Tips for Improving Second Half

[shleebles]

Hi all!

 

I am on day R1D16 and am looking for some tips on where I can improve for the remainder of the program.  I haven't really seen any changes, besides a growing lust for oatmeal, and was wondering what people may recommend to finish strong.  My digestive system has been having had a hard time (but was not great to start with), my sleeping has gotten worse, and my workouts either feel amazing or I wake up with lead legs and have to struggle through my morning run.  I would love to feel less bloated/more svelte and have more energy by the end of this.

 

 Context: 21F, 6ft, 135 lbs, and I was already eating very similarly to how I am on the program but had whole grains, peanut butter, beans, and plain greek yogurt as staples with some dark chocolate here and there.  I also run ultra marathons but am taking an off month (about 40-45 mpw running, plus some additional cross training and strength work) during this challenge.  I do not wish to switch to "fat adapted" endurance, so I eat a lot of bananas and potatoes to keep up my carb levels.  Furthermore, I eat to satiety at my meals, but absolutely hate the feeling of being full, so I do end up eating a snack in the afternoon and often before bed, as that is when my hunger really kicks in!

 

My daily eating pattern is pretty consistent day to day:

 

Preworkout:

Banana with almond butter, coffee with nutpod creamer, and electrolytes (nuun)

7-8ish mile run followed by some mobility

Breakfast:

chia pudding with collagen, banana, berries, coconut flakes, and some honey (whoops)

Lunch:

2 whole eggs w lots of egg whites, roasted veggies and potato, "power greens" salad mix, and avocado or guac, usually an orange as well

Snack:

Snacks vary a little but are usually a piece of fruit with an RX Bar or hard boiled egg

Short Cardio Warm Up (5k row, 2 mile run, ...) and short strength session

Dinner:

Generally chicken or fish with more roasted veggies, possibly some raw veggies, power greens, some kind of avo based sauce, potato, and usually another orange

Snack:

I'm usually hungry again between dinner and bed so I'll have a banana and/or apple with almond butter, an RX Bar, and maybe a couple plantain chips

 

I drink about a gallon of fluid a day, mostly from plain water but also occasionally from Kombucha, tea, and nuun.

 

Thanks!

 

 

 

 

 

[ShannonM816]

Try to make all your meals match the meal template. So, have protein at every meal. Nuts and seeds are fat, not protein, for Whole30 purposes. Try to limit your fruit to a couple of servings a day. Increase your vegetables, including starchy vegetables like potato, sweet potato, turnips, beets, rutabaga, carrots, parsnips, winter squashes (like butternut or acorn squash or pumpkin), or plantains. When you have snacks, try to make them mini-meals with protein, fat, and vegetables, or at least two of the three.