Oct 9, 20232 min read

Elimination Diet Meal Plan

If you are starting the three-week elimination diet, it may be confusing on the types of meals you should have while finding your key trigger foods.

The elimination diet challenges gluten, dairy, soy, corn, citrus, and eggs to see if these common food triggers impact your gut health. If they do cause a flare-up in any way, we want to remove them from our diet completely for a period of time, to allow our bodies to heal.

Here are some suggestions on how to challenge the six common food triggers, and a sample meal plan to follow!

Challenge Suggestions

Dairy: Glass of whole milk or 6-8 oz of whole milk yogurt or kefir with each meal.
Wheat/Gluten: 100% whole wheat baguette or bread (not sourdough), whole wheat pasta, whole wheat couscous, wheat cereal, or cream of wheat with each meal.
Citrus: Orange, orange juice, grapefruit, or grapefruit juice with each meal.
Egg White: Hard boil 4-6 eggs and remove the yolk (reserve for the egg yolk challenge) and eat egg whites with each meal.
Egg Yolk: Eat reserved egg yolks with each meal.
Soy: Buy a block of tofu and have 2-3 oz with each meal or tempeh, edamame, or roasted soybeans.

Sample Meal Plan for Elimination Diet

Breakfast

Gluten-free oatmeal with nuts and seeds or nut butter, fruit, and non-dairy milk
2 slices gluten-free bread or rice cakes topped with nut butter and sliced fruit
2 slices gluten-free bread or rice cakes topped with mashed avocado, and smoked salmon or nutritional yeast.
Siete Cassava wrap with avocado, chicken sausage, and sauteed vegetables

If you are challenging a food, be sure to add it to your breakfast for one day. If you are challenging dairy for example, have gluten-free oatmeal with a glass of milk or a side of whole yogurt. Instead of gluten-free bread, challenge with 100% whole wheat bread. With the cassava wrap, add egg whites or egg yolks.

Lunch and Dinner

Snacks

Your Lifestyle during the Elimination Diet

When doing the elimination diet, you really want to set yourself up for success. This is not the time to be dining out, drinking heavily, or consuming high amounts of refined and processed foods. You want to understand your key food triggers, and not inflame your body even more through dietary and lifestyle factors.

Alongside this meal plan, I would recommend limiting your caffeine intake to one cup in the morning. You can substitute for decaf coffee, teas, or juices when you normally reach for your second/third cup of coffee.

I would also focus on your water intake, drinking half your body weight in ounces and adding a pinch of sea salt for additional minerals.

Lastly, prioritize daily movement and rest. Our bodies are not meant to be sitting for eight hours a day. Get up, and take a walk when you can. You don't have to do a crazy workout every day but move your body in a way that feels good. I love doing circadian walks, especially as the sun is rising and setting to help regulate my circadian clock. It allows my body to wind down at night, preparing for deep and restorative sleep so my body can repair while I sleep.

I hope this helps you during your elimination diet! Be sure to check out my extensive guide on The Elimination Diet to address any other questions you may have about it. Would love to hear more about your experience with it, too!