Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
I Need **branz**, **storm** and **Kathiiy**!!!!
Ladies ladies!
Healthy eaters to a semi-healthy eater -- please help me! I've always had some underlying health issues with my digestive system, but they seem to have gotten so much worse this summer. Everything I'm eating is making me nauseous or makes me spend days in and out of the restroom. I am always feeling awful and I hate that my digestive system basically controls my life. I want to make a big change to my diet and then see if I still have these problems.
I talked it over with meat-n-potatoes DH that I want to begin eating a more vegetarian diet and he supports my decision. I at least want to severely limit my intake of meat and other nasties/processed foods. I always feel better when I eat healthy, obviously.
I still will be eating fish/eggs/cheese (limited), but other than that, not much else in animal products. I really think this will help my problems. I've got the big salads down pat, but what else do you eat? Any favorite recipes? While I enjoy fruits and vegetables, I'm really averse to onions and raw tomato, but everything else is great! I mean, my favorite veggie is brussel sprouts, so I'm not too too picky, right?
Also, I'm pretty stumped over snacks. What do you recommend?
Tips/tricks/motivation for a healthier life would be greatly appreciated!
Do the creep.
Re: I Need **branz**, **storm** and **Kathiiy**!!!!
I'm HEEEERRE honey! :-)
***This email got epic long sorry...feel free to PM me for more on this topic, I'm very into it obviously!***
And FYI, Kath is veg too, she may have additional input :-)
Well, kudos to you, I must say, for trying to help solve your health troubles by using nutrition/diet as a first step! That seriously outweighs any pills you could take, IMO. (And don't get me wrong, I'm the gal who is all about meds if they are necessary or will be the best answer to a problem. But for this kind of thing, it probably isn't!)
Some thoughts to consider:
-Legumes, or beans are now your new best friend. Black beans and lentils are two I favor, and they have high fiber content too. Also, dark leafy greens: spinach, kale, swiss chard, etc. are good in basically everything.
-Eggs and cheeses are wonderful for protein and calcium respectively, BUT, too much is bad for cholesterol, and for some people, it can cause inflammation and other digestive issues. You'll want to be varied in where your cheese comes from too; try rotating goat, cow and sheep's cheeses into your cooking.
-In general, variety has been the key to a healthy vegetarian lifestyle for me. And I think that incorporating other culture's cuisines into my cooking helps with that. Indian, Thai, Japanese, and Chinese cooking can offer some really tasty and healthy choices, and open you up to foods you maybe have never tried before.
-If you can, invest in an inexpensive steamer. http://www.amazon.com/RSVP-Endurance-FSS-9-Vegetable-Steamer/dp/B0000DE4FP You can steam your fish in there even. And if you really get into this lifestyle, a big splurge is a quality food processor. Oh the possibilities I have with my Kitchen Aid!!! It lets you make homemade veggie burgers, hummus, salad dressings, salsas, soups...it has allowed me so much variety in my cooking I feel like. To me, a blender just isn't the same...
-The New Vegetarian by Celia Brooks Brown, is a really good cookbook, and Vegetarian Times Magazine has really good inspiration. Also The Food Doctor by Ian Marber & Vicki Edgson is a book I love to revisit that discusses food intolerances and lifestyle changes that we can make to improve the function and wellness of our bodies. It also lists the 100 best foods for your body, which helps me to remember fruits or veggies I don't think of eating often, but should, like sweet potatoes.
-SNACKS! My favs: dry roasted salt free almonds or cashews, homemade guac with salt free chips, hummus with carrots, tzatziki with red bell peppers or any other raw veg, peanut butter on one half of a whole wheat english muffin or bagel, fruit, all kinds of fruit, especially apples and berries, Greek yogurt and honey with toasted nuts... I LOVE snacks...I snack all dang day...
Aaaaand that's just the start!!! I'd love to give you a sample grocery list, of what I buy when I shop, if that helps?? And pantry staples. I think a big part of being successful at this is bringing home the right foods to begin with, and having the tools/ingredients you need at hand.
Oh and also, my DH is technically a meat eater, but he has adapted his tastes since I'm the cook in the house, and he now realizes how most people's meals are centered around a hunk of meat. There is so much more out there to experience and enjoy when it comes to food.
That doesn't mean your hubs should stop enjoying like a nice steak out, or his favorite chicken dish necessarily, but he may like this more than he's expecting to. To me, there are way more benefits from not eating meat than eating it, but I don't judge others for their beliefs about food. I just get really excited when someone tells me they're cutting back meat, or going full veg!
What else can I do to help you Louie?? :-)
Hey!
My biggest go to is edamame! I eat it daily!!!
Also I might suggest that you cut out anything processed and eat the outside of the grocery story.
