diets

[Sheep]

Has anyone been on, or is currently on, any sort of diet? I'm likely to be diagnosed with IBS by my doctor after other things are ruled out and had to start a low FODMAP diet, so I'm curious if anyone else has ever been on any diets in general, be by personal choice or recommendation from a professional. Would be nice to get anyone to relate to, even if it's on a small scale!

What kinds of diet(s) did you do? Did you find them to be difficult?

 

[CiCi]

I went vegetarian at 14 years old, then vegan at 20; though veganism has been a lifestyle and not a diet, diet encompasses most of it.

As for the more traditional-style diets, I've been recently trying to get into intermittent fasting several times a week, where my feeding window is from 11 am to 7 pm. On the days I don't do it, I just try to temper myself and not eat a stupid amount of snacks. It's been helping me lose weight.

A few years ago, I hopped on the fad diet of Raw Til 4, which was a diet of only raw fruits and vegetables until dinner, where you can eat whatever you want. Between that and running constantly, I lost a LOT of weight, but it was unsustainable. I would get really moody from my blood sugar dropping too low and I hated running. Nixing Raw Til 4 even with intermittent fasting has completely gotten rid of blood sugar spikes. Intermittent fasting has helped things to feel much more stable.

I never saw a doctor throughout any of this. Not a fan of doctors, especially now.

 

[Roni]

I find it hard to sustain diets. I tried taking advice to call it "my nutrition" instead so it'd feel more permanent, but not even that worked for me. I've struggled to eat well & keep weight off because of how drawn I am towards taste-bud pleasuring fast food. If only there was a way to make whole foods taste the same, I'd be all in. I'm only ever after the taste.

 

[gimmepie]

I feel like 99% of the people who go on diets don't need to, if I'm being honest. For the average person, so long as you're eating relatively healthy and getting a decent amount of exercise, you have very little to gain from jumping on whatever diet method is the current fad. At least, that's my opinion.

Of course, medically advised diets are a different thing. I don't have a specific diet to follow, but because of my health issues I do have to be careful with what I eat a lot of the time. I can't eat a lot of red meat or pastry for example. I can still enjoy them sometimes, but too much of that sort of thing makes it more likely my issues will flare up.

 

[Corrin]

I have to avoid certain food due to health issues, but that's all I can think of.

 

[ReKoil]

What's a diet?
I've never been on a diet. I like food and am not in any actual need of it atm.

 

[Zeostar]

I gained nearly 10lbs since last year. My diet through most of 2020 consisted of oatmeal and yogurt. I needed to gain more.

 

[StCooler]

Me: Vegetarian/Vegan is the only diet I've never tried.
Sheep: Yo you heard about low FODMAP diet?
Me:


Seven years ago, my doctor told me that, with my eating habits, I would die of a stroke at age 40. Since then, I've been on a diet XD
Lots of vegetables, fruits as snacks or desserts, enough meat/fish/eggs to cover my needs in proteins/omega-3, and some chocolate / coconut water (yes XD) / Indian snacks (yes again XD) for carbs and daily pleasure.
I wouldn't call this a diet though, as it's my normal way of eating now. My friends call this a diet because I weigh everything, and I eat like this because I do strength training, and diet is part of it.

One of my problems is that I sometimes seek comfort in food so I end up eating too much chocolate or Indian snacks, that's why I always say I have to lose weight XD

Spoiler:

And I've moved to another country so I've been stressed for three months and I took 5 kg...

 

[Sheep]

Me: Vegetarian/Vegan is the only diet I've never tried.
Sheep: Yo you heard about low FODMAP diet?
Me:


Seven years ago, my doctor told me that, with my eating habits, I would die of a stroke at age 40. Since then, I've been on a diet XD
Lots of vegetables, fruits as snacks or desserts, enough meat/fish/eggs to cover my needs in proteins/omega-3, and some chocolate / coconut water (yes XD) / Indian snacks (yes again XD) for carbs and daily pleasure.
I wouldn't call this a diet though, as it's my normal way of eating now. My friends call this a diet because I weigh everything, and I eat like this because I do strength training, and diet is part of it.

One of my problems is that I sometimes seek comfort in food so I end up eating too much chocolate or Indian snacks, that's why I always say I have to lose weight XD

Spoiler:

And I've moved to another country so I've been stressed for three months and I took 5 kg...

