AIP Travelling

Today I was on the road most of the day. I left after 11 am and got home around 8 pm. The past few times I've done this, I have just stopped along the way for food: first, an iced decaf Americano with sugar free chocolate syrup and cream. Then lunch might be a chef salad with turkey, ham, egg, cheese, and Ranch dressing on the side. In the afternoon I'd have a pack of almonds and another Americano to tide me over for dinner, which would be the usual lower-carb meat and veggies (baked chicken and broccoli, or steak and mixed steamed veggies). Being on AIP, a lot of the things I used to enjoy on trips are off limits: coffee of any kind, not to mention the cream and sugar free syrup; hard boiled eggs; dressings of almost any kind found in restaurants; most lunch meats; cheese; butter, oil, and many spices meats are cooked in. So I packed.

I brewed myself some plain green tea, iced it, and put it in my water bottle.
I baked this chicken (with less honey) the night before (I used boneless, skinless thighs) and brought along a cold piece.
I brought a bag of plantain chips, which are AIP approved only if they contain no preservatives and are roasted in either coconut oil or palm olein, like Inka Chips or Turbana Chips (plain, not flavored). I've reviewed both brands here.
I brought an apple.
I made these Banana Bread Macaroons and brought two of them. They are really wonderful... the flavor of banana bread, the texture of a macaroon. Each one is one tablespoon... small, but filling and satisfying.
I could have brought carrot stick but thought this would be enough.
I was wrong!

About 6:30 I'd already eaten all of my food and was legitimately hungry again! I stopped at a diner on the way home. I talked to the waitress and told her I was on a very limited diet and explained the gluten, dairy, etc. She recommended a hamburger with no bun since they were made from scratch and she could have him make one without seasoning. So I had a plain green salad with carrots and cukes, topped with a plain burger patty, pickles, and red onion. Good enough.

Nothing I can eat is OMG so super delicious that I want to binge on it. I am learning to appreciate the basic flavors of food without a lot of WOW factor. I think when I am able to add back some of the restricted foods, I will so appreciate the flavors of, say, a basic tomato sauce (if I can tolerate tomatoes!)

Also, I wanted to note that I am sleeping better than I have in YEARS. I don't know if it is the diet or the Synthroid, but every night I am asleep before 11 and up at 7 or 8. I still wake up one or two times in the night (bathroom breaks) but fall right back asleep. For years I have been waking up 3, 4, 5 or more times in the night and unable to fall back asleep for an hour or two... resulting in my getting only 4 hours, maybe 5 hours of broken-up sleep per night. Now I am getting a good 8 hours a night. This is really the best quality sleep I can remember having in so, so long! I am very thankful and feeling better for it.

Here's hoping things keep getting better!