Spring Ready Challenge Q&A

Our next Welle Club Challenge is almost here… kickstarting on Monday 5 September!  If you haven’t signed up yet you can register here!

We have tried to answer some of the common questions we have received about this upcoming challenge.  The most important thing to remember is that the Spring Ready Challenge is an opportunity for you to get back into the swing of things while being supported and encouraged along the way.  If you feel like you’ve lost your way and fallen off the bandwagon, or lost your motivation, then it’s time to shake things up!   Welle Club Challenges are not designed to be a shortcut, but they’re designed to help support you to get back into embracing a healthy lifestyle that you enjoy and re-establishing healthy habits. Change doesn’t happen overnight.  Change happens when you keep working on yourself consistently, and you don’t give up!  You won’t give up if you ENJOY what you’re doing.  That is why the most important thing is to create a lifestyle that YOU love!  We are here to support you with yummy food and encouragement, but ultimately, this is about finding what works for you so that you can stop starting over and just get on with enjoying your life!   I’ve never done keto before!  Can I do the Challenge? Absolutely you can!  We designed Welle Club to be a place that makes starting, following, and adhering to a low carb keto diet easy and enjoyable!  We completely understand how overwhelming things can feel, especially at the beginning and our goal is to make the process less stressful so that you can focus on reaching your goals in a supportive environment.  All Welle Club members get access to our exclusive Welle Club Guide to Keto – this is a PDF ebook that is sent directly to your inbox!  We also have a specific Beginner’s Guide to Keto section which takes you through all of the nitty-gritty details about how to start and succeed with a keto lifestyle.  Make sure you check this out and have a read as it will answer a lot of questions and help guide you on your journey!   Just keep in mind that adjusting into keto lifestyle from eating a standard diet is definitely a BIG change!  The best way you can support your body as it undergoes its adjustment period is to make sure:

• You’re drinking lots of water;
• Try not to skip meals;
• Prioritise sleep;
• Don’t stress about including exercise if it’s too much – just tackle one thing at a time;
• Have some keto-friendly snacks on hand (salami, cheese, berries, yogurt, chia pudding, pre-made keto protein bars, etc) so that if you get hungry you have things you can grab easily;
• And make sure you’re including magnesium, sodium, and electrolytes into your routine!!  You can purchase a magnesium supplement from the supermarket or pharmacy.  Add salt to all of your meals, or, sip on a bullion cube/stock cube mixed with 1 cup of water each day (for the first 1-2 weeks), and make sure you’re having an electrolyte drink everyday (for the first 1-2 weeks at least).  You can purchase Welle Essentials Electrolytes from the Welle Essentials online store, or make your own using our recipe available on Welle Club!

