Expectations

[LuSea]

Hi,

I'm just finishing week 1 and had a totally Whole30 week, food wise. No cheats. I'd say my energy was low and brain foggy, and my appetite has actually declined throughout the week. I used to snack a lot at work and toward the end of this week I was barely hungry for lunch. Today I only ate a late brunch and dinner.  I didn't work out as much as I usually do but reading in "It Starts with Food" that over training adds stress and systemic inflammation. I have not had the motivation to "dig deep" and push myself to go tot the gym. My clothes fit the same, I have not weighed myself or taken measurements but it's safe assume I have not lost weight. Is this right for the end of the first week? What are realistic expectations? 

Thank you!

LUcy

[ShannonM816]

The timeline gives a somewhat humorous look at some of the things people experience throughout their 30 days.

Some tiredness is pretty common in the first week, but under eating will definitely cause that to be worse. If you want to know if you're on the right track, food-wise, feel free to post a day or two of typical meals, including approximate portion sizes as they relate to the meal template, and also how much water you're drinking (aim for 1/2 oz per pound of body weight, so a 120-lb person needs at least 60 oz).  Another thing that can cause the tiredness/brain fog is a lack of salt, so do be sure you're salting your food -- not dumping salt in it, but salting it enough that it tastes good to you.

Do eat. Three meals a day, plus pre- and post-workout if you do start working out. It's pretty common at different points in a Whole30 to not really want to eat, sometimes that's food boredom, sometimes it's not feeling hungry. Whatever it is, continuing to not eat will actually make it worse and make you continue to not want to eat.

Try to eat your first meal within an hour of getting up in the morning. If you aren't feeling hungry then, plate up a meal, eat as much of it as you can, eating around the plate so you get some protein, some fat, and some vegetables, and set it aside when you feel like you can't eat anymore. Then, as soon as you feel like you can eat some more, go back to it. If you do this, you should find that you're able to eat more of it initially and are leaving less for later. This article explains some about why we recommend eating breakfast so strongly. For later meals, if you tend to forget to eat, set a timer for 4-5 hours and stop and eat. You may notice that your hunger signals are not exactly the same with Whole30 as you may be used to, and that can make it harder at first to realize when you're really hungry.

 

 

[habanero]

3 hours ago, ShannonM816 said:

The timeline gives a somewhat humorous look at some of the things people experience throughout their 30 days.

Some tiredness is pretty common in the first week, but under eating will definitely cause that to be worse. If you want to know if you're on the right track, food-wise, feel free to post a day or two of typical meals, including approximate portion sizes as they relate to the meal template, and also how much water you're drinking (aim for 1/2 oz per pound of body weight, so a 120-lb person needs at least 60 oz).  Another thing that can cause the tiredness/brain fog is a lack of salt, so do be sure you're salting your food -- not dumping salt in it, but salting it enough that it tastes good to you.

Do eat. Three meals a day, plus pre- and post-workout if you do start working out. It's pretty common at different points in a Whole30 to not really want to eat, sometimes that's food boredom, sometimes it's not feeling hungry. Whatever it is, continuing to not eat will actually make it worse and make you continue to not want to eat.

Try to eat your first meal within an hour of getting up in the morning. If you aren't feeling hungry then, plate up a meal, eat as much of it as you can, eating around the plate so you get some protein, some fat, and some vegetables, and set it aside when you feel like you can't eat anymore. Then, as soon as you feel like you can eat some more, go back to it. If you do this, you should find that you're able to eat more of it initially and are leaving less for later. This article explains some about why we recommend eating breakfast so strongly. For later meals, if you tend to forget to eat, set a timer for 4-5 hours and stop and eat. You may notice that your hunger signals are not exactly the same with Whole30 as you may be used to, and that can make it harder at first to realize when you're really hungry.

 

 

I'm at the halfway mark (yeah!) and this is a good reminder.  Thank you.  I have been struggling to eat first thing in the morning.  Plating it up is a good strategy.