Oh my goshhh I would have been so stressed to hear that. Glad to hear you eased into the diet now, it must be so relieving to know you're eating things that have a better impact on your body. Fortunately I can control myself when it comes to chocolate/most food in general, but hopefully your eating-too-much days aren't too often! It can be hard when a lot of snacks/fast food are made to be addicting so people keep buying more. /: Teaching yourself not to eat too much is good but I honestly don't think it's entirely people's faults when they can't help but buy really addicting/cheap food sometimes.

--

Thanks everyone for your input! I am about 5 days into my diet and had a bit of a reaction last night (crampy pains from trapped air bubbles). It could just be a reaction from food I had before the diet started since it's barely been long enough but hopefully isn't a reaction to anything else. I haven't had anything that's high in FODMAPs since I started, all I can think of is an intolerance to eggs since I know that's a common allergen. Gonna have to test more later.

 

[Bay]

After going to a couple physical visits, my physicians highly recommended I cut back on sugar and fatty foods. I did a bit of that along with some exercise for some months and I've lost almost 10 lbs and my cholesterol have gone from high to normal range. Winter though will make things like walks harder though lol

 

[Aslan]

Yes! The doctors suspected I had acid reflux back in 2018 so I had to follow a lot of the restrictions that were put in place. Mine was exacerbated by stress more than diet but I remember being told not to eat citrus foods, dairy, desserts, fried/oily food and a lot of other foods but those were the ones I remember having trouble with. I remember at the time thinking it would be manageable but it's so hard to balance around eating with family/friends where a lot of dishes have a lot of food triggers that you don't expect. There was advice such as eating smaller meals too, not lying down after meals and so on but I was experiencing acid reflux after every meal no matter what I ate... turns out a lot of it was anxiety-based. I also find that food triggers are different for everyone. Foods like oatmeal and bananas are supposed to be some of the safest foods out there but I think these were some of my worst triggers from memory. I also was on prescription medication for at least a year and I remember having to change around brands to find one that felt like it made a difference.

One of my most distinct memories is my friend buying me a lot of chocolate for my birthday one year because they didn't know I had acid reflux as I was trying to keep the situation private. I remember taking my prescription medication and then taking the regular heartburn pills afterwards... and eating all of it. Not the smartest move ever or one I am proud of. I did my best to be compliant otherwise but it was so hard when all the food triggers seemed so inconsistent with what was listed or at times, the same food would trigger acid reflux whereas the next time it would not.

I'm not sure how it is now as I haven't had it checked in a while but I've been able to stop medication and resume eating a normal diet since it seems I haven't had any noticeable acid reflux symptoms. At its worst, I ended up in the hospital thinking it was something much more serious given how much pain it caused and also at the time I wasn't eating that much so it made it a lot worse than it should have been. I'm better now though. I think I'm better at getting my stress under control and that's what made the difference. Hoping it's not that my body is used to it and I'm just missing that there is still acid reflux going on because that would be bad, but I'll book a checkup this holidays to be on the safe side. I'm telling myself it's the health anxiety... but also I'm uncertain so I'll get it checked so I can feel at ease.

One of my best friends is on a FODMAP diet and whilst we have different food restrictions, we used to talk about diet restrictions together a lot. Whilst it's not great that either of us have to go through it, it is nice having someone who is supportive and knows what you're going through. The FODMAP diet sounded difficult from what I remember of it, so best of luck to you and I hope everything works out ok. Let me know if you want someone to chat to about it :D

 

[Sheep]

Yes! The doctors suspected I had acid reflux back in 2018 so I had to follow a lot of the restrictions that were put in place. Mine was exacerbated by stress more than diet but I remember being told not to eat citrus foods, dairy, desserts, fried/oily food and a lot of other foods but those were the ones I remember having trouble with. I remember at the time thinking it would be manageable but it's so hard to balance around eating with family/friends where a lot of dishes have a lot of food triggers that you don't expect. There was advice such as eating smaller meals too, not lying down after meals and so on but I was experiencing acid reflux after every meal no matter what I ate... turns out a lot of it was anxiety-based. I also find that food triggers are different for everyone. Foods like oatmeal and bananas are supposed to be some of the safest foods out there but I think these were some of my worst triggers from memory. I also was on prescription medication for at least a year and I remember having to change around brands to find one that felt like it made a difference.

