Gut Recovery Nutrition Plan

Disclaimer: too much information here and also not expertise in this arena yet, so also not enough information. Think experiment!

Too much information: lately I have been in and out of the bathroom more frequently than I desire. It wakes me up at night, it makes me nervous about eating, it makes working and hanging out with people precarious, and while it likely needs medical attention, I am going to try a gentle foods/allergen reduced diet to address it.

The following meal plan is my attempt to:

• Maintain a high protein diet to support my resistance training routine with a

• Reach a 2000kcal target that helps me meet my doctor's recommendation to eat more (I was previously shooting for 1800kcal)

• Ease my gastrointestinal distress by taking a break from dairy, gluten, and inflammatory foods, such as garlic, peppers, onions, and sugar alcohols (agh, I love all of these, particularly dairy, so this is hard 😋)

Breakfast

-1/3 can of yams, ~120kcal

-60g banana, ~50kcal

-32g PBFit peanut butter powder, 120kcal, 16g protein

-27g old fashioned oats, ~100kcal, 3 g protein

= 390kcal, 19g protein

Grocery List

[  ] Canned yams (×2 for 1 week, ×8 for 1 month)

[  ] Bananas (×4 for 1 week, buy each week for 1 month)

[  ] PBFit peanut butter powder

[  ] Old fashioned oats

Prep Instructions

-Cook oats on stove top or microwave

-Mash in sweet potatoes and banana and heat in the microwave

-Stir in peanut butter powder, and add water if it doesn't fully combine

-Eat warm or refidgerate for later

Coffee

-Four Sigmatic Happy Gut Organic Ground Coffee (it's a bit expensive, and I've been doing okay with normal coffee, but this one also has probiotics, which I like because I usually get those through yogurt—which is on vacation 🥲), 0kcal

-Unsweetened vanilla almond milk, 30kcal (I usually use less than a cup, more of a splash, but I just plug in the full serving size for days I have a second cup)

= 30kcal, 1g protein

(Subtotal: 420kcal, 20g protein)

Grocery List

[  ] Four Sigmatic Happy Gut Organic Ground Coffee

[  ] Unsweetened vanilla almond milk

Prep Instructions

-Brew coffee (I use a French press with about 3-4tbs coffee, but machine or fancy method works as well)

-Add almond milk to taste (can help reduce acidity of coffee)

Post-Workout

[  ] 40g old fashioned oats, 150kcal, 5g protein

[  ] 1/2 c or 115g unsweetened applesauce, ~60kcal

[  ] 16g creamy almond butter, ~95kcal, 3g protein

[  ] 1 scoop vegan pea protein powder, ~150kcal, 20-25g protein

=455kcal, 28-33g protein

(Subtotal: 875kcal, 48-53g protein)

Grocery List

[  ] Old fashioned oats (can buy a canister for breakfast and a canister for post-workout, or just buy in bulk for both)

[  ] Unsweetened applesauce (1 jar or 6 pre-packaged servings for the week, or 2-3 jars/4 packs of 6 servings for the month)

[  ] Almond butter

[  ] Vegan protein powder (I have Dymatize right now, but I also like Orgain and Ghost; you pick the flavor!)

Prep Instructions

-Scoop out oats, applesauce, almond butter, and protein powder into jars or sealable bowls

-Combine with water until pudding-like

-Refrigerate for an hour or longer and enjoy cold or warmed for 30 sec-1min in the microwave

Lunch

-45g brown rice, 150kcal, 3g protein

-1/4 package/4oz Laura's 92% lean ground beef, 160kcal, 21g protein

-1/2 bag Green Giant Simply Steam Broccoli Florets, ~40kcal, 4 g protein

=350kcal, 28g protein

(Subtotal: 1225kcal, 76-81g protein)

Grocery List

[  ] Rice (I have short grain brown rice, but white rice is typically easier to digest, and it doesn't really matter what the grain size is to my knowledge)

[  ] Ground beef (I have Laura's lean ground beef, but another type is fine; poultry might digest better than red meat)

[  ] Green Giant Simply Steam Broccoli Florets (2 bags for 1 week, 8 bags for 1 month)

Prep Instructions

-Cook 180g rice in rice cooker with 1c water and a dash of sea salt

-Microwave bags of broccoli and cook ground beef on skillet with salt and pepper and any other seasoning that doesn't upset your digestion

-Divide everything into four containers and freeze or refrigerate after everything has cooled

