How many times do you eat in a day? If you’re a snacker like me (I’m trying to reduce it down #goals), food might go in your body six times a day or more. If you’re not growing it or buying it directly from the farm, you are likely putting 100s of ingredients in your body, EVERY DAY!
Take a simple, clean protein shake. Protein powder (10-20), Almond Milk (5), Nut Butter (1) Fruit (1) Flax Seeds (1). All super healthy, and 25 different elements combined to give you this one delicious treat.
Why does that matter? If you’re not feeling 100 Percent, tired all the time, can’t concentrate, always hungry, or struggling to drop a few lbs, even though you’re “eating good and working out”, there is a solid chance your body is intolerant to something in that food. When you think of a “food intolerance,” you’re probably thinking of people who have to run to the bathroom after eating gluten, or are doubled over in pain after drinking a glass of milk. But, intolerances can manifest in your body in seemingly small ways…. like a nagging headache, weight gain, inflamed joints or exhaustion.
I struggled with horrible digestive issues for years that later were linked to intolerances to eggs, gluten, dairy and a few other randoms. But, I also recently have been fighting mid-day exhaustion and achy joints, so I know it’s time to take a hard look in my pantry and figure it out.
So where do you start? First, get in touch with your body and start a log of how you feel and what you consume throughout the day, either on paper or in apps like myfitnesspal or mysymptoms. The mysymptoms app will correlate symptoms with food and give you a report of “suspect” foods (amazing!!). Feel a headache coming on? Notice your knee is hurting and feels inflamed? Write it down. You’ll start to notice a pattern and make the connection.
Second, try an Elimination diet. Once you can pinpoint suspect foods, try kicking them out of your life for a period of time, then reintroduce one and a time. It is key to let your body calm down after ingesting the foods it didn’t like for so long, then once you bring it back, you will probably feel symptoms right away. Now you know what’s not working!
There are quite a few diets (p.s. I hate that word, but it’s all I’ve got to work with!) that can give you a roadmap. Here’s a few to investigate to see if it works for you (I personally feel so much better restricting FODMAPs. sorry broccoli.)
- FODMAPS diet – eliminating specific foods that usually cause bloating and other tummy issues)
- Anti-inflammatory diet – helps to calm inflammation
- Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) – pulls down inflammation in people with autoimmune conditions. Super restrictive, but hugely beneficial
- Elimination Diet
Lastly, its important to work with a doctor to make sure there isn’t a bigger issue, like a hormone imbalance, autoimmune condition, obstruction or other issue. While my issues were food related, I also had an autoimmune issue, thyroid dysfunction and wacky hormones. BUT, I also healed all of those with a diet change (and a few supplements), under strict direction from my naturopath.
All of this take effort, time and patience. But if you feel like sh*t right now, don’t you owe it to yourself to invest some time to improve your life? (the answer is, yes, in case you weren’t sure!)
Here’s to your health!
Inspired Best Self 