How Much Do I Eat on the Autoimmune Protocol?

The autoimmune protocol (AIP) is a nutrition and lifestyle protocol specifically designed to lower inflammation, minimize autoimmune symptoms, improve gut health, help balance hormones, reduce toxic load, maximize immune health, and more.  The nutrition side of the AIP includes three phases:

• The Elimination Phase
• The Reintroduction Phase
• The Maintenance Phase

The lifestyle side of the AIP includes improving sleep, reducing stress, reducing toxins, getting out in nature, connection, and more.

Keeping the importance of bio-individuality in mind, generally speaking, I recommend the following AIP meal guidelines:

• Eat three meals a day.
• Make sure each meal (even breakfast) includes a protein, healthy fat, and carbs in the form of veggies. Including a protein and a healthy fat at each meal helps to balance energy levels.
• Try to allow at least 12 hours in between dinner and breakfast the next day to allow your digestive system a chance to rest so more cellular resources can be used for healing and detox.
• Remember, breakfast does not need to look like a traditional “breakfast” (see this article and video for AIP breakfast ideas).
• If you find yourself needing an AIP snack between meals:
  • Increase the amount of food you are eating at your meals.  Experiment with increasing the amount of healthy fats at your meals.  Healthy fats not only play a number of incredibly important roles in the body, they also help you to stay full for longer.  Remember to gradually increase healthy fats to avoid digestive discomfort.  Note: if you do not have a gallbladder, be sure to work with a practitioner who can recommend a supplement to help with digestion of fats.
  • If you do need a snack, try to include a protein and/or healthy fat like a grass fed beef stick (these are my favorite) and some avocado.  You can find more AIP snack ideas here.
  • If after increasing your meal sizes and adjusting your macro nutrition ratios, you find yourself needing a snack at bedtime to hold you over until breakfast, one option is to try a cup of chamomile tea in the evening with some MCT oil (start with one teaspoon of MCT oil and you can work up to one tablespoon).

As far as portion sizes of protein, healthy fats, and carbs in the form of veggies, it will depend on your bio-individual needs (your body, activity level, etc). With that said, here are some guidelines to help get you started:

• Carbs in the form of veggies:  50% of your plate
  • Note that you can experiment with various types of veggies and see how you feel.  Some people find they feel best when adding in starchy veggies like sweet potatoes while others find they feel best when they eat starchy veggies less often.
• Protein:  About the size of your palm.
  • Remember to source the best quality your budget allows.
• Healthy fat:  Be sure to include at every meal.
  • Remember that the healthy fat you cook in counts, as does fatty cuts of meat like fatty wild caught fish, pasture raised chicken thighs, grass fed and finished beef, etc.
• Healing foods:  try to add in some additional healing foods.
  • Ideas include:
    • Bone broth (I love to make a big batch of homemade bone broth to have on hand for soups, stews, roasts, etc).
    • Organ meats (you can take an organ meat supplement if you find you cannot stomach organ meat).
    • Fermented veggies (you can make your own or purchase them – be sure to check for any non AIP ingredients if you purchase them).  You can start with just 1 teaspoon a day and see how you feel.  I like adding fermented veggies to salads or AIP wraps.

AIP Troubleshooting

Sending You Lots of Love and Support

Please know I am sending you loads of love and support.

I personally know the autoimmune protocol can feel overwhelming at first. It can also feel so lonely and frustrating.

Please reach out anytime with any questions, video or article topic requests, or just to say hi.  I’d love to connect with you!

Please know I am cheering you on!  You are the only one with the power to change your life, and I belief in you!

When hard days come, remember to trust the process and that everything is figureoutable.