Want to know what a day of eating FODMAP friendly looks like?
Through blogging over the past few months, I have come to meet and chat to some very awesome women who are also new to the blogging world and one such lady is the lovely Capetonian – Robyn from Little Bits of Ruby. Robin is
a fellow foodie and beauty blogger, as well as a newbie FODMAPPER. (Read about what FODMAPs are here) The thing with having IBS and food sensitivities is that everyone thinks you are just being a fussy eater and many people don’t realise that it’s kind of a way of life.
About a year and a half ago I was seriously underweight, stressed out, deficient in iron and many other vitamins and minerals and just looked sick all the time. (My friends and family thought I was becoming anorexic, which is laughable because I love food too much)
I was also cycling too much and because of my bodies inability to absorb nutrients I was dropping weight fast and as a result, I weighed about 49kg.
To cut a long story short, I went to a stomach doctor and was told I had IBS and instructed to follow a FODMAP friendly diet as much as possible. That meant saying no to so many things that I used to take for granted – like onions, garlic, apples and cow’s milk and also saying goodbye to eating lots and lots of gluten. (I am allowed Gluten I just choose to limit it from my diet as much as possible)
It’s been over a year and I have started to feel myself again. I have picked up weight too and have been able to keep it on, which might seem like a strange goal to have, but it’s an achievement I am proud of.
While it’s not always easy to follow my diet strictly (because…LIFE) I do try my very best to eliminate HIGH FODMAPs. I have also started doing less cardio and focused on strengthening exercises instead, with an exercise buddy that’s keeping me in check. (more on this soon)
Could the FODMAP diet be for you?
If you are exercising and eating healthy, but your tummy is feeling heavy and bloated almost all the time, you may want to try the LOW FODMAP diet, which is proven to banish bloating and indigestion, especially for IBS sufferers like myself, through a HIGH FODMAP Elimination diet.
(Remember it’s important to first get checked before you change your diet to rule out any other serious digestive issues)
So what does the day of keeping it LOW FODMAP entail? Robyn and I have put together this VERY SIMPLE FODMAP Friendly Meal Plan below, which includes FODMAP Safe ingredients.
8am: Cat’s Breakfast:
Parsley and Tomato Scrambled Eggs on Gluten-Free Toast
Ingredients:
Makes two servings
- 2 Slices of Gluten Free Toast
- 3 Organic Free Range Eggs
- 20ml Almond Milk
- 10 Cherry Tomatoes, Halved
- Small handful of chopped Italian Parsley
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
- Coconut oil for frying
Instructions:
1. Whisk together egg, seasoning, almond milk
2. Fry tomatoes and parsley in pan over medium heat using coconut oil for two minutes
3. Then add egg and slowly mix to scramble
4. Serve on Gluten-free toast
10am
Cat’s Smoothie:
Strawberry, Banana and Hemp Smoothie
Ingredients:
Makes 1 big smoothie or 2 small smoothies
- 5 cubes of ice
- 5 strawberries
- 1 banana (make sure it is NOT Over ripe as that would mean it would become HIGH in FODMAPS)
- 125ML Almond Milk
- 2 tsp Hemp Seeds
Instructions:
1. Blend in Nutribullet or Blender until smooth and serve
1pm
Robyn’s Lunch:
Roasted Pumpkin and Rocket salad
Ingredients:
Makes two servings
- 100 g rocket
- 30g roasted pumpkin (Over 30g is HIGH FODMAP unless using Japanese Pumpkin)
- 20g sun-dried tomatoes (Moderate FODMAP so use in moderation)
- 20 g pumpkin/mixed seeds
- Olive oil & Lemon juice
Instructions:
1. Roast pumpkin with a dash of olive oil at 180 degrees
2. Allow pumpkin to cool once roasted
3. Assemble salad
4. Top with seeds and dress with olive oil/lemon juice
7pm
Robyn’s Dinner:
Bacon and Red pepper quiches
Ingredients
Makes four servings
3 large eggs
90g (3/4 cup) plain GF flour (I used Health Connection)
350ml Almond milk (Blue Diamond Almond Breeze)
150g red pepper chopped
100g bacon bits
100g Dairy Free cheese (Woolworths DF Cheddar Cheese) *You are allowed to eat hard cheeses on the FODMAP Diet, but I used DF Cheese here as I had it in the fridge)
A small handful of fresh rocket, roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to season
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees and grease a muffin tin
2. Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl, add the flour and milk and beat the mixture until smooth
3. Add the red peppers, bacon, rocket, salt, and pepper and stir the mixture until combined
4. Pour the mixture into the muffin tin and top with grated cheese. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes until set
5. Allow it to cool slightly in the dish before removing
Visit the FODMAP section of my blog for more recipes and ideas. DISCLAIMER: Before starting any diet or food elimination guideline, you should speak to your doctor as we are not registered dietitians.
