I’m 32 years old, but I eat like I’m 5.
Actually, I know several 5 year-olds who eat better than I do.
I’ve improved in the last few years, gradually learning to like new and exotic foods like mushrooms, hard-boiled eggs, and spinach. Let’s just say I’ve been keeping the vitamin industry in business for a long time.
I really want to be as healthy as I can be for my upcoming IVF cycle, so I created a 90-Day Challenge for myself. I started on New Year’s Day and I’m aiming to do it until the completion of my IVF cycle in March. My husband is trying to lose a little weight and he has his own food goals. We actually wrote out contracts, signed them, and hung them up for accountability. If I mess up, I have to give my husband an hour-long pedicure (yuck). If he messes up, he has to do the dishes for 3 days in a row.
Here are my 4 food goals to complete each day:
- Eat one serving of leafy greens or a cruciferous veggie
- Drink a serving of V8 juice
- Reduce my gluten intake
- Eat an apple
These food goals may seem simple to some people, but it’s actually a big step for me. So far I’ve been accomplish the first three items every day except for yesterday. My plan was to make a spinach smoothie after dinner in order to get my leafy greens, but I had some heartburn and just couldn’t stomach eating anything else.
I’m also restricting myself from the following:
- Limit myself to one cup of caffeinated tea (I can have an many cups of decaf green as I want) before egg retrieval
- No caffeine at all after egg retrieval
- No crackers, cookies, chips, or fries
The hardest one has been reducing my gluten intake and not eating crackers or chips. I LOVE potato chips- especially Reduced Fat Ruffles. YUM. I’ve been known to eat a whole bag in one sitting.
My mom got me a brand new bag of Ruffles for Christmas and I was thrilled. We left town on Christmas Day so I didn’t have time to eat it before New Year’s and it’s been sitting unopened in my pantry. Beckoning me. Calling me. I open the pantry and stare longingly at it. I contemplate eating the bag and then buying a second one to replace it in the pantry so my husband won’t know. “Hello, my name is Lisa and I’m a Ruffles addict.”
It will be a difficult 90 Days, but I’m hoping that eating even a little bit healthier will increase my IVF odds.
What kind of diet changes will you make (or did you make) for IVF? Please share in the comments below.
*** Looking for more tips on surviving IVF? Check out my post, 10 Practical Ways to Prepare for IVF ***
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