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If you’re interested in starting the AIP diet, I have some ideas for you on how to start AIP in this post, along with sharing what I ate on days 8 – 9 of my diet.
How to Start the AIP Diet
If you want more information on why the Autoimmune Paleo Protocol diet (AIP Diet) might be the right fit for you or a family member, I wrote a detailed post on my reasons for pursuing this diet and the process I went through before starting.
I see 2 main ways to begin the AIP diet –
Transition Style #1 – Go cold turkey.
You know what this means. You don’t ease your way in, cutting things out as you go along. It means what it says:
Cold turkey.
- You are all in from day one.
- No cheating.
- No treating.
- You are 100% from the first day until you’re done.
If you choose to go this route, I believe that in order to be successful, you have to be beyond prepared ahead of time.
You need a plan, you need to understand all the rules of the diet, and be firm in your resolve that this is what is best for you.
This is the method, or close to it, that I used.
Transition Style #2 – Ease in.
If you are a bit nervous about going all in and you think you'd do better easing your way in, I would strongly encourage you to visit *Sad to AIP where Angie Alt leads you step-by-step through a 6-week process of removing the offending foods and introducing the foods you need in order to heal your body. *SAD refers to the Standard American Diet
Of course, you don’t have to join a group coaching program in order to ease into the AIP. You can certainly do it on your own by slowly removing foods that are non-AIP compliant.
Maybe the first week you remove gluten from your diet and during week 2, you remove any remaining grains you're still eating. You continue in this fashion until you are 100% compliant with the elimination portion of the AIP diet.
The elimination phase typically lasts 30-90 days, or until all of your physical symptoms have subsided and you’re feeling great again.
At this point, you would begin reintroducing foods.
Which Method Should You Use?
The method you decide to use, whether that’s cold turkey or easing your way in, will depend on a few things.
- First, what is your personality? If you are the type of person who has a hard time committing to something and sticking to it, easing in may be the right method for you.
- Are you the type who can easily quit something cold turkey and forge ahead? If you have zero trouble making decisions and following through, you can likely go the cold turkey route and be very successful with it.
- Keep in mind, this isn’t a permanent diet. This is a temporary change. You’re typically going to spend 30-90 days eating this way until all of your symptoms are gone and you feel fantastic and then you will slowly begin to reintroduce foods.
So it’s not like you’ll never taste your favorite foods again. That may make it easier for some of you to try the cold turkey method; knowing that the sooner you get to the elimination phase, the sooner you get to start reintroducing foods.
Want more info on EXACTLY how to start AIP – like what foods to cut out, what the diet entails, etc? You can grab my free AIP Starter Guide in my Paleo Freebie Library or if you're really all in, take the How to Do AIP course in my membership site, the Autoimmune Collective. This course even includes a quiz you can take to determine the best transition style for you (cold turkey or slow) and lists out all the things you need to do and know before starting.
My AIP JOURNEY: My Current Symptoms
As far as my symptoms go, I have exciting news…I POOPED!! Yay!!!!
- After a week of constipation, it felt amazing to get things moving again. I worked very closely with my functional medicine doctor to get this symptom under control and I highly recommend that you do the same if it’s an issue for you.
- I am noticing some afternoon fatigue and sleepiness. I’m not sure what to attribute this to, whether it’s a touch of adrenal fatigue or just a part of the healing process. I’m trying to listen to my body and either take naps or at least not push so hard on the days that I feel extra tired.
When working through the AIP protocol, I think it’s super important to let the body heal. Try not to overdo it or expect too much from your body. Your body is working very hard to do the healing it needs to do so be prepared to work with it and rest more if you need to.
What I Ate VLOG for Days 8-9:
In this video, I share what I ate on days 8-9, including dinner from day 7. I’ve also included links to any relevant recipes I used as well as one of my favorite cookbooks for the AIP diet.
What I Ate:
Day 7–
(See the rest of Day 7's meals)
Dinner: AIP Teriyaki Orange Meatballs, (these meatballs call for chicken but I subbed pork) over a bed of creamy broccoli and white sweet potato mash which was absolutely delicious. (Recipe for the broccoli/sweet potato mash comes from the Simple French Paleo cookbook.) Add your affiliate link for cookbook
Day 8 –
Breakfast: Leftover meatballs and broccoli mash from the night before. My favorite thing was the sweetness of the mash as I do love a sweet start to my day.
Lunch: On day 8, I needed to pack a picnic lunch for a field trip with my 8-year old. I made crepes from the Simple French Paleo cookbook. On the crepes, I put a slice of True Story turkey, followed by a layer of Applegate Farms prosciutto. I added some fig and apricot jam I had made the day before and on top of the jam, I put a layer of arugula. I ate the crepes with some Jackson’s Honest sweet potato chips and a couple of the AIP Carob Chocolate cookies I had made the day before.
Dinner: Tarragon Chicken, again from the Simple French Paleo cookbook, served up with roasted Romanesco. I sprinkled avocado oil on the romanesco and roasted it at 425 F for 25 minutes.
DAY 9 –
Breakfast: I roasted some Brussels sprouts, apples, and sweet potatoes in bacon fat at 425 F for 25 minutes. I added fresh blueberries, strawberries, and 2 slices of US Wellness bacon.
Lunch: Leftover Tarragon Chicken and romanesco.
Dinner: Grilled pork chops. More info on these in the next video!
Other AIP Posts:
Next in the series:
Simply AIP Subscription Box Review + What I ate on AIP Days 10-11
Previous in the series:
What I ate on AIP on Day 1 here (plus I explain what AIP is)
What I ate on AIP for Days 2-4 here (plus why I'm doing AIP this time)
