Preparing stomach for an unhealthy meal after eating clean

jazzygurl81

Just wanted to get your opinions on something. I went completely clean about 2 weeks ago with my eating - no junk, lots of organic fruits and veggies and lean meats from my local farmer's market. No juice, no sodas, not even protein shakes. Absolutely nothing fried, battered, or sugary. No chips, candy, pizza, fast food...nothing! I also have not been going out to any restaurants of any kind, not even Starbucks. I've cut out all the junk that I had been eating before; I've been doing really great since I've finally gotten my mind "right".

So this weekend I went home for a family event back home...not too many healthy options were available. There are going to be times in life where we treat ourselves and it's okay to indulge; plus, there's no way I'm saying no to my momma's coconut pie, lol. I ate small portions since I knew what kinds of foods to expect...BUT...my stomach was churning and hurting ALL WEEKEND LONG. On Saturday night, I can tell you exactly what I ate: half a slice of cake, one slice of coconut pie, maybe one cup of a pasta dish, salad with Italian dressing, green beans, and half a cup of sweet tea. That's it. And I was nauseous, reaching for the Pepto, and on the toilet (sorry, TMI).

It's crazy, because some of these are foods that I had eaten since forever...now since going clean my stomach is completely rejecting these foods. What do you all do, if anything, when you're going back home or have a special occasion where you know you're going to go off the path for an evening, and you want your stomach to cooperate?

MsDrJuris

I generally take Lactaid. It wasn't until I started eating clean that I realized how much lactose affected me!

pcastagner

Yeah, your stomach probably completely adapted to your new clean diet. After two weeks.


Or more likely, this is the first time you noticed how much eating a bunch of crap makes you feel like... Crap!

xstarxdustx

You could try eating small amounts of the food.

MyChocolateDiet

I think it might have been just a little too much dessert, and then you psyched yourself out.

The other day my husband was starting to act all crazy and headdesk at Universal studios after we both gave in to cake. I told him to "knock it off" we got a kid to entertain and as soon as he reallized I wasnt' taking no ish, he felt better fast.

Next time only let yourself have ONE off track thing. ANd make sure you eat it with enough of your normal fare. And also man up after and tell your brain that you can get your brain "right" tomorrow for your diet, but right now your brain needs to be "right" for your family visit, because you can't be all in the john during your whole visit or they are gonna start attacking your new eating plan. You gotta walk the walk, if this is how you wanna roll now.

ETA: Oh yeah and then I also proceeded to take my own pics in front of the several flights of stairs I was fixin to climb so I know how his brain works, he was probably thinking, "you gonna let a SAHM beat you? With cake? F-that!"

3dogsrunning

Where is your fat intake at?
I used to experience that when I was eating low fat then had a higher fat day. I have since learned fat isn't evil, its actually very necessary, and don't have those experiences anymore.

topotw

I have this problem too. A more gradual shift to 'not so clean' eating may help, but you may not want to do that. If you can't, or don't want to ease back into different foods, I'd try to eat a very small portion of the treats, and be sure to eat as you normally do for as much of the day as possible. I wish I knew the answer, seems like it takes just a couple of days of eating not so clean for my body to adjust back though. I was pretty amazed when it first happened to me, the stuff you used to eat all the time suddenly becomes violently intolerable!

neandermagnon

Where is your fat intake at?
I used to experience that when I was eating low fat then had a higher fat day. I have since learned fat isn't evil, its actually very necessary, and don't have those experiences anymore.

I was going to suggest something like this.^^^ If you cut most fat out of your diet, then eat a meal high in fat, you're likely to feel nauseous and have difficulty digesting it. I think (can't remember exactly) that the body starts to produce less bile if you're eating significantly less fat, as this is what emulsifies the fats so the enzymes can get at it to break it down. So if you eat a high fat meal when your body's not making so much bile, the fat in it doesn't get emulsified enough and it takes a lot longer for the enzymes to digest it, the result is that you feel ill, to the point that you might actually vomit or get diarrhoea. You have to re-introduce fat slowly to avoid this, so the body can up regulate bile production to match what you're eating.

A low fat diet is not a balanced diet. Unfortunately a lot of people think that fat is bad, and so when they eat "clean" they cut out most sources of fat. Fat contains many important nutrients, for example essential fatty acids and fat soluble vitamins, and you can't get these from low fat foods. So it's quite a serious error in thinking to consider fatty foods "not clean" - I personally don't like the term "clean" in reference to diet, I think it's much better to aim for a balanced diet that provides your body with all the nutrition it needs without harming your health in the process. Also I think it's important to be able to enjoy food and eat during social events, because those things are basic human needs. We're social animals and food sharing in humans goes back at least 2 million years and has shaped our evolution. So I'd consider enjoying social events that involve food to be an essential part of a balanced diet, and so it's important to learn how to do this sensibly.

Personally, I eat a balanced amount of fat, I aim for around 40% carbs, 30% fat, 30% protein, and while I eat so-called "clean" foods most of the time, I can quite happily digest "junk" foods like McDonalds burgers or shawarma when I want to have them.

So my advice is to include fat as part of a balanced diet; as for which foods that contain fat, make it those that provide a decent amount of essential fatty acids and fat soluble vitamins (e.g. egg yolks, full fat dairy, cold pressed vegetable oils, nuts, avocados etc), and save those fatty foods that are less nutritious for special occasions.

ash190489

This is exactly why I don't eat clean. Too many times I hear that people who do eat clean end up extremely ill and sick after like 1 chocolate muffin or a small cake or something stupid. I mean, I try to keep with a 80%:20% ratio with clean:treats (usually 5 working days good and then allow myself a treat or two on weekends when I see family or friends etc.)

knityoupants

I had the exact thing happen to me this weekend! Two weeks quite clean- not perfect, but only four or five slightly unclean incidents- and I spent the weekend at a work party out of town.

It was super fun, but I've consumed pretty much nothing but alcohol, water, pizza, and fried food in the last thirty hours. I still only went slightly over 2000 cals/day, which for a "blowout" is great in my book. Just a couple weeks ago, that could have been a normal day for me. Not to mention: I had an absolute blast with my friends.

However, I am suffering from the same issues you are. My goals for future similar events include: drinking less, and perhaps insisting on buying low-cal mixers and eating at places with healthier options. That latter part is an issue of embarrassment for my lifestyle... I hate being called out for "dieting."

I think I'd feel best and have the most fun if I made sure at least 50% of what I consumed was "clean." It's just a hunch. But I'm happy to be improving, and motivated to learn from my mistakes and continue on this trajectory.

KeeleyRDH

I have dealt with the same thing...

Veil5577

I've cleaned up my diet a lot but I have not completely gone clean. I want to be able to have a treat every so often and I'd like to be able to enjoy the holiday food coming up without getting sick.

Francl27

Seems unlikely your stomach got used to your new diet after 2 weeks, to be honest. I had the same thing the first time I ate some ice cream cake after changing my diet but that was months down the road... not 2 weeks. Haven't had a problem since (except Rita's that gave me the runs - sorry TMI)... but I don't eat 'clean', whatever that means.

Kontxesi

Or more likely, this is the first time you noticed how much eating a bunch of crap makes you feel like... Crap!

After two weeks of "clean" eating, I think this is more likely the culprit. I very much doubt that was enough time for your system to be shocked by what you ate.

cookeylady

DRINK LOTS OF EXTRA WATER!!! I recently just experienced this and am am having a heck of time tummy wise. my solution, drink lots of water and eat small of amounts that ungodly unhealthy stuff. I will prepare myself next time by bringing my own foods next time. Fresh fruits, veggies, whole grains NOT going to suffer like this again.