Whole 30 Elimination Diet
I've modified my diet before, primarily to reduce calories and be eat more healthfully generally, but I have never done a fad diet before.
I've had some frustrating health problems, and a physical therapist I saw last month recommended that I cut out gluten. She said I am inflamed all over (I have a serious allergic disorder and so that's not a surprise to me.), and that eliminating gluten could help to reduce the inflammation. OK.
My mom died three years ago this week from what is thought to have been ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease. My sister was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis last year.
I don't have chronic diarrhea like they did but my sister recommended I do the Whole 30 elimination diet plan if I am going to go without gluten. The diet is VERY restrictive. It's basically the paleo diet--meat, vegetables and fruit only. Nothing else at all. No grains. No dairy. Nothing processed. For 30 days. After that period, you reintroduce dairy, for example, to see how your body reacts. And then gluten. And then sugar. Etc.
I am on day four and this is harder than I expected, and it feels a little gross. I've had too much meat for my liking and I am now a little grossed out by the thought of eating more heavy food with my next meal. And I am still craving sweet stuff.
Have you ever done this diet? Any tips?
I am doing it to see how my body reacts to eliminating certain foods, not really for the goal of losing weight. However, I am trying to improve my insulin level if possible. I found out this summer through a blood test that although I am not overweight and although my blood sugar is actually lower than average, I am verging on insulin resistance. My doctor said the only thing I can do to improve that is to be more physically active...my problems with that are that I am largely cooped up because of the pandemic isolation, and my allergic disorder makes it hard for me to exercise--when I heat up from aerobic/cardiovascular exercise, I often get anaphylaxis, which can be life threatening.
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | January 3, 2021 11:46 AM
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OK, no one cares, but I am on day seven and I have discovered a few things:
--I prefer light-roast coffee, but since I have eliminated all dairy, I've found that light coffee roasts are not very good when black, and so I am now drinking a dark roast black and like it better. But I can't stand 'burnt' coffee with milk. (Normally, I drink a little bit of skim or 1% milk in my coffee.)
--I may be sensitive/allergic to oranges? This never, ever occured to me before but I just realized that stinging lips and a tingly tongue for hours after eating an orange may not be normal. Does that sound stupid? This has always happened to me and I always assumed it's normal, attributing it to citric acid in my mind. But I just realized that bananas do this to a lesser degree and I have already stopped eating them because of it. I don't think lemons and limes cause this type of sensation.
--I'm eating less because the thought of eating kind of turns my stomach. 'Real' food--whole foods--are mostly dense and heavy, and I've had way too much meat over the past week. But even fruits like apples are just bulky and so I'm starting to only want to eat when I have to eat/when I feel too hungry not to eat. I'm sure that is part of the point.
--This diet eliminates all flours (except almond, which isn't used to bake) and sugars, including maple syrup, honey, etc. I craved sugar like crazy for the first few days. A couple of days ago, I simmered some blueberries until they popped and became saucy because I needed something sweet. Normally, I'd add something to sweeten blueberries but I just added a little lemon juice and cinnamon while these were cooking, and I was shocked how almost sickeningly sweet the stuff tasted. (I ate it with a spoon. I was desperate!) I think my palate has already become more sensitive after a week of cutting out artificially sweetened foods. I ate a mostly sugar-free (and sugar substitute-free) diet when I was young and very active and body conscious and I remember that birthday cakes, etc., were almost disgustingly sweet to me and so it's not a surprise except the short amount of time it has taken for this to happen. Interesting.
| by Anonymous | reply 1 | January 3, 2021 11:45 AM
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