Sugars/Carbs

[40valves]

Earlier I asked about fats, today it's Carbs.

My carbs are coming up between 100 to 135 grams a day.

My sugars are sometimes below 40 and have been as high as 60.

Am I stalling progress or are these levels okay?

[ShannonM816]

Follow the meal template and don't worry about grams of anything.

For each meal, have 1-2 palm-sized portions of protein, the length, width, and height of your palm, or if eggs are your only protein, have as many whole eggs as you can hold in your hand -- probably 3-4. Have 1-2 thumb-sized portions of fat, or a heaping handful of olives or coconut flakes, or half to a whole avocado, or a small closed handful of nuts or seeds, or 1/4-1/2 a can of coconut milk. And then fill the plate with vegetables -- one cup is a bare minimum, aim for closer to three cups. Occasionally have some fruit, a serving size is about a fist-sized serving -- not more than twice a day, always with a meal. Additionally, most people feel best with about a fist-sized serving of starchy vegetable like potato, sweet potato, root vegetable, or winter squash each day, but some people, especially those who suffer anxiety or depression, who are very active, or women who are pregnant, nursing, or in the week or so leading up to their period need more than that.

Eat a variety of different vegetables, a mix of starchy and non starchy, in a variety of colors and textures. Quit even looking at macros, relax, follow the program for 30 days, and see what happens. You can drive yourself nuts if you pay too much attention to numbers, and there's no way to know the optimal numbers for any individual anyway, especially as there is no one optimal amount of food for one person -- if you are more stressed, get less sleep, are more active or less active than usual, for females, where they are in their cycle, if you're ill or recovering from an illness, all of those things affect how much food your body needs, making it impossible to pick a number or even a range of numbers that is optimal. That is the beauty of meal template, as long as you eat at least the minimum amount recommended each day, and then add more if you're hungry, you're good.

 

[Karen_Suep]

Shannon has made some good points. I want to encourage you by saying that whole 30 is a real food diet. Some real foods have more carbs than others. (Potatoes have more than carrots that have more than broccoli....) whole 30 is also about being sustainable in what you eat. You can eat a large variety of foods within the template and not be deprived of flavors or textures, and is much more sustainable than counting macros and calories. 

[laura_juggles]

You might be stalling progress by stressing yourself out over grams of this or that. Stress will mess your system up *hard*. 

Follow the template. 

Enjoy your meals. 

Try to stop worrying about grams of whatever.