How do I add the Challenge Meal Plan? You can add the Meal Plan directly from your Challenge Portal.  If you can’t see that then you can always also access our pre set meal plans, just hover over the “Meal Planner” tab which will show the options drop down to either create your own, or select from one of ours.  If you select “Set Meal Plans” you can then scroll down and find our Challenge Meal Plans.  Just select “Spring Ready” and set the start date to Monday 5 September!   Why are some items appearing twice? There are some double-ups for some breakfasts and lunch (cheesy garlic egg loafs, and bacon & egg pie for example) which is just to reflect that there are two servings of that recipe for that particular meal.  So for example at breakfast you should have 2 serves of the egg loafs – and at lunch, two pieces of the bacon & egg pie.   But if there are double ups of everything then you may have added it to your meal plan twice.  The best way to solve that is just to remove everything from your meal plan (by selecting delete), and then re-add the meal plan afresh!   The calories/macros of the Challenge meal plan don’t fit with the calculator’s recommendations for me.  What should I follow? When it comes to following the pre-set meal plans (particularly in the challenges), and also the macro/calorie calculator’s recommendations, just remember that you don’t have to stick to these hard-and-fast.  The Challenge meal plans are designed to be quite low calorie to help people overcome plateaus, and kickstart any weight loss goals they may have, but even in following those there may be days where you are more/less hungry, and it’s always so important to listen to your body and what it needs!  Everyone is so different!  So feel free to add any additional snacks, increase portion sizes, etc, as you require to make this work for you.   Can I customise the meal plan?  (You might be vegetarian, dairy-free, or just not like some of the meals included in the pre-set meal plan) Most definitely you can!  Make whatever changes you need so that the meal plan is enjoyable for you!  If you are vegetarian then you can absolutely substitute any meat for vegetarian alternatives (there are tons of low carb options available, just find the lowest carb options within your price point!).  If you are dairy-free then substitute in dairy-alternatives.  Or if you just don’t fancy a particular meal, switch it out for one that sounds yummy to you!   I am breastfeeding, can I do the Challenge? You can absolutely follow a low carb keto diet while breastfeeding, but you should always consult with your lead maternity carer!  It is also very important while breastfeeding that you don’t under-eat in terms of calories as this may affect your milk supply.  You may also find that for your individual needs you need to increase your wholefood carb sources (such as including foods like pumpkin, more fruit, kumara, etc) to help with milk supply.  This is a very personal thing and something that should be discussed with your medical practitioner.  If you are given the all-clear to follow the challenge remember that you can absolutely make changes to make this work for you!!  If you are interested in learning more about keto and breastfeeding then you might find Elle’s YouTube vlog helpful which is available to view here – but make sure you check in with your lead health practitioner first!   Regardless of what an individual’s personal circumstances are, we always encourage those who are participating in the challenge that it is so important to listen to your body and give it what it needs!  Everyone is so different and that is why the preset meal plan on its own may need some tweaking to meet your individual needs.  So please feel free to add any additional snacks, increase your portion size, increase your carbohydrate intake (to make the meal plan more low carb as opposed to keto) etc, as you require to make this work for you.   That’s also why in creating Welle Club we designed the customised meal planner tool so that those who have individualised needs can create their own meal plans to suit / alter any existing premade meal plans we have available.   Should I incorporate exercise?  What kind of exercise should I do? You don’t have to incorporate exercise, but you can if you wish!  In this challenge we are encouraging those participating to set themselves the goal of moving their body for 30 minutes a day, at least 3 times a week. But it is completely up to you whether you start off by focusing on your food first, and then include exercise later, or whether you include exercise right away. If you are including exercise then you can do whatever you enjoy!  Walking, running, swimming,  fitness classes, YouTube workouts, strength training… You name it, they can all be enjoyed while following a low carb keto lifestyle!  Just make sure you are staying hydrated, getting enough sleep, and keep your electrolytes up!   How can I stay motivated? We are here to support you every step of the way, but ultimately you will get out what you put in.  Try not to think about the entire 6-weeks, just take each day on its own.  Focus on the day ahead rather than stressing about the next week, or next month.  If you do have a bad day, or an off day, don’t beat yourself up or think that it’s a complete write off… just get back on board for the next meal! We also have the Challenge Facebook group set up for you to connect with other Welle Club members who are doing the challenge so that you can check in and share your days with each other.  Having the support of others who are also working towards their goals can make all of the difference!   Is there a prize or a winner of the Challenge? Everyone who participates in a Welle Club challenge is an absolute inspiration to us!  You have committed to yourself, your goals, and we are so inspired by the healthy changes that we see you embrace! To celebrate the incredible Welle Club Challenge community, and maybe as an added form of motivation (some people find it really motivating when there’s a prize involved!) we offer a prize to a Challenge winner!  Any Challenge participant can enter – all you need to do is let us know about your challenge journey, and send us your before and after progress pictures.  Winners are not selected on the most weight lost, as the scales can be very deceptive, but rather it is dependent on a number of things such as – whether you overcame any hurdles throughout the challenge, and your personal ‘glow up’! At the end of the challenge you can send your entry into us at info@welleclub.com If there are any further questions you have please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at info@welleclub.com!