Not sure if TF is right for me anymore??

[eastkygal]

I posted a few weeks ago about being sick and wondering what I could/should be eating. Especially being dairy free at this point. I can hardly stand it. Conventional (raw not available) dairy was a huge chunk of my fat intake. I am supposed to be eating every 2 hours because of low blood sugar, but now... I just don't enjoy eating. I've been TF for about 2 years now. I did the best I could with what was available to me. At this point with all these restrictions, and eating small snack type meals, I'm feeling bummed. I can't keep up. When I do eat a larger (normal sized) meal I feel bloated and achy. I can tell I need more fat. I just don't know if trying to stay TF is right for me anymore. It has been so good for me when I could eat what I wanted. Now, I think I need to seek out something different.
I'm so tired of having to either refuse meals from family, or only eat certain parts of it. If not that, having to pack two whole cloth bags of food just to visit for a day. I can't keep up with the cooking and pre-cooking. I want to. I want to, but right now it's really hard.
Anyone ever felt this way?? Have you ever explored other ways of eating for awhile while still believing TF to be good for you?

[Astral Mama]

The question is whether it's good for you. Is it good for you to spend large amounts of money buying food that matches an abstract ideological ideal -- or else doing without, and letting your health suffer because you can't eat a full diet? Is it good for you not being able to go out to dinner, or enjoy Thanksgiving with your family? Is it good for you spending hours and hours in the kitchen rather than with your family?

It's your choice. Any extreme diet -- TF, veganism, macrobiotics, raw-foodism, Atkins, etc. (there are a million out there) -- requires very significant sacrifices. Just like it requires sacrifices to keep Kosher or Halal (but at least that won't usually mean sacrificing meals with your family.)

It requires sacrifices to eat nothing but ideologically pure, pastured, grass-fed, humanely-raised, organic, heirloom-breed food. You have to weigh for yourself if the benefits you get from doing so are worth the sacrifices. If you're not feeling major, obvious health benefits to match the sacrifices, it doesn't seem like it would be a good idea. But no one else can make the decision for you.

[Purple Sage]

I can 'hear' the emotion in your post. It must be frustrating to find that the way you've been eating has not been serving you well. I've been there!

My impression of TF, though, is that it isn't a one-size-fits-all way of eating, and it is possible to tweak it to fit your own personal needs. I also don't believe that you need to be 'perfect' because that often is cost/time/resource prohibitive. Do what you can, mama. There are so many different diets out there from so many different places, and not everyone consumed dairy. The important thing that I've taken from the TF movement is to eat real, whole foods. If you need more nondairy fat, then I'd love to help you brainstorm where you can get that. Can you go into more detail as to what you're eating, what you can't eat, and what is available and affordable for you?

[JElaineB]

I take what works for me and leave the rest. I do think eating TF is ideal, but it isn't always possible for me to eat that way, as both DH and I work out of the home and we are gone 50 hours a week. I try to buy high quality foods and when I don't or can't, I don't dwell on it.

I'm not sure if there is a particular reason that you don't eat dairy, other than you can't get raw? If that is the only reason then I think you should use the best quality dairy you can find/afford. I drink organic whole, non-homogenized milk that is vat-pastuerized from grass-fed cows, and that is good enough for me. I might be able to find raw (it is illegal in my state), but the effort it would take to obtain it is not worth it to me at this point.

Even if you eat "TF-lite" or "partial TF" you are still probably eating better than 95% of Americans out there. I also like the "80%" rule from Mark's Daily Apple (a primal foods site). If you are eating 80% of your ideal, then you are doing great.

[Koalamom]

I know alot how you are feeling. I dedicated the last couple of years to eating strict TF, and my kids are sick and have loads of allergies, I feel horrible, my teeth and my dd's devolped cavities eating kerry gold and raw butter, FCLO, fermented veggies, raw dairy, everything organic, bone broth, no soy, and never a grain, nut, or legume unsoaked. And I think I over did it with the fats. I do way better low fat actually.

Now that I am now eating more junky type food, I don't feel any worse, and actually better. I am starting to doubt TF eating like it is all wrong. and now am feeling better with a vegan lifestyle, with a small bit or meat a few times a week. Straight vegan for me doesn't feel good either.

[Astral Mama]

Originally Posted by bluebirdmama1

I know alot how you are feeling. I dedicated the last couple of years to eating strict TF, and my kids are sick and have loads of allergies, I feel horrible, my teeth and my dd's devolped cavities eating kerry gold and raw butter, FCLO, fermented veggies, raw dairy, everything organic, bone broth, no soy, and never a grain, nut, or legume unsoaked.

Well, I hope whatever path you choose, that you and your family experience better health than that in the future.

There isn't necessarily one single best path that's best for everyone. If you don't have success on the Weston Price diet, try something else that feels right for you and makes you and your family (and everyone's teeth!) happy. There's no point in trying to force yourself to follow a diet that doesn't make you healthy and happy.

