“What On Earth Do You Eat?!"

The Change That Changes Everything, Part 9

This is by far the most common question I am asked by friends and acquaintances (and now total strangers who are friends of friends) who contact me with questions about how to apply this new way of eating.

First, let me reiterate that I am no expert on this way of eating. But I am a few months along this journey ahead of you, and I have leveled out on the (very steep) learning curve that occurs when you first start trying to do this.

There is a learning curve. And it's steep! 

Hear me when I say that I almost quit more than once during the first 2-3 weeks—in spite of my great success getting rid of all of my chronic, debilitating pain, and of feeling better than I had in years!—because I simply didn't know what to make and eat next.

It's overwhelming. I get it!

My best advice? Practice intermittent fasting—meaning, don't eat before <sometime between  9:30–10:30 a.m.> or after <about 4:30–5:30 p.m.> if at all possible—and only make two main meals a day.

This was a drastic shift for us, but it made a huge difference in how sustainable this way of food preparation was for us. It was simply too much to try to make breakfast, clean up and figure out what to make for lunch (and make it) a few hours later, then clean up and figure out what to make for dinner (and make it) a few hours after that. 

This may be difficult to work into your schedule if you're working full time anywhere but from your home. But it will not be difficult to do as far as your appetite goes. We are never hungry. We are ready to eat by the time it's time to eat again, yes, but we are never hungry between meals. And if we are, we grab some veggies or a piece of fruit and we're fine. 

Waiting until between 9–10 a.m. to eat breakfast is easy. Eating your main meal at lunch time (like between 1–2 p.m. ) is great because you eat your "big" meal midday when you are actually your hungriest and when have plenty of time to digest your largest meal over the course of the rest of the day. We "check in" with ourselves when 4 p.m. rolls around to see how hungry we are. If we  are still satisfied from lunch, which we usually are, we don't plan to eat much by way of dinner, and just make sure we grab our "snacky food" before 6 p.m. (More on what that might be, later.)

If you will make this one change—two main meals, breakfast and lunch, and then a light, snack-around dinner if you're hungry—this will immediately become so very much easier.

It is a pretty drastic shift. Psychologically, you may not like eating the main meal at lunchtime, especially if you and your family are at work and school all day and won't be able to eat this meal together. We Americans tend to like our big dinners, and we like them later in the day, like at least 6–7 p.m. This is the way we've always eaten. 

Well, since you're changing everything else about "the way you've always eaten," you may as well change this, too.

This way of eating also necessitates a huge and drastic shift in food prep. Everything takes longer than it used to. Everything is unfamiliar. It takes a long time to research and figure out what to make. Finding recipes. Clearing out your pantry and freezer of what you can no longer have. Restocking your pantry with new staples—after you figure out what they are! Chopping all these veggies!!

Hang in there. It really is overwhelming. You really are thinking about quitting and giving up. I promise it gets easier after about 2–3 weeks, if you are a comfortable cook—or at least used to be, with your old way of cooking. If you have never been one to do a lot of homemade meal prep, it may take a little longer, but you will get it!

If you're feeling overwhelmed and about to quit—this is true at any stage, whether days or weeks or months into it!—Simplify. Simplify. Simplify.

You will notice in my last post (about coming off of the week-long water fast) that in my first 9 days of eating this way, I ate out a couple of different times (and ate leftovers from those meals at another time, so really I ate that Moe's and Cava food four times) and then I basically ate beans & rice with greens or veggie soup most every other meal.

This won't do for the long run, of course, but if it gets you through... go back to homemade veggie soups and power bowls! (Or even simpler still, eat sweet potatoes and greens, or quinoa and black beans, until you figure out how and when and what else to cook!)

Read Part 10, A Word About Cheating.

NOTE: The information provided on the site is for educational purposes only, and does not substitute for professional medical advice. You should consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if you’re seeking medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment. I am not a medical professional or healthcare provider, and I have no professional medical, nutritional, or dietary credentials. You yourself are responsible for any risks or issues associated with using or acting upon any information or advice appearing on this site. 

Start the story at the beginning with Part 1.