Included below is the Ankylosing Spondylitis / Autoimmune Diet Daily Health Routine I created, miscellaneous info, what to avoid, and what to control.

If you have not done so, I suggest reading about the 21-Day Food Reboot (1/18 – 2/7/12) along with the 1st 6 months prediction.  Then follow the actual daily autoimmune routine for the 3 weeks to 2 months, months 3-5, and months 5-12.

Miscellaneous Components

• Calories: Need 2220+ calories per day (Calculate BMR X Lifestyle)
• Fat:  I need 49g – 86g of fat per day
• Protein:  I need 70g of protein per day (1/2 my weight)
• Since the start of the 21-day reboot, the medication I took was Enbrel (last taken Feb. 7 – Day 21 of reboot).

Morning

• Wake up with Omeprazole  (Stopped 3/13)
• ½ hour later acacia fiber with water kefir
• Wii Fit+ Yoga & strength exercises
• Breakfast with rice cereal and almond milk (stopped 6/13 & eating 2 eggs with turkey bacon).  Take with Vitamin D3, Iron Supplement, Prednisone, Asacol HD, and doTERRA Vitality Pack. Stopped 3/13 with Prednisone & DoTERRA & maintenance plan (2 per day) with Asacol HD.  Stopped Iron Supplement 6/13.  Updated supplement regimen started 6/13.

Lunchtime & Afternoon:

• If time permits, take a 1-2 hour nap.
• Swimming exercises 2-3X per week.  Alternate with the power plate & gym exercises.  Stopped power plate & reduced swimming to 1X per week 3/13.
• Usually canned or smoked Alaskan salmon with rice or potatoes and a vegetable.
• Afternoon I sometimes eat a variety of nuts (macadamia, brasil nut, walnuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds) and dried fruit (cherries, raisins, craisins, goji berry).  Alternate with a Larabar.

Dinner & Evening:

• Prednisone, Asacol HD, and doTERRA Vitality Pack.  Stopped all except Asacol HD on 3/13 & new supplement regimen 6/13.
• Variety of meetups & evening activities.  On average I eat out 1-2 times per week.

Overall Dietary Percentages:

Avoid Throughout the Day:

• Starchy foods that I’m food intolerant with – no flours, grains, or breads.
• Artificial sweeteners
• Soda of any form
• Cow dairy – I opt for goat / sheep cheese & yogurt in smaller amounts.  Cow dairy can give me rib pain and minor headaches.
• All refined foods (processed by humans) sugars, modified / processed corn starch, corn syrup, dyes, etc.
• Most animal meat that is not organic in its raising.  No hormones / antibiotics.
• Drink alcohol rarely & no smoking.
• Table salt.  If I want to add salt, I use Himalayan Sea Salt (adds minerals to diet).
• Eggs.  Although I have not tested in awhile, I am food intolerant to them.  At this point I can probably have them in smaller doses or as an ingredient in another food.  UPDATE 6/13 – Approved from functional doctor that I can eat eggs again.
• Squash.  Tried recipes with it like a butternut squash pizza and had a flare-up the next day.  Zucchini may also flare me up, but not as much.
• Tomato paste – it may be the BPA in the lining, but every time I make tomato sauce with tomato paste, it flares me up 1-2 days.
• Beans / Legumes – besides flatulence issues most get, I have been known to flare up, but it’s been inconsistent.  It might have to do with how long the beans have been cooked and the more I have the more chance for a flare-up.  I tend to avoid all types of beans (even green beans & soybeans), but seem to do fine with peas.

Things I’m Learning to Control:

• Kale is one of the highest insoluble fiber with 5.1 grams in a cup.  If I have too much, my system doesn’t absorb all of it and it makes me got to the bathroom 2-3X more.
• Chocolate / Cacao Powder – If I eat too much, my sacro joints & left/right should blades flare up.  My neck & spine get stiff.
• Nuts / Seeds – I eat 1-2 handfuls by itself.  Anymore and my body has a hard time to digest.  Also, thoroughly chew the nuts and try to have with other fruits & vegetables to ease digestion. Nuts off the list due to NSD are sunflower seeds, chestnuts, and peanuts (combo digestion & NSD issues).
• Cooked & Raw: If you eat more than 51% cooked food, your body’s immune system sends a false alarm because it reacts to cooked foods as if they were a foreign organism.   Info source:  Food Matters.  Also cooking past 118 degrees kills those enzymes.  UPDATE 12/12 – Due to my autoimmune breakthrough, IBD/Crohn’s/UC, my personal experience is to eat cooked foods and soups.  While raw foods contain enzymes and other nutritional benefits, they are harder to digest and are too fibrous (I went to the bathroom 5-6 times when going raw and go 1-3 times with cooked + rice).
• Organic:  If it’s not local USDA organic vegetables / fruits, you’re only getting (up to) 40% of the nutritional value.  Info source:  Food Matters.  Also, when you buy organic, see where it’s coming from.  If it isn’t local, it can take 3-4 days to ship it to your local grocer.  Places like farmer’s markets and some health food stores (even some larger grocery chains) carry vegetables / fruit picked that same morning.  The quicker you get it, the better “bang for your buck”.  In my experience so far, budget, availability and seasonality play a roll in just how much organic food you get (especially the local kind).  Here in Florida, for example, it’s difficult during the summer months to get local USDA organic food.
• Eating & Drinking:  In order for your food to assimilate better and increase digestion (by using more of your saliva), I drink small amounts with my meals.
• Meat & Starches:  Started on the no-starch diet works well at 1st, but I took food intolerance and vitamin deficiency tests to know what my body needs / can’t have.  Since then I am off the no-starch diet and having starches I can eat like rice & potatoes.  I also found out I needed more protein in my diet to build muscle mass & weight.  Red meat itself reduced my swollen ankles because I needed the Carnitine in it.  More info on the food intolerance & vitamin deficiency tests can be found here.
  UPDATE 6/13 – Due to my lack of absorption and weight loss, I need to eat animal protein in every meal.  Along with rice, helps bind my stool plus keeps my weight regulated.