Last weekend was the Gluten Free Challenge. As part of it I decided to throw a pot luck for a few of my friends who were doing the challenge with me. Did any of you do anything for the Challenge? I figured I would share some photos and thoughts about the event and the challenge itself!

Sean Making some delicious Pizza with Bob’s Red Mill Pizza Dough Mix

I asked Mike, His sister and another of our currently gluten free friends (Kate) what they thought about eating gluten free for the weekend, or in general. Maybe you could also give me some insight but sharing your thoughts as well! Being the nerd, and researcher, that I am I came up with some questions to guide their comments and got some remarks I was I not expecting. (If you are interested in answering the below questions yourself please leave a comment, I would love some idea of how other gluten free people feel!)

How do you feel after going gluten free for the weekend?

A common theme seemed to be that all three of them felt healthier after eating gluten free for the weekend. Mike felt more accomplished than usual was well because he was able to dedicate himself to something for me. However, his sister commented on how she felt drained and hungry and Mike agreed with the hunger. I feel this is a common theme with people when they are going gluten free, your body needs to adjust to the diet and not having those filler carbs available to fill you up as easily. Since Kate’s diet has been gluten free for awhile she no longer feels hungry. She is happy that she rarely feels overstuffed anymore when she eats and no longer has stomach pain!

How did having to eat gluten free affect your family, work or social  environment? Did/do you feel restricted and frustrated?  Mike and his sister both work in bakery settings, he in Panera as the sub heading for my blog states, and she at a grocery store. In addition, his sister is attending culinary school. They both expressed feelings of frustration and restriction in their job settings, as both were limited in their ability to taste test their products or to grab a quick bite to eat when they wanted without having to think about it first. At the beginning of the weekend Mike tried some fresh cornbread without thinking and was rather bummed about it, something  a newly gluten free person is sure to do. They felt their jobs got harder by having this dietary restriction. Kate explained how she originally felt frustrated. She is commonly the only person in her house to eat gluten free, resulting in ‘kate only food’ and limited shared meals (with the exception of sharing meat and having different sides). As time has gone on however she has become more confident in herself and thus her diet, so this difference doesn’t make her feel as alienated as it used to. My suggestion if you have a gluten free family member is to eat gluten free meals with them as frequently as possible, it’ll show them you care! Finally, Kate made a comment about how going gluten free has affected her social life in respect to bars and parties because she has always liked beer more than other alcohol, although she is not a big drinker, and now she has to drink what she doesn’t particularly like.

We needed appetizers so we had little Turkey Hot Dogs on Min Swords. As an Ex-Fencer this was fantastic and fun to eat!

Everyone expressed similar struggles with, as mike put it, ‘being able to eat what i want when I want’. They expressed difficulty with meeting calorie requirements, feeling full, finding food to eat that was healthy and finding food to eat in general. Also we would expect, finding restaurants to eat at that are safe as well as trusting others with your diet (even at events at other people’s houses) are also mentioned struggles. I think this question really brings to light the struggles and conflict that comes with this particular diet, which it what I feel The Challenge event in and of itself was trying to prove to a wide audience. Even today, after being gluten free for more than a year there are times I just plain don’t want to eat because I can’t have want I want.

Did you find it supportive to be a part of a gluten free event? Did other people outside of this event seem supportive of your choice to participate? How did/does their support or lack of support make you feel? 

The final product of the pizza came out great!

Everyone love the pot luck and found it to be the most supportive event of their weekend! This shows how important it is to have support in your daily life. Mike and Kate both expressed how their family, friends and co-workers are supportive of their diet options, more so for kate since she is restricted all the time. It is great to know that people go out of their way to make their Loved ones feel cared for and full (of food). Mike’s sister described a different experience in which people were telling her that participation in the event was too much of a burden on her part or that it wasn’t logical. She was rather frustrated with this and understands now the need for further awareness of celiac disease. The response that Mike’s sister received is the exact reason why events such as this are important. It is important to spread awareness so people are no longer oblivious!

I had asked these two questions separately but feel they go well together. Kate in general states that “Eating gluten free has made a huge impact on my life. I feel healthier, am not in pain after I eat anymore, and it makes me feel better about myself”. It is so great that such a simple change can have such an impact on people lives.  Both Mike and his Sister felt great about their experience as they were able to commit themselves to something that seemed not to be fully respected by others. They felt healthier, although not necessarily full, as well as happy and accomplished. Mike’s sister felt stressed because she felt so limited in her food options, which brings awareness to the need for improved quality of gluten free food. She even asked me how I wasn’t dead yet and my answer is creativity with eating! I hope she can help make some changes on this front with her culinary degree!