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Rolling with the Punches


Welcome to the week one update of my gut healing journey, and what a week it was. It's easy to think that healing and working on yourself is a linear process but just like life we are easily thrown curve balls and roadblocks. It's all in how you roll with the punches. For me this week felt like never ending curve balls and roadblocks but in hindsight it really wasn’t THAT bad, maybe i'm being a little dramatic. I often struggle with an “all or nothing” approach which is probably due to my history with toxic diet culture. If you're not all in, then you'll never see results - which is simply not true. When it comes to healing the gut it's not an overnight process but a series of great choices and steps in the right direction. It’s more so about building lasting healthy habits than being an overnight success.




This weeks Challenges:

Some of my biggest challenges this week were going out for dinner (my dad turned 65 this week), girls night and being only partially prepared for my week. I don't have a hard time navigating restaurant menus nor am I that person that heavily modifies my meals to fit in certain restrictions. I do my best to pick a meal that represents what I like to eat. I don’t eat out often so when I do, I don’t stress about the meal but focus on enjoying the experience. While I naturally stay away from dairy products with the exception of grass-fed butter, dairy and I just don’t get along, I am a sucker for a light cream sauce. For dinner I decided on the pistachio crusted cod that came with wild rice and a white wine cream sauce - YUM, I enjoyed a nice glass of wine, shout out to my brother- in-law for picking a real winner, and a spoonful of dessert just because I was full not because I felt “guilty.” I had an amazing time with my family, went home with a full tummy and carried on with my week.


A big part of gut healing protocols is removing inflammatory foods and incorporating more anti-inflammatory options. For example dairy, gluten, alcohol and vegetable oils are all very inflammatory and typically found when eating out. The important thing to remember here is that one meal will not make or break your journey, and tbh neither will the second less than ideal meal which brings us to the topic of girls night. I am going to be super honest with you. Had this been week three or four of my gut healing journey I would have definitely been more strict about choosing to drink at girls' night and dabbling in the tasty cheeses, but week one really is about getting the ball rolling not perfection. I enjoyed a nice variety of all there was to offer - crudite, truffle cheese, homemade crostini, spinach dip, burrata in an avocado bruschetta - without feeling any type of way about it. Now I don’t drink nearly as much as I used to but every now then I do enjoy a nice cocktail or five lol.


All that aside, week one of my gut healing journey wasn’t a bad start and wasn’t too far of a stretch of how I typically eat from week-to-week. As we move forward into week two my meal plan is more focused and organized and a little more repetitive. Sometimes the best thing you can do to set yourself up for success for the week is to look over your schedule and evaluate where you might run into challenges. For example this week I have three appointments after work which means dinner will either be later than I usually eat or I’ll have less time to prepare dinner a la minute once I am home. Taking that into consideration I decided to incorporate easy to throw together meals that I can prepare in advance and throw together in under 10 minutes. Another thing I consider for those days is packing snacks. I don’t typically snack during the day or between meals. My meals tend to happen later in the day and are well spaced, breakfast around 11 followed by lunch at 3 and dinner around 6:30/7, having some energy balls on hand just incase can be a real savior and keep my blood sugar balanced.


Here's your chance to grab a copy of this weeks meal plan. Whether you are following along or are a week behind, I hope you enjoy the many tasty options I am serving up on this Gut Healing Journey.

xo,

jules


 
 
 

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