Everyday Baby Steps

I just thought I'd touch base and give you all an update on my wheat and dairy-free diet. It hasn't quite been two months. While I've had some slips and setbacks, I'd say that I'm doing pretty well overall. It really hasn't been that difficult adjusting to the things I'm able to eat and making substitutions. In fact, I kind of enjoy it. I feel a real sense of pride in knowing that I'm doing something good for my body and that I'm also working toward a healthier weight.

I haven't exactly reached the goal I had hoped for at this point. This past weekend, I went out of town to visit with some girlfriends. My goal was to fit into my regular button-up jeans. No more elastic or drawstrings for me. Well, I almost made it, and that's something to be proud of. Here's a couple pictures of me. The first was taken about three weeks ago, and the second was taken just a few days ago. The jeans I'm wearing in the "after" picture are not the ones I was hoping to fit into, but they are a pair I didn't fit into comfortably at the beginning of my diet. I can now wear them, and they fit pretty well.

I don't think you can really see a difference in the photos, but I can feel a difference. I fell off the wagon a bit during my girls' weekend, but that's okay. I'm not going to feel guilty about setbacks. I intend to focus, instead, on my successes. I've been able to make changes in my eating, and I feel confident that I can continue making those changes. The weight will come off with time. I must say that I'm feeling pretty good about my progress.

Have you made significant progress toward a personal goal? Let me hear about it! Leave a comment.

I'm still eating wheat and milk free. It's been nearly two weeks, and I am noticing a difference. My pants are fitting a wee bit better. My guess is that I'm losing water weight and bloating more than anything else. But it's something at least. And I have to keep reminding myself of my baby steps philosophy. It certainly won't come iovernight. Baby steps.

I'm pretty proud of myself though. Not eating ingredients that are in everything is pretty hard. I sorely miss my chocolate and cheese. Recently, I've realized that my good intentions are being sabotaged by some very sneaky snacks. Some of the snacks foods I've allowed myself, thinking they are free of wheat and dairy ingredients, have surprised me. You'd be surprised what foods contain wheat and milk.

I've told you about ingredients like casein and whey that you need to look for in the ingredient labels. These are milk derivatives contained in the flavorings of many products. But let me tell you about some of the surprising foods I've found to be culprits containing wheat and/or milk.

• Licorice - Who knew that licorice has wheat in it? Oh, yes, it does! Check out the ingredient list of your favorite licorice products like Twizzlers or Good N' Plenty. They have flour in them. My guess is the flour helps to bond the other ingredients.
• Honey Roasted Peanuts - They contain milk. Yep. At least the ones I bought last week do. I had no idea. I thought this would be a good choice for a sweet, salty, and crunchy snack. Oh well, it's probably more sugar than I should eat anyway. Bummer.
• McDonald's french fries - I so love McD's fries. Yum. But, alas, they have both wheat and milk in them.  Last I checked, anyway. Has anyone heard differently? If so, let me know!

These are just a few of the big examples coming to mind. I know there are so many others I need to be careful of. I can't avoid all traces of wheat and milk, but I'm sure trying. As a matter of fact, I'm sitting here in Panera Bread typing this blog post. And all I ordered was a coffee. No yummy, crunchy bagels. No pastries. I'm so good. Aren't you proud of me? I do have some incentive, though. My goal is to be able to wear jeans with snaps by February 20th when I go with my girlfriends to visit a member oif our group who lives across the state. I think I can do it.

Photo courtesy of evelynishere from flickr

Everyone's been asking how I'm managing to avoid wheat and milk in my diet. It certainly isn't easy, otherwise I would have stuck with it ages ago. But it is possible to eliminate wheat and dairy products from your diet with a little planning and creativity. Thankfully, my allergies aren't as severe as some, people's but they do cause me to feel fatigued and to get frequent headaches. I'm feeling so much better since eliminating the trigger foods, and I believe I am actually losing weight! So here are some of the ways I'm sticking with it this time.

Variety

Any diet is hard to stick to if you have to eat the same thing all the time. While I am eating ALOT of salads these days, I try to mix it up by adding different things to my salad. Last night, I had a taco salad with leftover taco meat, salsa, and tortilla chips. Of course, I had to skip the cheese and sour cream, but it was pretty tasty without them. Sometimes I have tuna or chicken salad on a bed of lettuce. I'll add almonds, raisins, or apples for a bit of sweetness.

Texture

No, I don't just eat salads! When I'm craving something crunchy or salty, I'll eat tortilla chips or rice cakes. You have to be careful about things like flavored rice cakes though. Some of the most common milk derivative ingredients that people may not be aware of are whey, casein, and caseinate. Check the ingredient list carefully.For example, I can't eat even the cheddar flavored rice cakes, but the caramel ones are good to go.

Another thing I like to snack on now is cereal. I can eat Corn Chex or Rice Chex. Kix are also good; they have a new honey flavor. I've tried adding soy milk, but this is something I just can't get accustomed to. So I eat it dry, and it provides a nice breakfast with a piece of fruit or a crunchy snack during the day.

Flavor

A girl's gotta have chocolate. And, believe it or not, I can. One of my favorite indulgences is Pierre's chocolate sorbet. Yummy. And it contains no dairy. Even my kids love it. It's creamy and rich, giving you the illusion that you're eating ice cream. You can also buy a frozen treat made from soy instead of cream. Almost as good. I like the chocolate peanut butter kind best. I mix it with soy milk and a scoop of real peanut butter in the blender for a really good smoothie.

Another favorite of mine is cheese. While I can no longer snack on cheese and crackers, I've found a great substitute. Veggie Cheese is quite good. My recommendation is to get the pepper jack or other flavor, as it masks the texture a bit. I add Veggie Cheese to my omelettes, and you'd never know the difference.

Convenience

Finally, as a mom, probably the most important thing in sticking with a change in eating habits is convenience. I've started eating Lean Cusine dinners. They're really surprisingly good. I bought them on sale, and I was a little nervous because I bought ten. I'm so glad I did. Being able to grab one and put it in the microwave and have a healthy meal in five minutes keeps me from grabbing something that doesn't fit in my diet. I had to be careful when making my choices, but I was able to find ten different meals containing no wheat or milk. Remember, variety is important.

There are lots of things you can do to improve your diet, even if allergies aren't an issue for you. I've found that making these substitutions isn't as hard as I thought it would be. And the extra effort is definitely worth it. I think I may even be able to button my old jeans soon!