My mother is one of those sensational moms.

With her Dutch-powered-blonde-will, she is determined to squeeze every last drip of zest and life out of a day, self-generating an abundance of energy to do what she has put her mind to doing.

She put about 6,000 miles on her bike in one year, commuting around sunny Tampa.

She gathers in the neighborhood kids for swimming and playing, like a blonde, tan, pied piper.

She befriends the local homeless, buys them a burger, and worries about them if she hasn’t seen them for a couple of days.

She still gets mistaken for being my sister.

…and then there are the rest of us.

The regular Joes and Jills of the world, with average amounts of energy, and average amounts of bandwidth for the everyday activities of life.

If you happen to be one of these average “Jill’s” and are preparing for the GAPS Diet Protocol, you may be wondering if there are any shortcuts to this amazing and powerful protocol…that won’t also undercut your family’s progress in healing.

Here is a short list of GAPS Diet shortcuts (a.k.a. store-bought or mail-order options).

1. Broth & meat stock

Meat stock is the backbone of the GAPS Protocol. It contains all the building blocks for healing and sealing the gut. It’s excellent for anti-aging, sports enthusiasts, brain health, digestive disorders, skin conditions, arthritis, and much more. Broth is also a respectful way to use more of the animal that has become your food and nourishment. To read more on the differences, and to get recipes, please read my article on bone broth vs. meat stock from a GAPS perspective.

For the first 30 days of GAPS Intro, you’ll need to do the easy version…meat stock. Here is an example of meat stock preparation: Cook a whole chicken, in a stockpot filled with water, with carrots, onions, garlic, etc. Simmer for 1 1/2 – 2 hours, and the liquid it is cooked in, is now meat stock. You can then eat it all together as a soup, or drink the meat stock and have the cooked meat and vegetables on the side.

Once you move on from meat stock, though, you can incorporate bone broth, which takes a long time to cook (unless you have an Instant Pot!)…12 – 48 hours, depending on if you are preparing small-boned animals like chicken, or large boned animals like beef.

Best online sources for bone broth:

2. Online Natural, Organic, and/or Grass-fed Meats

3. Snacks & Crispy Nuts

Snacks are great in between meals, they’re great for traveling, and they can be a treat. Here are some GAPS-friendly options for snacks:

4. Real Lactose-Free Dairy

This is a trickier one to source online. There are almost no commercial dairy operations that are properly culturing their dairy long enough for the milk sugar lactose, to be consumed by the beneficial bacteria, and make it easier to digest.

Store-bought dairy options:

5. Fermented Veggies & Beet Kvass

Full of beneficial bacteria that make our guts happy, fermented vegetables and beverages like beet kvass are also a backbone of the GAPS Diet.

Online & store-bought choices of ready-made ferments:

6. Salmon Gravlax or Lox

Fermented fish is an important and nutrient-dense GAPS food. But it is often one of the more intimidating foods for people to try making on their own. But yay for an online option!

7. Fats & Oils

Following is a basic list of the healthy fats and oils included in GAPS. Animal fats are the most healing and nourishing. Make sure to include plenty of them in your daily meals.

8. GAPS-Friendly Condiments

These are condiments that have GAPS legal ingredients.

Bonus: Meal Planning Services

Meal planning tools are the ultimate shortcut when it comes to putting something interesting and amazing on the table, while at the same time using the same amount of work (or less) in the kitchen.

Meal planning options:

And that’s a wrap. I hope you find these shortcuts helpful.

Please share your own shortcuts & sources; I would love to hear them!

Post in the comments below, or use the Contact tab 🙂

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