Day 6: Haven't slept well since starting Whole30

[ad262]

Hello! I'm on day 6 of my whole30. So far everything is going well, not too many cravings or anything, though I also don't feel different at all in any way. The only thing different is that I can't sleep! I've had a lot of trouble with sleeping in the past, but had gotten it under control in the past year with CBD oil. Since starting whole30 I wake up several times throughout the night, go to the bathroom, have trouble falling back asleep, and have weird dreams. I'm still taking the CBD oil, it just doesn't seem to be impacting me anymore? Do I just need to wait this out or am I doing something wrong with my meals? Here are a few days examples:

Breakfast	Lunch	Snack	Dinner
2 Hard boiled eggs	Turkey Burger & Butternut Squash Curlies		Zucchini Noodles & Meat Sauce
2 Fried Eggs & Potatoes	Zucchini Noodles & Meat Sauce	2 clementines	Chicken sausage, brussel sprouts, and potato
2 Fried Eggs, Sweet Potatoes, Brussel Sprouts, Spinach Hash	Chicken sausage, brussel sprouts, and potato	2 clementines	Carrot spirals & Meat Sauce

Notes about the meals:

I also start the day with 2 cups of coffee with a little nutpod creamer in it. I don't eat within an hour of getting up, I like to just sit with my coffee for 1-2 hours before beginning to cook. I know I'm not supposed to have fruit as a pre-workout snack, but it's been the most convenient thing as I've been on the go. I'm looking for new, non-fruit options that I can eat in the car, that also aren't RX bars because I don't want to start depending on those. The thing I used to eat a lot of as a pre-workout snack in the car was pistachios, but I don't think that nuts alone as a pre-workout snack is recommended either? I don't eat that close to bedtime. I usually eat dinner around 7pm and go to bed at 10pm.

 

Not sleeping is super not fun, as I'm sure many of you can imagine. We also have two foster puppies right now who are keeping us on our toes the whole day and waking us up earlier than normal so I need to get the sleep in when I can.

[Stephanietrish]

Hey ! My hubby is sleeping well the last 2 night since we listen to the recommendation to eat MORE and have carbs with evening meal. 

 

You Definitly are not eating enough and your blood sugar is probably not stable.

Your breakfast need maybe one more egg with fat and vegetables and maybe a little biy of potato.

You need carbs every last meal of the day the size of your fist. 

 

You maybe need snacks like me but fruit alone is very wrong. 

The moderators suggested protein and fat or protein and veggies as a snack.

Tell me if it's better in about 3 days..

 

[ladyshanny]

10 hours ago, ad262 said:

Hello! I'm on day 6 of my whole30. So far everything is going well, not too many cravings or anything, though I also don't feel different at all in any way. The only thing different is that I can't sleep! I've had a lot of trouble with sleeping in the past, but had gotten it under control in the past year with CBD oil. Since starting whole30 I wake up several times throughout the night, go to the bathroom, have trouble falling back asleep, and have weird dreams. I'm still taking the CBD oil, it just doesn't seem to be impacting me anymore? Do I just need to wait this out or am I doing something wrong with my meals? Here are a few days examples:

Breakfast	Lunch	Snack	Dinner
2 Hard boiled eggs	Turkey Burger & Butternut Squash Curlies		Zucchini Noodles & Meat Sauce
2 Fried Eggs & Potatoes	Zucchini Noodles & Meat Sauce	2 clementines	Chicken sausage, brussel sprouts, and potato
2 Fried Eggs, Sweet Potatoes, Brussel Sprouts, Spinach Hash	Chicken sausage, brussel sprouts, and potato	2 clementines	Carrot spirals & Meat Sauce

Notes about the meals:

I also start the day with 2 cups of coffee with a little nutpod creamer in it. I don't eat within an hour of getting up, I like to just sit with my coffee for 1-2 hours before beginning to cook. I know I'm not supposed to have fruit as a pre-workout snack, but it's been the most convenient thing as I've been on the go. I'm looking for new, non-fruit options that I can eat in the car, that also aren't RX bars because I don't want to start depending on those. The thing I used to eat a lot of as a pre-workout snack in the car was pistachios, but I don't think that nuts alone as a pre-workout snack is recommended either? I don't eat that close to bedtime. I usually eat dinner around 7pm and go to bed at 10pm.

 

Not sleeping is super not fun, as I'm sure many of you can imagine. We also have two foster puppies right now who are keeping us on our toes the whole day and waking us up earlier than normal so I need to get the sleep in when I can.

Hi there,

As mentioned above, I will agree that you are not eating enough overall and especially your breakfast is lacking. Not eating within an hour of waking inhibits the hormonal adjustment that comes with eating this way so while you prefer to sip coffee first, it's not doing your sleep a service at the moment.

