I am still in the phase of complete elimination of FODMAPs in my diet. So it's been fun. Got 3 more weeks before I can star introducing other foods. However, I have university starting up again so I would be eating packed lunches. It was easy just making something for lunch and eating it straight away, eg soups, lettuce wraps etc. I am just wondering if you guys have any lunch ideas. Thanks in advance!

Hi, I usually make my own lunch, I usually have a main, a fruit salad (pineapple, kiwifruit and oranges) and some rice crackers and muesli bars (I found some safe ones) for snacks. This week my main is soup, but other weeks I've had chicken or hard boiled eggs on a salad with a safe dressing (such as balsamic vinegar mixed with olive oil), fresh spring rolls, thai curries with rice vermicelli, pasta salad with gluten free pasta, or just dinner leftovers.
Since it's winter here I almost always have soup or leftovers, but in the summer I assume I'll be eating along the lines of chicken salad most days.
I usually cook up big batches of e.g. soup, or a roast chicken for chicken salad, or a curry or pasta and then eat it all week, I just put one portion in a container and take it to work with me and heat it up in the microwave.
You could also have sandwiches if you found a good bread that was FODMAP free, the only one I know of that is FODMAP free in NZ is only good as toast (but it's delicious as toast) so I don't take it for lunch.

I live in NZ too! What brand is the bread? Since I am a student, I don't have the money to experiment trying bread brands.

Oh wow, crazy! Small world! I eat the pavillion plain white bread - I get it from Countdown, I think Fresh Choice stock it too.

Hi I'm Leanna from Ohio. I've suffered from IBS-D for many years and now have 2 active kids and am tired of worrying about leaving the house. I recently had blood work done by my primary care doc and he says I have no "allergies" to wheat, dairy or eggs and I've done a few elimination diets on my own and haven't had much success. I just downloaded the Free At Last book and have been reading about FODMAPS. I think it's worth a try so I'm taking this weekend to prepare my food lists and shop.

I do know that coffee is a huge trigger for me. Does anyone have triggers that are allowed on the elimination diet?

Coffee is a trigger for me - but one that I utilise, haha. I have IBS-C, and if I think I might need to poop I'll have a coffee and it'll help get things moving! Haha.

How is the elimination diet going? It is hard but it is so worth it! I didn't end up going the full month, I went about 10 days and have managed since then on my own. I try to stick to mainly FODMAP-free food, with the occasional FODMAP. Wheat is what I'm really struggling with, because I know I can have it sometimes I end up having it a lot more than sometimes! I need to get rid of my all or nothing mentality. Everything else I've found pretty easy though, onions I've had a couple times when others have cooked for me and I've handled them a lot better than when I had them after only a couple of days of eliminating them.

I'm a snacker so not having the ease of grabbing something and eating is killing me! I have to think about it now lol! I'm down to coffee just in the morning (1-2 cups) and I can usually "get rid of it" by the time I leave the house. If I know I'm going somewhere "important" I don't drink it.

I took photos of all the allowed things on my phone and use them to consult when I'm out...thought my husband was going to die laughing.

Do you guys have a sample or list of what you eat for meals? I'm not a fan of the cookbook recipes...I like simple chicken, rice, veggie type meals but after having that same meal for 3 days for lunch & dinner I'm going a bit nuts.

I like to make a quinoa salad....quinoa (cook and then cool), blueberries, pineapple + juice to taste, cucumbers and red peppers. Dice up everything but the blueberries....mix w/quinoa and chill for about an hour to get the flavors mixed.

The snacking thing is a big issue for me as well - haha, I think that's why it's so hard to avoid wheat, because it's in all the snacky foods. And it's hard to remember to stop and think, haha. Having the lists on your phone is a good idea! I considered it but didn't get around to it.

Ummmmm my days are very varied, especially since I'm eating low-FODMAP not elimination, so I'm eating dairy again now, but here's what I normally have:
Breakfast - I have oats with banana and almond milk almost every day, sometimes I have GF toast with peanut or almond butter, and on the weekends I usually have eggs on GF toast or french GF toast.
Lunch - Lunches I've had lately include green salad w leftover roast chicken, soup, quinoa & vegie salad, or a cheese GF toastie with a side of a green salad. When I'm being good and prepping my lunches in advance I usually cut up some pineapple or kiwifruit as well (fibre!).
Dinner - Again, just what I've had lately - roast meat & veg, thai green chicken curry with rice, stir fry with rice, omelette & salad, soup & toast, GF toasted sandwiches, chicken salad, homemade GF pizza (I use a GF tortilla for the crust cos I like a crispy crust, plus low cal), rice risotto...

Other ideas - bangers & mash, stuffed chicken breast, steak w mash & salad, could sub mashed potato for mashed carrot, or a mixture of mashed carrot & parsnip, or mashed butternut squash.

For anyone on elimination, this is what my day looked like everyday, changing the proteins each day only:
Breakfast - Overnight oats made with sliced banana & half almond milk half water
Snack - Carrot sticks
Lunch - Cold salad of quinoa, diced butternut squash, zucchini & 2 hard boiled eggs
Snack - Pineapple or kiwifruit or an orange
Dinner - Pan fried fish with half a lemon squeezed on top, with mashed butternut squash and sauteed zucchini on the side
Dessert - Pineapple or kiwifruit or an orange
When I was doing this I was a pescatarian so this is literally all I ate for the 10ish days I did this, but you could easily sub the eggs and fish for other proteins.

Hi Gals!:flowerforyou:

I have been having more problems. Did well on FODMAPs for 4 weeks then all of a sudden crashed and burned. Been miserable for the last 4 weeks. My gastro dr has me starting an even more stringent program for IBS called Carbohydrate Specific Diet based on the book Breaking the Vicious Cycle. Sooooooo, I won't be reporting in any more about FODMAPs.

Good luck everyone!

Dee

Sorry to hear that! I hope everything works out!