Iโm finally back to eating at least one full meal most days (and on good days: two meals!) so I thought I would share this weekโs food diary with you, and also share what I would change (and why), or: what advice I would give if I was analyzing this food diary for someone else.
First though, THANK YOU for all of the comments & emails. I really appreciate your kind words and encouragement, and look forward to sitting down to reply for a fun โsocial hourโ โ Iโm going to enjoy that! ๐
One Week Keto Food Diary : 7 Days of Low Carb Meals
I start every day with my collagen coffee first thing in the morning โ๏ธ which I enjoy SO much. ๐ฅฐ Collagen is great for pretty much everything, but for me right now: joint pain & hair loss.
My hair was growing back in nicely before this latest relapse, so when Iโm not well Iโll usually double the collagen and have it twice a day instead of once.
Iโm still struggling with nausea & lack of appetite off & on, although itโs way better than it was all of last month and Iโm finally able to eat whole meals again.
The โlack of appetiteโ is more about feeling ill even at the thought of food, much less the smell. When Iโm not hungry I donโt eat. Itโs when Iโm famished and canโt eat that itโs frustrating.
These keto protein bars are my go-to for that. The flavor and texture is nice, think: almond butter, cocoa, collagen & sea salt โ not overly sweet, with little crunchy bits, plus the perfect hint of salt.
Theyโre very satisfying, and also fix my nausea pretty much instantly.
This the Almond Butter Brownie Bar from Perfect Keto. Iโm getting them 45% off on this page. Itโs a secret build-your-bundle deal where you get 45% off 4+ products, so if you only want two things you can use code LYNN20 for 20% off instead. Thatโs where I get my collagen too. I use their Unflavored Collagen Powder.
Sunday May 1st
This will sound crazy, but I woke up last Sunday totally FAMISHED and specifically craving this meal. Iโve always loved โbreakfast for dinnerโ but this time I hadโฆ dinner for breakfast, lol.
Garlic Steak & Roasted Sweet Potatoes (30 net carbs)
I usually stick to 20 net carbs a day max, so that meal would be considered more โlow carbโ than โketoโ โ but sweet potato wonโt usually knock me out of ketosis. This meal does not. Thatโs something youโd have to test for yourself. See: Is Sweet Potato Keto Friendly?
This was the first day I had a really good appetite in awhile, so I also had a full meal for dinner later that night. It was take-out from Applebeeโs: Grilled Salmon & Steamed Broccoli
We were talking about the new ChocZero white chocolate cookies & cream bark on Facebook, so I decided to try it. I prefer the dark chocolate almond & sea salt bark myself โ thatโs my favorite! โ but I got this for my daughter, so I decided to try it and ate maybe 1/3 of a bar.
Their new white chocolate line is really popular, but my favorites are: the new double dipped toffee almonds, strawberry chocolate chips & peanut butter chocolate chips, milk chocolate coconut bark and the dark chocolate almond bark. Our discount code is TRAVELINGLOWCARB at ChocZero if ever need one. Those chocolate chips are back in stock now! ๐ซ๐
Iโm not eating sweets or snacks right now, but I did order some of the peanut butter chips and strawberry chips for when Iโm feeling better, because theyโve been out of stock forever! ๐
Monday May 2nd
This was pretty much an awful terrible day and what sparked the horrible embarrassing rant in my last blog post. ๐คฆโโ๏ธ I was so sick all day that it took me almost 9 hours just to get showered and dressed to go out at 6:30 for dinner.
I had one of those Almond Butter Brownie keto bars in the morning and another one in the early afternoon, to get through bouts of nausea, tremors, feeling shaky & lightheaded, yada yada yada blah. Iโm so glad those work though, because theyโve been a real save through all of this! Iโm also glad I found them almost half off, because thereโs no way Iโd pay full price for them. ๐ ๐
My dinner was fabulous: a house burger (no bun,please) with sweet potato fries, a large water, and an ice cold bottle of Michelob Ultra โ which was SO nice. I havenโt had a beer in ages!
There are โgoodโ sweet potato fries and โbadโ sweet potato fries. Those were the bad ones. ๐ They did knock me out of ketosis, but I donโt have the carb tolerance right now that I used to when I was more active (and well). But it was worth it. ๐
Tuesday May 3rd
Morning: the usual โ collagen coffee & protein bar. I was really sick Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Gosh, the whole week I guess. I felt pretty good last Sunday, and then again yesterday (Saturday). The good days are pretty rare and still hard, and usually only a few good hours on and off, but I *so* appreciate those.
