Monday Day 1 - Back to the elimination phase!

I totally have a rebel tendency (Gretchen Rubin) as I have said before.  I have to be challenged that I can't do something so I can prove I can.  I asked my bestie to tell me she didn't think I could do the elimination again as I desperately needed to.  My gut is off (bloated, gassy), my face is broken out, my anxiety is up!  I'm a hot mess, not where I was over a year ago but I know I can be better.  I need and want to put my symptoms into remission!  So here I am diving back into an elimination.  I am so lucky to have Real Plans because I would hate to have to plan out every meal.  I already feel stretched between work and school and the amount of practice clients I have taken on so this is one less thing to worry about.  To top of the stress and anxiety level we are putting our house back on the market!  I love this house but there are things that I want that won't happen here.  The biggest thing is a bigger open kitchen.

So how is my Monday the first day back into it working out?  UGH!!  Jack woke me up at 2 am throwing up in the corner of the bedroom.  I so would have left it until later but it stunk.  I know why would I leave it?!  It was 2am!  I so didn't want to get up, but I did.  I let him outside while I cleaned everything up.  He came in like nothing happened and we went back to bed.  Then starting around 4 or 5 the cats began to come in to jump all over me to get up and fed them.  Easier to resist and I got up with D's alarm at 6:30.

Everyone was fed by 6:45 and I was on to make my breakfast.  I'm keeping it as it is since it's clean and I have no issues with what's in it.

Equip Foods Prime Protein, collagen, pea protein milk (or coconut), maca and a whole small avocado.  The avocado give the protein shake the perfect thickness!  I love it.  I'm also giving up coffee and going with matcha tea lattes.  I had one leftover from Saturday at Starbucks so I had the rest of that one and planned on trying one at Whole Foods later.

I got to the gym around 8:30 and was out around 9:30.  I like quick workouts specially when they are efficient!  I had a ton of errands to do - Costco, drop of groceries from Costco to work, Whole Foods, Target, Kroger and the Post Office.  I finally got home just after 12:15 and was starving.  I was smart with my spiralized zucchini noodles because this lunch came together quick!

Zucchini noodles, 4 strips of bacon and some Kettle and Fire chicken mushroom bone broth.  It was good but I needed more and had a tablespoon of coconut butter.  Exhaustion fell over me pretty quickly as it normally does in the afternoon - thank you adrenal fatigue!  I had some time before my appointment with the realtor so I laid down on the couch and had a cute face that down with me.

He is just too cute!  I just love that face and he just loves to rub his face on mine and give lots of kisses.  After the realtor I headed to Vitamin Shoppe for some probiotics.  I got home to shower and start a load of laundry.  By the time I sat down to even try to be even more productive it was time to start making dinner.

Tonight's dinner was roasted chicken and root vegetables.  I really should have taken a before picture of the chicken since I butchered the crap out of it.  D got home and was hungry so I just started to rip it apart.  The vegetables are carrots, parsnips, rutabaga, and golden beets.  I ended up eating a little more chicken when I was de-boning the rest of it for lunch later this week (and tomorrow).

Dessert was an (2!) AIP carob cherry cookie.  Really good and I wonder how the carbs will hit me.  Dependin on the carb source I can end up being really hungry.  But, so far so good!

Now I am going to chill and watch DC's Legend's of Tomorrow.  I just started watching it and I'm hooked.

Elimination Diets and Reactions to Foods

As a first note, I have to say that EVERYONE reacts differently.  Sure there can be some similarities but in general my reactions will be different from the next persons.  A friend of mine says she doesn't have a reaction to certain foods but has IBS.  To me that is a signal that something that is being consumed is not sitting well hence causing the IBS.  Well all know what IBS is right, yup!  It's the doctors way of saying that they don't know what is going on and will throw a pill at you.  For me it was Linzess.  Despite eating paleo, there was something still going on in my gut that just wasn't working. Trust me I fought it the whole time.  I'm learning though what is causing my leaky gut and taking not to either eliminate those things or cut down on them.  

My biggest obsession is peanut butter or nut butters in general.  I have tried about every company out there and every flavor combination there was to buy.  When I eat too much it shows on my face and yet I continue to eat it because damn it just tastes delicious.

Love is an understatement!

Now this Elvis Presley sandwich I would totally get into - except the bread.  Bacon, pb, jelly and bananas.  How can it get any better then that?!  I'm sure I can make a paleo/AIP bread that could more than substitute for this gluten yuck fest! LOL - sorry - I love the smell of certain breads, but really don't care about them or miss them.  I would rather have more of the fillings.

