Gestational Diabetes Meals

I mentioned in an earlier post that I had gestational diabetes while I was pregnant which was such a heart break initially.  I was so embarrassed and felt like there was something that I did to cause this (I did eat about a pack of sour patch kids every few days).  I always considered myself a "healthy" eater who likes to practice the burn it to earn it philosophy. 

Once I got over the disappointment, I knew the only thing to do was take care of myself the best that I possibly could because it was so important for our baby.  Once I met with a nutritionist, I was actually surprised by the things that I learned!  While I thought I was a healthy eater, there were many changes that I needed to make.  I had to start looking a lot closer at the food labels and put a lot more thought and planning into my meals.  For those who are familiar with gestational diabetes you know that your body has a harder time breaking down sugar.  It is really important for you to have a good balance of protein, carbs and dietary fiber in your meals.  Unfortunately, sugar is something that you REALLY need to keep out of your diet.  This includes a lot of fruits especially in the morning.

I won't lie, this was something really hard to battle especially for someone who has a sweet tooth like mine!  Here are some of the meals/things I ate (and still do) I really enjoyed that helped out cut down on sugar and keep my levels on target.

The bonus about having gestational diabetes is that it really helped me avoid cravings!

Breakfast:
-100 Calorie bread rounds  whole wheat kind with natural peanut butter and sunflower seeds.  This is AMAZING!  I still eat this everyday and two hard boiled egg whites.
-100 calorie bread rounds, scrambled egg and cheese
-Scrambled eggs, turkey bacon
-Egg whites and Canadian bacon
-Old fashioned oatmeal with vanilla almond milk, cinnamon and almond slivers
*If drinking coffee use sugar free sweetner or even better use almond milk!  Regular milk is really high in sugar!
*Be sure to avoid fruit, cereal, OJ, yogurt(also high in sugar)

Snacks:
-Cheese stick and apple
-Lite and fit yogurt with cottage cheese- This is a good balance of protein and this brand of yogurt is lower in sugar.
-Kashi trail mix bars. Low sugar and low carb
-Nuts these are my fav and are great to pack when on the go.  You can find these anywhere.
-Cucumber/carrots and hummus
-Edamame 
-Avocado, broccoli and balsamic dressing
-Handful of animal crackers
-100 calorie popcorn
-Handful of pretzles
-Cheese and triscuits
-Oh Yeah! Bars
-Pure protein bars 

Lunch/dinner:
-Turkey sandwich with with 100 calorie bread and cheese
-Turkey bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado (BLTA) sammy
-Spinach salad with chicken and veggies
-Slice of pizza with chicken, add protein
-Lean chicken and veggies
-Whole wheat pasta, lean ground turkey and pasta sauce
-Sweet potato with cinnamon
-Chili (lean meat and lots of beans are great protein)
-Lean burger with cheese

Dessert: Nobody is perfect, but I did find that my favorite dessert that I didn't feel quite as guilty about were the Skinny cow chocolates.  I also would eat the Kashi bars because they have some sweetness to them! 
 
Have any questions or want more suggestions?  email me!  mamasonthego@gmail.com