FAD DIETS: MY GLUTEN-FREE FAIL

Correct me if I'm wrong, but our generation is no stranger to fad diets. From sugar free to dairy free, every diet where we cut out certain ingredients has been a fad at least once. 

If you aren’t already familiar with the gluten free fad, please let me fill you in. To be gluten-free means to cut out all wheat products from your diet, and that is exactly what I did. Correction, what I had attempted to do. 

I did not go gluten-free for weight loss but for anxiety, (apparently gluten has been said to contribute to anxiety). 

From my personal experience, below is a list of the three reasons that contributed to my gluten-free downfall.

PRICEY

Of course for my first gluten free shop I went to Whole Foods Market. Big mistake. Shopping entirely gluten-free at Whole Foods is like going out in downtown Toronto on a Saturday night, after getting a pay cheque, then waking up the next morning hungover and completely broke. 

Whole Foods is an expensive grocery store in general, but for some reason, gluten-free foods are just that much more pricey. After buying quinoa, brown rice pasta, gluten-free cereal, and gluten-free almond and rice flour bread, (which if you are wondering, tasted like someone made saw dust paste, shaped it into a loaf and called it bread) it was absolutely awful.  The expenses definitely did not relieve my anxiety but rather increased it.

 

P.S. the food I bought wasn't all that bad, although expensive I did enjoy the quinoa pasta and cereals I purchased. 

TIME CONSUMING

In August, when I was still working full-time, I only had a 30-minute lunch break. On that break, it became very difficult to find foods that were gluten free on the menus of the few nearby restaurants; because of this, I had to start preparing each one of my lunches the day before. Basically, I came home from work between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. and would have to cook my gluten free dinner and at the same time my gluten-free lunch for the next day! Not ideal.

HIGH MAITENANCE

Going out for dinner with friends, family, or significant others became almost impossible. As I was gluten free I became that annoying/ high-maintenance chick at the table that no one wants to go out and have a meal with. 

You guys know that scene from "When Harry Met Sally" when she orders her salad at Katz's Deli? Well I was now Sally in that scene, "I cant have this, this, this, and that" etc. My boyfriend hated going to eat with me because I'd have to give the "I'm gluten free speech" every time we went out to eat. I became too much. 

The diet became too much and after a month I was more anxious then when I started trying to make sure everything I was eating was gluten-free. 

Maybe I gave up too easily, maybe I didn't... If any of you have gone gluten-free and have succeeded or failed please share your stories! Maybe someone can convince me to give it another go!

Twitter: @billieden