So reactions - I have already mentioned that when I eat too many nut butters - whether it's a legume (peanut) or a tree nut.  I get chin acne.  My digestion seems to be fine - I haven't noticed anything abnormal.  I think I need to have them no more than 3 times per week.

Eggs - another that I loved so much and would start every morning why them - minimum of 4 per day, plus mayo.  OMG, nothing quite like fried eggs with mayo on top and avocado!

So, again too many eggs and it's breakout city!  So again I have been sticking to 2 eggs or mayo no more than 3 times per week.  So generally I will have eggs twice and mayo once.

My last food that I have reactions to is dairy, no this one can show up in 2 ways.  I only have dairy twice a week and it's grass fed full fat plain greek yogurt.  If I have any cheese then in about 30 minutes to an hour I am running to the bathroom.  I can also have a number of breakouts.  Typically around the chin area and the occasional forehead monster.

My favs are Stonyfield (not greek), Maple Hill Creamery and Wallaby.

I believe that anyone that has digestive issues, autoimmune conditions, acne, achy joints and pain, the list goes on should do an elimination diet.  Even if they think they don't have any reactions.  How do you really know?  What if you are missing the key to what's wrong?  Wouldn't you want to live without some sort of drug if you really didn't have to?  I know I do!  I know there are some that I do need to be on and stay on that will not change and I am ok with that.  If I don't have to add on any others than that's a win in my book.

There are so many protocols to follow that can help uncover so much: paleo, primal, keto, low carb, AIP.

Which one(s) have you tried, what has worked?  What did you find out about yourself?  How long did it take you to accept that you couldn't eat a food that you ate all the time?  What did you continue to eat despite what you learned?

Determined!

I had my 4th appointment Monday morning to go over the next phase of my protocol.  I am determined and the tapioca I purchased to mix in with coconut milk is out!  This next phase sounds challenging but will not be.  I will move on and overcome the candida die off and NOT BE CRABBY!  D pointed that one out this morning.

This is what my typical morning looks like.  I type and eat at my dining room table and fight off Nostrand as she tries to be cute and sneak a paw on the plate.

Random breakfast with leftover BBQ - So Yum!  All those greens!  I'm really trying to branch out on the greens - if there is one I haven't had or haven't had in a while,  I'm grabbing it.  This week is collard greens and napa cabbage

Monday nights dinner with my new added fruit.  I debated if plantains were really a fruit or a starch, but it depends on the ripening stage they are in.  On the green side starchier and on the more yellow speckled brown the sweet they are.  They were put in the fruit category.  Plantain chips with eggs, roasted vegetables on top of red leaf lettuce, avocado and I topped it with a little mayo - the good stuff, no fillers and junk here!  I figured I would have a little mayo since it has eggs and was egg day.

I started my new supplements last night (Wednesday) It's candida killing time.  So far so good.  There are 3 additional supplements and new shakes!

This week I have just felt hungry.  I have eaten 6 chicken thighs in 2 days.  In all not bad given all I do exercise wise.  This morning, I ran 6 miles, nothing out of the ordinary.

Breakfast this morning - chicken thigh that was cooked in broth, bacon, green beans, spinach, napa cabbage, olives and avocado.  There was extra broth at the bottom and it was fabulous.  I think tomorrows breakfast should be kinda on the soupy side.

I had to stop at the store on my way to work and decided to get a low sugar kombucha.  This was my first green kombucha.  It was sweet at first and a little bitter at the end.  I think I like the Triology the best.  For lunch I came home and had 4 scoops of my new mixed berry shake (360 cals, not that I'm counting) and a chicken thigh.  I was pretty good until 4pm, it was only a couple hours, so clearly not enough calories.  I still find if I eat a full lunch and the shake I am too stuffed for dinner.  Maybe a small lunch with the shake would be better.  A big bowl of roasted veggies, or a salad.  Experimenting is needed!

I cooked a pretty fabulous dinner - 2 eggs cooked in the leftover bacon grease from the 2 strips, green beans, broccoli topped with guacamole and over baked plantains.  I have been looking forward to those since Saturday when I bought them and they didn't disappoint!  I'm thinking that chicken thigh is calling my name though!  I may have to listen.

I have 2 bananas and I know I need to be careful with them since I tested higher on those for allergies.  So I will split one of those for this weekend and save the other for a little later.  Options, I love it!  Next week I get to add nuts and seeds!  Yes!  A small scoop of almond butter is calling my name 😍

Now to get some meditation in!