[eastkygal]

TF allowed me to lose 100 pounds and keep it off. I have been overweight most of my life, even when vegetarian. I know there is something about it that is right for me. I believe also in whole foods, and cooking on a stove, etc...
I am having adrenal, thyroid, low blood sugar, anxiety, headaches, etc... Feel like crap. My iron is high. My cholesterol is 199 (almost high). My healthcare provider asked me to not eat dairy for 3 weeks so we can see if I have a sensitivity to it. I will start eating it again Thursday to see if I react. Right now, finger foods, or something simple is all I feel like cooking and eating. At this point, I'm living off of popcorn (coconut oil), cashews, hamburger, rice chips and salsa, blood sugar shakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, PB and J, sometimes a salad, and when I cook supper, but that leaves me feeling stuffed after only a few bites.
I don't think these issues initiated from TF. I think they have been with me for sometime gradually getting worse. What I fear is that if I change too much, I will gain weight again, and I just don't want to do that. I've been strict with myself these last few years. Sometimes at this point I question why. It makes me sad, but I'm afraid to step out there because TF has been so good for me. I was getting fit without starving, low fat, counting calories... just eating real food. I loved it! Now, I know that my diet is not proper in any examination of it. I'm just needing to feel better now. Relieve stress. Focus on my family and work. yoga. But...

[Rachel J.]

I think it's a misunderstanding to assume that TF has to be a heavy-meat diet or follow specific set guidelines about what foods are eaten. Not all bodies have the same requirements nor do/did all ethnic groups traditionally eat high meat or high fat diets. Some people find that paying more attention to a blood-type or more specifically, geno-type diet really helps narrow down their best foods. My feeling is that if you can determine what makes you feel the best, that's what you should eat. I still think that non-processed is preferred and that most processed food isn't good for the body, but there can be plenty of pleasure-inducing chemicals in processed foods that trick the body into temporarily feeling good (did you hear about the potentially addictive properties of the food dye used in Cheetos?).

[witchygrrl]

What about coconut milk tonic, a la Eat Fat, Lose Fat? That's what they recommend if you can't do dairy.

I'm sorry you're having such a rough time!!

[crunchy_mama]

I don't think TF has to be any one way of eating either- I personally feel better low/no grain high meat BUT there were many groups that Price followed and they ate a variety of diets. Ranging from vegetarian to a pretty much an all animal diet. For me I think that it depends on our own ancestry and problems/background etc what diet works for us. I think that might change at different times. For me the focus is eating the best quality foods I can afford and doing the prep as best I can but you know sometimes that isn't great.

Have you got a blood sugar meter so you can monitor what is effecting you and when? If you watch sales and stuff a lot of times you can find them free w/ coupon especially at places like Walgreens.

I had major issues w/ low bs for me I found that eating very low carb helped fix that. I no longer feel the need to eat all the time and can easily skip meals without my blood sugar crashing. However, something like popcorn would cause a big crash for me. I know that everyones body reacts differently to various foods though and you have to see what works for your own body.

[anneliza]

I have been eating TF for 13 years now, and yes, there are times when it starts to seem boring and restricted. It seems that I get into a rut, and I need to change the foods I am eating -- still largely organic and TF as much as possible, but I try different combinations, or cut back on something. As others have pointed out, somehow WAPF has gotten the reputation of being a high meat diet, but it's not. The Swiss whom Dr. Price visited lived mainly on rye bread and cheese and milk, with meat maybe once a week. Some of the tribes in Africa were nearly vegan, plus insects and/or fish. You could probably eat a very healthy TF diet of fruits, vegetables, soaked grains, and a little fish, and do very well, if that suits you. I don't even think it has to be high fat -- just that you do need at least SOME fat, and it needs to be good traditional fat, not transfats or polyunsaturated omega-6 fats. Lots of the groups he visited never ate dairy, so if that's not what you like or can find, that doesn't mean you can't follow TF.

I do best when I eat whatever I want, only I eat a form of it that conforms to TF as much as possible. That is, I will make a cake from scratch with maple syrup, preferably, or raw sugar. However, I will take white sugar over high fructose corn syrup. As long as I'm eating cake only rarely, it won't make much difference. I make my own pizza with yogurt dough and organic cheese and tomato sauce -- yummy!

I figure that if I am eating 80-90% TF, then the 10-20% that isn't will not really hurt me, especially if I stay away from the really bad stuff, like HFCS, MSG, and transfats. I try to stay low carb, but that is because I have diabetes, not because of the WAPF diet. You have to find what works for you. If you are ethnically from a particular place, you could start with the traditional diet that was eaten there, but most of us these days are so mixed that it's hard to pin down what your traditional diet should be! Personally, I am Scottish, Dutch, English, Hawaiian, and Chinese, so my traditional diet would be??????? So just experiment until you are eating happy and feeling good.

That being said, you can still get sick from other causes while eating TF. I doubt that most of us were actually conceived and raised on a perfect TF diet, so we don't have those fabulous healthy bodies that the traditional people Price visited had. I was diagnosed with cancer while eating TF, but cancer can begin so many years earlier, including genetic causes, so I didn't blame TF eating. It was eating TF that got me through the surgery and recovery in record time with flying colors! The surgeon was amazed. He said he'd never seen such a healthy cancer patient in his life!

