Lets talk Diet/Nutrition!

[CamilleBethany]

How is everyone doing with healthy eating?

What are your weaknesses?

What are your *miracle* food and products?

What are your cravings?

What are you having the hardest time giving up?

I'm doing high protein/low carb/low sugar. Sweets (mainly chocolate) are such a weakness for me! I was able to give up soda pretty easily though.

I have been doing Herbalife protein shakes, which is how I lost weight between pregnancies in the first place. Obviously I'm not trying to lose weight now, but I'm the shakes are so full of nutrition, so I'm continue to use them, sometimes just as a snack because of all the nutrition.

I also eat a lot of chicken, and snack on cucumbers often. I'm not really big on salads, but I have no problem eating cucumbers and celery all day. And broccoli...oh I love broccoli! Plus it's low in calories and high in protein, and fiber, an folic acid!

So, your turn? I'm curious what everyone is eating!

[Gracecody]

I am still in the throes of nausea here so I'm kind of survival eating...but I can at least share some snacks that have made me feel better and are nutritious.

My midwife is huge on whole foods and I learned a lot from her about nutrition during my last pregnancy. A lot of that has stuck since.

I should add that I am a little underweight so I am not afraid of the calories, for now. :)

For snacks now I really like:

-Plain greek yogurt with a little nutty granola

-Whole grain bagel with cream cheese

-Whole wheat crackers with hard organic cheese

-Asian soups, esp Thai, miso and wonton soup

-Hard boiled eggs

-Smoothies

Then when I am feeling better and over some of the many food aversions I am having, I will eat a lot of:

-Avocado

-Nuts

-Homemade soups with some dried sea vegetable simmered in

-Toast with peanut butter and banana

I will have to get back to you on the others; I am frankly really looking forward to enjoying food again!! In my last pregnancy scones were a major weakness!!!

[bella_stranger]

I'm doing low carb/sugar--high protein--whole foods as much as I can.  I'm really inspired by traditional foods and foodways, but have been pretty nauseous the past couple days, so just doing the best I can.  I have been having a lot of high-quality deli meats, eggs, good cheeses (craving triple creme St. Andre cheese at the moment), salad, celery... some yougurt. looking forward to berry season so I can have berries and cream, and berries with yogurt :)

Last night was awful, I was nauseous for 4 hours straight with a splitting head ache. I tried to nibble on a piece of my daughter's sourdough grilled cheese, but that came right back up.

so I had my husband pick me up some ice cream. Everything else sounded absolutely horrible. I was only able to manage a couple spoonfuls, but it was enough to soothe my stomach and let me go to sleep.

my first pregnancy was horrible, nutritionally speaking. we lived around the corner of a Boston pizza shop, thin floppy crust and all that, and we must have been one of their biggest patrons :) that, combined with tri-weekly ben & jerry's........ well, it wasn't pretty  (but tasted wonderful, of course!).  But, my daughter was born healthy and strong, so I try not to be too hard on myself, I just know better for this time around.

[justthinkn]

I'm still in survival eating mode, too - still have nausea at 13 weeks and still a couple pounds down from the beginning, not losing anymore, but not gaining either.  Thus the homemade apple pie I'm nibbling for breakfast as I type   

But generally, I'm shooting for "almost" Brewer's - I think the official recommendation is 100g of protein, and I'm shooting for more like 80g.  That's more do-able since I'm lactose intolerant when I'm pregnant - I can't drink a quart of Lact-Aid a day, yuck!  Anyway, we're generally healthy eaters, whole grains, fruits and veggies, etc., and a while ago, I experimented with Traditional Foods and primal eating for a few months...  The big things that stuck from those experiments were the delights of homemade veggie-stuffed soups made from bone broth (yum!!!), preferring full-fat foods in smaller portions, knocking out all artificial sweeteners (a huge step for me!), and enjoying sprouted wheat bagels!  

What I'm already eating when I can...  A daily green salad with romaine and other veggies, a boiled egg, turkey if I'm hungry enough; many days, a smoothie made with plain yogurt (no stabilizers to set off the lact. intol.), Lactaid, a little honey, frozen banana, blueberries, & spinach; mashed sweet potatoes; whatever protein and whole grains sound appealing; pregnancy tea when I'm craving something not water - I make a big batch and store it for iced tea or to warm quickly.  I need to find that Mothering recipe for homemade electrolyte drinks, too - I drank a lot of Gatorade last time, watered down, but still... This time I'd love to meet the craving without the additives!  I'd also love to find some good bean and rice recipes to make for lunches...

[redpajama]

I'm probably more laid back about diet than many of you, but I tend to eat a sort of "common sense" diet, and follow my appetite.  So, if I feel like eating a meal of raw veggies, I do.  And if I feel like eating a lot of cheese, I do.  As long as the things that sound appealing are also generally nutritious, I don't worry too much about how much protein or how much fat, et cetera.  

If I found myself craving, say, french fries, I would work to keep that sort of "appetite" in check (not to say that I necessarily wouldn't eat french fries, just not in the same "free pass" way that I eat everything else).  (This is where the "common sense" part comes in.)