For me cutting out Gluten changed my life (I am Celiac) BUT my husband is not and stopped eating it for me at home. When he goes out and eats Gluten he feels yucky. I actually think that might do more than cutting the meat. Just food for thought!
I also eat a ton of nuts. I carry them everywhere.
Branz gave the bulk of great advice though
.
Keep us updated on how you feel.
Thanks for the mention Branz! Since I heard my name I thought it would comment.
Louie - I feel your pain. My life is too often ruled by the bathroom!! And the work bathroom is like right There, and has no airflow. So my days can turn uncomfortable Pretty quickly.
Stopping eating meat helped a lot in that sense, but I think you need to listen to your body and see if there are any triggers. So you drink coffee? Coffee is a big no-no. Switch to green or mint tea.
Branz mentioned she snacks all day long, and that's a good thing. People at work always go on at me for eating so much, but seriously, snacking is good for the frustrated stomach. Little amounts all the time are less likely to upset you than two or three big meals. My other suggestion is not to move around too much after you eat. Just have a nice quite sit.
As for food suggestions, I'm a bit useless there. Japanese noodle and stir-fry veg are my staple. Weird things like Mcdonalds Cheesseburgers (no meat) don't upset me, and nor do these cheese and spinich triangles DH buys, but normally I stay well away from pastry. White chocolate is good too. I like to bake wholemeal fruit cakes for my morning snack. As much fruit as you can pack in there, and cut back on the sugar.
Don't forgot, Tofu is your friend. Do you get Quorn there? It's processed, but good to keep in the freezer for when you can't be bothered cooking. At home we bake a lot of veges, and do things like pasta bakes with more veg than pasta. And the other day I made tofu pies. I'm terrible with fresh fruit.
So to sum up, listen to Branz, she is smart.
I edited my title to include Kath! I wasn't aware that you were also a vegetarian -- sorry! If there is any other 8/10 Nestie that also is, please include your advice too!
Thanks to all three of you for advice. My SIL is celiac and a vegetarian and has always given me some good tips, but lives a very different lifestyle than myself due to where she lives (big cities!). My sweet little Nashville suburb has no idea what a Whole Foods is. It's pretty frustrating to grocery shop, especially with high food costs and not much money. But we deal, right?
The best advice SIL gave me was to keep a food journal to really figure out what bothers me and what makes my stomach happy, kinda like what you touched on Kathiiy.
I think eating smaller meals would be something worth trying. Getting the notion of 3 square meals will be tough to kick, but I guess I shouldn't feel guilty if I don't have a true sit-down breakfast or lunch.
From all the snacks you mentioned branz, I think I'm doing pretty well already! I love hummus, nuts, veggies, and fruit. My friends think I'm gross because I love plain Greek yogurt.
And yes, I'd love to know what your staples and grocery list normally consists of!
Storm - DH loves edamame, thank goodness. I will also remember to shop the perimeter of the grocery store come Monday on my trip!
I guess the only other question now is vitamins/supplements. Take any? I'm diligent about my One A Day and I take a daily probiotic and a 1000 IU of Vitamin D because I have a severe deficiency. My dad says that could be another cause of my health being so sucky, so I hope the extra D works!
Do the creep.
OY Vitamins.... They are my nemesis right now. I am deficient in B12, folic acid and vitamin D. I am taking every other day injections of the B12 and 1500mg of vit D a week.
It concerns me that you are Vitamin D deficient and having these digestive issues... I would really consider talking to your MD about Celiac. Both things you talk about are VERY common in undiagnosed cases.
Oh goodie, ok, I'll send you my list of grocery/pantry staples this week. :-) And I do understand that I am fortunate to live where I live, and that my diet choices are not unusual or difficult to come by here. Hopefully it won't be too bad to make the switch where you live.
I don't take vitamins...I get what I need from what I eat. But my mom takes B12; she veg too. I guess some people's bodies need the extra you know?
I have to say the food journal idea is brilliant, but because Storm has experience with Celiac and is concerned, you may want to pose the question to your Doc. Do the journal as well tho, to see what foods cause you problems or if it's certain times of the day, etc.
And thanks for saying I'm smart Kath ;-) ego booooost haha
I care about your grocery list Branz!! Put it up for all to see.
As for the vitamins, I don't take any. Even if I take them on a full stomach they tend to make me feel sick. I used to take clacium and iron, but haven't noticed not taking the iron.
We should all be taking calcium, and are naughty, naughty girls if we don't.
storm, I will definitely be talking to my doctor. He diagnosed me with IBS a long long time ago, but I've often wondered whether I have an underlying allergy to something. I've never been tested however because he takes blood work and says I need to be on Vit D. If after taking these supplements for a while and my symptoms are still present, I think I'll be making a quick appointment and asking to be tested further.
branz, I'm not sure what I can't be PM. I can PM everyone else and I've looked over all my settings! What's going onnnn????
Do the creep.