Today started off โgoodโ but then I crashed for 3 hours after my morning coffee โ and had the tremors and distorted vision and severe cognitive dysfunction all afternoon. Thatโs so frustrating. It only lasted a few hours and Iโm feeling better now at least. Anywayโฆ
Tuesday I had a late lunch / early dinner meal: Egg Roll In A Bowl โ I fried it crisp in a little butter and added mozzarella (28g). This is a meal Iโve been eating on repeat because itโs something I can eat when nothing else appeals.
Thatโs a really deep bowl fyi, itโs a very filling meal.
Later that night I had a pint of Rebel keto friendly ice cream for dinner. I got hungry again (yay!) but my throat was closing shut and I had a hard time swallowing.
This happens often in the evening hours for some reason, along with other symptoms of a โhistamine responseโ which is common with longcovid. Itโs bizarre, and can hit me anytime, but lately itโs been more common in the evening hours.
I donโt usually eat โdessertโ so if Iโm going to have keto ice cream Iโll eat it AS a meal โ like a protein shake, but frozen. ๐
Wednesday May 4th
I had a bar in the morning, and a bar later that night when I got nauseous again, and in between I had the Egg Roll In A Bowl meal again. Otherwise I just drank plenty of water, rested, and tried to get through the day.
๐ฉโ๐ณ Egg Roll in a Bowl Keto Recipe
There are a lot of great recipes to make Egg Roll In A Bowl at home, and itโs GREAT for keto meal prep if you do that, but Iโve been ordering it from Evolve.
I love their Old Fashioned Chicken Salad too. They have a lot of great keto friendly low carb meals, but those are two of my TOP favorites that I order every time.
My discount code is LOWCARBTRAVELER for 20% off Evolve Meals or this link will give you 20% off at Evolve. You can order a la carte straight off their website menu (you donโt have to subscribe). Thatโs what I do.
Thursday May 5th
I had my coffee, my bar ๐ and later in the evening half a pint of keto ice cream (again). Early afternoon though I did eat with my daughter when she was home and cooked.
Sausage & โDirty Eggsโ scrambled in the sausage pan with a little cheddar:
That was delicious, but I didnโt have much of an appetite so I ate a few bites โ then finished the rest later. I know reheated eggs sounds awful, and I donโt disagree, but I canโt cook right now and it suited me just fine that night while I was home alone when I got hungry again. ๐
Friday May 6th
I had a bar in the morning, one in the afternoon, then chicken salad for dinner.
I added 42 grams of roasted pecans, and a slice of colby jack cheese off the block:
That chicken salad is AMAZING.
Itโs the Old Fashioned Chicken Salad from Evolve I mentioned above. TIP: They publish the ingredients for every meal on their website if you want to recreate this one at home. ๐
Saturday May 7th
I slept a lot, but had a good appetite in the late afternoon finally, and ate a ribeye steak with steamed broccoli. Iโd been craving a ribeye all week and it was SO good! ๐
I couldnโt finish all of that but I ate more than half, which was great. It was also take-out from Applebeeโs because they have carside-to-go so sometimes my daughter will grab something for me to have in the refrigerator to easily heat up if I get hungry.
Thatโs the only thing I ate yesterday (a little more than half that plate) but I did end up having keto ice cream again last night when my throat started swelling shut. Itโs not just my throat, itโs my tongue and everything, which makes it really hard to get much of anything else down.
๐ฉโ๐ณ How to make a great ribeye at home:
room temp ribeye, salt it, bake at 200ยฐ for 30 minutes โ then fry it in smoking hot bacon grease for 1-2 minutes per side. ๐ฏ (2 minutes per side made mine come out medium well)
Today so far Iโve had my collagen coffee, a bar and a big bottle of water, then around 3pm I finished what was left of the ribeye & broccoli from yesterday. It was still just as good. ๐ But Iโm also not really that picky lately, lol.
Iโm sure everyone has a morning routine. Iโd love to hear yours!
I think morning routine is really helpful for staying on track with your goals. Itโs also been really helpful for me this past year dealing with neurological issues, because itโs a โconstantโ to start my day with that helps me get a little grounded.
