Quoted Text

I was snacking on pretzels (thinking I was being healthy), until it dawned on me that they are wheat products!

On my drive home from the ND who put me on the BTD, I snacked on tortilla chips thinking 3 ingredients, of course they're healthy......     Rice crackers now, oh yeah

Welcome Landie and to this fabulous journey  

Oh, and don't forget the green veggies!  My usual breakfast is one egg with a green veggie.  Today it was spinach, yesterday okra from the freezer and I'm thinking swiss chard for tomorrow.

Welcome to the BTD family. We have lots of Os here to support you! You're absorbing new knowledge so fast, that very soon you will be wanting to buy yourself some new, smaller jeans  .

i know i am  

here s how to make ghee
http://tinyurl.com/9e7zsc
recipe for ghee to check:

http://www.indiacurry.com/dairy/d005ghee.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkZgIN4cZYc&feature=related

Quoted from ruthiegirl

Welcome Landie!

Try making your own rice or almond milk- there are recipes in the recipe database:

http://www.dadamo.com/typebase4/recipedepictor7x.cgi?385

http://www.dadamo.com/typebase4/recipedepictor7x.cgi?1308

http://www.dadamo.com/typebase.....=abc&header=Name

ruthie, I was very interested to look at these, since the only rice or almond milks I can buy here contain avoid oils (like sunflower!)...but the links don't work for some reason.  Is it too complicated to explain in a post?

I really don't want to re-type up the recipes I've already typed up for the recipe database. Instead, let me explain how to find that part of the website:

At the top of this page (or any page on this message board) where it says "learn more." Click on "learn more" and then scroll down to "recipe center".  There's a box where you can input words to search for in recipes.

If you scroll down a bit below the text box, you'll find a place where it says "search in" and gives options for "entire recipe" (default) and "recipe name." My experience is that searching in the whole recipe gives you too many results and most of them aren't what I was looking for. Search for "milk" in recipe title only, and you'll get a list of 10 recipes, 9 of which are for alternative milks, including the rice milk recipe I posted and an almond milk recipe that I use regularly.

Landie,
A warm welcome to the Forum and to this wonderful way of eating!  

Do you have the book, LR4YT?  It is the 'must have' instruction manual for understanding what makes you, as a type O, tick.  Your blood type thrives on good quality protein (compliant for your type) and fresh vegetables.  If you can start your day with a solid serving of protein (think, meat, fish or eggs) and something non-starchy to go with it, your day will be less tortured with cravings.  Your mid-day meal should have a hefty amount of fresh vegetables - - steamed, sauteed, baked, raw - - and some more meat, and maybe some cooked grains.  If you're going to eat baked carbs, such as bread, muffins, etc., try having them in the evening.  It's the best time if you want to minimize the cravings during the day and have strong energy.  Also carbs in the evenings contribute to better sleep.  That's not saying eat a lot of sugar at night, though!  

cocoa and carob with breakfast help curb cravings too. had fish for breakfast yesterday. simple thing, using the toaster oven i drizzled a couple of talepea filits with olive oil, salt, garlic, mixed green herbs, and pepprika and baked it till it flaked when forked. the edges get a bit crispy but it is great becuse i don't do well with alot of heavy foods in the morning
green beans with butter and salt....lunch time!

All of you guys are awesome - thank you all for your suggestions and encouragement!

Just got back from the grocery store a little while ago.  Bought some firsts - almond milk (although I have to check for what Eva said in the ingredients), almond butter, spelt flour... I'm so into this after all the posts I got yesterday (and now today)!

For lunch, I had brown rice bread with almond butter, sliced bananas, drizzled with Agave nectar.  SOOOOOO good!  (Someone suggested this or something similar yesterday.)

I will make sure to add green veggies to the diet.  Right now, I'm trying to get all the "okay" foods in my head so I can work on the balance of protein to veggies to grain, etc.    I'm getting there... and feel like one of the "cool" people shopping in the organic section now...

Quoted from Landie

I bought some tart cherry juice (wish it were sweeter!), so I'll have that sometimes, or some TAZO green-ginger tea (so yummy!!) with a Stevia packet and a little bit of creamer.  (I haven't gotten into non-dairy creamer yet, but I hope the quantities I'm using are not significant.)

Hi, and welcome.  You could try diluting w/ tonic or seltzer water.

Thanks Kauaian.  I'll try that - especially if a soda craving hits me.

If the almond milk has a few avoids in it, in small quantities, it may still be worth it to use one package of it, as you're settling into the new way of eating- with the plan to make your own when this package is finished.  Even if it has a few avoid additives, it's still a healthier choice for an O than milk or "coffee creamer."

you need to add more protein and less carbs to your meals.....veggies and good fats are essential!

Welcome, Landie:

The other replies said everything I was going to suggest.

One comment:  eventually, you would've realized that those meatballs also contain wheat.  (Bread crumbs are often used to soften and flavor the end result.)  In fact, most prepared meats have avoids in them, unfortunately.  I'm referring to flavorings, such as dextrose, maltodextrin, if not preservatives.  I have come across a few products that seem to be fine, but they're very expensive and hard to find.

Good luck!

I'll try to minimize the carbs, but I must admit that I don't want to do it drastically - at least not yet.  I've done a high protein/ low (practically no) carb diet in the past.  It worked great.  I lost 20 or more pounds, but then over the course of a year or two, gained it all back plus some.  I definitely knew I could not sustain that forever.  Life without chocolate cake and french fries had to be a temporary thing.  

