Merry Christmas! And Look What December Has Brought...

My last post was on December 11th...  So busy...  yesterday was the first day to slow down a bit, and it felt great!   Naps, catching up on reading... feels so good.  Today I slept in.  I woke up at 6:00 AM, but didn't get out of bed until 7:30.  I read, and then watched an episode of Chopped. 

I'm rereading Natalia Rose's Detox for Women, because I've had a relapse of candida.  You know my last post on the 11th?  After that point I was pretty lax on the sweets I ate- I was more lenient with chocolate, and homemade sweets (like carmel) that came our way.  I did buy some dark chocolate to eat instead, but it didn't work.  I ate that AND the sweets.  And now, over two weeks later, I'm already having some female yeast issues.  I've also felt more bloated and gassy.  Not cool.

One good thing that has come from all of this is that now I know what I was doing WAS working (besides the weight loss), and that it is important to stay with it.  I love rereading things that I read at the beginning of my journey, because now different things stand out to me.  It's very motivating, and I'm ready to give it a go again (starting January 1st!!! :)  For one month I'm going to be really strict, like I was in August.  No fruit, honey, or maple syrup (as well as sugar of course).  And I'm going back to JUICING!  That will replace my breakfast, like before.   My next doctor's appointment is the first part of February, and we'll be doing blood work again.  Hopefully I'll be able to see a difference in my results, compared to August.

On Christmas Eve I decided to go to a Santa Hat fun run.  I didn't know anyone who was going, but it sounded like fun.  When I got there it turned out I knew a couple of gals, and it was fun to run with them.  The best thing of all:  They run together every Mon-Wed-Fri at 5 AM!  And they invited me to join them!!  And they're about my speed (a bit slower, but that's okay)!!!  And they're going about as far as I want to go! (5 miles)  I've been wanting to find someone to run with for YEARS, so I hope this works out.  They're training for the Utah Valley Marathon in June, and I'm a bit torn.  I REALLY want to do it, but I think I'll wait & see how my training goes in January and see if I have enough energy while I'm doing this stricter diet.  Maybe I'll go with the half marathon.

Pulling My Hair Out- Literally

I mentioned my concern about my teeth a few weeks ago.  I have another concern now that I'm researching:  My hair is falling out! 

I have thick, coarse hair, and always tend to comb out some after showering.  One of the questions they asked me at my naturopath doctor visit was if I was losing more hair than normal.  I said possibly, because it seemed like a little more.

But now when I'm showering, I'm taking away GOBS of hair.  It's really gross.  I should take a picture and show you how much comes out after one shower.  Not normal.

I did a bit of research online, and found that you definitely can lose hair when you have rapid weight loss, usually when it's over 20 lbs- yep, that's me.  I've now lost 25 pounds in three months.  Some things I read leaned toward a B vitamin imbalance.  Others mention magnesium.

I just read another possibility that is alarming to me (taken from this link):

1. Tooth discoloration and hair loss seem to be common trends in GAPS patients?

Tooth discoloration and hair loss are very rare in GAPS patients, and usually happen in very toxic people, particularly people with metal toxicity. Hair and teeth are those places where the body often stores toxins in. Many things happen in the body, as the GAPS programme is initiated. We don’t know what happens exactly, but it is possible that the hair, full of toxins, get dropped by the body to allow new “clean” hair to grow. With teeth: I have seen autistic children who had their permanent teeth growing with black spots embedded in them. One particular boy displayed noticeable improvements in his autism in the weeks following the removal of the black spot by the dentist. It is possible that his body has stored mercury from vaccinations or some other toxins in the growing tooth. We don’t know what happens exactly, but it is likely that the detoxification initiated by the GAPS Nutritional Protocol starts shifting the toxins around, which may be the cause of tooth discoloration in the initial stages. In the long run, however, your child is likely to grow beautiful white teeth, as I have seen in so many GAPS children.

Another link to teeth!?  Hmmmm.  I've been toying with the idea of going to a holistic dentist to remove my amalgam fillings, but it's expensive, and I don't have dental insurance.  Time for more research to see if it can wait, or if that is something I truly need to address in order to overcome my candida problems.  Things I've read from the very start mentioned getting rid of amalgam fillings.  I've got a bunch.  Bother.