One of my most distinct memories is my friend buying me a lot of chocolate for my birthday one year because they didn't know I had acid reflux as I was trying to keep the situation private. I remember taking my prescription medication and then taking the regular heartburn pills afterwards... and eating all of it. Not the smartest move ever or one I am proud of. I did my best to be compliant otherwise but it was so hard when all the food triggers seemed so inconsistent with what was listed or at times, the same food would trigger acid reflux whereas the next time it would not.

I'm not sure how it is now as I haven't had it checked in a while but I've been able to stop medication and resume eating a normal diet since it seems I haven't had any noticeable acid reflux symptoms. At its worst, I ended up in the hospital thinking it was something much more serious given how much pain it caused and also at the time I wasn't eating that much so it made it a lot worse than it should have been. I'm better now though. I think I'm better at getting my stress under control and that's what made the difference. Hoping it's not that my body is used to it and I'm just missing that there is still acid reflux going on because that would be bad, but I'll book a checkup this holidays to be on the safe side. I'm telling myself it's the health anxiety... but also I'm uncertain so I'll get it checked so I can feel at ease.

One of my best friends is on a FODMAP diet and whilst we have different food restrictions, we used to talk about diet restrictions together a lot. Whilst it's not great that either of us have to go through it, it is nice having someone who is supportive and knows what you're going through. The FODMAP diet sounded difficult from what I remember of it, so best of luck to you and I hope everything works out ok. Let me know if you want someone to chat to about it :D

OMG yes. When I told my mom some of the things I couldn't eat on a low FODMAP diet she didn't think it seemed so hard, honestly neither did I at first, then I started looking it up ingredient-by-ingredient and realizing just how many products I bought/cooked had things I couldn't eat anymore in them. It's pretty crazy. I have to be careful not to consume too many broccoli stems for example, can't eat bananas anymore unless they're hard/green (aka less good), bread without any of the triggering ingredients is very hard to find, can only have very basic sushi (with almost no avocado since the max I can eat a day is 1/8 of one), absolutely must avoid all garlic and onion, etc etc. It's been so tough having to manage it and I can't wait until I can start reintroducing things back, so I can hopefully find what bothers me...and start enjoying the things I enjoy again. D: Finding a restaurant that has none of these things is very hard, sometimes I'd spend hours looking only to be disappointed.

Glad things are mostly okay for you now. In my case my symptoms tend to worsen when I'm anxious/stressed and I largely feel that's what caused this too. I've gone through some massively stressful things in the last 6ish years so it really is no surprise if it caused it. Health anxiety is a huge pain, and it stinks so much how strongly linked the brain and gut are. I wish our brains would stop being stupid and creating problems lol :(

 

[Devalue]

Eats things that do not cause misery. Winds up being close to the low FODMAP diet. Is vegetarian too, if you wish to count that.

I did my best to be compliant otherwise but it was so hard when all the food triggers seemed so inconsistent with what was listed or at times, the same food would trigger acid reflux whereas the next time it would not.

Hears you on this. Consumed apple juice and applesauce regularly. Falls on the list of high FODMAP foods. Experienced issues too inconsistently to suspect it, though. Realized the error only after dropping it entirely.

Operated on poor information, admittedly. Asked a doctor for a timeframe. Said about an hour. Held true for some foods. Deals with fructose problems (such as from apples) the morning after, typically. Blamed issues on poor sleep instead. Came hand-in-hand often.

Finding a restaurant that has none of these things is very hard, sometimes I'd spend hours looking only to be disappointed.

Feels this. Views nearly everything from restaurants as inedible. Distrusts most vegetarian options, due to either the [unclear] vegetables involved or the onion/garlic/cheese. Often loads food with oil or butter, which would be rough. Nopes out of soft drinks. Simply never tested a lot of foods, also. Declines to gamble. Leaves water, bread/buns with nothing (tolerates basic white bread fine), and salt packets.

 

[Caite-chan]

I've always been told that diets never work and that it's causes more trouble than it's worth. You should be able to eat anything and everything you want...so long as you do it in moderation. So yes you can have carbs and sugar just don't go overboard with it.