Advice Wanted

[Taylor Clarke]

I am on day 28 of the Whole30 and I need advice.

Why do I still feel low energy and tired, even when I sleep 8-10 hours? I am so craving feeling rested and full of energy when I wake up in the morning and to have it last throughout the entire day.

I am feeling super discouraged about this and would love any insight. 

[ShannonM816]

It's hard to say without some more details. Can you list a couple of days' worth of meals, including approximate portion sizes as they relate to the meal template?

Common issues that could cause this include either not eating enough in general, or not eating enough fat; not drinking enough water -- aim for 1/2 oz per pound of body weight, so a 120-lb person should drink at least 60 oz a day; and not salting your food. 

[Taylor Clarke]

For breakfast everyday I eat three scrambled eggs with 1/2 cooked sweet potato, coffee with coconut milk, and usually 1/2 cup or so of berries. 

For lunch, I might eat some soup that I made (chili or white chicken chili) with celery and an apple.

For dinner, I usually have some sort of meat along with some sort of veggie, for example a chicken breast with brussels sprouts, onions, and tomatoes. 

[ShannonM816]

Are you adding fats to your meal? Often, the fat you cook in stays in the pan and isn't consumed, so you'd want to add another serving or two in addition to that.

I don't know how much coconut milk you're adding to your coffee, but a serving size of full fat coconut milk from a can would be 1/4 to 1/2 a can, so 4-7 oz. If you're using coconut milk from a carton, sometimes those have less fat than the canned stuff. If you're not having that much coconut milk, you could put some ghee or coconut oil on your sweet potato, or have half an avocado or a big handful of olives.

You don't list any added fat with your other two meals, so again, even if you cooked your food in some oil, you can add another serving.

Also, remember that the guideline on vegetables is to fill the plate with them -- it's hard to tell how much you're having from what you're listing here, but be sure you're having lots of vegetables.