[Image: A strawberry patch.]

I’ve now been eating a diet of fruits and vegetables exclusively for over two weeks. While I felt some ill symptoms the first few days (as I was also detoxing from caffeine), I’ve now fully adjusted to this way of eating. I look forward each day to the baked sweet potatoes and fruits that have become my new staple foods. And if the traditional Okinawan diet is any indication, I’m in good company with the sweet potatoes:

While weight loss was not the primary goal of this diet, I have lost five pounds, and expect to lose several more before my weight settles out. I haven’t been very physically active, so increased exercise will likely affect this (especially if I put on more muscle weight). I’m more interested in my waist size than my weight, though as testosterone therapy is shifting my fat stores to my middle, I expect more fluctuations there too.

I kept track of everything I ate for the first two weeks, and plugged it into the CRON-O-Meter to get a detailed nutritional breakdown. (Though I’m always wary of the accuracy of these tools outside of a clinical environment; I did not weigh any of my food, I only provided estimates.) For the final seven days I tracked my food intake, I averaged 1266 calories per day, with a carbohydrate/protein/fat percentage breakdown of 91/6/4.  I consumed more than adequate amounts of fiber, iron, vitamins A and C, and folate. Vitamin E was a bit low, as were calcium, selenium, and zinc. I’m taking care of B12 with a weekly supplement.

I’m not concerned about calcium as I think the USDA recommendations for that mineral are unnecessarily high. Vitamin E I can get adequate amounts of by eating more leafy greens. As for the other minerals, if I experience deficiency problems I’ll consider adding other whole foods such as beans, nuts, or seeds.

In any case, I’m not interested in tracking calories or nutrients going forward; this was just a snapshot. I’m glad to be escaping the “pleasure trap” of salt, sugar, oil, and caffeine, and glad to be walking to the farmers market regularly again.