I like to have my first coffee on the deck, and then eat my protein bar at my desk while Iโm working. I usually have a decent hour or two around mid morning where I can work a little at least. Which is also nice, it gives me a sense of purpose and a sense of accomplishment. ๐
I get both of those staples from Perfect Keto. I stock up during their sales so I donโt ever have to pay full price. My discount code is LYNN20 for 20% off at Perfect Keto.
Right now I have a 20% off code you can add at checkout: LYNN20 โ and then I get the keto bars 45% off on this secret bundle page in a separate order.
My daughter likes their Cinnamon Toast collagen. Their new keto breakfast cereal is really good. My daughter loves that too. They have a lot of great things I like, and some of the best ingredients with โketo productsโ but Iโm limiting sweets etc right now. Once Iโm feeling better I look forward to trying that keto brownie mix that was in the box. ๐ฅฐ
Elimination Diets (Are Not One Size Fits All)
One of the reasons Iโm using the Almond Butter Brownie bars is because Iโve cycled through several elimination diets since I got sick, and those bars consistently โworkโ for me.
An elimination diet is a great way to identify any culprits causing you digestive issues, weight loss stalls, etc. There are all kinds of โdietsโ or protocols you can use to improve your health or very specific issues/symptoms..
AIP = Anti Inflammatory Protocol, which is very much like keto but even more strict. For some reason โeggsโ is on that list (to eliminate) which made me curious, so Iโll have to look up why.
Iโve been reading more about a Low-Histamine Diet as well, given a miserable and incessant histamine response is common with longcovid. A lot of people in my support group are seeing good results with that. That can also be keto / very low carb but eliminates foods like avocado, cheese, tuna, sauerkraut, spinach, yogurt, kefir, etc.
Then thereโs the GAPS Diet which is the opposite and encourages things like yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, etc. They are all forms of an elimination diet but with different food lists.
It really boils down to bio-individuality. Even two people with the same condition, like IBS for example, or long covid, may respond fine to one food that another canโt tolerate.
Elimination diets arenโt meant to be โforeverโ but as a means of identifying and eliminating those things that are causing you issues. Even the original Atkins low carb diet starts out with a very strict โinduction phaseโ then phases up to add in a wider variety of healthy whole foods until you reach a โhappy placeโ thatโs easily sustainable once youโve achieved the desired weight loss and health improvements.
What has worked out well for me is to start with โmeat and waterโ only. That would be considered Keto Carnivore which is a bit of an extreme diet as a lifestyle in my opinion, but a great starting point for a โcleanโ elimination diet. I say that because the first time I had gut health issues years ago (following another horrible virus), โwing nightโ was the ONLY night I didnโt get horribly sick. So thatโs where I started.
If youโre doing pretty okay but your weight loss has stalled or slowed down, or you just want to โclean up your dietโ a bit and speed up the weight loss a little too, THIS works like a charm:
Struggling With Weight Loss? Try This Simple โ3 Ingredients Per Plateโ Rule
Also a form of an โelimination dietโ but with no hard rules or must-nix foods list.
Advice I Would Give To Myself
Even 11 years into eating very low carb, I still log all of my meals and macros. I use the free version of MyFitnessPal. So even when Iโm doing or eating something that isnโt โgreatโ or ideal โ Iโm well aware of that. ๐
Sometimes I just donโt care, or Iโm being obstinate (lol). Sometimes itโs about staying on track, like choosing โketo browniesโ over eating sugar. Sometimes you just need a pint of (keto) ice cream and a great movie when youโre mad at the world.:)
Even then, itโs good to know which brands or which sweeteners you can tolerate, or that wonโt treat you wrong. I really like Mammoth Creameries keto ice cream but itโs hard for me to get here. Lately Iโve been eating the Rebel chocolate peanut butter keto ice cream because it doesnโt upset my stomach and for some reason it gets my digestive system working again. ๐คทโโ๏ธ
You know yourself better than anyone else does, and youโre the only one that can figure out if a food is good for YOU or not โ through trial and error. As for advice Iโd give myself, or swaps Iโm consideringโฆ
Coffee tops the list. ๐ I have coffee on good days and bad days alike, and itโs never caused me a problem before, so Iโm putting this on the back burner for now. But itโs something Iโd ultimately like to quit. I think. Donโt hold me to that. lol.
