Multiple fats, carbs, etc in a meal, Snacking

[Genesis78#]

Hi Community,

I'm on day 4 of the Whole30.  It's been ok.  I'm definitely tired, but I was tired before because of the sugar spike and drops for my previous carb and sugar heavy diet.  Based on the my co-worker's experiences, the book, and looking at some of the comments of the forum this is to be expected.

I'm a big grazer so I'm stuggling with trying not to snack and failing miserably.  Also I had the vertical sleeve about 6 1/2 years ago.  I still have great restriction so I struggle with trying to get a sizable amount of fat, carb, and protein at every meal.  But I figured, it's better to eat smaller portions of each so that I have a fat, carb, and protein at each meal that not to have one of these macro nutrients at every meal.  But because I'm not able to each much at 1 time, I'm finding I'm hungry again within in 1-2 hours of eating.  Again I don't know if this is my bad habit I've developed with snacking and grazing all day through the years or if I'm really just hungry because I can't consume enough nutrients at any given meal.  I also need clarification on the following:

1) I have been snacking on Whole30 approved foods.  Today I grazed more than I did in the first 3 days which concerns me.  But I haven't made it through a day yet without snacking.  Any ideas?

2)  If you need an emergency snack on the run, do nut butter on the go pack count as just a fat or is it complete mini meal in that it contains fat, carb, and protein?  I think I read somewhere that if you do snack try and make sure you have representation of at least 2 of the macro groups.  Just wondering if I would need to eat something else in addition to nut butter packet.

3) If I'm eating say a green salad with  Whole30 approved Prime Kitchen Avocado ranch dressing, half an avocado, and a protein cooked in olive oil for a meal, does that mean I can't have the avocado as my fat for the meal if I cooked my protein in olive oil?  Does the salad dressing also count as a fat?  Just tyring to figure out if I should be counting condiments as a fat too?

4) One day I had 1 egg cooked with maybe 1/2 tablespoon of ghee (spinach, onions, sun-dried tomatoes, and nut cheese), 1/2 avocado, 2 pieces of bacon, and maybe 3 ounces of almond milk.  Again with my restriction from the surgery, this was alot for me to eat.  And really, I shouldn't drink and eat at the same time since this can reduce restriction and stretch your stomach which can allow you to eat more over time,  limit the nutrition you can get in during a meal, and promote grazing following weight loss surgery. 

Does the almond milk count as a fat or is that simply considered my compliant beverage of choice?  The ghee and the avocado are both considered fats on the plan. Can you eat multiple fats in a meal?  Or is it ok to have them both in a meal as long as I don't exceed the total recommended amount of fat portions per meal.  Since the book says per meal: 1/2- to a whole avocado or 1-2 tablespoons of cooking fat, I figured I didn't exceed the total fat allowance per meal. 

I would appreciate any guidance you can give. 

Thanks

[ShannonM816]

So, the biggest question here is probably meal size/quantity. The meal template is great for the average person who can eat a fairly large meal. People who cannot eat that size of a meal should instead eat a mix of protein, fat, and vegetables each time they eat, but in portions that work for them, and eat as many meals throughout the day as they need. You may need four or six or even eight small meals, and that is fine.

You still shouldn't "graze" in the sense of grabbing a handful of something here and a handful there as you're walking through the kitchen. Still try to think of each time you eat as a meal, just a small one.

Nut butters are not great to depend on too much because nuts can cause digestive issues for some people. They're considered a fat source for whole30 purposes, because they have some protein, but not complete proteins like you'd find in eggs or meat or fish. If once in a while you have just almond butter by itself, it's not the end of the world, but don't overdo it, and maybe try to have some vegetables with it.

Oils, avocado, olives, coconut in most forms all count as fat. You can combine them. You really don't have to think too much about this, if you end up with a little more fat in some meals and a little less in others, it's not a big deal, so for a salad like that, use whatever combo tastes good to you, and as long as you feel okay after you eat, it's all good.

Almond milk typically doesnt actually have that much fat, so it was probably not adding much fat to the meal. 

 

 

[Genesis78#]

Thanks Shannon. That helps alot! I'm overthinking it.