Whereas last Sunday was characterized by one of these:
… this Sunday was characterized by a lot of these….
Soothing fennel tea.
No, our weather didn’t suddenly take a turn for the worse, but my stomach certainly did. I’ve been nursing a bloated/wonky stomach since last night, and I think I know who to blame.
Now, I’m not usually one to point fingers or accuse but…
… squash, I’m looking at you!
Call it a hunch, but I have this nagging suspicion that my stomach doesn’t take kindly to eating vegetables in mass quantity, especially when it’s several days in succession. I had a feeling that I should probably lay off the squash while I was making dinner last night, but like the alluring song of a siren, I just couldn’t resist. And I hit the rocks. Hard.
I spent the rest of the night looking like I was 6 months pregnant, and while it wasn’t exactly agonizing, it was certainly uncomfortable and upsetting… especially because I completely lost my appetite and couldn’t even fathom the idea of eating my bedtime snack. Sad face.
(bedtime oat bran ended up spending the night in the fridge instead of in my belly)
It also meant that I decided to pass on my beloved cup of Joe this morning because I was too afraid of upsetting my stomach any further…
… which basically meant that I spent the majority of the day walking around like a four month pregnant zombie and nursing a bad headache (helloooooooo low blood pressure).
My day wasn’t anything exciting in terms of eats either, because the only things that sounded appealing were yogurt messes…
Blueberry Greek yogurt, Kashi Honey Sunshine, puffed wheaties, trail mix.
… smoothies…
1 cup frozen mango chunks, ½ cup almond milk, spoonful of coconut butter.
… rice cakes…
(with almond butter and honey)
… oatmeal…
Baked apple oats with yogurt and almond butter.
… and english muffins…
(with blueberry jam)
In a nutshell, lots of carbs, no vegetables – not even a single kernel of corn. And as for my stomach? It feels fantastic. Good as new.
Now, I love my veggies, but they’re not something that me and my stomach always see eye to eye on. I don’t eat nearly as many as I used to, and I no longer try to fool my hunger by loading up on tonnes of carrot sticks, but it seems like even a “normal” amount of veggies can cause me problems sometimes.
I know the general message in the healthy living community is to make sure to eat your veggies everyday, but sometimes I just can’t… not unless I want to spend some time nursing a well-developed food baby and dealing with other less than pleasant symptoms of an unhappy belly… which I don’t.
So, some days have to be veggie-free… and that’s perfectly okay with me.
. – . – . – .
Can anyone relate to my veggie woes?
What foods do you tend to eat when your stomach isn’t feeling too great?
Ugh, I have the same problem. Sometimes I feel physically sick just thinking about eating certain things. At the doctor’s I found out I was suffering from IBS, and looked up this thing called FODMAP about foods that irritate IBS and foods that don’t. It was very helpful.
Ahh this totally happens to me! I actually don’t really eat or like to eat salads all that often- they make me bloated and uncomfortable but I also get a hungry/empty feeling about an hour later- feeling bloated while hungry is the worst! I tend to get my veggies instead as a side to a meal or my favorite lunch is a toasted wrap- I still put spinach, capsicum and sometimes tabouli in but just smaller amounts along with other stuff. Seems to be the best lunch for me as fills me up but doesn’t leave me uncomfortable.
I seriously thought this only happened to me! Hope u feel better soon
No veggies = a happy day! I like this! Eating too many veggies in a day can lead to way too much fiber so that you feel more full than you are, you get bloated, and you don’t eat other things your body needs! You don’t need to listen to what every one says about 5 servings of veggies a day! Who eats that many veggies? A rare few. I say you did the best thing you could have done. Listened to your body 🙂
Oh, you are so correct. 🙂
I feel your veggie woes! Especially raw veggies. I actually don’t eat salads all that often because I’m all afraid they’ll make me gassy/bloated. Too much of anything- veggie, fruits, twinkies, ANYTHING. It’s not good 🙂
I’m glad you’re feeling better though! English muffins always make everything better <3
I completely agree! I don’t think I ever eat a ton of veggies, but they fill me up way too fast and I end up not being able to eat things with more substance. I just try to get in veggies once or twice a day and then I’m good to go!
I have a hard time eating when my stomach feels off, but I had this feeling the other day and I ended up eating mostly just fruit and cereal because I didn’t think I could stomach anything else.
yeah….well, not ALL veggies. I eat a lot of salad, and that usually sits with me fine. And fruit, well, I could eat nothing but fruit all day long. But things like squash and eggplant definitely get to me! also broccoli and cauliflour, and, sadly, honeydew and canteloupe…those two are just sadly irresistable. And when I have the tummy woes, its lots of fruit and toast for me!
