This post comes from my lovely sister Brooks, who is about to undergo a significant change in her diet and in addition to being in the process of moving to a new apartment!
As far as fitness and dieting goes, I have never been one for half measures. I am one of those people who feels like going to the gym is only worthwhile if you can be there for an hour or more. If I am dieting, I tend to eat like a pathological teenage girl, surviving on gum, Diet Coke, and playing the “who can leave more food on their plate Olympics” with my other pathological immature friends. I prefer weight control for the young and insane.
However, my body no longer tolerates this behavior. When I was younger, I could do pretty much as I pleased with my body and wake up feeling much the same as the night before. It was as if I died every night in my sleep and was resurrected with a new body, sins washed away, and ready to face another day of self-abuse. Those days are gone. One glass of wine is sometimes enough to make me feel as if I am being punished by a sentient being. Not enough water in the day and I might as well kill myself. What is worse is that I am so acutely aware of my body now that anything fun I do now registers as pain. I am the princess and no Vitamin A for a day or two would be the pea. I feel it all.
The concept behind yoga is that as we establish a better mind-connection, we get closer to truth and each other. As we age, we unavoidably feel every consequence behind our actions and the effects on our body. Perhaps it is the undoing of our youthful invincibility that has something to do with the softening of our hearts and the beginning of adulthood. Beyond this greater awareness that I can no longer do anything without repercussions, I am also aware that I am no longer the person that I once was. I have learned a lot about the way others choose to live or must live. And that brings me to fellow 2FNSer, Ellie. I remember when I first met her about two and a half years ago, one of the only things I really remembered about her was that she was gluten-free and I remembered thinking that was both fussy and odd. Since that time, I have learned far more about Ellie, and I have also learned more about what people with dietary restrictions go through and struggle with on a regular basis. Many of the customers that come into my coffee shop are gluten-free because I have made a concerted effort to build a menu that works for them and to bring in items from a gluten-free bakery. Hearing what they struggle with and what their needs are, I learned about how my pre-judgments about Ellie were unfair. Often we believe that people who have special dietary needs are just trying to be difficult or are just being picky when their reasons to do so could run the gamut from trying to make smart life choices and stick to them to a life-threatening allergy. Either way, it is something to respect.
So, all of this is in an introduction to say that for the month of July, Dave and I decided to go gluten-free. We wanted to do this for a number of reasons.
- Be more empathetic towards people with dietary restrictions; get to know the needs of gluten-free customers better. This will lead to better customer service in my coffee shop and better menu development.
- Become better home cooks; be more creative and use more whole foods. This means shopping in the produce sections and staying away from those boxes of pasta. It also means bringing in grains like quinoa, rice, lentils, and learning how to meal plan again.
- Be more mindful eaters. Instead of eating the bread in the bread basket at the restaurant or just eating the hors d’oeuvres because they are there, decide whether you are hungry before the go hunting for something you can actually eat. Also, you have to ask if those chips are gluten-free before you eat a whole pound of them with your queso dip (oh god, is queso GF?).
- Because moving is not fun enough, we had to spice up July more. But really, what better way to hit reset than move and try to change our eating patterns at the same time? I am excited to track any physiological changes that we experience and see if gluten-free is really a better way.
Hopefully this doesn’t annoy any people out there like Ellie who are GF for medical reasons and dream of pizza and beer, but we really are doing this to see how the 0.01% lives and try to kind of raise our own level of awareness. As someone in the restaurant industry, who does a lot of menu development, I think I’ll find out that I could do a lot better.
Day one, despite waking up and feeling like all I wanting to eat was a bagel and deeply wanting a beer all day, has been great. So far we have done two very hearty salads as we are moving to a new apartment and elaborate cooking was just not in the cards. Wish us luck and send tips and recipes! More to come.
This is an awesome idea, Brooks. I hope to read updates from you guys throughout the month so we can see your progress and how the diet is affecting you both. I went gluten free for about three days before I snapped at my roommate and ate a pizza. So, I wish you luck in your endeavor.
I love the idea of this, especially for anyone working in the restaurant industry. I think it will really give a unique perspective into how difficult it really is to go out for food. Gluten is really in a ton of things, and even things you don’t think about, like soups, mustards, and even licorice. It really makes you have to check everything.
Depending on the severity of the allergy, food prepared, say in a deep fryer that was used to cook other gluten food, can trigger issues even if what you order doesn’t have any directly in it.
Great idea, and great post!
It’s true! I once ate about four Pull-and-Peel Twizzlers before we realized that the main ingredient is wheat. Not cool, Twizzlers. Also, be careful at restaurants. If you’re unsure if the tortilla chips or tomato soup or what have you are GF and you ask your server, he or she A) may not know what gluten is or B) might tell you anything you want to hear just to get you to eat it. I’ve been the victim of both of these, ha ha.
Thanks for the shout-out, Brooks. 🙂 I hope you guys enjoy all the crazy new foods you get to try! And just ignore the GF cookie mixes that end up tasting and feeling like sand in your mouth. They are a bad representation of all the other good GF stuff out there, heh.
Good luck. There are some good GF beers out there if you want one on a hot day- New Planet- from CO, and Greens. GF for over 2 years- it gets easier the longer you are on it. The bagel cravings lessen 🙂 but there are some ok GF bagels out there too. It also helps to focus on what you can eat- lots of fruits, veggies, meats, instead of want you are missing.
Hopefully the GF industry will figure out a way to bring down the GF prices as they are ridiculous. Quinoa comes in flakes- so it is an instant cereal. Add ground flax seed and cinnamon for more flavor. Never thought I would be eating that 2 years ago.!!
I know a great gluten free bakery when you are really ready to kill someone! … But that isn’t the point is it?!
Oh my gosh, I remember that place (unless it’s not the one you took me to, ha ha)!
Sooo gooood!!!
Love this post Brooks, I have been trying a new diet that involves a lot of shakes and soups that are so good and make me FEEL so good that I just want to stay on it forever! But not sure if it is GF, I will investigate and if it is, send you recipes! Hey, there’s another idea Jono… Healthy recipes board ! This may become a profession for you 🙂
Great idea, I’ll create a section which will have people post comments, and i’ll update the page with them after I test them!