Hey, everyone. Hope you’re all holding up okay. Well, I made it through my first week of the elimination diet. It hasn’t been too horrible, although I do miss chocolate! So far, I haven’t noticed any significant improvements, but it almost seems like my skin is clearing up a bit. The hormonal acne hit me pretty hard when I got off birth control, so I’m hoping this will help and it’s not just a placebo effect.
I know I mentioned last week that I got a new phone. I put on some makeup just for fun today to test out the camera. Trust me, there’s acne on that chin!
It’s definitely a lot clearer and I’ve been enjoying playing around with it. My favorite feature is the portrait mode, which I’ve been using for food photos. I’ve been keeping track of my meals in a food journal and ensuring I am staying committed to the diet. This week, I’ve made dairy-free, gluten-free mac and “cheese,” gluten-free avocado toast, homemade black bean burgers, cod “breaded” with almond flour and seasoning, crockpot chicken tenders, and lots of fruits and vegetables. The black bean burgers were so great! I think I will make them again for a recipe post–I haven’t done that in a while and want to get back to it.
Every day, breakfast is the same: a smoothie with kale or mixed greens, blueberries, ginger, turmeric, Amazing Grass greens, marine collagen, chia, and flax. Generally, my snacks are nuts (except peanuts) apples, and kiwi. Lunch ranges from leftovers to salad to avocado toast, and dinner has been things like turkey burgers, fish, veggies, chicken. and gluten-free pasta. There are so many good gluten-free products that I think I’ll probably continue this for a while, especially since it’s apparently not great for thyroid health.
I think the hardest part of the diet is that I have always had a sweet tooth, which I know isn’t very good, and now, I can’t just stifle it with some dark chocolate or peanut butter. I came up with a muffin recipe that is refined sugar-free (uses honey), grain-free (I don’t even use baking soda), gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free. I made three varieties: banana-nut. lemon, and strawberry-banana. They may be a bit dense for some, but I found them super-good!
I’ve been working harder to make sure I am stretching every day using yoga poses and I also use the Calm app at night to practice a brief meditation. I’m not that great at it, but I plan to be consistent. I am still not feeling quite like my normal self yet, but it feels like I’m getting closer, so I’m going to keep working hard for my health. I would love to get to an optimal level for my hormones and general well-being.
Tomorrow, I am going to use the Target drive-up to pick up some gluten-free and dairy-free snacks that meet the requirements, like Siete grain-free tortilla chips. seaweed chips, and lemon Lara Bars. I also grabbed a face mask and candle so I can hopefully have a relaxing weekend. Plus, I just realized that I’ll have Monday off for Memorial Day. Things are a bit limited, of course, but hopefully I’ll sleep in and maybe go for a bike ride or a hike.
I hope you all have a great long weekend!
Breeanna Living Brilliantly 