I made a conscious decision at the beginning of this pregnancy to cut way back on drinking soda--which turned out to come pretty easily (sugar in general hasn't sounded particularly good to me lately).  I'll drink it if we're out somewhere, but don't purchase it or have it at home.  I've found that what I'm wanting to drink is really cold water, occasionally sparkling water.  

In previous pregnancies, I've really craved red meat early on (which I don't tend to eat much, in general), but this time around that hasn't been the case.  I've been eating a lot of vegetables, hummus, beans, cheese, some pasta.  

My weakness...might be pizza.  Partially because I like it a lot, and partially because it's easy and relatively inexpensive, and I've been feeling kind of awful lately.  

[Earthylady]

My diet is pretty much the same as it has been for years.  We're a whole foods, traditional, organics kind of family.  High protein, low to no sugar or boxed foods and we use natural sugar substitutes like honey and maple syrup. The diet info my mw gave was sorta no brainer to me and what we are already doing.    It always amazes me when family comes to visit or I go visit them at how different they eat and drink. 

[activealli]

While my nausea has died down, I am still left with ZERO appetite for my usual foods or food in general, so Ive kinda been snacking. Breakfast is usually a piece of fruit (usually banana or pear) 2 slices of cinnamon raisin Udi's gluten free bread and vegan butter, or Ezekial's sprouted english muffins with almond butter before I go swimming/running on treadmill, then post work out I have a green smoothie (kale, frozen organic fruit, Tru Food Vegan meal replacement powder, probiotics, vit D drops, coconut milk and water). Other than that Ive been eating soy free high protein veggie burgers over a salad (Sunshine Burgers, black bean burgers from our local whole foods like market, home made lentil burgers I made and froze before), hemp bagel with cream cheese sliced tomatos and lots o' lemon pepper (I usually eat vegan, but noticed my boobs hurt when I eat soy, and there are no vegan cream cheeses without soy, where as my Daiya cheese is soy free, and everything else is So Delicious Coconut milk replacer like milk, ice cream, yogurt), coconut yogurts and nutty granola, raw unsalted trail mix (sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, almonds, peanuts, dried fruits), veggie concoctions from the deli at the whole foods like market home made soup veggie/bean soup that froze before I was pregnant. I used to LOVE cooking and now it just seems like way tooo much effort and. That, and its really not that motivating to make food when you have zero appetite.

Oh, I went to a local garden show last weekend and bought these cool indoor growing pots and small indoor greenhouse and Im going to grow my own salad lettuce! I haven't been super motivated to eat salad lately, but I LOVE home grown lettuce. The seeds sprouted yesterday and should be able to start eating it in 2-3 weeks!

[dfunk98]

i am still in survival mode over here, too.  alot of carbs (and anything sweet) is really the only thing that helps or even appeals to me at all.  i try to eat some protein at every meal, too.  also, just the idea of drinking water makes me want to vomit, so i've been filling a 12 oz. glass with 1/3 juice and then 2/3 water.  this way i know i'm drinking the water, but can't really taste it.  i've been drinking alot of cranberry juice lately.  i try to keep my house stocked with lots of nutritious snacks (whole grain crackers, cheese, veggies, fruits, hummus) but just can't eat them yet.  i am almost always like this the first tri, so i try not to beat myself up about it bc i know things will turn around soon.

also, vitamins are an impossibility for me know bc swallowing pills makes me gag, but so do chewables.  does anyone know of a gelatin-free gummy vitamin for adults?  i guess i could take a kids gummy, but how many would i need to take?  i feel like i'd be buying a bottle of vits a week!!

[hck73]

I eat whatever it seems like I can stomach.  Sometimes that means vegetables.  Sometimes ice cream.  I don't worry about weight.  Maybe that's easy for me to say because I never struggled w/ it but I feel like it's more important not to vomit all day and I've been really successful on that front this time :)  I may be singing a different tune in october when I'm big as a house :O
 

[activealli]

Originally Posted by dfunk98 

i am still in survival mode over here, too.  alot of carbs (and anything sweet) is really the only thing that helps or even appeals to me at all.  i try to eat some protein at every meal, too.  also, just the idea of drinking water makes me want to vomit, so i've been filling a 12 oz. glass with 1/3 juice and then 2/3 water.  this way i know i'm drinking the water, but can't really taste it.  i've been drinking alot of cranberry juice lately.  i try to keep my house stocked with lots of nutritious snacks (whole grain crackers, cheese, veggies, fruits, hummus) but just can't eat them yet.  i am almost always like this the first tri, so i try not to beat myself up about it bc i know things will turn around soon.

also, vitamins are an impossibility for me know bc swallowing pills makes me gag, but so do chewables.  does anyone know of a gelatin-free gummy vitamin for adults?  i guess i could take a kids gummy, but how many would i need to take?  i feel like i'd be buying a bottle of vits a week!!

