No weight loss

[Maria17]

Over the last 5 years I've done 5 whole30's, having done the last two in the last 4 months. I usually do them after New Years to get back on track with my eating after the holidays. I am an active person, working out 4-5 days a week. 

I completed a whole30 in September and another one in February. I followed it just as I have every other time, exercised consistently at least 5 days a week and did not lose a pound. I know the point of whole30 isn't to lose weight. However after the summer I found myself 10 pounds over weight and was hoping one of the positive results of these whole30's would be to shed some of that body fat. Each time I found none of my clothes getting loser or any other signs of fat loss. After each round I have weighed myself and found not a single pound lost.   In between the two whole 30s I continued to eat Paleo about 90% of the time. 

Its getting quite frustrating! I don't  know what I'm doing wrong here! 

[SugarcubeOD]

Maybe your body doesn't think you have 10 pounds of fat to lose... 

Are you hacking the program and undereating in an effort to reduce your intake and lose weight?  That never works... 

[Maria17]

I definitely have excess fat to lose, especially around my midsection. None of my jeans that I own fit anymore and I feel uncomfortable. 

I am not trying to hack the program to lose weight. Like I said, weight loss wasn't my main reason for doing a whole30. My main reasons were to get back on a healthy track and for more energy. I very much stick to the rules and recommendations. 

Here's an average day. 

1/2 of an approved Lara bar at 5am before a workout (either 3 mile run or 30 min strength training)

breakfast/post workout meal: 3eggs scrambled with handful of spinach and half an orange

lunch @ 11:30: chicken breast, big spinach salad with carrots and peppers and approved homemade salad dressing, half an orange

3pm: banana with almond butter

6:30 dinner: some kind of meat, usually chicken with a bunch of roasted vegetables like broccoli, peppers and Brussel sprouts, with roasted yams and usually an apple. 

I drink a cup of green tea and only water for the rest of the day. 

Am I doing something wrong with my food?

[Maria17]

Maybe I'm eating too big of a serving of startches with my dinner? 

[DansiA]

Thank you so much for sharing! I've been searching for something like this, because I'm going through the same thing, but was almost afraid to post something for fear of all the "thats not what the Whole30 is about!!!" backlash. And let me say this -- I would finish my Whole30 if I didn't lose a pound. Of course its more than just a fad diet or anything like that for me. But my first round of the Whole30, I lost a good amount of weight. This is my third attempt (I didn't finish last time), and I don't feel like I've lost any weight around my midsection either. Again, its not about the weight really, I'm just wondering WHY...? There are some factors that I think I'm going to try, such as asking myself if I'm really hungry? Often times I'll eat a little more thinking that I need to fuel or make up for my workout. I know the book says to eat right after a WO, but maybe I'm eating too much? Or eating things that aren't going to supplement my workout? For example, I won't eat fruit after a work out -- my body needs protein, not sugar and starch. I'll save that for a mid-afternoon snack if I need a boost to get me through the rest of my day. I don't think you're eating too much starch with dinner (also, I'm not a nutritionist or anything so please take this with a grain of salt)...but maybe you're eating a little too much fruit? I know for me, the sugar and carbs from fruit really affect me. That being said, I ate a bunch of fruit my first go around and still lost that weight/fat. 

And a light bulb just went off. Maybe our bodies are getting used to eating right, so the weight loss won't be as drastic! Eureka! So maybe up your workouts? Do a little more cardio? I think that's what I'm going to do. 

 

Please let me know what you end up doing differently and how that works for you!!!

 

PS. Sorry for rambling.

[slc_melissa]

I am not trying to be deliberately unhelpful here and you already mentioned , but the whole30 is not a weight loss diet.

How is your sleep? Stress? Any hormonal/medical conditions?

Are you adding any fats to meals? You don't list any.

Lara bars, while technically compliant for some of the flavors, are not recommended except for emergencies. I'd try to swap out the Lara bar for something like hardboiled eggs. I'd actually add or move some starches to your breakfast/post workout meal to help with recovery. Breakfast seems to be lacking veggies, as spinach cooks down to almost nothing.

