Gluten Baby

Gluten Baby

                Why do I insist on torturing myself by eating gluten? At the end of the summer I was so happy with my weight. For the first time in 10 years I was under 150 pounds, which was an incredible feeling. I had a lean tummy, and thin legs, and my arms were pretty dang good after carrying around the kiddo all day. 

 When I went back to work all I heard was “Omg, you are so thin!” or “Wow, do you really have a 1 year old?” and it was so uplifting. And yet, now the pounds are back, and I feel squishy, and I don’t like my body, once again. 

What is the difference? A month long return to gluten.

Now, to be fair, there is another culprit. During the summer I took a lot of long walks with the Bug, and now that she is fully competent at walking she does it herself, which results in a 30 minute walk covering ½ mile of ground instead of several miles.

But really, it’s the gluten. You see, my husband was diagnosed with diabetes at the end of the summer, and as a result we filled out house with snacks for him. Granola bars, crackers, and breads suddenly invaded our pantries, foods that had been abolished back in the days when I couldn’t get pregnant, and decided to go gluten-free. And when I went back to work I was STARVING all the time, so the granola bars, crackers, etc. made their way into my lunch box (which is why they were exiled from the house to begin with!). Within a month I was squishy, and now look like I’m pregnant again. (Okay, that’s not quite fair. Here is what I looked like at 12 weeks pregnant, which is where I feel I am now. 

Most people would still call me skinny, or just say that I have the classic “mummy tummy”)

I can definitely feel the difference though, and that’s why I’m getting back on the feel-good train and away from the convenience factor that gluten gives me. It’s not only the gluten belly, but how I feel. I feel horrible when I eat gluten. It’s like a heavy ball is just sitting in my stomach and I feel sluggish. I have more frequent headaches and I’m a lot crankier (because who wouldn’t be cranky when their stomach always hurts and they have headaches). My entire body hurts and feels tense.

It’s time to put down the cupcake, granola bar, and sandwich bread. I must once again live by the mantra “The 5 minute pleasure from eating this, is not worth the weeks of pain that it will cause”