Sunday, August 28, 2011

Juicer Mania

Once again, I'm on the catch up train with health kicks.  I know juicers have been a big deal for many for a long time.  I've never really looked into them, but now that's going to change!  I ordered a new juicer last week, but I'm not sure if it is actually coming or not.  I was charged for it, but then got a email that said I had a credit for it?  Anyway, I guess we'll see this next week.  But even so, I found a Jack LaLane juicer at a garage sale on Saturday!

I haven't used it yet, because I'm waiting to get stevia on Monday.  I can't wait to try "Natalia's classic "green lemonade", which is:

1 head romaine lettuce or celery
5 to 6 stalks kale
1 to 2 packets stevia or liquid stevia drops
1 whole organic lemon
1 to 2 tbsp fresh ginger (opt)

Yum!!!

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Quick-Exit Food Combinations...

So yesterday I mentioned how excited I was about the book "Detox for Women- An All New Approach for a Sleek Body and Radiant Health in 4-weeks".


I stayed up super late & read it all yesterday.  Now I'm re-reading to make sure I'm not missing anything.  I've found a few things that I'm doing wrong already.  The major one is that she says if Candida has entered your bloodstream & is through your whole body, then you're not supposed to allow yourself any chocolate, goats-milk ice cream, or any types of grains.  Hmmmph.  Well there goes that happiness for a while.  It was fun to dream for a bit, though.  And at least I know what to eat if I think I'll go insane from deprivation.  I'll just try not to all of the time.

I thought I'd mention more about what types of foods to eat together so that they can make the quickest exit out of the body that they can, and not stick to the body.  Here are the categories of foods, and a few examples of each:

Starches:  avacados (considered a fruit, but combine as a starch for our purposes),  baked starchy vegetables like winter squash, yams, and sweet potatoes; grains like millet, quinoa, and buckwheat.

Fleshes:  fish/seafood; raw goat & sheep cheeses (or raw cow cheeses); organic, cage-free eggs (whole egg); organic free-range chicken (if necessary); grass-fed/hormone free meats (if necessary).

Neutral:  all raw vegetables, all low starch cooked vegetabels, lemons, spices, butter, dark chocolate, goat's milk ice cream (combines better with flesh).

So basically, you can combine either starches or fleshes with neutral, but not starches & fleshes together.  (for at least 3 hours).   That is going to take some getting used to, because that is what makes a meal seem complete to me.

But that's okay.  There is a daily outline of what to eat in this book, and it pairs the foods together that should be, anyway.  I'm so excited for this. 

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

And Today I'm Eating....... My WORDS!!!

Ha ha.  I'm just up & down, aren't I?  I found the GREATEST book last night!  It's called "Detox for Women- An All New Approach for a Sleek Body and Radiant Health in 4 Weeks", by Natalia Rose.  It is exactly what I've been searching for.  So instead of getting more restrictive, which I talked about yesterday, I'm branching off in a bit of a different direction.

As you know from my past posts, I haven't been happy the last few weeks with this diet change.  I know it is necessary, but haven't seen any benefits, and I just feel deprived.  Natalia's book talks about Candida, and goes into depth on why it has become such a problem in our society.  She talks about struggles people have going on a typical "Candida starving diet", and why people fail (like I felt like I was going to do nearly every day!).  She talks about a lifestyle change with diet that shows great results, and helps you feel better than ever.

There is a recipe section in the book with great recipes, mostly simple with ingredients that are doable.  She even allows herself cheese-  goatsmilk cheese.  Now if I can just find that around here.  She also allows herself a small square of extra dark chocolate (over 70% cocoa) each night, and sometimes goat's milk ice cream.  The fact that I can still have a few treats makes a huge difference to me, mentally.  I went to Real Foods today & bought some extra dark chocolate, and I couldn't find goats milk ice cream, but I found a coconut milk ice cream that will do until I find the other.  I ate a little tonight, but didn't feel like I needed big gobs of it.  I just ate about 5 spoonfuls, and then I was good.  Enough to take a way the craving!

One way this book is different from other things I've read is that she emphasizes what foods are eaten together.   There are acidic, alkeline, and neutral foods.  Acidic:  foods with high amounts of protein.  Alkeline- starchy foods.  Neutral-  vegetables.  I'm still trying to grasp this completely, but in summary, you're not supposed to eat acidic & alkeline foods at the same time, but you can combine them with any neutral food you want.

