After reading
The Detoxinista's page about Food Combining, I decided to give the concept a try. After all, it's not really a diet that tells you
what to eat so much as
when to eat.
Basically, the idea is that a lot of digestion problems come from combining various food groups incorrectly. Apparently, some foods should not be eaten with one another. Go figure.
One of the things that got me was her explanation of when to eat fruit and why:
"Fresh fruit is best eaten in the mornings, on an empty stomach. This is because fruit digests so quickly! (typically within 30 minutes of eating) If you eat fruit after a meal, it will sit in your stomach fermenting, causing gas and bloating, and promoting bacterial overgrowth in the body." I bought into this, and totally know the feeling of how quickly fruits digest.
I do want to point out that Heather (The Detoxinista) fairly straight forwardly admits that there is not a ton of science behind this concept (As she puts it: there's no money in it, so why would we put science behind it? derr). But, she contends that it is still a good strategy for detoxing because it is easier on your digestive system, and it forces you to
think about what you are putting in your body.
THE PLAN:
I used the headers and examples from Heather's chart as guidelines and then went with it. I decided that I should have a few sample plans, so that I could have the ability to switch back and forth. If you're similarly inclined to give this plan a shot, here are some sample meal plans:
Plan 1:
Breakfast -
- Eggs with cheese or nutritional yeast and hot sauce, optional cooked veggies as a side.
- This fits into the flesh category (eggs), and flesh category foods can be enjoyed with cooked veggies.
Optional Snack -
- Nuts (not peanuts), seeds, and/or dried fruit. Basically, any peanut-less version of trail mix would do. (Peanuts are a legume. If there is chocolate involved, it needs to be dark chocolate... I'm going to try to just avoid chocolate though, because it is far too easy to overeat it!).
- This fits into the nuts, seeds, and dried fruit category.
Lunch -
- Baked sweet potato with a light sprinkling of sea salt and butter or coconut oil. Option to add some cooked veggies (like asparagus, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, etc).
- This fits into the starches category (potato), and butters and oils are considered neutral.
Dinner -
- Chicken, cooked in coconut oil with lemon juice and herbs, with a side of steamed broccoli or glazed carrots.
- This fits into the flesh category (chicken), and coconut oil, lemon juice, and herbs are neutral. Flesh category meals can be eaten with non-starchy veggies, as long as they are cooked.
Optional Dessert -
- Ice cream!
- Since ice cream is also part of the flesh category, it would be just fine to enjoy some after dinner without needing to wait for your dinner to digest first!
Plan 2:
Breakfast -
- Quest bar with Coconut Milk Latte.
- Quest bars are mostly made of protein and nuts, so this counts in the nuts, seeds, and dried fruit category. Since coconut milk is made from nuts, it could fit here. I have also read that non-dairy milks are neutral, so that would work well with this meal, too (or any breakfast!).
Snack -
- 1 cup of vanilla or flavored greek yogurt
- This falls into the flesh category. Weird, I know! Try not to add any fruit to your yogurt or it will technically be miscombined.
Lunch -
- 1/2 mashed avocado on toasted bread, with an optional light sprinkling of sea salt and pepper
- This would fit into the starch category (avocados can be starch or fruit, but since it is combined with bread, it falls into starch here).
Dinner -
- Steak, cooked on the grill with steak seasoning, with a side of sauteed mixed vegetables (carrots, broccoli, cauliflower).
- This fits into the flesh category (steak), which can be eaten with cooked non-starchy veggies.
Optional Dessert -
- Ice cream!
- Since ice cream is also part of the flesh category, it would be just fine to enjoy some after dinner without needing to wait for your dinner to digest first!
Plan 3:
Breakfast -
Juice made with a combination of apples, cucumber, celery, spinach, kale, romaine, parsley, and lemon.
This fits into the fruit category (duh, fruit). Lemon juice and raw, leafy greens, which I add to my juice in the morning, are in the neutral category, so this is well combined!
Snack -
- 1 banana, with option to eat with either (1) other mixed fruits, or (2) almond, coconut, or cashew butter
- The categories on this one get a little funky. Bananas can either be combined with other fruit, and be part of the fruit category, or be combined with nut butter and be part of the nuts, seeds, and dried fruit category. Take your pick!
Lunch -
- Baked potato or sweet potato with light sea salt, butter, or coconut oil. (Do not add any dairy, like cheese or sour cream, to this, or it will be miscombined!)
- This would be part of the starch category (potatoes), and butters and oils are neutral.
Dinner -
- Fish, cooked on the stove with blackened seasoning, with a side of sauteed or grilled asparagus.
- This fits into the flesh category (fish), which can be eaten with cooked non-starchy veggies (asparagus).
Optional Dessert -
- Ice cream!
- Since ice cream is also part of the flesh category, it would be just fine to enjoy some after dinner without needing to wait for your dinner to digest first!
What do you think?
Would you try this? Any other plans you want to try?Do you have any more information on this plan?
