How I Survived a Nutrient Dense Lifestyle One Year Later - Rob Filogomo

How I survived a nutrient-dense lifestyle one year later. As I approach the one-year mark of being on my new eating lifestyle, I have to say that I am feeling so much better than a year ago. And I couldn’t have had this success without the support of my wife Jodie. We have comfortably settled into an eating-dense nutrient food rhythm.

You can check my posts to see how I started:

But some of my limitations still present challenges for us.

Making it More Complex

Making it more complex, I have another issue where I can not eat legumes. No beans, peanuts, soy, peas, etc. which makes eating a nutrient-dense diet slightly more tricky. My wife and I do manage as a team. When we eat out especially at a Mexican restaurant, Jodie will take the beans and other legumes as much as possible.

I am slowly reintroducing some legumes back into my routine with limited success. And recently I took a gut test which pointed out some of my gut sensitivities. I am hoping a new herb and supplement regiment will eventually allow me to eat more legumes.

Eating Out

In the beginning, eating out was a big challenge. But I have learned how to find something I can eat no matter where we are. I’ve become pretty savvy when ordering at a restaurant to get the healthiest items on the menu. Even if that means ordering a few salads, dressing on the side, and a few sides of vegetable dishes, my wife and I make it work. Fortunately, there are many gluten-free, nutrient-dense, vegetarian, or vegan establishments popping up all over the place. Also, many restaurants are adding these types of items to their menu. The trickiest part is the no sugar or sugar substitute restrictions. (Sugar substitutes kill my stomach and give me headaches. Even the so-called “natural” ones).

The following is a list of a few of my favorite healthy AND tasty restaurants

Some of the Benefits

I’ve managed to get my sugar intake as low as possible. Sure that means no more ice cream except on special occasions. I am surprised at how I really don’t miss the sugar.

One of the benefits is that my finger joints don’t ache or swell anymore. And I have found a place called Nekter Juiced Bar that has frozen Acai,(pronounced aa-saa-ee) bowls that satisfy my ice cream cravings.

I have to say that eliminating gluten has really settled my stomach issues miraculously. But…

Some Challenges

But eliminating gluten presents some challenges as well. This is so much more difficult for me than eliminating sugar. No more pizzas, artesian bread, pasta, and noodles. Noooooooooooo……would have been my answer to going gluten-free a couple of years ago. However, I feel so much better without it, so it’s definitely been worth it.

We managed to find cauliflower crust pizzas which are actually good. A company called CAULIPOWER has some very tasty products.

I have yet to find a bread worth mentioning but I am waiting for an order from Simple Kneads a gluten-free bread-making company based in North Carolina that has received great reviews. We will see.

The issue with gluten-free bread and other gluten-free or vegan products for that matter is most, especially bread, have added sugar and lots of salt. Simple Kneads does not. This is why you need to read the ingredients on everything and I mean everything.

I have not really found any kinds of pasta that taste great but Picazzos has the best tasting so far.

I can still make my favorite artichokes, however.

Raw Veggies or Cooked?

Another thing I have learned is that my body responds better to cooking vegetables over large amounts of raw veggies. We discovered this when we were eating many salads and raw veggies/fruit-dense smoothies. Let’s just say I had many trips to the bathroom. I asked my food coach about my issue and she suggested it was the heavy raw veggie diet. She has the same reaction. So we backed off on the smoothies and raw salads and it has helped a lot.

We added more sautéed vegetables into our routine. We make in the mornings veggie and potato hash, sweet potato mash, and veggie omelets our breakfast staples. These are tasty options to get lots of veggies in the morning. Also, spaghetti squash and zucchini noodles help with adding more cooked veggies into the mix as well as helping fulfill my pasta craving.

So it’s been an interesting year. My advice if you need to change your eating habits. Give yourself large amounts of GRACE. Begin slow but be consistent. Find tasty substitutes to fill what you’re missing. For me, Nekter’s Acai frozen super bowls help with my ice cream cravings. Remind yourself often how much better you feel with your changes. And having someone to partner with who will cheer you on is a huge bonus.