She also has you initially avoid foods that are hard to digest:  nuts, grains, most dairy, red meat, and fruits.  Once a high degree of detoxification has been reached you can reintroduce them.

She lays out a plan of what to eat every day.  Something that she is very big on is juicing.  I have never done that, but I'm going to buy a juicer now.  I'm going to do that for my breakfast every day.  I'm excited, because it's something that I can do for the kids that they'll probably like, too.  Especially Grace, who normally doesn't like to eat breakfast.  The author addresses the concern that you won't have enough energy if you only drink juice in the morning.  She says on the contrary, it helps you have greater energy. 

Last week I watch the documentary "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead" on Netflix. 


It show's a man's journey of going on a 8-week juicing fast.  In the end he lost lots of weight, and was able to go off of most of his meds that he had been taking for years.  That peaked my interest in the juicing when I read about it in this book, too.  Now I just need to get an extra refrigerator for my garage that I can put all this produce in I'm supposed to buy.  I'm also curious on how much my grocery bill will go up each month.  That's okay.  It's a great investment.

Doing everything it takes to start her program will take a little while to get ready for.  My plan is start it in full force on September 1, but in the mean time maintain what I've been to this far.  (Although I am going to indulge in a small bit of chocolate at the end of each day!)

Oh!  And another cool thing!  She addresses marathoners.  First of all, she doesn't recommend it.  She says it is too taxing on the body.  But she tells you how to eat natural things for refueling rather than "Gu" or "Shot blocks"!  Very cool.  At this point I'm still going to run, but I think I'll tame it back to 4,4,4, and 6.  I've got to let my body heal.


Monday, August 22, 2011

salad. salad. salad.

Today I'm getting even stricter with my diet, and I won't be eating brown rice or dairy products (except butter).   This is only for four weeks, so I know that I can do it.  One thing is certain, though.  I need more variety in the things I'm eating!  How boring.  Salad twice a day is boring.  And now that I can't put cheese on it, :(

I'm reading up on recipes that I might be able to tie in.  I want to find some main dishes that can work for all of the family, rather than just make a seperate meal for me.  I've found a few meat dishes that will work.  I'll just add rice, potatoes, or bread to theirs for a starch.

Weight update:

I didn't lose any weight last week.  Seriously?  Not even one meesley pound?  I guess I can handle that this time, but next week better be different!  When the kids are back in school I plan to start doing some weight training twice a week, and that should help, too.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Rollercoaster Ride

The last few days have been very busy getting our Japanese exchange student ready to leave.  He was here for 1 month.  He was curious about my diet.  At first when I told him he said "Yeeessss.  Is good."  A few days ago at the store, though, he said "Everyone need eat some fat.  No fat, they die".  :)  I think he was getting a little concerned with my many salads.

I've added more fats by eating 2-3 tablespoons of coconut oil a day, and I also have meat and some nuts.  He usually didn't see me eating those things, so I can understand his concern.  I haven't lost any weight so far this week, compared to the 6-pounds last week.  That is disappointing, considering how drastic my diet has changed.  It was such a large drop last week, though, that I understand that it needs to balance out.  I just have to keep telling myself this will be worth it.

The rollercoaster from the title is talking about my whole mood about the diet.  At times, I don't think it's so bad.  But then I about go CRAZY other times.  I was scooping ice cream for my family last night, and it was the biggest test of my willpower yet.  I need to have someone else scoop.  When I'm done with the most extreme part of this diet I hope to make some sort of homemade frozen yogurt to satisfy my icecream cravings.

On the other hand, I was looking a list of food for the Candida diet, and it was a bit modified from what I am doing.  It doesnt' have any milk except butter, and it adds organic yogurt or kefir after weeks 2-4.  It says raw carrots are okay, which I love to snack on, and that beans are okay (except peas, red lentils, lima beans, and soy).  It also doesn't allow brown rice.

Next week I'm cutting out the milk for 4 weeks, along with fruits.  It will be like Christmas when I can eat a little fruit again, like berries, apples, and pears.

Now if I can just make it through the ups and downs of emotion on this diet!!!! (And I do think I'm moodier than usual, too.  Just ask Jimmy :)

Thursday, August 18, 2011

I Knew it Would Come Sometime....

I was a bit concerned that I didn't seem to be having any detox side-effects from the killing off of yeast.  "Is this really working?" 