I would LOVE to hear any advice or experience you've had with hair loss while losing weight, or amalgam fillings.  If you've had any removed, did you notice any differences?

*This post is linked to the Healthy Home Economist Monday Mania.  Check it out!

Only two meals a day?

I'm rereading my candida books, because there is so much information to soak in.  It helps to have some experience to draw from, too, now that I've been doing this for almost two months.  Now things make more sense, and things that I scanned over before now stand out to me.

I'm still trying to wrap my brain around this, though:  According to Natalia Rose in Detox for Women, we only need two meals a day.  WHAT?!  That is so opposite what I have ever been taught.  Even more jaw dropping:  she says the meal we should eliminate is breakfast.  We hear all the time in our society how breakfast is the most important meal.  And here's the kicker:  What Natalia says makes sense to me.  On the days that I have vegetable juice for breakfast I'm not hungry up until lunch. 

Her reasoning for only two meals:  She says we're taking in too much matter for our intestine to break down, overwhelming the bowel, which doesn't have the strength to work as it was designed to.  Her reasoning for getting rid of breakfast (rather than lunch or dinner):  The body has worked hard during the night to process the food eaten the day before.  The body's cycles are focused on eliminating what the body has processed in the night.  When you eat more food, all that energy goes to the stomach and digestion slows down. 

Guess what you can take in that doesn't take any digestive effort?  You got it.  Lovely fresh vegetable juice.  It's a good thing I read this.  I need a little pep talk on the importance of juicing, considering some of the juice combinations I've had lately scared me off a little.  And yes, I do love my buckwheat cereal, but I think I'll tie it in later in the day as a dessert (my version of tapioca pudding).  She says that if I just give juicing a chance I'll "be amazed by how refreshingly delicious the juice is and how desirable juicing for breakfast can be- for your body and palate".

Hmm.  We'll see.  I'm going to commit to juicing for two weeks, and see if being consistent makes me feel any different about it.  I'm certain that the juicing I've done over the last weeks has played a big part in my weight loss.

Do any of you juice?  What are your favorite juicing recipes?

Can Healthy Eating Affect Warts?!

Okay, weird topic, I know.  But over the last few weeks I've noticed that something is going on with my warts.  Let me just say that I've been battling these warts for years.  So long that I've forgotten how long.  I just always remember them. 

I remember that in the early 2000's I battled them with a vengeance.  I was determined to get rid of them.  In fact, that's why I have the warts lower down on the middle finger.  That little cluster started one time after I had my warts burned on  my ring finger the 4th or 5th time.  It just spread, the little bugger!

Finally my doctor told me he had given up and that I would need to go to a dermatologist.  I didn't feel like doing that, so I tried a bunch of home remedies.  I tried band-aiding small pieces of banana peel to it, putting apple cider vinegar on them, duct taping them, etc.  Finally I gave up, too.  I decided to just live with them, even though they're annoying when I'm typing or playing the piano.

A few weeks ago I started to notice that my warts were looking weird.  Kind of like they were more defined, like getting red around the edges, and drier in the middle.  A week before that I watched a Kid History clip on YouTube (hilarious!), where one of the guys is acting like a mom giving her kids all these health food concoctions.  In a sing song voice she tells them to eat it and says something like "it will make your warts go away!".  Could it be true?  Could healthy "cleanse" eating also get rid of my warts?!  I guess time will tell.  I'll keep you posted.

In Mourning Tonight

Yes, I'm being a bit melodramatic about being in mourning.  But it just hit me.  Tears.  I won't be running my race tomorrow. 

I  signed up for the Top of Utah Marathon, and was really excited to be working on getting a sub-4 hr marathon.  I created a training plan on Runner's World.com that told me how fast to train each time, and it was much different than how I trained for my first marathon in May.  I was staying right on track (even with the speed workouts!), and then my stupid appendicitis hit on the 4th of July. 

I was planning to get back on track after 4-weeks off, but then I met with a different doctor & found out about my candida issues (which I'm sure had something to do with the appendicitis!).  I knew that it was time to take care of the problem, and in doing that I would have to cut out most carbs, which are a main source of fueling when you're running long distances.  I knew that I'd have to cut back my distances, and that my running would be affected. 

