Before any holidays occurred.
Of course, in my folly and because I was feeling well, I said yes.
I may live to deeply, deeply regret that decision. Or, you know, not.
I had the appointment yesterday where we talked about what it would entail, and I’m going full bore paleo vegan for two months.
Snort. And I thought we were going to talk about giving reincorporation of eggs and sesame seeds another try at this appointment now that I’ve cut them out for 6 months. NOPE.
Anywho, so here’s the deal.
A pound of raw veggies per day. (Minimum.)
A pound of cooked veggies per day. (Minimum.)
Lots of beans.
2 ounces of nuts or seeds.
4 large pieces of fruit per day. (Minimum.)
No grains, not even rice or corn.
All the white or sweet potato I want. (A relief, in a way, except I can’t slather my potatoes in butter and sour cream.)
No meat, no dairy.
No juice or anything else that contains added sugar.
End of list.
This would be like a vegan person were doing a whole 30. Except I’m not vegan. Like, not even a little.
Oh wait. All the tea and water I can drink. I can drink black coffee too.
The science makes sense. The focus on micronutrients instead of macronutrients makes sense.
The goal is not weight loss, though she told me to expect to lose 20-30 pounds, which will put me exactly in the range I want to be. This diet is one ordinarily given to people who need a reset or to set themselves up for drastic changes to their diet, both of which apply here. There is a lot of good news other than this also:
1. I’ll feel better. The holidays were terrible for me food-wise, and this will give me a much-needed reset. I have felt like shit since about early December, so I’m ready to start feeling good again and get back to being accountable for what I put in my mouth.
2. I’ve fixed my Breakfast Problem. You see, I’m a big breakfast person and have been for a really long time. Then I had to cut out eggs, most dairy, oats, and gluten, all foods that are an integral part of a good breakfast. I don’t want anything to do with chia seeds, and because I shouldn’t be eating all that much sugar, I shouldn’t be eating all that much yogurt either. I’m pretty much limited to one kind: unsweetened coconut. It’s out there, but hard to find. Now I’m doing smoothies again. Fun fact: there is unflavored protein powder (which I called smoothie dust yesterday at the doctor in a moment of aphasia) and if I mix it with frozen fruit and some water, voila! Breakfast! (Along with, according to my doctor, two pieces of fruit.)
3. If I’m hungry between meals, or if I’m extra snacky (which I shouldn’t be at all), I’m not eating enough and I should eat more. This concept is SO foreign to me that I don’t even know where to start. She told me that I can (and should!) literally eat until I’m uncomfortably full at every meal. She also gave me some recipes and told me to double them and take that as a meal.
4. It’s not that far off from the elimination diet that I was on, so I should be ok. It will be a bigger adjustment because I SUPER fell out of habit during the holidays, but I’ll get back there.
Now I have to go find myself a food scale. I start it on Monday.