My morning routine is important to me, so Iโd swap it for a good gut health tea and/or homemade bone broth. Definitely tea for mornings, I think.
I considered replacing the ice cream I eat some evenings with low carb frozen yogurt as a healthy swapโฆ but I keep hesitating because itโs on the list of high histamine foods. And because I really do NOT like yogurt. ๐ I can tolerate Fage 5% if I absolutely have to though. But the histamine response quiets down when I eat a little of the keto ice cream, soโฆ I dunno.
Thatโs it really. Iโm mostly just eating eggs, meat & vegetables. I could definitely cut out the cheese, with sadness, but thatโs easy enough. Iโm not sure I could eliminate the protein bars right now, and theyโve โpassed the testโ in every elimination diet โ but they do have way fewer and way better ingredients than most bars. That said, I can replace those with a boiled egg or two once I get a solid appetite back.
I canโt really think of anything else. Iโm very diligent about tracking all of my meals and macros, and keeping a detailed symptom diary so I can track back things that cause flare-ups, or if thereโs any correlation to good days / bad days โ what Iโm eating and what Iโm doing alike.
For example, Iโve noticed getting emotional gives me the tremors followed by abdominal distension and severe cognitive dysfunction. Thatโs a consistent reaction for me, so I do my best to control my thoughts and feelings โ and avoid emotional situations.
Keeping a symptom journal along with a food diary is key if youโre working through health issues. Quality of life is everything! You can find โdietsโ and โfood listsโ and all kinds of restrictive protocols all over the internetโฆ but it boils down to bio-individuality and trial and error.
Like I said in my last post, what Iโm eating hasnโt made me sick (or sicker), but you can definitely use food to improve how you feel, based on your specific goals or needs.
Whether you just want to lose weight, break a weight loss stall, or you have a nagging case of IBS that just flares up now and then, or something more serious and consistent like an autoimmune disorder โ itโs about finding what works for YOU.
For me lately, itโs been about getting back to eating (first, top priority) because I was hardly eating most of April โ and that really concerned me (a lot). Itโs also about whatโs tolerable or palatable for me right now with the appetite & nausea issues.
But itโs also about what is sustainable for your personally, which I think is really important for making healthy lifestyle changes โ that stick.
For some people that means eliminating ALL temptations or replacements, which is pretty awesome if you can do that. If you canโt, or if you just want to have โa burger and a beerโ now and then, find a way to make it work for YOU.
On that note, surprisingly โ the one beer I had last Monday with dinner didnโt aggravate my digestive issues or cause any flare-ups or problems at all. Itโs rare that I even have a drink so I havenโt had the opportunity to test that in the last year or so. I expected it to make me feel worse, but I actually perked up a little there for a bit after I had that beer. Or maybe thatโs just because I was excited about those sweet potato fries that I knew were coming. ๐
Anyway, I hope this food diary of my week gave you some meal ideas for the week ahead. Everything I shared can easily be made or recreated at home if you like to cook โ or even if you donโt. I had two take-out meals in there and Iโm getting healthy low carb meals delivered right now to help out, but I found good salmon at Kroger once that was just as good and super easy โ and keep things like Pictsweet Farms โsteam in a bagโ frozen spinach and broccoli on hand, plus frozen grilled chicken strips too, for quick easy meals.
Thank you again for all of your kind words & notes! ๐
I look forward to chatting with you more soon. ๐
Best,
Lynn Terry
aka @LowCarbTraveler




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Discount Code: LOWCARBTRAVELER

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Your daughter helps you but trash her.
Dear Fun,
I could correct everything about your assumption and observation, butโฆ where would be the โfunโ in that? ๐
I donโt think she โtrashedโ her at all.
I was โa little too honestโ maybe. I tend to keep my personal life more private โ usually. Things have been stressful all around here lately, and hard. (very) โฆ Weโll work it out. Iโve always been very close with my children, this has just been incredibly difficult for them (too). Everyone is fine and well today, which makes it easier for me. Stress hits me especially hard for some reason. I think it would help A LOT if I could get outdoors again โ my happy place where all my worries melt away and I come home refreshed. I think Iโve found a car service (fingers crossed) so I can get to a few easy places at least. ๐
Elvolve has the worst chicken salad on the market. My family almost threw up smelling it. Itโs absolutely made with the worst ingredients possible.
