Hey Friends! How’s it goin?
This is my first time linking up with Jenn over at Peas & Crayons for What I Ate Wednesday, so here goes.
I think I mentioned a couple weeks ago that my recent oatmeal obsession was due to some stomach issues. I’m gonna write a post dedicated to that ordeal soon, but let’s just say that my symptoms were NOT fun.
I spent about a week surviving off of mostly fruit and oatmeal in various combinations and only eating full meals at lunch.
Breakfasts were oatmeal (Cinnamon Roll Oatmeal)
More oatmeal (Coconut Cookie Dough Oatmeal)
And even more oatmeal (Vegan Coconut Granola Bites)
And when I decided to mix it up, I went with the tried and true green smuice
But eventually, I decided to attempt an elimination diet in an effort to figure out what was wrong.
My ‘Elimination Diet’
I didn’t really know all that an elimination diet entailed and, for the first time, I didn’t do much research before I started. I just spent a day eating the things I normally ate, and took note of what I ate right before the pains got really bad. Then I cut them out of my diet. All of them; cold turkey. And within a couple days, the symptoms were gone.
I was elated, but also terrified, because all of these things were on that list:
- peanut butter
- meats like chicken, turkey, beef and pork
- cheese
- milk
- roasted veggies
- coffee
I looked at this final list and all I could think was: ‘How can I return to a life without peanut butter?!?’
That’s right I was more afraid of having to give up peanut butter, which I used to hate, than coffee. #Priorities
Next Came the Hard Part: Reintroducing foods
I’m not gonna lie- I was not looking forward to eating whatever was making me sick again. But one cannot exist without peanut butter, so I took the plunge.
I started off with peanut butter and I did it in style…with a big ol’ spoonful
Classy, right?
Once I realised that peanut butter was not my issue, I ate a couple more spoonfuls and celebrated with my favourite sandwich combo: peanut butter, banana & cinnamon on an english muffin.
I really wanted to dive right back into eating meat at this point but I decided to go with roasted veggies next
I topped it with shrimp since I knew seafood was okay and my tummy was in foodie heaven 
I moved on to meats and had a little turkey bacon with my breakfast one morning and all was well.
I actually started to think that maybe my stomach issues weren’t food related at all.
And then I added a little shredded cheese to one of my post workout, breakfast-for-dinner sandwiches. It was a really great sandwich: Ezekiel Bread topped with extra old cheddar cheese, avocado, turkey bacon and a fried egg. The only problem was the intense bloating after I ate it.
The only thing ‘new’ was the cheese so I knew it was responsible 😥
I’m staying away from cheese while trying to figure out if it’s just cheese that’s the problem or dairy on the whole. Definitely not fun when you consider how much I absolutely LOVE pizza, but I’ve got peanut butter to comfort me right?
What about you?
Have you ever done an elimination diet?
What would be the hardest thing to give up?
Any tips for going non-dairy?
Share in the comments below!
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This post was included in the following linkups: What I Ate Wednesday, The Weekend re-Treat, Let’s Get Real, That Friday Blog Hop
I haven’t done it, but I did with my son. He ended up having an allergy/sensitivity to dairy. The blood test said allergy, but the skin prick test 5 years later said he’s not. But anyway, milk was so hard to eliminate because it would be in a food one time and not the next time. I also found that generic versions of foods didn’t have milk, but the name brand did.
Cari recently posted…DIY Simply Sweet and Spicy Brown Sugar Scrub Recipe
Isn’t it so strange that it can change? I’ve been tested before when I was younger cuz my sister is lactose intolerant and I was fine. Now this.
And yep, who knew milk was in so many things!?!
Hey I adore your blog by the way! You seem so sweet and I got you on peanut butter! I actually use to love peanut butter but now I have migrated to an almond butter obsession
Never tried an elimination diet but girl thank goodness it wasn’t peanut butter! and yes, I love oatmeal too! I’m wondering if maybe you could try some lactaid pills?
Fatima recently posted…Segways and Faith
My next step is to get tested but if I do have an allergy/intolerance, I’ll def talk to my doctor about some lactaid pills! Thanks for suggesting 🙂
I’m a non-dairy/lactose person. I’ve been off and on lactose free things since I was a kid (I keep ‘testing’ it because I really like cheese/milk/ice-cream). Have figured that I can have some milk and cheese, but not much. Yoghurt is fine in moderate amounts.
Alas, pizza is always a bad idea 🙁
LOL at the ‘testing’. I see lots of ‘testing’ in my future haha. It also sucks that I can live with all those things except for pizza 🙁
I really want to do an elimination diet because I have some minor stomach problems that I wonder if are food related. Glad you posted this! I may have to try it now. I fear that cheese may be my problem and I’m not sure I’m ready to face that. I love cheese too much haha! There are some pretty good non-dairy ice cream options though. So Delicious is my favorite.
