Whole26

First I'll start with a couple news articles in health that I heard the last couple days that I found interesting.

Sugar. They've changed the recommendations for how much sugar we should have each day. For women, we should only have 6 teaspoons or 25 grams a day. That means if you drink a can of pop, you've already had more than that for the day.

Here is the full article.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/world-health-organization-lowers-sugar-intake-recommendations/

Last night as I was watching the news they had a segment on high-protein diets and a link to a higher risk of cancer. Of course, we are eating a lot of protein now. I guess no matter what you eat it's going to kill you. I'm not really sure what we are supposed to eat anymore except for vegetables. My thoughts........if you are eating a well balanced diet and you feel good, leave the rest in God's hands. We need to take care of our bodies but I'm not going to get anxious over it either. But I did want to share the article on this as well.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2014/03/04/the-protein-puzzle-meat-and-dairy-may-significantly-increase-cancer-risk/

Now that I'm done boring you with "the news", I'll share what's been going on over here.

Saturday marked the end of our Whole30 but really it ended up being a Whole26.

We went to a friend's house on Saturday night and I had told her to not worry about our diet, at that point we would be ready to eat whatever was there. And guess what I got to bring????? Yep, Dessert. I'm sure that doesn't come as much of a surprise. I made some delicious Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars that were drizzled with chocolate and are amazing! I also made some brownies. You better believe that I did not pass up either one.

I will be honest. I was a little scared to end the strictness of our diet. After that point I told myself that I would stick to the diet for the most part but I now have license to eat other things in moderation. It is much easier to say 'No' all the time than to make the decision of when to say 'No' and when to say 'Yes'.

So far I've done pretty good. But it helps that I'm feeling great, my pants are fitting good again, my cravings are gone, and no more mid-afternoon slump.

Yes, I see that chocolate and I would love to eat it all but I also know the affects of it if I eat too much.

Brad on the other hand is an all or nothing kind of guy. He's afraid if he gives in to any sugar it will be the end. He said his cravings are not completely gone and last week there were still a couple days that he really wanted to have a pop. He didn't have any dessert on Saturday. I admire his strength.

Throughout our month he discussed things he missed and how he wanted to incorporate some of it back into his diet. He wanted regular milk, cheese on his salads, and a piece of toast with his breakfast. Now that we've gotten to this point he has changed his mind and for now isn't going back to any of those things.

He has lost almost 20 lbs and had his blood work done last week. I need to go pick it up yet to compare it to last years. I'm excited to see the results! I'll share when I have them.

Some of you have told me you are thinking about doing the same thing, so next time I hope to start sharing some tips that I have now that I have a month under my belt.

You had me at Systemic Inflammation

That's where they got me.

Yep, I'm back to the book.

It Starts With Food starts off talking about the science of the body.

Yawn.

Not a fan of science. Never have been, never will be. I struggled through most of it, found a few things interesting, and then finally skipped over a chapter.

Then I got to the chapter on Systemic Inflammation.

I was hooked.

First, I would like to give the disclaimer that I am in no way in the medical field or a nutritionist and so really I have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm just sharing what I read in a book. And I always believe everything I read. Don't you?

Just kidding. I don't but this made sense to me and if anything I figured I might as well try the diet and find out for myself. I mean, really, what do I have to lose except for 30 days of healthy eating. Seems like a win, win to me.

Anyway, back to Systemic Inflammation or better yet, Chronic Systemic Inflammation.

What is it? Good question.

It is a long-term, full-body inflammation that is caused by the food that we eat. Basically, there is a whole science behind how the body works and how the food we eat causes this Inflammation. I could try to explain it to you but I don't want to bore you because it bores me just thinking about it. Plus I'm not sure I really understand it. (I'm really convincing you on all of this aren't I?)

But here is the interesting part, the list of conditions caused by this Inflammation.

It truly flabbergasted me! You mean to tell me this list can all be cured by just eating the right foods?

There is a whole page but here are some:

acne, allergies, anemia, arthritis, asthma, bipolar, cancer, celiac disease, chronic pain, Crohn's disease, dementia, depression, diabetes, eczema, endometriosis, gingivitis, Grave's disease, heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, infertility, IBS, joint pain, migraines, multiple sclerosis, obesity, Parkinson's, and a lot more.

