Elimination Diet: Day 4 - Bored but Still Alive

The first day was absolutely the worst. I not only received 0 real food (everything was pureed), I also had one of the worst headaches in my entire life. Words do not express.

Day 2 was a tad better...I ended up switching to phase 2 then based off how poorly I was doing from phase 1 (note: they say to stay on it 2 days...I'm a big, bad rebel). I got a little bit of protein in that I was desperately craving (from chicken), but still not horrible satisfying.

It is now day 4....The one thing I have noticed is that I'm not quite as tired when I get home from work. I am unsure as to if this is due to removing something in my diet that I was intolerant to, or because I'm eating less carbs than I was (I'm hypoglycemic...so carbs are bad for me..a rollercoaster ride). Regardless, even if I don't discover a food intolerance, at least I have gotten back on track for better eating for my hypoglycemia.

On another note, I have discovered some interesting foods, as I have to read nutrition labels for hours upon end in order to find something without added sugar and soybean oil in it (or gluten, or nuts, or dairy...etc).  I've also cooked some fairly interesting things....

Today-

I made turkey sausage with some spices and a tiny drop of honey (can only do honey or maple syrup pretty much...no sugar), then diced up some avocado. --> breakfast 1 (I have to eat a lot)

A smoothie with a few strawberries, half a banana, a cup of unsweetened coconut milk, and vegan protein powder. --> breakfast 2

Apricot for a snack or two

Salad with turkey, avocado, and apple cider vinegar

Lentil Chips for another snack.

Dinner was mahi mahi with some garlic seasoning, and then I made rice noodles and tossed it with olive oil, garlic, and sauteed mushrooms.

Sweet tooth dessert was homemade warm apple sauce with cinnamon.



Granted, this diet doesn't have much variety so I go towards my love of fruit...which is not good for me...but oh well! I am over the daily sugar amount...up to like 50 gram today...shame on me. But! I also hit my minimum protein (80 gram).

And, I have consistently had 10-12 cups of water every day!! :)

All in all, I miss variety in my food, and I have to bring food with me to places so that I can eat...but it's going all right now! 

Elimination Diet - Detox Stage (aka hell)

What can I say...my head is pounding....I'm beyond tired, my concentration level has flatlined.

I asked for it.

If I didn't know any better I'd think I had the flu.

The detox stage of this diet is absolutely horrid. Way worse than any symptoms before. I woke up this morning, made my usual cup of coffee, put my creamer in it....

Crap.

I can't have coffee.

I can't have the creamer either.

Soybean oil, corn syrup, sugar. Nope. Not happening.

I for a second thought my headache may be from my coffee withdrawal. I guess it's possible, but I only have one cup a day, and it took 7 hours past my usual coffee time for this headache to set in. I've felt progressively worse throughout the day actually. Let me tell you the two reasons this detox stage sucks: there's practically no protein consumption, since everything is on the "no foods" list, and it's actually fairly hard to get your calorie goal without getting incredibly bored from the few foods you can eat. And the foods allowed (fruit) have a lot of simple sugars. Bad idea. So I guess that's three. But, I must continue, I have an end goal in mind.

I woke up, and got my mason jars ready. On the right, my usual water, this time with strawberries and mint. Then the hell sits in.

Green smoothie of death. Everything that makes a smoothie delicious (milk, juice, almond milk, yogurt) is not allowed during this diet. Sooooo, that blows. I opted for strawberries and spinach, with some flax seed and coconut. Not horrible, but definitely not tasty.

And then, on the left is a variation on my soup I've made before. It has sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, apple. Cook it with some olive oil, and purée, and tada! The whole "everything needs to be puréed" thing about this diet is just nonsense. I get the reasoning, but I like eating!

So, I ate/drank what you see for the day, and then some coconut water, and here I am, feeling absolutely horrible. 

Phase two includes solid foods and chicken/turkey/fish. No products with gluten, dairy, nuts, sugars, corn, soy. But I get quinoa and oatmeal! For the sake of my survival, phase two has now begun. If you have serious symptoms, or do not have hypoglycemia, try and do phase 1 for up to 3-4 days (book recommends two). If that's your thing!

More updates mañana! Time for food prepping! Steel cut oats for breakfast!