Fruits and veggies

[Blushingbaby]

Hello! I just started the LE diet on Sunday in hopes
to get the hang of it before the 12 weeks before we start trying. We plan to try in October. I have two boys already and before I got pregnant I made sure to eat as healthy as possible. I know we are supposed to have lower nutrients but how much fruit and veggies are we supposed to be eating in a day? I am feeling guilty cutting back on the things that would be beneficial for baby esp with cutting out the prenatal vitamins. I'd feel sick if the baby wasn't healthy because of something I've done 😞

[Emz89]

I think we can still eat as healthy . I would not compromise my health. Just 3 meals a day and they can be healthy:) I think most important thing is no snacking. I am new to this too! X

[gwynn18]

Yes definitely eat fruits and veggies, during your meal not as snack. No snacks! Are you using anything to keep track of totals? Like fitnesspal?

Blushingbaby- we'll be ttc in Oct too! I'm going to start the diet in the next week or two. I'd love to follow along your journey!


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[Shannshaff]

Def eat fruits and veggies with your meals. There are many veggies in the diet that are free and you can have as many as you like. The idea is that there are way more nutrients in a cheeseburger than a salad or a pound of broccoli. So as long as you are within the limits of the diet, eat away. Just like others have said, avoid snacking.

[Blushingbaby]

Oh awesome thank you ladies!!! I feel so much better about that. No snack is def hard but I've managed to do it every day so far! I'm just adding up my calories, protein, and fat myself and saving it under my notes on my phone. Having trouble finding foods that give me enough protein (without eating meat) while hitting everything else so I'm glad I've started early so I can work it all out before it's necessary. Gwynn I'd love that!!! This is pretty exciting and I hope it works out for everyone!

[ksmom]

When I did LE and was low on protein, I'd have a fat free or low fat greek yogurt on occasion and towards the end of my sway, I often had a bean burrito for lunch which helped with protein a lot. You could also try soy based meat like gardein brand. DH and I liked the beefless ground in place of recipes calling for ground meat.

[atomic sagebrush]

I hope it goes without saying that I would never do anything to jeopardize the health or well being of a baby.

You can have fruits and veg. Low carb vegetables are free and unlimited - you can have as much as you want. Higher carb veg (like potatoes, corn, yams) and fruit, count ONLY cals and not protein or fat. IF you have a choice between higher and lower nutrient veg/fruit, pick the lower one when you can, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't and can't ever eat higher nutrient veg. Some people don't even limit them at all!

The basic guidelines of the LE Diet - 40-50 g protein, 30-60 g fat, 1500-1800 cals a day - are designed from the recommendations of the World Health Organization and reproductive endocrinologists' recommendations for an adequate pre-pregnancy diet. Low everything does not mean NO everything! :)

BE sure you're taking your folic acid/folate as that is the only nutrient proven to prevent birth defects when taken prior to conception.

[atomic sagebrush]

Oh awesome thank you ladies!!! I feel so much better about that. No snack is def hard but I've managed to do it every day so far! I'm just adding up my calories, protein, and fat myself and saving it under my notes on my phone. Having trouble finding foods that give me enough protein (without eating meat) while hitting everything else so I'm glad I've started early so I can work it all out before it's necessary. Gwynn I'd love that!!! This is pretty exciting and I hope it works out for everyone!

You can have things like beans and nuts and eggs and dairy - just that you can't treat them as free foods. :) Stick in limits and all those things are a-ok.

[Blushingbaby]

Thank you for the info! I did so much reading online that I somehow came away with the thought that it was better to be low nutrient to mimic times of famine so that is the part that I was uncomfortable with! I'm so happy to know that it's ok to eat the low carb veggies! I'm so happy I can ask these questions to get clarification and thank you for your answers!

I've been taking 800mg of folic acid every other day? Is 800 a day ok or is that too much? My prenatals only had 600 that I was taking daily.

Today marks one week straight of doing the diet but I had to cheat one day for an event (still did no snacking just two meals but went over in calories). I've been going about 16 1/2 hours from dinner to breakfast the next morning. Hoping this will become easier as time passes :)

[ksmom]

Going long periods between meals does get easier over time. It took me a couple of months before I adjusted to no snacking or breakfast. If you slip up every now and again or need to cheat for a holiday etc, don't beat yourself up about it. :)

[Debahlgrim]

Reading through this and I'm starting the LE diet again tomorrow!! We tried in the winter and didn't get pregnant and took a break. As I'm wrapping my head around this again- what if I work out in the morning? I usually eat an apple on the way to the gym but I know skipping breakfast is important. [emoji848]What should I do?


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[gwynn18]

I was wondering the same thing about morning exercise, do you still fast until lunch?? I'm still debating about doing the 60 mins per day or no exercise at all.


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[Blushingbaby]

I hear you! I can't even imagine trying to work out with no food!! I decided since I'm still so far out that I'm going to just do the diet for now. I've always done best losing a few pounds just by my diet and then use exercise as maintence. I'm going to evaluate where I'm at 12 weeks out and possiiy start the 60 mins of walking at that point but either middle of
The day during my kids nap or at night after they are asleep. If that's not working out I will probably only do it 6 weeks before. 60 mins is a long time! Lol!

[atomic sagebrush]

Thank you for the info! I did so much reading online that I somehow came away with the thought that it was better to be low nutrient to mimic times of famine so that is the part that I was uncomfortable with! I'm so happy to know that it's ok to eat the low carb veggies! I'm so happy I can ask these questions to get clarification and thank you for your answers!

I've been taking 800mg of folic acid every other day? Is 800 a day ok or is that too much? My prenatals only had 600 that I was taking daily.

Today marks one week straight of doing the diet but I had to cheat one day for an event (still did no snacking just two meals but went over in calories). I've been going about 16 1/2 hours from dinner to breakfast the next morning. Hoping this will become easier as time passes :)

Yes that's all true but low nutrient does not mean NO nutrient!! You'd have to eat a mountain of broccoli to get the amount of nutrients in a Big Mac, fries, and choc shake. We have found that things like calories, protein, and fat are what really count and the types of nutrients in fruits and veg. just don't seem to sway that much.

I like you guys to take 1200-1600 mcg folic acid or folate because you may be getting less via diet.

Cheating is allowed on LE Diet when you need to. No worries.

[atomic sagebrush]

I was wondering the same thing about morning exercise, do you still fast until lunch?? I'm still debating about doing the 60 mins per day or no exercise at all.


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Exercise has gotten such good results that I urge everyone to do it. Couch potato has been much less effective.

RE eating - please eat either before or after you exercise. Not both.

[Debahlgrim]

Exercise has gotten such good results that I urge everyone to do it. Couch potato has been much less effective.

RE eating - please eat either before or after you exercise. Not both.

Is it ok to do cardio 3-4 days a week the first 6 weeks of diet and then up to 6-7 days of cardio for the last 6 weeks? Or should I not exercise until 6 weeks before?


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[atomic sagebrush]

Yes that's fine. No, don't wait till 6 weeks before, that has not been shown to help in any way and may end up making you lose gobs of weight at the last minute right before your attempt, delaying or stopping O.