Tuesday, March 15, 2011

How I Eat Now

I have been eating everything I shouldn't if I want to get pregnant.

I mean, I kind of suspected I was. I am not a very healthy eater. I am extremely picky, and at certain times in my life subsisted on pasta and Taco Bell because I didn't want to eat anything else. I didn't worry about it when we started trying to get pregnant though because all of the doctors told me it didn't really matter. After all, they were pumping me full of hormones, so what impact could a tossed salad really have? Every time I would ask they would tell me if I wanted to lose a few pounds I could change my diet, but really that would be the only reason. I always laughed at that, since it was the hormones that had caused me to swell well beyond my comfortable weight. The minute I went off, I dropped ten pounds.

One of the key components of "Making Babies" is eating well. They say the naturally fertile eat a "rainbow" of foods. I don't think they mean a rainbow of various colors of beige. So, all of a sudden I am having to open my maw and choke down things I haven't eaten in years, if at all.

I started with foods that could be dipped or hidden in other foods. Carrots are amazing in that way, as is spinach. Then I started putting various vegetables in with my pasta. I made myself start with them, eating the pasta last as a reward, and to get the taste out of my mouth. I am now starting on eating fruit. Berries are easy mixed with yogurt, but whole fruit like apples and oranges are tougher. I mean, they just take so long. All that chewing. And don't even get me started on "salads."

There is one great thing about eating differently though, I mean other that the fact it could improve my fertility and help me not die when my daughter is six, and that is that I am thinking more about what I eat. I am no longer just grabbing something when I am having a sugar crash, but considering what I have not eaten for the day, and what I still need. I shop more carefully, looking at labels. I try to buy fresh and organic, and (gulp) eat it before it goes rancid. It's not just a different way of eating, but also thinking.

Hopefully it is a small change that will lead to bigger changes later. You know, like having two children.

7 comments:

  1. I read once (sorry, I can't remember or find where -- maybe this book!) that a good diet for fertility was fruit, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and high fat dairy. So among the other things I did eat ice cream. :)

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  2. One cannot live, or make babies, on pasta and Taco Bell alone, Libby. Good for you for trying new things!

    Maybe you need to try Meg's new "dipping" bowl?

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  3. There were YEARS in my life where I ate Taco Bell a minimum of twice a week. Fruits and veggies are a nuisance and sometimes I want to scream I DON'T WANT AN APPLE I WANT A HAMBURGER but, yes, hopefully it all pays off.

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  4. I am almost completely vegetarian these days. I find that the more veggies I eat, the more veggies I want to eat as I've detoxed from the other stuff. I hope this works for you. I do add banana to my oatmeal in the am and make a lot of pasta with veggies (I made an arugula and snow pea pasta the other night that was awesome). I keep an apple and banana on my desk at work all the time, so I can munch and work, which is a little less inconvenient.

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  5. I can't believe you find apples an inconvenience! I eat two or three apples everyday. MMMMMmMmmmmm.

    My kids hate me cause I make all healthy food. Elijah's never even had taco bell. Maybe we can trade for awhile. What I mean is I'll send my kids to stay with your husband and Meg for awhile and you can come stay with me.

    Just you and me. And lots and lots of vegetarian madness.

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  6. If only the universe gave us things according to our effort and worthiness. You'd be a Duggar. Denim romper and all.

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  7. I agree that apples are hard to eat whole and round. They are a MILLION times easier to eat when you slice them up thin and put them in a baggie for work (leave it out on your desk) or present it on a small plate or bowl at home. Try it. You'll see.
    (a friend of Christina's)

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