The ones that I have included here are because they either are things that pertained to me and Brad, I know people that suffer from them, or I was just amazed that changing your diet could cure these diseases. Instead we continue to eat bad food and then take medications to combat them.

Another thing that really spoke to me was that it affects your physical fitness. Last fall I was training to run a 10k but had to drop out because of painful joints and I just wasn't progressing in my running. I am excited to start running again this Spring and am hoping that changing my diet has helped.

Brad has had high triglycerides and will be having blood work done in the next couple weeks. I am really excited to see what his levels are like.

One thing that I found that is very exciting is that MOST (not all) of these health consequences are reversible.

This is something I just wanted to share with you all because if you are like me, this is news to you and maybe eye opening!

Three Weeks

It's been a full three weeks since we started our Whole30 eating lifestyle so I thought I would give an update on how it's been going.

Kids

I thought we were making progress this week as they sat one evening each eating a different fruit for their snack. And then two kids asked for kale chips in their lunch. Suppers have been going good. Not too much complaining.

But then.......Saturday I took them to Aldi and had to hear how mean I was for taking them to the store, walking them past all kinds of good food and not letting them get any of it.

I did make my first attempt at Paleo baking yesterday. I made banana bread. Although it tastes different, it was good and the kids loved it. We will keep trying new things. It's baby steps with them but I have hope that we will get there and that they will thank me in the end.

Brad

He has lost about 15 pounds already. The other night he was walking around the house and he looked like one of those thugs with most of his boxers showing. I asked him if his pants were untied or if they were really that loose. They were really that loose. So if you see Brad and he looks like a thug, he isn't trying to make a fashion statement. He just forgot to put a belt on.

I asked him the other day how he was feeling and he said that he wasn't feeling great but the exhaustion that he normally feels is gone. Which is saying a lot since he had a couple days this week that he got up at 2am. It apparently is enough for him to keep going.

I tried to make a dessert last night. Brad told me not to do it again because it needed sugar and just reminded him that he can't have it.

Me

I haven't had the weight loss success that Brad has had but I guess that's good because I don't have that far to go. I've been feeling good but still waiting for that "great" feeling as well. Some days I feel like I have a ton of energy and the afternoon slump is almost non-existent. My joints have been feeling better and I've added in exercise. I didn't have huge goals this week but I had goals. My goal was to go on the elliptical 3 times this week for 15 minutes.

I like to start small.

For the first time ever in my life, I exceeded an exercise goal. I actually got on the elliptical 4 times. Twice for 15 minutes and twice for 20 minutes. I think this is the first time ever that I felt like I need to exercise to burn off the energy and I even enjoyed it.

Each day you will get a different story from me. Some days I am in love with doing this and others I just want to stop and get a cheeseburger, pick up a bunch of snacks that come in a box and give them to my kids, and then eat a big brownie.

I'm trying to stay focused. I am enjoying finding new recipes and we have enjoyed eating most of them. Who knew I would get a thumbs up on salmon cakes and on acorn squash.

Budget

I've been asked how this is affecting our budget. It's hard to say since this is the first month but so far I can say it has gone up a little. As we go along though I think I will be able to get it back down. This month we are trying to find what we like. One thing that Brad likes to snack on is nuts and banana chips. The banana chips do have some sugar but we do our best.

Pistachios are a must around here and they are not cheap.

The kids finally had me try one the other day and they are good. I usually don't like food that makes me work to get to it. That's why I'd never tried one. Now that I know they are good, I've been eating them too. SHHHHHH......don't tell Brad.

Even though it's gone up, there are other areas that things go down. We haven't eaten out as a family at all this month. Plus Brad and I both take an allowance if we want to eat lunch out or Brad likes to buy a pop at work or other small things. We aren't really needing that this month either.

I do end up at the grocery store a lot more than I used to but my visits are shorter and less items. I'm learning what is cheaper at which store and which stores have the best healthy options. Once I get that figured out, I will know what to stock up on and things should get easier.