Right now I'm in "maintain" mode, where I'm doing Monday/Wed/Friday/Saturday:  4 miles/4 miles/4 miles/6 miles, because I don't want to lose my running base.  At first even that amount was terrible, but it's starting to feel better.  It's such a high for me to be outside running in the crisp morning air.  I LOVE fall running!

I thought I had come to terms with my running situation, but I just read a Facebook post from a friend who is running the TOU tomorrow.  I wished her luck, and then she wrote back and said she wished I was there.  That little comment made the tears come.  Man, I love to run.  I wish I was there, too.  Hopefully next year I'll have my body in order and I'll be lighter, stronger, and faster, running my next marathon.  Can't wait!

Need Some Variety, PLEEEEEAAAASE!

So I haven't been writing as much lately.  It's because I've been a little crazy and unsure.  I wrote about getting a little sugar crazy last week.  Thankfully that has passed, but I still feel anxious about eating the same things over and over.

I've changed my direction a bit.  Yes, I'm flighty like that, if you haven't already noticed.  Although I still really like Natalia's book "Detox for Women" (HERE), I've decided to use a different book.  I'm still feeling some candida symptoms (um, externally... womanly.. how to say that politely?), which means I really need to cut ALL sugar out for awhile.  No chocolate or goat's milk ice cream like she suggested.  Disclaimer- she DID say not to do it if you knew your candida was throughout your whole body, but I just conviniently ignored that advice.  I figured I had to keep my sanity.  What I've decided, though, is that it is worse for my sanity to still have some symptoms, even after making such drastic changes and only eating vegetables, eggs, and lean meat!  No more chocolate for a while :(.

The book that I'm switching over to now is by Ann Boroch, and is called the Candida Cure.  It's very well done.  She really goes into depth explaining what Candida is, and why it is a problem.  Then she has a 90-day plan laid out to help you cleanse your system & wipe out the candida.  She gives you a 2-week sample menu, and includes lots of recipes.  They're pretty basic, but have a lot more variety than the Detox for Women book.

Today I tried the "Vegetable Alakalizer Juice", and boy.  I really hope that I get used to these juices fast.  It's all I can do to gulp them down as I shiver.  Here's the recipe:

3 stalks celery
1/2 small carrot
1/2 green apple (no seeds)
4-5 large handfuls of raw spinach, watercress, black kale, dandelion greens, and/or parsley
1 clove peeled garlic, and/or 1-inch slice of ginger (optional)

I put both the garlic and ginger in, and WHOO!  It had a zing to it.  Not my favorite juice, but I'll put up with it. 

Now that I have my 2-week menu lined up I just need to plan out my shopping trip for tomorrow & get organized again.

The Skinny on Skin

I am so amazed at all of the healthy living things out there that I have been CLUELESS about.  I'm learning new things every day.  One of the new things that I've learned about is body brushing.  I had never even heard of it before.   For those of you who are like me, here is a basic run down of body brushing:

First, you purchase a natural bristle body brush, found at most health food stores (seriously?  I had never even seen these before!  And now that I know what they are, I've seen them a lot.).  In the morning, before getting dressed, you brush your skin, using a small circular motion, working your way towards the heart.  This is supposed to help exfoliate your skin, and help get rid of all the toxins that are being expelled through your skin.

I've only done it a few times, and haven't really noticed anything, but it does feel good.  They say you should feel invigorated after brushing.  Not sure I would call it "invigorating" yet, but it does feel good.

Oh, and on a side note since I'm talking about skin.  On Monday I got some sort of itchy rash on my torso, just on the front.  I've never had hives or anything, but I think that might be what this is.  It's just another way my body is trying to get rid of the junk in it.  Strange, though.  I've been more diligent in my body brushing since that has happend.  Hopefully the rash is short lived.  Another thing they recommend that I haven't done yet is going to a sauna.  That's supposed to help you sweat out the toxins.  Maybe I'll try & work that into my schedule a few evenings a week.

Have any of you "body brushed before?  If so, what did you think?
What are some of your favorite health trends right now?

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.



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!

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.

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!!!!