-Microwave when you are ready to eat lunch

Snack

-TruBar, 190kcal, 12g protein

-28g Terra Real Vegetable Chips, 160kcal, 1g protein

=350kcal, 13g protein

(Subtotal: 1575kcal, 89-94g protein)

Grocery List

[  ] TruBars (any flavor, buying in bulk at Costco is cheapest)

[  ] Terra Real Vegetable Chips (1-2 bags)

Prep Instructions

-Keep snacks in accessible places

-Consider pre portioning chips because they are delicious and eating half the bag is tempting 😋

Dinner

Option 1:

-1 medium/175g baked potato, ~160kcal, 4g protein

-4oz wild caught salmon, ~140kcal, 23g protein

-Lemon juice

-1/4 bag/84g frozen Italian cut green beans, 30kcal, 1g protein

=330kcal, 28g protein

(Subtotal: 1905kcal, 117-122g protein)

Option 2:

-28g Veggiecraft pasta, 200kcal, 14g protein

-Lemon juice

-1/2 bag Green Giant Simply Steam Broccoli Florets, ~40kcal, 4 g protein

-1/2 c/130g canellini beans, 100kcal, 7g protein

=340kcal, 25g protein

(Subtotal: 1915kcal, 114-119g protein)

Grocery List

[  ] Potatoes (×3-8)

[  ] Wild caught salmon (×4-8 filets)

[  ] Lemons or lemon juice

[  ] Frozen Italian cut green beans (×1-2 bags)

[  ] Frozen Green Giant Simply Steamed Broccoli Florets (×2-4 bags)

[  ] Veggiecraft pasta (any shape ×1-2 boxes)

[  ] Canned canellini beans (×2-4 cans)

Prep Instructions

-The thought with these two options is to do each meal twice during the month, but you could also buy less and just do each once

-For salmon, potatoes and green beans: cook salmon in oven or airfryer with lemon juice and gut-friendly spices; bake the potatoes day of or in advance—honestly, I don't know the best way to bake potatoes, so you and I can both look it up; and microwave green beans, adding seasoning if desired)

-For pasta: prepare pasta (any shape) according to instructions on the box; microwave the broccoli and drain the beans; combine it all together and add lemon juice and seasoning if desired; separate into desired serving sizes

Dessert

-1 serving Sweet Loren's gluten free cookie dough, ~120kcal, 2g protein

=120kcal, 2g protein

(Subtotal: 2025-2035kcal, 116-124g protein)

Grocery List

[  ] Sweet Loren's gluten free cookie dough (I like the brownie one, but they all look good)

Prep Instructions

-Eat raw or bake according to instructions on package

Grand Grocery List

[  ] Canned yams (×2 for 1 week, ×8 for 1 month)

[  ] Bananas (×4 for 1 week, buy each week for 1 month)

[  ] PBFit peanut butter powder

[  ] Old fashioned oats (can buy a canister for breakfast and a canister for post-workout, or just buy in bulk for both)

[  ] Unsweetened applesauce (1 jar or 6 pre-packaged servings for the week, or 2-3 jars/4 packs of 6 servings for the month)

[  ] Almond butter

[  ] Vegan protein powder (I have Dymatize right now, but I also like Orgain and Ghost; you pick the flavor!)

[  ] Rice (I have short grain brown rice, but white rice is typically easier to digest, and it doesn't really matter what the grain size is to my knowledge)

[  ] Ground beef (I have Laura's lean ground beef, but another type is fine; poultry might digest better than red meat)

[  ] Green Giant Simply Steam Broccoli Florets (2 bags for 1 week, 8 bags for 1 month)

[  ] TruBars (any flavor, buying in bulk at Costco is cheapest)

[  ] Terra Real Vegetable Chips (1-2 bags)

[  ] Potatoes (×3-8)

[  ] Wild caught salmon (×4-8 filets)

[  ] Lemons or lemon juice

[  ] Frozen Italian cut green beans (×1-2 bags)

[  ] Frozen Green Giant Simply Steamed Broccoli Florets (×2-4 bags)

[  ] Veggiecraft pasta (any shape ×1-2 boxes)

[  ] Canned canellini beans (×2-4 cans)

[  ] Sweet Loren's gluten free cookie dough (I like the brownie one)

To Conclude

Cheers to a new way of eating! If you are having digestive issues like me, you should probably see your doctor (I definitely should see my doctor), but this plan could also help ease your distress. Best wishes for you and me both for gut health and good food habits. ☺️