One of the big things that attracted me to this diet is that there are permissible carbs - that are even beneficial.  I can even make a chocolate cake (once I learn how to use spelt flour, etc.) and not be totally in the "avoid" category.   I understand that it's important not to go carb-crazy, but I'm hoping that now that I'm eating the "right" kinds of carbs and foods, I'll be able to get by with "normal" kind of eating --  cream of rice for breakfast (instead of grits), sweet potato fries with my lunch (instead of fried white potato fries), brown rice bread instead of wheat bread, etc.  It seems the scale is moving downward.  If it stops, I'll readjust and cut back on the carbs, but for now, it seems to be working - maybe just a bit slower than for others.  But the big thing -- I can see doing this forever.  I don't feel a desire to go back to wheat or white potatoes.  I like what I'm eating ... and I feel that there are foods for every craving I have that will fulfill me!   That is a feeling I've never had before when on a "diet."  

Watch out for the Alexia Sweet Potato fries.  Several years ago they were OK but lately, the ones I've seen had coatings on them that were avoids.  Better to make your own.

that si exsactly how i feel landie. a year before i joint bt i was already cutting things out from a trial and error process and a bit of research. i had already cut all things corn (espeacaly high fractose corn syurp) after reading a bit about it, and potatoes becuse of what they did to me.
by the way, for those soda cravings, have you seen or have access to a produckt known as kumbacha? it is great, at bit on the soure side in some flavors but fizzy as all get out! we bought ours at first (it is around 4$ a 21oz bottle) but now we make and flavor our own for pennies.i don't even miss the soadas.

Thanks - I'll check out the ingredients, Jane. Someone posted a recipe for sweet potato fries the other day that I hope to try soon!

Glad I'm not alone, Battle D!   No, I'm not familiar with kumbacha, but I'll check it out.  You said you're making your own?  Did you buy one of those soda-making machines (I think out of water)?

I made chocolate chip cookies out of spelt flour today. They tasted great!  I know I can't eat the whole batch, but I felt a really strong "I want something yummy" craving coming on, and that did the trick - while staying within the permissible foods - I think!

great attitude and good thinking!!

not exsactly, here is how we got started
http://getkombucha.com/kombucha-cultures.html
they have a wonderful cache of info and free vids. if you like the idea i could get with mom and see about sending you a "duaghter" she always seems to have a few extra (we use them to wash our faces)

Thanks Lola!

Battle D - I was expecting it to be some type of fruit.  Hmmmm.... I think I'm going to hold off trying kombucha lol   Does it actually taste good?

My grandma and I used to make kombucha YEARS ago, when I was a teen...she used to sell it to health food stores in the area. It tasted gross at first but eventually you get used to it.

Battle Dwarf what do you use the kombucha on the face for? Anything in particular? The reason I ask is I am still having a tiny bit of acne (well not really acne, just little bumps on my face, I know it's from an intolerance but not sure if I'm still healing now that I've started eating right, or if I'm still eating something I'm intolerant to). I have been using pineapple to do a type of "mask" and then I put honey on my face, and my skin looks radiant! I wonder if kombucha would also work for this? Is it antibacterial?

Bear in mind that kombucha, like all forms of black tea, is an "avoid" for Os. It's suitable for Gatherers, but I'm not sure if it's OK for Hunters or Explorers. Even though I'm a Gatherer, Kombucha is a complete avoid for me as well.

If you're trying to increase compliance, it seems pointless to introduce a new  food that may not be a good choice either. Certainly, kombucha is far healthier than soda, but it's still not compliant for all Os.

Carbonated water with fruit juice is a better choice IMO.

I am so new I don't even know how to begin.  I just finished the LR4YL book last night, and now don't really know how to start--really.  Anyone have a weeks menu so I can just get an idea of what and how to eat?  I am an 0 and that's all I know so far.  Any help would be soooo appreciated.  Can I give you my email address?  denisecott@yahoo.com

Welcome Nisey!!

I'd suggest you start by cutting down on wheat and corn and increasing meat and veggies. I wouldn't worry about "hidden corn" in salad dressings or processed foods just yet. That can come later. You may even want to change one meal (say, dinner) this week and work on other meals next week.

In general, breakfast should be eggs and veggies, or a smoothie (from type O protein powder purchased on this site), or leftovers from last night's dinner. Baking a quiche once a week and having a slice on busy mornings works well.

Lunch can be leftovers, or meat (or fish) on a salad, or vegetable soup (with protein mixed into the soup, such as beans or meat, or with a protein source on the side.) Try to move away from sandwiches, unless you bake your own compliant breads or can find one in the store. Even then, I wouldn't recomend eating sandwiches daily (as a long-term goal.)

Dinners should include animal protein, 2 kinds of veggies (salad plus a cooked veggie or 2 cooked veggies) and a starch, such as brown rice or quinoa.

Before giving you specific menu ideas, I need to know more about your lifestyle. Do you have time in the mornings to sautee up onions and other veggies, then add eggs, wait for them to cook, and eat them without rushing, or do you need something you can eat on the train while communiting to work? Do you have time to cook during weekdays while the kids are at school, or do you need to cook on the weekends for busy weekday meals? (if so, then I'd suggest starting next week.)