Well, it's here.    I. Am. Tired.    Drop dead down in bed tired.  Thankfully during the day it isn't so bad, but I was ready to plop in bed at 9:30, and last night I slept a full 8 hrs, when I normally NEVER sleep more than 7.  I first noticed it in my running.  I've dropped down 30-60 seconds slower per mile than I was before.  I'm okay with that, and know that my body is going through a lot of changes.  If I can just keep up a running base I'll be happy.  Right now I'm doing  Mon- 4, Wed- 6, Fri- 4, and Sat- 8.  We'll see how tomorrow goes.

Kristen (my sister-in-law), let me know about coconut oil/yeast today.  The oil is an amazing yeast buster.  (Kristin- thanks for the heads up!!!!)  I had no idea it was such a yeast killer.  My doctor mentioned it, but I just thought it went along with all the other healthy things he mentioned that kind of got lumped together (& some specifics forgotten).  Today I started taking oil, and actually like it quite a lot!  It tastes very good.  I tried eating some almonds while I drank some, and it was yummy- almost like a dessert.  There can be some strong die-off side effects with it, though, so we'll see.

Well, better get to bed!  Thankfully no piano lessons in the morning.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Super WalMart in town!

Today was a big day for our small city.  A Super WalMart opened today, which is big news here.  I think everyone in the city was there when I was, and I just happened to take four kids (one being our exchange student).  He wanted to buy some gifts for his family, and what better place than WalMart?

I've been in grocery stores a few time since I started this new diet, and they weren't a big deal.  But for some reason, everything I saw was tempting.  Grapes.  Strawberries.  Donuts.  Pizza.  Chocolate.  And so on.  Maybe because everything was so new?  I had just eaten lunch, so it wasn't that I was hungry. 

But I was good.  I even bought some cucumbers & tomatoes for later (nope- none in our non-existent garden).  I have to say that I'm getting kind of bored with the same foods over & over.  I don't really have the time to be creative right now.  I'm having to cook a 2nd meal besides the family's, so that doesn't leave me a lot of time anyway.  But I have some thoughts on different recipes, and plan to keep things nice & simple.

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Sense of Taste

I'm trying to be acutely aware of how I am feeling- to see if this or that feels weird, to see if all this effort will pay off.  One thing that I have noticed is that the flavors of my food are intense.  I really notice all of the flavors in the vegetables, and how different combinations of food taste SO good.  It gives me hope that I can get used to this.

Did I mention that I figured out what was causing the slime in my mouth?  It was the olive oil I was using on my salad.  Bleh. So I switched to just lemon, or Braggs Raw Apple Cider Vinegar, and it is great.  No more greasy residue problems.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Passed the First Big Test

Last night we ate dinner at a friend's house.  We had to fight the rain as it came & went, but had a great time outside in their yard, cooking our dinner over a fire.  Most everyone had hotdogs or bratwurst (sp?).  I made tinfoil dinners for our family, which didn't get turned soon enough & got burnt.  But mine was edible enough to eat most of it.  Here's what I put in my dinner:  grass-fed beef hamburger patty, onions, cooked brown rice, and unsalted butter.  It was actually pretty good, minus the burnt spots.   I also brought a green salad (romaine lettuce, red pepper, cucumber, tomato)  for potluck, and brought half an avacado, and lemon for dressing.  It was a yummy, fullfilling dinner.  I think I was the only one who had salad, but at least it was something I could eat.

The big test I passed was avoiding all of the sweets.  Grace had made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies to bring, and they had roasted marshmallows & roasted Starbursts.  Of course I had to help my girls with the roasting.  But I did it.  Not so fun, but it was okay.

Interesting note:  Yesterday I ate a small piece of bread when I took the sacrament at church.  I wasn't sure it would be a big deal, but my mouth did feel a bit funny after I ate it.    Like buzzy or itchy.  Strange.  I'm not sure if it was just in my head, or for real.  I'll try it again next week, and if I can tell there is a reaction I'll need to provide gluten free bread or a rice cake for my sacrament tray.

Also:  Weight loss update

I have lost 6 pounds this first week that I've been on this diet.  That is too fast, but hopefully it will be okay.  I'm trying to stay satisfied & not get hungry.  And my running burns up the calories, too.  That is one reason I'm trying to add more calories with butter & raw milk.  It will help when I'm able to add some fruit to my diet, too.  (I can't remember if it's after 2-weeks or 4...)

