A week ago today I started the Whole30 Challenge. For those of you who aren’t familiar, it is a 30 day cleanse of processed foods, added sugars, leguems, grains, dairy, and alcohol. AKA anything super delicious… Don’t even think about it!!
Update:
Days 1&2 were pretty rough, I was always starving. I couldn’t seem to eat enough calories. Day 3, I noticed my energy was up but eating so many fruits and veggies defiantly caught up to my digestive system if you know what I mean… Day 4&5, a lot better. I started to get the hang of eating a lot more protein. Day 6&7, rough again. I had a long run on day 6 and a long bike on day 7 (10miles on day 6 and 2hrs on the bike on day 7). This is when my lack of carbohydrates caught up to me. My run was good but I did notice I was getting a headache and a slightly dizzy feeling by the end, like my blood sugar was low. Day 7, my legs felt like lead, my head ached, and I had zero energy. I ate 2 Lara Bars (190 calories each) before beginning and I was only able to make it to 20min before calling it quits so I could eat some more and potentially recover a little more from my previous days run….
…because of this issue and the amount of training that I am doing I will be adding some whole grains to my diet for the coming week to see if that makes a difference. From what I have read, many other triathletes had to alter the plan as well to be able to maintain their training appropriately. Even though I hate to make alterations to the challenge.. Fingers crossed it works!
What I’m Missing Most:
Tortilla chips and cheese. I didn’t realize how much I loved each of these until I could no longer have them.
Best Meals So Far:
Valentines Day Dinner: zucchini pasta, shrimp and scallops and some kind of other squash. It was delicious and all thanks to my Valentine 😉
Mushroom stuffed with ground turkey and guacamole and a side of clementine.
What I’ve Learned So Far:
You must like eggs, sweet potatoes, and avocado to survive the challenge. These are the staples to my diet.
A few more thoughts to close out week 1…For as tough as this “diet plan” is to follow, I am enjoying mixing it up and trying some new things. It is also forcing me to cook more often which isn’t always a bad thing either. Hopefully I will learn a couple more good dishes for you to try as well. I’ll be back again next Monday for week two update.
Happy Monday Y’all!
Eat Train Love 365 