Don’t get me wrong: I’m a huge fan of eating nutrient-dense foods. This is especially urgent in this day and age, where we require significantly more nutrients to detox all the garbage around us, and yet eat significantly few nutrients.
However, health is bodily balance. And some people – you’re looking at one – are very imbalanced due to certain events and habits. The imbalance may have come from sloppy eating choices; from getting into a car accident; from sitting too much or a job that exposes you to toxic chemicals. But eventually, most people make mistakes, and imbalance one aspect or another of their body.
For some of us, that imbalance injured our gut, significantly weakening it. Speaking for myself at this moment, my gut is fairly weak – just like I might have to go easy on a broken ankle, I likewise have to go easy on an injured gut.
The ideal would be for me to be able to run a few miles. But that’s a bad idea on a broken ankle – that would just make a small problem worse, into a big problem. Likewise, the ideal would be for me to always be eating nutrient-dense foods – but doing so would be like running on a broken ankle. We’ll get there, but take it slow.
Sometimes I have been able to handle it – my experience is that the fastest way to heal after an injury is to absolutely pound the protein – eat 2-4 lbs of meat and some liver every day: it’s amazing how fast you heal. However, I can’t do that at the moment – right now, my liver, pancreas, stomach acid, and gut microbiome (some or all of the above, I’m not 100% sure which) is weak (after getting glutened in February). If I eat alot of liver, or too much nutrient-dense-but-fat meat, my stomach lets me know: ouch.
Despite the ideal of eating great food, I’ve found that I have to settle and eat fillers and low-nutrient foods for now: vegetables, fruit, yes – carbs, chicken, etc. Unfortunately, I can tell a difference – I heal slower; I don’t have as much energy, etc. But right now my gut needs to walk, not run. This is where supplements help too – I can’t get as much NAC (N-acetylcysteine) since I’m not eating as much meat; so I supplement that. I eat a little bit of liver (ground into venison) every day, but I still find I need extra magnesium (cramps, sleep) especially after a high-activity day. I know I’ll be able to get back to eating nutrient-dense food – but for now, it seems helpful to eat nutrient un-dense, and try to rebuild a robust microbiome.