You could try cutting the fruit and nut butters.

If your main goal is energy, how is that feeling?

[Maria17]

I also hesitated for fear of the "not about weight loss" backlash. I love everything about this program. It makes me feel amazing but wondering WHY also. I'm 15lbs heavier now than I was after my first whole30 2 years ago. I feel like I'm eating the same but am actually working out more than my first whole30 (not excessively)  So WHY?! Lol! 

[Maria17]

Yes, maybe I should cut out some fruit.

[DansiA]

Let me know how that goes! I'm going to try to do the same, and limit my snacking (its hard for me, I'm a server and an EMT and "real, sit down meals" are not a thing).

[SugarcubeOD]

39 minutes ago, Maria17 said:

I definitely have excess fat to lose, especially around my midsection. None of my jeans that I own fit anymore and I feel uncomfortable. 

I am not trying to hack the program to lose weight. Like I said, weight loss wasn't my main reason for doing a whole30. My main reasons were to get back on a healthy track and for more energy. I very much stick to the rules and recommendations. 

Here's an average day. 

1/2 of an approved Lara bar at 5am before a workout (either 3 mile run or 30 min strength training)

breakfast/post workout meal: 3eggs scrambled with handful of spinach and half an orange

lunch @ 11:30: chicken breast, big spinach salad with carrots and peppers and approved homemade salad dressing, half an orange

3pm: banana with almond butter

6:30 dinner: some kind of meat, usually chicken with a bunch of roasted vegetables like broccoli, peppers and Brussel sprouts, with roasted yams and usually an apple. 

I drink a cup of green tea and only water for the rest of the day. 

Am I doing something wrong with my food?

You may not intentionally be trying to hack the program but you're not really eating enough and your meal compositions could use some work... 

Pre-workout is recommended to be fat and protein.  Having anything with sugar is going to give your body an easy fuel source and it won't learn to burn fat.

Post workout is recommended to be protein and ideally starchy carb.  Something like a few bites of chicken and sweet potato on the way home from the gym/before your shower.

Then, for breakfast, we want you to have protien, fat and veggies.  A handful of spinach is nothing when cooked down, so you're missing veggies and I see no added fat to your meal.  Don't let fruit replace vegetables so maybe leave the orange off and fill that plate with veggies.

Lunch looks okay, but because you're having to have a snack in the mid afternoon, that tells me that you're not eating enough.  If you do need to eat between meals, make it protein and fat and ideally veggies... basically a mini version of a template meal.  Fruit, nuts, nut butters on their own are doing you no favors.

Your dinner has no added fat.

For water, are you drinking 1/2oz per pound of body weight?

[Maria17]

Hmm, does cooking your eggs in avocado oil count as fat? I guess I probably am lacking fats in breakfast and lunch. I was wondering about the half Lara bar in the am. I will change that out for a hard boiled egg. Should I cut back my three eggs to two then after my workout? 

I'll try cutting out the nut butter and fruit too. 

My sleep is good...I sleep around 7 hours a night. Stress isn't great...just went back to teaching full time so it's been busy fitting everything in with my two little ones at home. My energy has been pretty good. Everything else has been pretty good...I do feel great! I totally get it that whole30 isn't for weight loss...I'll be the first to remind my friends about that point. I do it for the energy, mind clarity and general great feeling. However having just done two and being heavier than I have ever been (including right after giving birth to both of my children) it definitely strikes me as odd and leaves me wondering what I'm doing wrong. 

[slc_melissa]

It could also be something like other foods that have an inflammatory response for you that are technically whole 30 compliant. Eggs/nuts, FODMAPS, nightshades, etc. However, I would guess you are under eating, particularly fat, if you need snacks, although the lunch to dinner time gap is fairly large.  (Other recommendation: make snacks mini-meals instead of just nuts and fruit. Meatballs+ avocado+carrots.)

