Week Two of the GAPS Diet Meal Plan

We have completed week one of the GAPS diet where we flew through the Intro diet and have now made it to week two of the GAPS diet. We are now in the full GAPS diet where all allowed foods have been added to our diet making it much easier to plan and prepare meals. This is especially true when it comes to snacks and eating while on the go or while traveling.

Before I share our meal plan for this week, I thought it would be good to give a quick recap of week one. As I already stated, we completed all six stages of the Intro diet in our first week. I did notice that we were very tired, irritable, somewhat nauseated the first and second day, and hungry (or just didn’t feel like we could get full) during this week, all symptoms of die off. There were a couple of days that were worse than others, but I knew to expect this so it was not a surprise. Although it is common for symptoms you are trying to heal to flare up, I didn’t notice these-yet.

Let me also make a note about us being hungry. First off, we eat A LOT! We are very active, have a pretty high metabolism, and have always eaten often-especially the kiddos. And remember in my post on why we are doing the GAPS diet, I mentioned this wasn’t a weight loss diet. Allowed food is always available and there is no counting calories. But when your body has filled up on processed foods, carbohydrates and other addictive foods that cause you to stuff yourself, there is a transition period where your body has to re-learn when it is full. You may eat a meal, but because you are eating real food, you don’t stuff yourself and your body doesn’t realize it is full. Because of this, you may feel like you are always hungry or always eating.

Your body is also learning to use the proteins and fats, as well as stored fats in your body, as its fuel now. Because you are removing all grains, therefore most of the carbs that comprise the typical American diet, your body will have to adapt to the new types of fuel (food) you are giving it. This causes us to feel hungry all the time in the beginning. Then there is the “die off” from the toxins in the gut. They are being starved and will send signals to the brain wanting food. This leads to cravings of processed, sugary foods and again feelings of wanting more food. The good news is that this will level off as your body does begin to transition to the new healthy foods you are consuming.

Although we experienced these common die off symptoms, we have already experienced some good things. We all felt generally better, especially by the end of the week. I began to have more energy during the day, less aches, and lost a few pounds. Our tastes are beginning to change already also. We are all (even the Herb It Up kiddos) eating and enjoying real, healthy foods that we once “didn’t like” and foods, even sweets, don’t have to be as sweet.

Our bodies are also beginning to settle into the new fuels we are giving it, meaning that we are beginning to fill up and feel full on less. With the addition of all the foods in the full GAPS diet and our bodies adjusting to the foods, I expected this to level off. Although I’ll admit we still eat a ton. 😉

What I expect from our week two of the GAPS diet

Now for week two of the GAPS diet. I hope that we are past the majority of the die off and our mood and energy continue to improve. And I also expect our tastes to continue to change as our bodies begin to want the food that will truly feed and nourish it.

One caveat I must admit for this week is that we will be traveling for the weekend. Thankfully, we are camping so cooking our own food will be no problem, but we will also be celebrating our kiddo’s birthdays. (They were all born within a few weeks of each other so we usually just celebrate them together.) I do plan on baking a cake, which will not be GAPS approved, but will be homemade and as healthy as possible. In other words, we will be cheating, but the other foods will be GAPS approved.

Day 1

Glass of lemon water first thing
Breakfast: banana pancakes with butter, honey, and yogurt/sour cream
Lunch: salad with homemade ranch dressing
Supper: baked salmon with sweet coleslaw and homemade tarter sauce

Day 2

Glass of lemon water first thing
Breakfast: eggs and uncured bacon
Lunch: leftover baked salmon and coleslaw and homemade tarter sauce
Supper: mexican in cheese cups

Day 3

Glass of lemon water first thing
Breakfast: fruit cobbler with yogurt/sour cream
Lunch: leftover mexican
Supper: chili with sour cream

Day 4

Glass of lemon water first thing
Breakfast: eggs with kraut/kimch and sour cream
Lunch: chili with sour cream
Supper: beef stew with kraut and sour cream

Day 5

Glass of lemon water first thing
Breakfast: cooked apples and yogurt
Lunch: leftover beef stew with sour cream
Supper: chili with sour cream

Day 6

Glass of water first thing
Breakfast: eggs and sausage
Lunch: burgers and salad with homemade ranch dressing
Supper: chili with sour cream

Day 7

Glass of water first thing
Breakfast: larabar and yogurt
Lunch: burgers and salad with homemade ranch dressing
Supper: chicken salad with fruit and yogurt

Week Two GAPS Diet Snacks

Since we are now in the full GAPS diet, we will have many options for snacks. Here are what we have kept on hand for snacking in between meals.

fruit
raw nuts (almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts)
nuts toasted in butter and a bit of honey
nut butters
nuts, nut butters, and honey mixed
yogurt
fruit with yogurt and honey
raw veggies (carrots, peppers, celery)
tomatoes
dried fruit (with no added sugars or oils)
Larabars (homemade or store bought but only the fruit flavor or peanut butter, no chocolate)
RXbars (store bought but only the fruit flavor, no chocolate)
Larabars with yogurt and honey
boiled eggs

Week Two GAPS Diet Drinks

kombucha
coconut water (I buy mine from Aldi)
homemade almond or coconut milk
smoothies (fruit, yogurt, and coconut milk/water)

And that is the menu for week two of GAPS. The next few weeks will be pretty similar, although I’m not one to have the same meal every week, like Tacos on Tuesday. So I’ll continue to post each week’s meal plan since there will be some repetition, but we will also be adding in new meals.