If I lose another 6 pounds this week I'll be down to where I was last summer when I lost a bunch of weight.  I know quick weight loss generally leads to quick weight gain, so I've got to make my healthier diet a way of life.  I'm hoping after 3 months I'll see great results, and I'll feel so good that I'll be motivated to make this a new way of life... not just a temporary change.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

First Social Event- Arrrrrrrghhhhhh!

Tonight we fed the missionaries.  I kept it simple- rice, grilled chicken, orange dream salad (cottage cheese, cool whip, orange jellow, and mandarin oranges-  NO, I did not eat!!), and green salad.  I cooked regular rice for everyone else, and cooked brown rice for myself.  Yum- with butter & salt & pepper.  I can have unsalted butter... not sure why, but the Dr. said.

The kicker was dessert.  I'm still struggling a bit.  No, make that a lot.  I let Janessa make Spice cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, and they also had vanilla ice cream.  Talk about WILL POWER.  Holy cow.  I keep telling myself how many thousands of people choose to eat the way I am right now, but it doesn't make it any easier.  It's simply torture.  I want to make healthy eating a new way of life, but it's hard to imagine getting over my love of sweets.

Journaling like this helps, though.  I know that I have to report back, and I'm determined to succeed.

Another excitement to report about-  I was able to run 8-miles today!!!  I wasn't sure if I would have enough energy because I've cut out so many carbs, but I just took it nice & slow & I did fine!  Phew.  That is a stress to me.  I'm not going to be able to do the Top of Utah marathon that I planned to do in September, but I'm grateful for my health & ability to still run for health.  I just invision myself running my races next year feeling lighter, stronger, and with more energy.  All this agony will pay off!  (right?:)

Friday, August 12, 2011

Rough morning

I woke up hungry today.  I think it is because I didn't have any protein with my dinner last night.  Anyway, I made my kids breakfast first (pancakes), and that smelled really good.  I wasn't really tempted to eat any, but I was hungry. 

I got them fed, then I made myself two eggs, using our farm fresh eggs today.  Once I ate, I still felt really hungry, and even worse, I felt that yucky coating all over my mouth again.  So yucky.  So then I started trying to figure out what I was going to eat, and then I kind of panicked.  I opened the fridge & looked at all of the vegetables, and I thought "I'm going to starve!"  Nothing looked good.  I felt horrible!

I ended up getting some chicken breast out of the freezer, thawing it, and then cooking it with some Montreal Steak Seasoning.  Once I had that in my system I was okay.  The rest of the day has been fine, too.

I went to Real Foods and stocked up on some foods I can eat.  I got some sprouted pumpkin seeds, and got some little snack bites that have sesame, flax, and pumpkin seeds, and are perfect for what I need.  I'm definitely going to have to find some recipes that can make this more economical, becaue $5+ for a little bag of snack bites isn't going to cut it.  I'll definitely have to budget more for the food in the future.  I also got some raw milk.  Some of the things that I have read say no to milk, but my dr. said yes to raw milk.  So for my sanity, I'm going for it.  I had some tonight, and so far so good.  Oh- and I forgot to mention that I bought some Redmond Clay there, too.   I mixed 1 tsp in water & drank it tonight.  Didn't taste great, could be worse.  It's bentonite clay, and it's supposed to have some great healing properties.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Mouth. Hurts. Ouch.

It's been a good day.  Thankfully I'm not getting too bored with the same things in this menu planning phase.  And I'm not starving, like I thought I would be!

But my mouth hurts.  I went to the farmer's market tonight & bought some cherry tomatoes (yellow & orange... not sure on the variety) and basil.  I couldn't eat anything else from the vendors, and I felt a little longing, but not too bad.  I even had a guy place kettle corn in my hand, and I didn't eat it!  Score! 

I ate a bunch of my tomatoes, and then when I got home at a big salad for dinner.  I also bought some raw milk cheese from Kohler Artisan Cheese in Midway yesterday, and I had a small slice of that.  It tasted good at the time, but soon after my mouth started burning, and now I have little cankers all over, and my tounge feels swollen.  I was taking a risk with the cheese, and I guess I have my answer with that :(.

I can't wait to figure out what to put my basil in, though.  Love that stuff.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

So... I'm just a little behind.

The more I talk to people, the more I realize how behind I am in the ultra healthy eating craze.  I've dabbled in it before, but always went away from it.   Basically, too much hassle, and too expensive (up front) compared to crappy food.  I have some healthy things that I've thrown in, but now that I'm going more extreme, I see that it was about 1/4 to 1/3 healthy.  And the great things is that I feel ready to take the plunge now. 