I definitely cannot say that I eat too many vegetables (fruit OD sounds more appealing to me 🙂 ) but some of them cause discomfort to my stomach too. I have trained it to resist all kinds of beans in massive quantities but if I eat a salad for lunch without any bread I bloat like a balloon. And the other day I cooked a ridiculous meal consisting mainly of soy sprouts and onions which had a really weird effect on my digestive system. Onions are most likely to be innocent but I will think twice next time I want to put half a bag of soy sprouts in a single meal. Lesson learned.
When I have stomach problems, I usually turn to buttered toast with camomile tea, potato soup (even better if it is cream soup), plain biscuits and the like. But it depends on the kind of problem I have. In some cases a warm bowl of oatmeal can do miracles.
Squash season! Hold me back. 😉 I cannot wait for this!
Whitney
Oof- I definitely relate to this nagging side effect of too many veggies! I am the official (yes, official) vegetable queen and if I go too many days in a row of salad beasts and roasted Brussels sprouts– my tummy begins to eat itself alive.
Not to mention my pregnant tummy & intestines get angry too (hey! you asked!)
My stomach doesn’t always love veggies either 🙁 I ate a can of beans the other night (bizarre I know– but I didn’t feel like going shopping, haha) and for 2 days after, my belly felt like I was giving birth to triplets. Ouchhhh
Yep, I can relate to your woes… except I don’t think it’s necessarily caused by veggies. Honestly, I don’t really WANT to know what the cause is, because I don’t want to have to eliminate anything! Hmph.
<3 <3
I definitely had the squash tummy today. I roasted one up early this afternoon and went to town on it… apparently too much. My stomach was not happy with me after that. Lately I feel like my stomach is bothering me more often than it’s NOT bothering me. It’s driving me nuts. Food allergies? Who knows. I’m pretty sure excess veggies do play a role in the tummy woes occasionally, though I haven’t been eating them nearly in as mass quantities as I used to. That darn squash, though, it’s just so irresistible. I too turn to tea to try to lessen the discomfort sometimes, but often if my stomach is too uncomfortable even the idea of tea seems pretty horrible. Dislike.
Squashes tend to affect me the worst too. I notice my stomach starts acting up as soon as I start eating too much pumpkin, butternut, or kabocha. Sweet potatoes can do me in as well. Geez… maybe it’s anything orange 😯
I’m with you on eating lots of carbs — mostly cereal and PBJ toast for me — if my stomach is not feeling well. Plus lots of water and fruit.
I usually only eat 1 veggie-full meal per day because too many veggies do cause me tummy distress.
Oh boy can I relate. Some days I GORGE on veggies like a madwoman, and then others I just want yogurt or fruit and absolutely nothing to do with vegetables. Sorry to hear about your tummy woes though, that’s no fun at all! When I’m feelin subpar, I love love love having smoothies up the wazoo 😀
I’ve been reading your blog for a while and I love it, but I’ve been too shy to comment. Well that’s over, so hi Amanda! I actually had a kabocha squash the same night you did… it was a funny coincidence when I opened my Google reader the next morning. I think Yogi Ginger tea solves everything! I’m sorry you aren’t feeling well!
Hi girl! 😀 Thanks for taking the time to say hello! Ginger tea definitely helps sooth my stomach. I had some this morning instead of my regular coffee.
I’m glad to hear you’re feeling better! Bloating and stomach troubles are never fun 🙁
I definitely have veggie free days every once in a while. Too many veggies and too much fiber makes me one uncomfortable girl. Balance is really the key to a happy healthy me 🙂
When my stomach feels all wonky I usually eat lots of carbs too. I try to eat cleaner foods and foods that are more plain. And I typically stay away from dairy since it sometimes makes me feel odd. Hot oats and tea are my go to 🙂
So proud of you Amanda, well done for treating your body right! As for the bloating issue, have you tried beano (or anything similar to that) I heard that it helps….
Also, if vegetables were high in calories – I doubt we would see THAT MUCH of it. haha
I’ve thought about that before too, and I think you’re absolutely right… I think one of the reasons people eat so many veggies is because they’re high bulk, and low calorie.