Isn't It Ironic

My last post talked about how I miss sugar and this one is going to tell you how bad sugar is for you.


Yes, I have split personalities when it comes to that grainy, delicious, deadly, white substance.


It goes to show you just how addictive it is. But I must report, that I do feel my cravings have gone down a lot this week.


 Of course, I did bake some cookies for my kids last night and it took every bit of will power to not lick the bowl. At one point I had gotten some on my finger and I asked if I could lick it off. My kids then erupted into chants of "LICK IT! LICK IT!  LICK IT!"


Brad just looked at me and said, "This doesn't look good for when they are teenagers." I then had flashbacks to when I was a teenager and decided I was not giving into the peer pressure.


But I digress.....let me get back on track.


Right, Sugar is bad for you.


Two years ago I read something, not sure where I saw it but it has stuck with me.




Sugar feeds cancer.


As soon as I read that I wanted to cut back on my sugar immediately. But there is one problem, sugar is addictive.


You see........at the young age of 32 my mom was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She also got it back a second time. I was trying to calculate how old she was when she got it the second time. From my calculations it must have only been about 2 or 3 years later because of my age.


I say all that because when I read that about sugar, I thought, why on earth would I want to continue to give my body something that will feed the disease that I am at such a high risk of being diagnosed with.


So, for me that is how it all started. And in January, I decided that we needed to cut back on the sugar in our house. As I started to read labels (I never was much for reading those things) I was shocked that EVERYTHING has sugar added to it.


We can talk about eating it in moderation but if 90% of what you eat has sugar added to it, it's not really eaten in moderation anymore.


Today I saw this posted on Facebook and thought I would share it.


25 Reasons to Stop Eating Sugar


I do want to add that yes, I will eat sugar again. But my goal all along was for myself and my family to eat a lot less sugar and that is still my goal. I also want to clarify that when I'm talking about sugar I am not talking about natural sugar. We still eat fruit over here.


In the book It Starts With Food I read that a 20 ounce soda (or pop as I like to refer to it) has 36 grams of fructose. In order to equal that in fruit you would have to eat 5 bananas, 9 cups of strawberries, or 90 cherries! That just goes to show you much sugar we actually consume!


Now, if I can just get my kids to be on board with me!

I Miss You

I miss sugar.


And peanut butter.


And chocolate.


And Ice Cream.


And all of them together.


One day we will be reunited and it will be Oh So Sweet! (pun intended)


THE END

I Want Some of That

Day 10

This morning I received a text from Brad.

Thanks for your hard work on this diet. I feel good today!

This came from the guy that can drink a cup of coffee and go to sleep 5 minutes later. The guy that can drink a 5 hour energy and it doesn't affect him at all.

Energy.

That is one of the biggest reasons I started us on this diet.

Brad has been complaining of fatigue and lack of energy for a really long time. I am also sick of the fatigue. As long as I keep moving I'm fine but as soon as I sit down I just want to sleep.

I would love to have energy to play with my kids!

One of the biggest testimonies I've heard from people who eat clean and also throughout It Starts With Food  is how great everyone feels and the amount of energy they have.

I REALLY wanted to know what that feels like. So willing to know, that I was willing to give up all the foods I love. All the foods I've eaten my whole life.

Monday I started feeling this energy. I was actually cleaning my house at 7pm. Something I never have energy to do at that point.

I'm excited that it's turning around for Brad too. One of my biggest fears was that after all this, it wouldn't affect him just like caffeine and 5 Hour Energy don't.

If we are starting to feel this good already, I'm looking forward to see how we feel by next week!

You Lose Weight Because.....

People end up losing weight on this diet because you eat for nutrition not for sport.

No one ever craved a carrot stick in the middle of the afternoon or an hour after supper.

Well, maybe someone has. But not anyone that lives in this house.


"It's a hard knock life..."

That's what my son came into my bedroom singing tonight. I'm trying to break them of their evening cookie habit. They have been surviving by finding any old sweets left hiding around the house. They've been doing good so far. Last night they were left with some old Fudgecycles. Tonight there was nothing left.

They are trying to break me.

I won't let them.

That's all I have today.