One year ago, on July first to be exact, I started eating a gluten free diet. I actually have given up other foods as well including peanuts, cottage cheese, bananas, mushrooms, and lemon. I also limit my dairy foods. Why did I decide to eat a diet that eliminated so many foods that I enjoyed daily? After years of dealing with stomach issues (especially while running), I decided to take a food sensitivity test from Everlywell. The test determined that I was highly reactive to peanuts and moderately reactive to mushroom, gluten, wheat, lemon, cottage cheese, and cows milk. There were also fifteen foods that made it to my mild reactive list and 72 on low reactive. I decided not to even deal with the mild reactive list and stick to the highly reactive and moderate reactive items. On July 1, 2018, I decided to cut out peanuts, gluten, wheat, cottage cheese, lemon, mushroom, and bananas. I will eat foods with milk in them, but would not drink a glass of milk. What has been good about my food elimination diet? I feel better. I have less trips to the bathroom when I am out running. Mainly, I just feel better. What are the challenges as I see them? Food is very social. When I attend a gathering, food is almost always involved. I quietly scan the food options looking for what I can eat so that I do not draw attention to my plate. There are almost always things that I can eat. It is difficult to turn down treats. I work as an elementary teacher. When students bring birthday treats, I either need to decline the treat or accept it and tell them I will "eat it later." My family is supportive, but does not prefer eating a gluten free diet so I often plan to make dinner with and without gluten. After a long day of work however, I often make dinner with gluten and give up on making a separate item for myself. I end up eating something else. Going out to a restaurant is difficult. Many restaurants do not have gluten free options on their menu, but more restaurants are offering gluten free items. Even after eating a gluten free item a restaurant, I sometimes have stomach issues. I used to love going out to eat. I have learned to cook at home and eat out occasionally. While this diet has helped me personally, it is important to remember that it is not for everyone.
Happy Running! -Stephanie
1 Comment
Patrick
7/8/2019 10:15:15 pm
I don’t think you’re missing much when it comes to gluten. Just ask Missee!
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AuthorMissee and Stephanie are two Minnesota sisters and moms who love to run. We are not experts in running, parenting or anything else, but we do have years of experiences that may be helpful or entertaining to others. Archives
May 2020
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