat a trough full of the leafy stuff.

 

Make sure you are salting your food and that you are getting at least 1/2 ounce of water per pound of your bodyweight.  Beyond that, assess yourself for hunger between meals (should be able to go 4-5 hours), energy should be relatively consistent throughout the day, sleep should be alright, moods/emotions should be level. If any of these are off, you may need to eat more.

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You legends! Thanks both so much.

It weirded me out a bit because 400kcal extra seems a lot extra – but everything you've said makes sense.

Exercise-wise, I brisk walk 3 times a week, hike or kayak or bike once a week, and do a couple of sessions of yoga and resistance work, but I've been taking it SUPER easy since starting Whole 30 because I got migraines for the first week. Will deffo think about adding some pre workout meals when I ramp it up again, though. Thanks!

And I deffo drink plenty: around 3 litres a day! 

Good tip re: the fat – I'll start adding some avocado and mayo (hard life eh?) to my meals. 

But yeah, I mostly feel good – energy, mood, sleep. It's going well!

Thanks a millions guys, super appreciated
A x

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