Also, at least from me and I feel like many people here, it's not a backlash with that negative connotation. We want people seeking information to have correct and consistent information. It's nothing personal. You are (presumably) an adult who can do whatever you want, but if a brand new to the whole 30 person stumbles across this thread, I want them to know the full story straight out.

[DansiA]

13 minutes ago, slc_melissa said:

I am not trying to be deliberately unhelpful here and you already mentioned , but the whole30 is not a weight loss diet.

How is your sleep? Stress? Any hormonal/medical conditions?

Are you adding any fats to meals? You don't list any.

Lara bars, while technically compliant for some of the flavors, are not recommended except for emergencies. I'd try to swap out the Lara bar for something like hardboiled eggs. I'd actually add or move some starches to your breakfast/post workout meal to help with recovery. Breakfast seems to be lacking veggies, as spinach cooks down to almost nothing.

You could try cutting the fruit and nut butters.

If your main goal is energy, how is that feeling?

I'm going to go ahead and jump into this conversation since I'd like some feedback too. Hope thats okay! My sleep is good, but my energy isn't great. Kinda crappy, actually -- I usually have to take a nap. I've also been SUPER moody...and I'm 2 weeks in! I don't know, I feel like my progress before (in all areas - energy, mood, weight) was better. But I don't remember when exactly I started looking and feeling better the last time.  My day looks like:

 Breakfast: compliant chicken sausage (one or two links), 2 or 3 eggs, and half a sweet potato (sometimes I don't eat the potato). Coffee with almond milk.

Lunch: salad with protein, nuts, tessamae's creamy ranch, OR chia seed pudding (lots of fat: coconut milk, coconut flakes, almonds, chia seeds, berries)

Dinner: protein with lots of veggies and a potato with ghee. 

Snack: at some point during the day, an apple with almond butter, maybe a little more chia seed pudding, maybe some fruit (not all at once, those are my snack options). Or roasted nuts. 

 

Any feedback is much appreciated. Again, thanks for letting me sniper share and crash this convo  

[Maria17]

6 minutes ago, SugarcubeOD said:

You may not intentionally be trying to hack the program but you're not really eating enough and your meal compositions could use some work... 

Pre-workout is recommended to be fat and protein.  Having anything with sugar is going to give your body an easy fuel source and it won't learn to burn fat.

Post workout is recommended to be protein and ideally starchy carb.  Something like a few bites of chicken and sweet potato on the way home from the gym/before your shower.

Then, for breakfast, we want you to have protien, fat and veggies.  A handful of spinach is nothing when cooked down, so you're missing veggies and I see no added fat to your meal.  Don't let fruit replace vegetables so maybe leave the orange off and fill that plate with veggies.

Lunch looks okay, but because you're having to have a snack in the mid afternoon, that tells me that you're not eating enough.  If you do need to eat between meals, make it protein and fat and ideally veggies... basically a mini version of a template meal.  Fruit, nuts, nut butters on their own are doing you no favors.

Your dinner has no added fat.

For water, are you drinking 1/2oz per pound of body weight?

Wow, I had no idea spinach cooks down to nothing! I've been thinking I'm doing so good having so much spinach with my eggs...if I have a hardboiled egg for my preworkout should I only have 2 after my workout? I've always wondered if I'm eating too much eggs. Thank you for the tips! I'm doing starting another whole30 April 3 and will take all of this with me:)

[Maria17]

6 minutes ago, slc_melissa said:

It could also be something like other foods that have an inflammatory response for you that are technically whole 30 compliant. Eggs/nuts, FODMAPS, nightshades, etc. However, I would guess you are under eating, particularly fat, if you need snacks, although the lunch to dinner time gap is fairly large.  (Other recommendation: make snacks mini-meals instead of just nuts and fruit. Meatballs+ avocado+carrots.)