Umโฆ okay, lol.
Old Fashioned Chicken Salad (Chicken, Evolve Mayonnaise (Olive Oil, Egg Yolk, Brown Mustard (Vinegar, Water, Mustard Seed, Salt, Spices), Lemon Juice, Red Wine Vinegar, Kosher Salt), Celery, Grapes, Onions, Brown Mustard (Vinegar, Water, Mustard Seed, Salt, Spices))
Hi Lynn!
That histamine response sounds scary. I canโt imagine the anxiety I would ave if that were something I had to deal with. What a warrior you are!
I appreciate the discounts through your blog and tried Evolve. I will get it Friday, which also is my 20th wedding anniversary, so no excuse not to have an excellent meal.
I have only tried two keto ice creams and they are rather lackluster, but that brand you mentioned sounds interesting, may have to look them up. I live in the dairy state and we are particular about dairy products that arenโt from our cows, but we shall see.
I hope the good periods out number the not so good ones for us both this week. My child got a big part in her 8th grade musical so I have to be well enough to go see it. After that I can collapse if needed.
Kerry
Hi Kerry ๐
I have been very fortunate not to have anxiety or panic attacks through all of this. I read about that often in my longcovid support groups, and having had a panic attack before โ ugh, I think that would just make everything so much worse!
I think it has something to do with the disassociation part of the cognitive dysfunction Iโm experiencing. Even when my heart rate was spiking 160-200 bpm (at inactive state) and through everything else, I have stayed very calm. Oddly calm, actually โ but Iโm grateful for that.
That said, I do have some thoughts, feelings, emotions etc that arenโt typical for me. My โrantโ in that last post being a great example โ lol, ugh. (double ugh!) โ Thatโs definitely not my norm.
I am dealing with both derealization (not knowing what is real and what is not, or having odd โdisconnectโ experiencesโ) as well as disassociation. But for the most part, I am irrationally happy (which is strange, I know โ I think so too). I have a lot of emotions and thoughts that donโt feel like my own. All that on top of some very deep hurt, frustration etc for legitimate reasons โ and itโs all just hard to sort out and deal with.
I get the need to be well enough to do something, and enjoy it (!!), and to schedule in that necessary recovery time. I hope you have a great day and a fabulous time at the musical!! And get the rest you need after. ๐ xo
Oh and p.s. โ there are some great keto ice cream recipes you can make at home that look easy enough if you like to do that sort of thing! I have trouble with a lot of the sugar free sweets or ice creams but for some reason the Rebel brand doesnโt cause flare-ups for me like the others. Mammoth Creameries is the cleanest brand Iโve ever found โ their Vanilla Bean and Strawberry are my two favorites.
I hate that youโve been struggling too. Thank you so much for your note yesterday. I had a smile at the paranoia part. ๐ haha โ true, but it made me think it would be fun to address that and share the WHOLE story, because I honestly wasnโt very concerned early on, given I was young & healthy. But the story, or my perspective at the time, runs a lot deeper than I ever really shared onlineโฆ Jokes on me though, hey? Ha!
Anyway, wishing you a GREAT week, or more good hours, and extra nice things to smile about. ๐ xo
Lynn Terry
I was so excited to see this post. It sounded like you were in a better place and so glad your night out drinking 1 beer was a huge success for you. I have been following your blog for several years now. I read all your new posts right away then I go back and read again.
Sending you all my hopes for an awesome recovery soon.
Thank you so much, Mary ๐ xo
Hi Lynn! Thanks for your post โ I always enjoy them and get new ideas. Keep them coming when you are able.
Btw, my morning routine is getting a cup of coffee and sitting down to read the Bible. I started a thing on Facebook a few years ago called The Daily Chapter where I read the Bible one chapter everyday and then would go live and talk about it. Now Iโm rereading it and just posting my favorite verse on Instagram and Facebook. It really changed my life reading the Bible everyday. Just thought I would share since you asked!
Hope you have a good week!
What a fun routine, Michele! ๐ I love hearing how others start their day. I really miss reading. Thatโs been a tough one for me this past year or so, mainly because of distorted vision but comprehension too of course. One of several things I really look forward to doing again soon! ๐ xo
Lynn,
Could you share the good salmon you found at Kroger?