YES! Whenever I have a horrible stomach, I know it’s veggies. I adore my broccoli, but sometimes I have a tendency to OD on it, and I really feel it the next day… And same as for you, carbs are the only thing that can soothe it. Oatmeal, muffins, that sort of thing. Just the right medicine!
Awww, I’m sorry about your tummy troubles! I actually tend to get that way if I don’t eat enough veggies. If I’m not getting as many veggies as I should be I get bloated and constipated (sorry, tmi) and feel exactly how you described. Except, when I feel like that the last thing I want to eat is veggies haha. I want more bland and carby foods- bread, cereal, oatmeal, etc.
I hate that people feel guilty when they go a day without vegetables. Maybe hate is the wrong word. I feel sorry for them, is more like it. I’m glad you’re able to respect your stomach and eat what you think your body can handle. Hey, I haven’t had a single vegetable all day long and I feel juuuust fine. I actually haven’t had any vegetables since yesterday’s lunch. No worries in my mind. This is going somewhat off-topic now, but it’s a shame what eating disorders can do to people. I read a couple comments from girls that said they would feel guilty if they went veggie-less. Vegetables don’t have to make huge appearances at EVERY lunch and dinner. I wish people would stop making their lives so hard. Anyway, I’m glad your stomach feels better. You’ve been eating all the right foods for tummy troubles! Toast is usually my go-to source of calories when I can’t stomach anything else. Or rice!
Giiirrrlll I know EXACTLY how that feels. Quite honestly I look at my eats and I hardly ever eat veggies on their own. In tabouleh and such, sure. I love veggies! But I never seem to buy ’em cause they rot so fast! I bought some spinach and mixed veggies today. My goal is to start eating a little salad every day. Or something. Just the idea of salad… meh. I have to be in the mood for one. They don’t really make me feel FANTASTIC or anything. I much prefer my oats, or toast, or something… carb-y. Though I know I should try eating more ’cause my intake of veg-ness has been pretty scarce, especially since moving out. I’m all about the fruit, yo.
ANYHOW.
I can relate. That is EXACTLY how I felt after eating dairy (after the stomach ache subsided, anyhow. Boo!). My stomach would bloat up like a balloon and I COMPLETELY lost my appetite, which totally threw off my ENTIRE sytem. Ugh.
Isn’t the feeling of relief so amazing once the bloating has gone? When I cut it out for a week, oh my goossshhhh did I realize what I’d been missing! It’s one of those things like.. you don’t appreciate it ’til it’s gone 😉
When my stomach’s upset I have trouble eating ANYTHING if we’re being completely honest. But I do make myself eat, so I’ll usually go for carb-y things as well. Not sure why, but carbs seem to agree with me best. Love them. If I’m feeling too lazy and icky to wait for oatmeal, I’ll make some toast with nut butter or whatever other agreeable topping I can think of. And I eat a lot of nut butter, since I know I need to keep it dense and get in protein in a nom-able way. Tofu just… ugh. If I eat more than a serving it gives me a stomach ache. Which sucks. So I steer clear of that any time I’m feeling iffy.
And giiirrrrrlll you need to give me some smoothie ideas! I have this amazing blender / processor my mom bought for my apartment, and I need to break’er in! Your smoothies always look so divine. But boooo I realized today that I forgot my gum in my house freezer. Booooooooo thin smoothies. I’ll have to bring my gum back on the bus after my birthday weekend at home. Win.
<3 <3 <3 <3
Next time we chat, we’ll talk smoothies 😀 But I can’t promise any recipes with gums because I avoid them like the plague. After an incident that almost landed me in the hospital… yeah… no more.
I can totally relate – only i’m not 100% sure which veggies trigger it for me. I know I have to go easy on the plant proteins, especially beans and soy, which is really hard because I love them so much! More than animal proteins, but I guess that’s one signal my body could be sending that I still need my lean meats now and then. My go-to stomach soother is peppermint tea. And it tastes fantastic just as-is.
I can definitely relate. Some days I eat too much broccoli for my own good 🙁 The past few days I’ve been having tons of sweet potatoes and green beans and I’m just waiting for the bloating to start! It’s hard when I’m craving it yet I know it’s going to make me bloated!
When I’m feeling icky I like to stick to soup and toast with butter 🙂
Gah! I know! I was craving it so badly and all the while that I was prepping it I was thinking “This isn’t a good idea… I’m going to regret it later” but I couldn’t help it! And the worst part of it is that I never seem to learn lol.
I can definitely relate to the veggie food baby. And the bloating makes me want to restrict more… it’s quite a vicious cycle.