Also, at least from me and I feel like many people here, it's not a backlash with that negative connotation. We want people seeking information to have correct and consistent information. It's nothing personal. You are (presumably) an adult who can do whatever you want, but if a brand new to the whole 30 person stumbles across this thread, I want them to know the full story straight out.

For sure!! I think I need some FATS! Lol...apparently I now see I am not eating any. Was thinking what I'm frying my eggs/food in counted. Feeling kind of stupid about that :-/

[slc_melissa]

Still eat a full template breakfast (don't skimp on eggs! Or add another protein source!). Pre and post workout stuff are separate from the three template meals.

[Maria17]

Just now, slc_melissa said:

Still eat a full template breakfast (don't skimp on eggs! Or add another protein source!). Pre and post workout stuff are separate from the three template meals.

Sounds good...I'll keep my 3 eggs after:) thanks. 

[slc_melissa]

And try not to feel stupid! There are a lot of factors going into a finely tuned human machine, you are building your toolbox!

[Maria17]

So FAT in, larabars and snacking with almond butter out! Thanks everyone for your help! 

[SugarcubeOD]

Gosh, you guys are so fast!  @slc_melissa gave the right advice about keeping the full breakfast in addition to the pre workout.

Glad you're so open to feedback @Maria17.  We want you to get the best out of the program and even if these tweaks don't cause you to lose weight, they will very likely improve all your non scale victories so far and probably find you some new ones!

@DansiA - I had a look at your meals... you too need to go back to the meal template and make your meals match.  You have no veggies in some of your breakfasts... altho along with a fist sized serving of starchy carb, you need to be filling your plate with non starchy veggies.

Your lunch is hard to tell portion sizes in your salad lunches, but that chia pudding has to go.  That is not a lunch... there's no protein, enormous amounts of fat and fruit and no vegetables. That chia seed pudding is not recommeded for a successful Whole30.

Your dinner is hard to tell portions from as well but the fact that you feel the need to snack tells me you're not eating enough.

Leave the fruit, nuts, nut butters, puddings etc... and make three meals a day matching the template.

[Maria17]

So I've been going over what kind of fats I can add to my meals... a few questions.

 The salad dressing I use is made up of half vinegar and half avocado oil,  including of course some spices . If I'm using that in my salad every day for lunch do I still need to add an extra fat? 

 Can I add some seeds for my fat? Such as almonds or pinenuts in my salad? 

 If I add avocado to my breakfast, how much do I need to add? I have read a few places that people recommend half an avocado? That seems like a lot. I don't love avocados so that might be a struggle. 

 I'm having a hard time thinking up other that sources. I don't like creamy stuff like mayo. 

Thanks!

[jmcbn]

3 hours ago, Maria17 said:

So I've been going over what kind of fats I can add to my meals... a few questions.

 The salad dressing I use is made up of half vinegar and half avocado oil,  including of course some spices . If I'm using that in my salad every day for lunch do I still need to add an extra fat? If I have a dressing on a salad I'll often include some avocado or olives in the salad too - solid fats are more satiating IME/IMO than liquids

 Can I add some seeds for my fat? Such as almonds or pinenuts in my salad? Yes, but remember that nuts & seeds have high proportions of inflammatory omega 6 fatty acids and so the recommendation is to limit them to a closed handful every other day, max - so if you were adding nuts AND seeds that would be a HALF of a closed handful of each.

 If I add avocado to my breakfast, how much do I need to add? I have read a few places that people recommend half an avocado? That seems like a lot. I don't love avocados so that might be a struggle. A half of an average size avocado would be a serving. If you're not keen on avocado don't eat it, or it less of it along with some other kind of fat.

 I'm having a hard time thinking up other that sources. I don't like creamy stuff like mayo. 

Thanks!

See above for my responses to your queries. With regards to other fat sources how about olives & olive oil, coconut flesh/milk/oil, dressings made with your choice of oil & ACV, clarified butter/ghee, rendered animal fats, compliant bacon, fatty cuts of meat like ribs or brisket, chicken wings or thighs with the skins on...

[Maria17]

Thank you!