Each meal should include 1-2 palms of protein - when that is eggs, it should be as many as you can hold in your hand without dropping (3-4 is a good start). Include 3 cups of cooked veggie or equivalent. Try moving your starchy veggie to the evening meal and when you are including a starch, also include another 2+ cups of non starchy veggie. I also don't see any fat sources listed - include some plated fats with every meal. Check out the meal template in my signature below. 

Once you bump up your meals overall you shouldn't need to eat between them but if you do, that's fine - focus on protein + fat or protein + veggie.

[ladyshanny]

5 hours ago, Stephanietrish said:

Hey ! My hubby is sleeping well the last 2 night since we listen to the recommendation to eat MORE and have carbs with evening meal. 

 

I'm so glad to see that there's been some improvement!  

[ad262]

Thanks so much for the responses! I will try to move up my breakfast time but I don't know how I can eat more for breakfast. Aside from the first day I listed which is because I was running out the door, the other day my breakfasts stuff me full and is a full plate of food.

I do cook all my foods in olive oil. Not sure if that counts as the fats? I can work in ghee and avocado on the breakfasts probably. 

Are there other good starchy vegetables besides potatoes and sweet potatoes? I'm thinking about some of the dinners (spiralized veggies & meat sauce or chicken cauliflower fried rice and veggies) and how I would work in a starchy vegetable without it just being sort of random on the side. 

[Stephanietrish]

Cooking oil does not count. You have to ADD to your own plate the fats. Example: ghee on your sweet potato or olive oil. Avocado, olives, nuts and seeds, tahini, etc.

Carb ideas: read this: https://therealfoodrds.com/15-whole30-carb-sources/

[Jihanna]

11 hours ago, ad262 said:

Thanks so much for the responses! I will try to move up my breakfast time but I don't know how I can eat more for breakfast. Aside from the first day I listed which is because I was running out the door, the other day my breakfasts stuff me full and is a full plate of food.

I do cook all my foods in olive oil. Not sure if that counts as the fats? I can work in ghee and avocado on the breakfasts probably. 

Are there other good starchy vegetables besides potatoes and sweet potatoes? I'm thinking about some of the dinners (spiralized veggies & meat sauce or chicken cauliflower fried rice and veggies) and how I would work in a starchy vegetable without it just being sort of random on the side. 

When I first started Whole30, my morning looked a bit like this: wake at 5:30, drink coffee while preparing for day, get kids off to school, get home at 8:00(ish) and make breakfast... I was eating 2 eggs with maybe 1/2 cup veggies, and feeling like I could barely stuff it all in. Lunch would be around 11:30, because I honestly just couldn't make it until later most days, and my schedule is flexible enough during the day (usually) to allow me to grab lunch whenever I want.

Then I read an article about Whole30 and drinking coffee before breakfast (I can't seem to find it now, I apologize), which talked about it being an appetite-suppressant and that if you find it's causing you to lose appetite or not want to eat until hours later, it's worth making sure to eat before coffee instead.

I did that... and WOW, my appetite for breakfast soared -- I'd wake at 5:30 and start my coffee, then go cook breakfast while the coffee was brewing. Breakfast started looking more like 3-egg frittatas crammed full of veggies (and avocado wedges, yum!), or a big plate of leftovers from the previous night's dinner. Lunch time didn't change, really. So breakfast at 6, THEN have my coffee while I'm getting the kids out of bed, and lunch around 11:30 or noon.

I found that my early breakfasts woke me up more quickly (and fully) than coffee did... with coffee, I'd feel a little groggy until after the first cup, but with food it was like my whole body woke up right away... so that was an added bonus. I also allow myself a snack between lunch and dinner, if needed -- that typically looks like some kind of veggie salad with a boiled egg and some homemade coconut milk ranch.

For me, I found that having a bit of starch with breafkast helped me make it through the day more easily; starch at lunch, however, would send me into nap mode around 3pm. Dinner (generally at 6 in my house) has to include a fist-sized starch for me, or I won't sleep well. My starchy vegetables (sweet potatoes, potatoes, butternut and acorn squash, carrots, beets) are usually roasted and served on the side, because I prefer them that way... if I want noodles, I go for daikon radish or spaghetti squash. If you halve the squash for roasting (instead of cubing like I usually do) it makes a nice little bowl that you can put other food in, though, so that's also another option. This chili (https://www.wellplated.com/paleo-chili/) is also a great option if you want everything put in together in the dish instead of on the side (I make cauliflower rice on the side with ours, instead of putting cauliflower in the chili).

[ad262]

That is super helpful advice Jihanna! Thank you so much!