Glad you’re feeling better though!
Sorry youwere feeling under the weather but i can totally relate – i love veggies but too many can definate,y cause my tummy to be quite unhappy! But nithing wrong with a day filled with yummy carbs! When i tummy issues – foods like oats, toast, bananas, cereal and smoothies are just perfect!
Hope you are feeling better tomorrow!
Ugh! I hate the prego belly feeling! Sorry that it gave you such heck 🙁 YOgurt, bananas, ginger tea and rice are alll good sick-tummy foods for me 🙂
Oh no, stomach aches are never fun especially with bloating. It must have been really bad to not even want your night snack, and choose to skip morning coffee! But that’s good your stomach is feeling a little better. I don’t seem to have any problems with veggies UNLESS its raw onions, raw cauliflower or raw broccoli. I can handle any other raw vegetables and all cooked vegetables though. 🙂
Eep. Raw onions KILL me. And I’m not even going to talk about what raw broccoli does to me 😯 I think I can handle the veggies, just maybe not lots of squash 3 nights in a row 😆
This is interesting. I still struggle a lot with IBS symptoms for almost a year now. Thinking about it, kabocha had been a big part of my diet for all that time. My biggest symptom was yes, bloating = looking pregnant. I kind of feel like experimenting now – thanks for the post!!
and for the veggies…cereal = veggies in my heart. So no problem here, lol!
I hate when that happens… walking around like a pregnant lady is definitely no fun, especially because pants become way too tight. I tend to drink a lot of water when I’m having bloating issues, and sometimes taking a nap helps because I can lay down and stretch out my stomach (if that makes any sense).
When I don’t feel too great, I tend to stick to oats, unsalted crackers/pretzels, and simple cereals.
– Nicole
Amanda, have you tried taking the skin off the kabocha first before roasting/eating? That lessens the effects and you can still enjoy your kabocha!
I have, unfortunately 🙁 It’s been skinless every time I’ve eaten it, and it still gave me problems. Boo.
I feel guilty when I dont have veggies at lunch and dinner or even snacks sometimes..UGH but they DO sometimes upset my stomach in mass amounts so I try to do lil bit at a time..
When my tummy is upset I usually stick to toast and nut butters/jelly. Not spicy food or veggies (they upset it even more!) and almond milk yogurt, or in your case greek yogurt, helps. 🙂
i hope your stomach starts to feel better soon!!
I can definitely relate 🙁
Last winter I fell in love with squash–then my body fell out of love with me. No bueno. My last experience with squash left me at a point where I can’t even fathom eating them again (spaghetti squash is fine, but kabocha/buttercup/likely butternut = nono.)
Aaaand this summer I’ve established that broccoli, cauliflower, and kale in anything other than very well-cooked small amounts make my tummy angry. And I’m thinking the skin of cucumbers is out, too.
I can, however, still consume giant salads 🙂
I hope you feel better soon!
Oh yes ! Veggie overload happens to me! Especially with squash! I get a really full and yuck feeling when I eat a lot of that! Drink lots of water, that might help!
Hope u have a great night love!!! Xoxo <3
I have been feeling this way to a tee the past few weeks. I’m still in a place though where I’m not comfortable giving up veggies completely for a day, but hopefully soon! I love them, but they shouldn’t be a forced food.
I eat tons of cereal and oatmeal when my tummy hurts too, nothing like a big ol bowl of carbs to get you back on track!
I can totally relate, m’love! Though I absolutely love my veggies, they just dont seem to love me sometimes.
But as I cannot seem togo a day without ’em, i’ve spent my share of time with the ole preggy belly! no fun, no fun!
Yogurt is always a good go to food, has it’s way of easing an aching tummy.
I’m glad to hear you’re back to your usual self again though, sweetpea!
Oh and Beano is always a good thing to keep on hand when you’re a fierce veggie muncher, like myself!
I always crave bananas and toast when I’m having tummy trouble. I’m glad you’re feeling back to normal, stomach issues are no fun!
I loooove soup and pureed winter squash when I’m sick! Hot food is so comforting!
I can definitley relate to that feeling. When I eat too many veggies, esp ruffage like spinach and salad, my stomach feels full the entire next day. Pumpkin has that effect on me as well. I always carry chewable gas-ex in my bag haha
No veggie days are just fine 🙂
I always do smoothies and soup when I am not feeling well! Luckily, I don’t seem to have a problem digesting anything, but I know some people who do and it is so frustrating for them! :-/