I dont know of any gelatin free prenatals, but I have the same issues with swallowing pills. I am taking a liquid prenatal. Tastes like pineapple orange juice. I havent have any negative reactions to it, and Ive had a LOT of negative reactions to things lately.

http://www.amazon.com/Buried-Treasure-Prenatal-Complete-liquid/dp/B0014AY8MQ/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1298924453&sr=8-3

[SeaBean]

Just wanted to chime in b/c I came here to get some ideas from what everyone else is eating!

  My digestive system has been jacked up since week 5 (now at 12 weeks) so I'm looking forward to just enjoying a meal again.

Nothing sounds good, but I can eat most things if someone else cooks them and puts them in front of me. Having awful reflux which is aggravated by milk and yogurt (can eat some cheese in things), anything with tomatoes, and other acidy things like juice. (Wah! My favorite thing used to be spaghetti!) Even random, benign-seeming things like bagel & cream cheese or oatmeal bother my stomach. My acupuncturist said I should only have hot/warm things and nothing cold like salads. (btw, the acupuncture didn't help the belly issues)

My big savior has been a scrambled egg or two on a bagel or open face on whole wheat toast.

And yes -- can't stand the thought of water... Once I convince myself to have a drink, I want the a huge chug, so I know my body needs it, but it just sloshes all the acid around in my stomach, making me feel worse.

YET -- I know I am actually feeling way better than I was 6 weeks ago. Makes me really queasy just to *think* about where I was then.

Good luck, mamas! We will get there!

[Dlynn918]

I can relate to everyone here! Im not obsessing over my diet too much because Im lucky if I can stomach one small meal a day. Im taking great food source prenatal vitamins (Prenatal Petite from Rainbow Light) which will pick up the slack where my diet lacks. The all day nausea has stopped~yay!~ but as the day goes on I just feel worse and worse and by dinner time I cant go near the kitchen. I don't want to cook or eat anything more than yogurt, fruit or toast. My family, who was once spoiled by a home cooked meal every night, is now wondering why they are getting grilled cheese and tomato soup for dinner! ;-) Meat? Not a chance. And my poor carnivorous husband...if he wants his venison from the freezer, I will take it out to thaw but thats it! He has to cook it himself. And clean the pan. I just can't do it! Torture I tell ya! Turning green just thinking about it! But again I can eat out okay, or of someone else cooks and puts it in front of me Im okay...something to do with the smells in the kitchen, fridge, trash can. UGH! I should by stock in Panera because Im there constantly. A mango smoothie. Multigrain bagel with cream cheese or an egg and cheese. Salad. For some reason I can eat almost anything there. Weird!

Eating small light meals are perfect. lots of whole grains and fruits. yogurt. I probably could use more protein but Im lucky if I can stomach anything that isnt totally bland and plain. So not like me!!! Cant wait for this to subside so I can get back into cooking and enjoying food again! Its a gradual process...hoping in the next 2 weeks! :-)

[Gracecody]

Ha, I hear you - I have been to Panera a few times myself! And before that, probably not for six months! Bagels and cream cheese really hit the spot for me first thing in the morning when really nothing else sounds appealing. I love their blueberry bagels and they are on the way home from my work. And we all love the asiago cheese ones! Yum. I do plan for this to be a short term thing until my usual breakfast choices are appealing again.

I think i am finally starting to come out of it here because I am actually starting to enjoy the TASTE of some things again. For the past several weeks I ate things simply because I could tolerate them and very little actually tasted good. Meat still isn't happening, I can eat tiny bits and can't even contemplate cooking it.

One really great thing to come of this is that I discovered both of my kids LOVE hard boiled eggs, they will eat a whole one and ask for more! So that is good to know. We eat eggs regularly, just never hard boiled. We have also been enjoying beans with a bit of cheese sprinkled on top and so I plan to make pots of beans on a more regular basis. So many yummy things to use those beans in - huevos rancheros, nachos, burritos or just with some rice.

[Mommel]

How is everyone doing with healthy eating?

I'm doing a lot better than I thought I would... it's completely necessary for me to eat well or I suffer terribly with heartburn, gas or constipation - or just fatigue or general discomfort. Eating pretty much the Brewer's diet.

What are your weaknesses?

Not drinking enough water, a little too much cheese and not enough vegetables on some days.

What are your *miracle* food and products?

Although I tried protein powder, I found it disgusting. I find that cottage cheese, tofu with cinnamon (weird, I know), and soybeans are my saving graces for protein. I'm not a vegetarian, but getting all my protein from meat would just be too much fatty food for me.

What are your cravings?

I kinda wish I was having more cravings, but I'm really not... sometimes I get a hankering for oranges or other Vit. C rich foods, but I keep a stash of EmergenC in my purse which usually satisfies that. 

What are you having the hardest time giving up?

I'm actually feeling too gross and feel like I'm always forcing myself to eat what I should, so I don't really have room for anything else. Caffeine is the only thing I had a hard time with, but in the first trimester I hated the smell of coffee, so it wasn't so bad. I'm super tired all the time, so every once in a while I think it might be nice to have an espresso, but then I just breathe deeply and think fondly about the next time I'll be able to nap. :)