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So I read your comment on my phone while I was at the grocery store and immediately picked up a tub of So Delicious coconut ice cream. I will be forever indebted to you because it’s the best coconut ice cream I’ve ever tasted. Thank you!
Also, I put of doing the elimination diet cuz I was afraid wheat was my diet. I NEVER considered it would be cheese/dairy…
So glad you found it! I love it. When ever it’s on sale I try to stock up.
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Oh, bless your heart! I’m glad you figured it out. My husband got really sick after eating a lot of string cheese as a child and hasn’t eaten dairy since.
Logan Cantrell recently posted…Summer Beauty Essentials
I’ve never done an elimination diet. Good job at figuring out what was bothering you. I think I would die if I had to give up pb; I eat it several times a week.
Paris at My Big Fat Happy Life recently posted…How to Save Money: Dollar Shave Club
My life is an elimination diet. I will be curious to read your stomach issues blog post – because as you know, that’s my life too. I am actually in the process of writing a stomach story as well, great minds think alike?! Yes, I do believe we have already come to this conclusion! ha ah!
GiGi Eats recently posted…Sharing The SamePlate
No cheese? OMG I feel for you. Actually, I did a three week elimination diet as recommended by my naturopath (she’s a great one in Waterloo!). No wheat, dairy, sugar, caffeine, alcohol, corn, shrimp, beef, and a bunch of other delicious items. It was incredibly hard for the first two weeks, but then I felt amazing! Unfortunately I fell off the wagon immediately after my three weeks were up. #fail It did confirm to me, however, that what I eat has a huge impact on how I feel. Good luck with your journey!
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I would die if I couldn’t eat peanut butter! Thank goodness that was not the problem! Hopefully you figure out what’s going on soon. Stomach pains are no fun!
Megan recently posted…What I Ate Wednesday
Feeling inspired by your healthy meals. 🙂 Yum!
I’ve tried several different diets where I completely eliminated a food group for a week or so, but I’ve yet to get to the bottom of my own stomach issues. I think I need to do it how you did – keeping track of my normal diet, when the issues come, then methodically removing and adding things back in. This post has renewed my interest in figuring out what’s ailing me instead of just uncomfortably dealing with it. Thank you!
Whitney @ To Live & Diet in L.A. recently posted…A Mommy-Doggie Mini Vacay
I think peanut butter would be one of the hardest things for me to give up. Or feta. Or avocado. I can’t decide!
Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy recently posted…Jerk Chicken and Avocado Salad
Thank god it’s not the peanut butter. As I just finish eating a big scoop of PB on a banana. I’d die if I couldn’t have all my nut butters haha. Glad you partially figured out your problem!
I’ve done elimination diets, but as someone with IBS, they don’t always work, because what bothers you one day, may not the next day, or the next week. Also, what foods you eat together, may factor in to the stomach woes. My friend Erik, from Strong Figure says this:
“The synergistic issue refers to the way foods behave when they interact with other foods. Foods, as you know better than most, have a huge impact on the body, much the way drugs do. Now there are LOADS of studies on how drugs interact with each other and there are lots of warning labels on don’t take this while taking this…and there is even a decent amount of information on the impact certain foods have while taking drugs — for example grapefruit can increase the potency of certain drugs. Insofar as all this is true, then it stands to reason food interacting with other foods would have different impacts. This explains why someone can eat a mushroom pizza one night and be fine but eat a cheese pizza the next night and be a mess. Automatically, people will jump to the cheese being the issue but there was cheese on the mushroom pizza too. The real culprit is likely the person has a low tolerance for acidity (from the tomatoes) but the alkalinity of the mushrooms balanced out that acidity and therefore the person had very little impact from the high acid tomatoes. Another common example is the impact of sugar — why can someone eat the office birthday cake one day and not the next (with out the effects of sugar crash). The likely reason is fat intake. Fat can help lessen the impact of an insulin spike. Maybe one day the person had enough fat and the other day they have very little fat. They synergistic effect of the fat and the sugar worked together. So my guess for why you can eat somethings one day and not another is there is something else you ate that balances the problem food. But honestly it is even more complicated, especially for a female, because there are a whole host of hormones and metabolic reasons too that could be at play. And hormones can be impacted by more than just food.”
SO, just something to munch on 🙂
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The book Meals that Heal Inflammation by Julie Daniluk was really helpful with how to do an elimination diet for me. It’s a long term process that the book goes through. I didn’t follow it exactly as the book has it but I tried to as best as possible. Luckily for me I get a joint pain, skin rash, bloating when I eat foods that I’m sensitive to so it’s easier for me to figure out what my problem has been. I’m gluten, grain, dairy, & egg free. Hopefully, I’ll be able to add eggs back in after my gut has had a chance to heal.
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