Nausea after workouts

[Moiraelaine]

Every time I have worked out since I started (I am on day 6) I have gotten severely nauseous afterwards. I don't work out every day, and days I haven't worked out it hasn't been an issue. Today I tried a snack before and after as recommended in the books but it didn't make a difference. Does anyone have any advice?

[ShannonM816]

Are you drinking enough water? Salting your food? Are you working out harder than normal, or out in the heat?

 

Can you list a typical day of food, including approximate portion sizes, amount of water, what you ate pre- and post-workout -- maybe something will stand out to someone.

[Moiraelaine]

Yesterday I had a banana, blueberries almonds and almond butter (the first day I haven't had eggs at breakfast) then fajita chicken and steak with bell peppers and guacamole for lunch, and some shrimp and guacamole before the workout. I tried to eat some more shrimp and some sweet potato after the workout but I couldn't really stomach it. And then I was so nauseous I couldn't eat dinner. I did manage some dried plantain chips and a Larabar though. Usually I have something like chicken and vegetables for dinner. And I don't add extra salt to my food and drink about a gallon of water a day. Sometimes more sometimes less. Yesterday was almost exactly a gallon.

[Tom Denham]

You may be extra tired as your body struggles to give up sugar and learns to burn fat efficiently. That could explain you feeling nauseous when you workout, but not at other times. The working out part may push you over the edge. You may need to give up your usual workout routine for a few weeks and do less strenuous things like yoga or walking for exercise. 

 

The way you are eating is falling short of what we recommend during a Whole30. Fruit and nuts is not a real breakfast. You don't have to eat eggs, but you need animal protein and veggies. Eating plantain chips and a Larabar for dinner leaves you undernourished. No commercial chips are allowed during a Whole30, by the way. By eating lots of fruit, chips, and Larabars you give your body a lot of sugar and delay it learning to burn fat efficiently. 

 

When you are not eating ordinary, packaged, fast-food, etc, you need to add salt generously when you cook because our bodies need salt.

[Moiraelaine]

That's unusual for what I have been eating though. I only ate that little because of the nausea, as I said. For example, the night before I had a pork chop recipe from the Whole30 book. The reason I only had fruit yesterday morning was because of limited time and that was better than not eating anything at all. And I did not have commercially prepared chips. They are dried plantains. That is the only ingredient. I simply said chips to describe the shape of the slices. They aren't labeled as such and are not cooked in that way.

[ShannonM816]

Definitely salt your food, either while cooking it or as you eat it, whichever tastes better to you. Also, the recommendation for water is 1/2 oz per pound of body weight -- a gallon is spot on if you weigh 256 lbs, but if you weigh less than that, coupled with not salting your food, you could be having too much water. Yes, this is possible, and it messes up the sodium balance in your body, and one symptom of it is nausea. Now, if you weigh close to that, or are out in the heat and prone to dehydration regularly, maybe that amount of water is spot on, but even then, salting your food is actually important. We need some salt. People eating a lot of packaged foods or eating at restaurants, especially fast food restaurants, a lot can get too much salt, but when you're cooking whole foods, they don't have much salt to them, so you do need to add some.

[Moiraelaine]

Okay. I will try salting foods and maybe cut down on the water. I bought some compliant sausage for breakfast today so I won't be lacking that protein. I am struggling going from no breakfast to a full breakfast. And my perpetual lateness left me with a limited breakfast