Getting my appendix out on July 4th was a big wake up call.  I had made my appointment with Dr. Porter before that happened, but it really helped kick some sense into me to realize how precious our health is.

Yesterday was fine with eating.  Today a bit harder, because I'm still fine-tuning how my diet-plan is going to work.  I found a great e-book this afternoon called "YeastInfectionNoMore", and I think this is going to be the key for me.  It has all the dietary changes, just w/more explanation why, and also includes a lot of other great info on supplements & cleanses. 

On a side note-  I MISSED MY RUN TODAY.  I'm determined to not lose my running base while sorting through all of these changes.  Certainly plan to go out on Friday!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Day 2- Not too bad...

So I'm in the 2nd day now of my very modified diet.  So far so good, for the most part.  I actually don't feel too bad, compared to the last time I tried to do a "cleansing" diet that was similar to this.  I felt horrible on that one.  I started to get pretty hungry last night, which I'm trying to avoid.   I thought that when I woke up in the morning today I would be ravenous, but I wasn't.

Yesterday here is what I ate:

Breakfast:  2 egg omelet with spinich & tomatoes
Lunch:  Green salad w/romaine, cucumber, and tomato
Dinner:  2 eggs, and a cucumber.

I know.  Boring.  And not enough calories.  I didn't have much in my fridge, ready to start this, but I wasn't going to put it off!  I was able to grab a few things at the store yesterday, and today is somewhat better. 

Here's a pretty good summary of the foods I can eat right now:

http://www.thecandidadiet.com/foodstoeat.htm

The only thing I'm taking off of the list for right now is yogurt (for 4 weeks).  But hopefully I'll be back on that soon.  I'm going to check & see if Real Foods carries a raw milk yogurt.  Do they even make that?  Kefir, maybe?  That would be a nice addition, so I'm going to check that out soon.

Monday, August 8, 2011

My Supplements

When I met with the doctor to evaluate my bloodwork results he gave me a list of supplements to take, besides two prescriptions.  I went & bought them across the hall at a health spa, and it was a chunk of change!  Thank goodness for birthday $, because I didn't budget for that.  I think I'll be buying my refills online.

Here are the ones he recommended:

DHEA, 10 mg    (From WebMD:  DHEA supplements, made from plant chemicals, work by building up the adrenal gland and regulating the immune system. ) 

I-Flora (a probiotic- "Taking probiotics may help replace the lost beneficial bacteria.")

Porcine Thyroid (just one bottle... to give my thyroid a boost)

Thyroid support ("contains vitamins, minerals and herbal extracts to nourish and support thyroid gland function. ...")

Vitamin D3, 5,000 mg (although my vit D levels weren't that bad, compared to the last time I had my bloodwork done a year & 1/2 ago)

Nutra Adrenal  (to help adrenal function, which can help energy levels)

Here's hoping this all works. :)

Sunday, August 7, 2011

OK- I'm new to blogging, so this is just the bare bones.

Hey!  Thanks for joining me on my 3-month sugar-free challenge!  I tried doing this a year & a half ago, and it lasted about a week.  But this time I'm GOING to do it.

I'm determined to make it work this time, but the more of you I have with me on this journey, the better!  I need to be held accountable, and I want to know I'm not alone with it being hard.

So to be blunt, the main reason I finally decided to do this is because my doctor told me I need to.  I had some bloodwork done, and last week I got the results back.  I thought I have might thyroid issues, but it turns out I've a major overgrowth of CANDIDA (yeast) in my body.  They rate the amount in your blood from 0- >100, giving it a classification of I (3-10), II (10.1-25), III (25.1-50), IV (50.1-100), or V (>100).  My reading is >100! 

My doctor prescribed a couple of medicines, but then I've also got to cut out all sugar & starve it to death.  I know it will be hard... when I tried last time I felt like CRAP, and it was messing up my running.  But I've decided that now's the time, and that in the end I'll feel better.   (I have to admit... I'm kind of excited about the weight loss possibilities, too.  I'm going to keep track of that on here, too.)

My bloodwork also shows that I'm allergic to milk & gluten, so I'm also cutting those out for 4 weeks, then gradually adding them back in (raw milk, baby!).  That will make this process tougher, but I have some good recipes lined up.  Maybe I'll post my weekly menu tomorrow.  And I'd love all the advice & knowledge you guys have, too.

Here's to good health!!!!