IP premade meals?

blackforesttea

Howdy howdy, I've recently been having problems with full body chronic pain, and I keep getting sucker punched by it. Of course it makes cooking hard when just shuffling into the kitchen is a special kind of torture (Nevermind getting up, nevermind actually cooking something...), so I was hoping to get some tips for Ideal Protein alternative protocol friendly pre-made meal$ I can make when I'm not hurting cccc: Thanks a bunch!

jwoolman5

I don't know about the IP protocol, but I not only can't eat very much when hit by chronic pain episodes, my willingness to prepare and clean up after meals vanishes.... I started tracking food again during such a prolonged period just to make sure I was getting enough protein. I actually could, even eating essentially vegan, but my calories were way too low. Not a recommended weight loss plan.

One thing that helped me was eliminating most of the cleanup chores by using paper plates and bowls and plastic ware and creative use of paper towels.

Check to see if you actually are low on protein before worrying too much. I just went with foods that I could handle. If bread and peanut was it, well - both bread and peanut butter do have a lot of protein! Nut and seed butters were easier to handle than whole nuts and seeds, and I could just eat a small spoonful. I can usually eat rice even under stress, so I make sure I always have good rice crackers available.

If ok with your protocol, look for suitable protein powders with minimal prep and cleanup. Puddings and yoghurt might work also, and I often add protein powders to pudding and yoghurt because I need non-dairy and they often are very low in protein. Pudding cups can be quite helpful and they keep. Yoghurt doesn't keep as well, so you need someone not clueless to keep you supplied. Maybe there are ways to make suitable puddings for your needs and freeze them individually?

Don't worry too much about eating lopsided, but see if there are commercial frozen meals available that appeal enough to you. If there are any frozen veg in bags that might appeal, you can eat them alone or with anything else. I often add them to microwave entrees while they are cooking (just lift up the covering and push it in).

And if you have better days, you can make up simple meals that you can package in plastic bags or paper bowls or glass bowls with lids, to retrieve from the freezer and microwave on worse days. Whatever you ordinarily eat might be freezable this way. I repackage and freeze practically everything myself even when not ailing, including sections of baked white or sweet potato or pasta dishes etc. I even freeze avocado mashed with lemon juice.... In a zip snack bag, they thaw pretty fast and half a Haas fits.

My appetite for veg and fruit goes to zero pretty fast when I'm sick or in pain. Sometimes going for puréed foods (apple sauce, baby food fruit and veg) helps. Theoretically, I could purée things myself but sometimes the energy just isn't there. I could mix up instant potatoes with veg purées, for example, or eat baby food veg at room temperature out of the jar or heat it up like a very simple soup. Packets of rice cereal and corn grits helped a bit, I added some nutritional yeast or protein powder.