I am pretty amazed that it only took 3 days of Christmas eating to go back to how badly I felt 11 weeks ago, before I started "Digestive Health with Real Food".

I'm not even eating as badly as I could be and am already feeling horrible today. Christmas day was pretty much a free-for-all day. I ate lots of Christmas chocolate, Christmas dinner (although I remained gluten free, no dressing), and wine. I have also eaten too much chocolate and a few drinks the last couple of days as well and am now paying for it. My knee started hurting again last night; hasn't bothered me in weeks. My IBS is back, full force; had to take Pepto today. Also, up 3 pounds in 3 days :(

Feeling overall horrible; tired and achy, and that's after only three days :( Also, I have been eating good meals along with homemade (gluten and dairy free) baked items in those three days as well. Eating my Chicken Soup for lunch and having ground pork, veggies and eggs for breakfast. Zucchini bread with berry sauce and chocolate banana squares for snacking, that I made.

I have been doing really well following Digestive Health with Real Food for the last 10 weeks, but now it's Christmas. I do not want to undo all the good I have done over the last several weeks but I also want to enjoy my Christmas holiday with family and friends. I always find moderation hard and have an all or nothing attitude. I also do better with rules. I have decided that Christmas Day will be an eat what I want day :) I will have my Christmas chocolate, turkey dinner, glass of wine, etc... I know it will probably make me feel ill and I am kind of hoping it does so I don't go too overboard. I have to be realistic and know I will also be a little less diligent following all the rules over the holidays. I will try to stick to more real food options though and also still try to eliminate gluten and dairy as I think they negatively affect me a lot.
I don't want this to be me :(

Had a great food weekend!
Had a delicious rib-eye steak and roasted veggies Friday evening. Delicious :)
Had cooked breakfast Saturday and Sunday mornings :)
Had baked Halibut and steamed carrot Saturday evening.
Had tuna steak and green beans tonight.
All meals were topped with olive oil after cooking and a little salt :)
​Even better, Hubby cooked every meal mentioned except for one breakfast; not too shabby :)

Some of my meals this past week; ground pork & veggies, salmon with spinach & carrot, baked chicken breast with veggies, prime rib & green beans, eggs with bacon & carrot, Boston bluefish with carrots, and Cornish hen with roasted veggies:

I will admit the ground pork fried crispy with veggies has become a favorite for me. I often have it for breakfast, sometimes with eggs on top :)

I am doing really well with this plan. I am still feeling so much better and still dropping weight. Just over 22 pounds gone now in nine weeks. I haven't been doing so well with the reintroduction phase though. I have only been successful with eggs so far and tried very little else yet. I am hoping to soon try some different veggies, thinking maybe avocado and squash :)

I have been following Digestive Health with Real Food for 61 days. Many people have asked me how I can do it and if it's difficult. Yes, it is difficult; but doable. I am proof.

Don't get me wrong, it was and still is difficult. The first couple of weeks were the most difficult and now I have mostly good days with a few major and minor craving or down days mixed in.

I think when you feel bad enough health-wise for so long and really feel a lot of it has to do with what you are feeding your body, there will come a time when you have had enough and are willing to try anything, no matter how drastic. I reached my point about 9 weeks ago.
I was exhausted all the time and often had to rest during the day.
I often felt like I was coming down with something but didn't actually get ill.
My knees and feet were aching or paining most days and stairs were becoming more difficult.
I was starting to develop gout in my big toe.
My inflammation factors from blood work were very high and only getting higher.
I often experienced brain fog and feelings of forgetfulness (I'm only 42).
My IBS symptoms were pretty extreme and a daily occurrence. Also, ongoing for 20+ years.
I didn't sleep well and always woke up very tired and groggy.
I suffered from muscle cramps (especially in my calves) and muscle twitching.
I was at my heaviest weight ever, regardless of eating well, and had extreme trouble dropping weight and keeping it off.
I was moody (ask Hubby, I didn't realize this one :) lol)
I would get hungry often and had really bad cravings. When I got really hungry I would shake, feel bad/ill, and get really irritable.
I felt sick and sad most of the time, overall just horrible, and I needed to do something. I tried switching my diet a couple of years ago to real food. This helped but not enough. I finally gave in and started this plan with the elimination phase.

