Good morning everyone! So, here is Meal 1 of the No Grains, Sugar, or Cheese Challenge

First reason I love this Challenge so much: I forgot how much I love fruit and yogurt in the mornings!

This morning I had 1/2 cup of non-fat, plain, Greek Yogurt drizzled with honey + banana and 1 tbsp. of Almond Butter on the side

And yes, after I took to pretty picture, I stirred it all up and enjoyed it in my new blue room!

Pick your favorite environment to eat in, make your food look appealing, and take time to taste ALL of the flavors. You must ENJOY your food.

I wanted to address a few simple questions that some of you have had, so here goes

1) I can’t have cheese on this diet, so does that mean I cannot have milk either?

No, this diet is not “non-dairy,” just “no cheese.” Go ahead and have the milk!

2) Can I have Cottage Cheese?

Yes! You may!

3) What about Quinoa, can I eat that?

Sure! People debate on Quinoa, and whether or not it’s a grain, but I say it’s a vegetable protein. My Naturopath would agree, and so would Gillian McKeith, author of “You Are What You Eat.”

4) Can I have rice or Oatmeal on this diet, since those do not contain gluten?

While removing grains makes this diet “gluten-free,” it is not purely just gluten free. The challenge consists on removing all grains, rice & oats included. Maybe try using Quinoa in their place! 🙂

5) What about sweeteners?

Stevia, Honey, and Agave. Those are what I use! Just not table sugar or artificial sweeteners.

6) What am I going to put in my Coffee? I always use Coffee Mate, and that contains sugar

I would suggest trying a few different things:

-Unsweetened Vanilla Almond milk with either honey, agave, or stevia

-Organic half & half with either honey, agave, or stevia

-Milk with either honey, agave, or stevia

-Black Coffee

-OR, if you really want to do the diet, but using Coffee Mate is holding you back, maybe just start the diet and keep the Coffee Mate. I mean, you have to enjoy it, it’s YOUR diet, and doing SOMETHING is better than doing nothing (if it makes your body feel GOOD).

If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask me! I am thrilled to talk to you all about this, and I love being here to encourage you! I would suggest asking on my facebook page, or in a comment below so that others can learn from your questions as well. If you want to ask me something in private, please feel free to email me at paige@healthyhitsthespot.com