What I ate in a week for my Endometriosis

Healing from the inside-out

Nutrition, Endometriosis, Food

I just want to start out by saying I am not a nutritionist and do not have a food background. I have been looking up recipes online and in various cookbooks and seeing what works best for me. I'm sharing these recipes just to give you an idea of some good food you may want to try out for yourself! And please share with me any recipes you love and that I should try! It's been really fun trying out recipes I've never tried - or never thought to try - before.

Check out the link below for the full recipes in each section if I got the recipe from a specific website. And all the photos of the food will be on my Instagram reel associated with this blog post - @alexa.gayton

Breakfast: The most important meal, right?

I have always been a breakfast person, and I feel like that is rare. I know a lot of people usually just have coffee and that's it, but I'm always starving when I wake up, and need nourishment. Granted, that nourishment would usually consist of sugary cereal or a piece of toast, but I felt like something was better than nothing. I have changed my routine and now try to get as many nutrients into my meals as possible, especially after being diagnosed with Endometriosis.

I did a whole blog post here about the smoothie bowl I make and an Instagram reel showing how I make it. If I want just a normal smoothie, I add more water/ coconut milk and blend it all up together. Most mornings I make this smoothie/bowl because I get a good amount of protein, fruits/veggies, and more nutrients at the beginning of the day. It's so good and good for you!

Some other breakfasts I've been making are:

• A slice of whole wheat toast (Dave's brand), with almond butter and banana, with strawberries or other fruit on the side.

• Fruit and yogurt parfait (to make it sound fancy) but it's just some greek yogurt, whatever fruit I have in the fridge, some honey, and this granola (nutritionist approved). Photo above.

Snacks!

Who doesn't love snacks? I know I do! But most "snacks" aren't great for you! And yes, these snacks I have aren't super fun, but it's better than nothing!

• Apple with almond butter + walnuts + coconut = super fun and yummy! (Photo above)

• Kiwi + strawberry = a tried and true combo

• Yogurt + granola - see breakfast

• Popcorn! If you know me, you know that popcorn is a staple in my diet. I got this popcorn maker from Amazon that I love! It's super easy to use. And I just use olive oil and some nutritional yeast on top for added flavor. Sorry, no more butter or that "butter" they use at the movie theaters, although that stuff is delicious!

Lunch

A lot of my lunches are usually just leftovers from dinners (see below). Or I'll also make eggs of some sort- usually a scramble with veggies and avocado.

Some of my favorite lunches recently have been:

• Southwest salad with chicken or turkey - I got the bag o' salad from Taylor Farms at Sprouts but they sell them everywhere. And then I just make my own dressing. For this salad I used olive oil, garlic and onion spices, a touch of honey, and mashed up avocado. It turned out better than I expected! (Photo below)

• Brown rice bowl with ground turkey with mushrooms, bell pepper, turmeric, spices and avocado

• If I have something other than a smoothie for breakfast, like toast for example, I will sometimes make the smoothie for lunch.

Dinner

My husband, Sean, and I usually alternate between cooking dinners. He's been very supportive of this new "health journey" and it's been great for him because he's been wanting to eat healthy too.

• Ground turkey and mushroom lettuce "cups" ala P.F. Chang's.

• We get these salmon burgers from Costco and baked it with broccoli and added brown rice.

• Maple dijon chicken with butternut squash, brussel sprouts, and onions (Sounds so fancy!) Recipe linked below.

• Pork chops with asparagus and sweet potatoes in the air fryer

I hope this list gives you some ideas for simply, healthy meals you can make. Even if you aren't suffering from endometriosis, it's always good to have some meal plans you can make when you want something healthy to eat. Especially for all the resolutions we all make to eat healthier.

A lot of the recipes I got from this website.

You can also check out @endo.fertility.dietitian on Instagram if you want a real endometriosis dietitian's opinion.

I hope you enjoyed this list! Let me know if you have any fun recipes I should try!

- Lex