[newcastlemama]

s I am sorry that your are experiencing health issues...I highly reccommend The Mood Cure by Julia Ross.

I would say do whatever works for you. I am probably a major compromiser when it comes to TF...we buy non-organic foods, I take Prenatal vitamins, for example. I am also finding that I do better lower fat (not super low/fat free) with lots of protein, fruits and vegs. We also eat whatever we are offered socially, let our kids eat treats with their friends ect..

Tf things I do are bone broths, HVCLO, ferments, traditional fats and cook a lot. We also eat real whole foods. I feel like this is good enough since my family is pretty healthy and happy.

I have learned (especially the past couple months) whenever I have tried to follow someone else's health plan exactly it does not work for me. And if you don't have the time, money, or energy then you just don't and that is okay. Even if you just don't want to deal with it anymore that is fine too. I understand the fear of gaining weight...what I will say is there are a lot of different ways people stay trim that could work for you if you need to change your diet.

[nicolelynn]

I'm there. I developed gut problems while TF and no amount of gut healing diets worked. Medication did, I must admit. In general I am leaning toward more scientific things these days. I now would categorize my diet as more just whole-foods flextarian. Stressing out about food did me no good.

But a few things from TF stick with me: I try to stick with TF fats (though I'm not so rigid about that anymore and I eat much less fat), and though I do eat some soy I don't eat large amounts of it, especially not soy protein isolates. And I still love soaked oatmeal and sprouted grain bread.

So I agree with everyone: there is no one diet for everyone. Experiment and see what works for you. Best wishes for your health.

[gardenmommy]

Originally Posted by newcastlemama

s I am sorry that your are experiencing health issues...I highly reccommend The Mood Cure by Julia Ross.

I would say do whatever works for you. I am probably a major compromiser when it comes to TF...we buy non-organic foods, I take Prenatal vitamins, for example. I am also finding that I do better lower fat (not super low/fat free) with lots of protein, fruits and vegs. We also eat whatever we are offered socially, let our kids eat treats with their friends ect..

Tf things I do are bone broths, HVCLO, ferments, traditional fats and cook a lot. We also eat real whole foods. I feel like this is good enough since my family is pretty healthy and happy.

I have learned (especially the past couple months) whenever I have tried to follow someone else's health plan exactly it does not work for me. And if you don't have the time, money, or energy then you just don't and that is okay. Even if you just don't want to deal with it anymore that is fine too. I understand the fear of gaining weight...what I will say is there are a lot of different ways people stay trim that could work for you if you need to change your diet.

I totally agree with this! It sounds like you are doing the best you can, so don't stress about the label. I'm also dairy-free right now, and it stinks. There are so many things I want to eat, but can't, and I end up either skipping parts of meals or making my own food when we go places.

I've also decided that it's not the end of the world to buy something in a package if it makes my life easier.

Something I've found helpful is to focus on what I *can* eat, to the point of making a list of those foods and posting it on the fridge, and stocking up on them at the store. If you post a list of what you cannot eat here, I know we can help you come up with some good ideas of what you can eat, and maybe that would make your life easier, too.

Hugs, mama, you will get through this, and with your sanity intact!

[FairyRae]

Originally Posted by eastkygal

Have you ever explored other ways of eating for awhile while still believing TF to be good for you?

I've not read all the responses, but wanted to comment.

To me, TF is about preparing foods in a traditional manner--not what foods we specifically eat. Yes, TF is about focusing on 'good' fats, etc. *BUT*, what is traditional to one group of people is vastly different to what is traditional to another. I have utilized TF food prep methods while eating a dairy, gluten--then grain *free* diet. Whatever foods feel best for me to eat can be prepared or sourced in a more traditional manner, and that is what I strive to do. I am not perfect, but do my best w/ my resources and time. BUT I only eat foods (for the most part) that feel good for me to eat. That means I don't really follow what I think of as a typical WAPF diet, heavy in sprouted/soaked whole grains, raw dairy, etc. I focus more on meats, fats (from animals and plants--not dairy), veggies, fruits, etc. That feels good to me right now. I've explored paleo and primal diets while still utilizing TF techniques like soaking nuts, making bone broth, eating ferments (veggies!), etc.

There are many many many paths to health, and each of us is unique. I think that whatever diet/way of eating one chooses to follow, TF ideas/methods can be applied to it. There are folks using TF ideas in their vegan diets, and folks using it in their carniverous (meat only) diets. I think its all about figuring out which foods feel best _to you_. That is most important IMO, then you can apply TF prep methods to those foods as you see fit. I don't spend a lot of time soaking grains b/c I don't really eat them, but I do take the time to make bone broth b/c I feel a lot better when I add it to my diet.

IMO, just do what works for you, to the best of your ability, and don't worry about the rest.

What foods are you trying to avoid, and what foods feel good for you to eat a lot of? We may have ideas of other diets you'd like to explore based on those things...

Good luck w/ whatever you do!!!