29 Day Reset... Update

OK, so it is only February 23rd today, but I decided to rethink/rejig the 29 day reset thing. My gut told me it wasn't a good idea! After three weeks of strict paleo, my gut should be happy, but it is actually in a worse state than it has been in a long time.

I removed a few things from my diet like paleo "bread", butter, cheese, chia pudding and buckweat porridge. Instead I upped my intake of vegetables, meat, egg and fish. In theory this is a good thing, but without realising, I added in a shedload extra beetroot, which didn't agree with me (everyone could smell the consequences - yuck). So now I have backed off from beetroot and I am instead experimenting with removing high FODMAP foods. I have been thinking about the high FODMAP thing for quite a while, but I haven't had the energy to look into it or implement it properly.

Oh so good breakfast, but sadly the beetroot and avocado are high FODMAP foods. Bye-bye for now.

What is FODMAP? These are foods high in Fermentable Oligo-saccharides, Di-saccharides, Mono-saccharides and Polyols. They are short-chain carbohydrates that are difficult for the gut to absorb. Instead they feed bad bacteria in the gut, which ferment and produce gases. This causes problems for some people and none for others. I think I am in the group, which experiences problems from high FODMAP foods. 

So, my new project is to follow a low FODMAP diet for a while. The diet seems really restrictive, but I have read that a lot of people can reintroduce moderate/higher FODMAP foods after two-six weeks. We'll see how long I last!

These are some of the foods on the completely avoid list (yikes!):
Garlic
Onion
Beetroot
Cauliflower
Cashew nuts
Apple

And these are on the really quite small portions list (maybe more yikes!):
Avocado (1/8)
Coconut milk (100 ml)
Any nuts and seeds (a handful)... one slice of paleo bread???
Cabbage (250 ml)
Celery (5 cm)
Broccoli (75 ml)
Butternut squash (50 ml)

Here is the list that I consulted: Fodmaplife.com

On the bright side, sauerkraut is allowed, as the carbohydrates are consumed during the lacto-fermenting process! Yay!

Frothy, lovely fat coffee

Meanwhile, I am reintroducing moderate amounts of coffee to cheer me up. It is an interesting experiment to remove the coffee (severe grumpiness on days 3-5), so I am looking to only drink coffee 2-3 times a week from now on. Wish me luck!