The Good:
Exhaustion is gone, no more mid-day resting.
Not feeling ill.
My knees and feet have almost stopped aching completely.
Gout is pretty much gone.
Haven't rechecked blood work yet but expecting my inflammation factors to be reduced.
Brain fog has reduced (I think, can't remember, baaahaahaaa lol).
IBS symptoms have greatly improved (not completely gone but may be underlying cause; awaiting appointment).
Sleep has improved, sleeping better and waking feeling more rested.
Muscle cramps and twitching have lessened.
Have lost over 20 lbs in 8 weeks, lowest I have been in years.
Feeling happier and so is Hubby lol :)
Eating less often throughout the day, not feeling ravenous anymore, and cravings have lessened. No shaking or bad feelings even when I get hungry.
Overall, feeling so much better :)

The Bad:
It is a very restrictive plan and therefore very hard to follow correctly. In the beginning you eliminate most foods: no grains, no dairy, no sugar, no fruit, very limited vegetables, limited spices/seasonings, no processed foods, no nuts, no eggs, no caffeine, no alcohol, and no bad fats. Think that covers it. You can eat meats and fish, healthy fats (olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil & ghee), and four vegetables (green beans, spinach, carrots, & zucchini). This phase lasts a minimum of 3 weeks but can be as long as 8. I was closer to the eight :(
In the beginning it can be very difficult and many people feel worse getting started because your body is coming off all the junky foods.
I am not happy with the amount of meat I am eating now and don't allow myself to think too much about it. I was vegetarian for a couple of years but bacon pulled me back to the dark side :)

The Ugly:
This plan hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be and I will admit it does get easier over time.
It is very difficult to follow correctly over longer times.
You do eat a lot of meats.
It can make you be a little anti-social as I won't go out as often because my diet is so restricted it is often too difficult to go to restaurants or friend's houses and not have anything. Also, it's difficult listening to friends and family tell you to go ahead and have a drink or some food because you only live once, or a little bit won't hurt :( Until I find out which foods are actually causing me problems then a little bit can hurt me :(

I am still following the plan outlined in Digestive Health with Real Food. It has gotten much easier as you get a routine going, feel better and lose weight :) I have lost over 20 pounds in 8 weeks :) One big thing I have noticed while following this plan is I am eating less than I normally did and I'm not as hungry. Before, I would eat every few hours and feel hungry often. I ate my meals and lots of snacks but rarely felt satisfied for long. There were times when I would feel so hungry I would get the shakes, get irritable and feel ill. That doesn't happen anymore, at all. Some days I can skip a meal and not even realize it until later.
​Some meals this past week included fish (Hoki), eggs & bacon (homemade), trout, fried ground pork with veggies & egg, lamb/pork burgers, halibut, beef stir-fry, and baked chicken breast with veggies. Everything is cooked in healthy amounts of olive oil, avocado oil or ghee, and I very often top my food with another healthy amount of oil after cooking; usually a flavored high-quality olive oil.

I just finished week 7 of Digestive Health with Real Food. I am done the elimination phase portion and have started the reintroduction phase. I was successful in reintroducing eggs so they are now part of my regular diet. I tried prosciutto (thinking it was a good choice because limited ingredients) but it turns out that aged meats are not good for everyone. I tried prosciutto for 2 of the recommended 3/4 days and had stomach pain both nights. I stopped it then, therefore Prosciutto is out for now. Next I plan to try avocado :) So hard to pick just 1 food you want to try that you have been missing.

Still feeling much better and have lost almost 20 pounds since I started; Wow!

Some of my meals this past week: