The Deal

There has been much discussion in our home lately about doing the Whole60. Eric was not on board, and I wanted to press on. He was willing to do whatever I decided, to be supportive. But he urged me to consider his side.

Eric has some really good points to argue. He wants us to do something that was sustainable for life. He didn't want to avoid social events because of it. He didn't want to keep jumping from diet to diet only to binge inbetween. He most definitely agreed that we needed to have some sort of rules/plan. He wanted something that would work for us.

How could I argue any of that? Of course I wanted to stick to the Whole30/60. It works. It makes me feel fantastic. But why did I need to do it again? I learnt so much on the first time around, did I NEED to do it again? I am still not sure about that. The answer may still be yes.

We made a deal. We will try it his way for 30 days, and it we come out of the month healthier, we know we found something that works for us. If we fall back into old habits again, we know that obviously we still have work to do, and we will do a Whole60.

Our plan is:
-Eat 99% Whole30/paleo style foods at home. The 1% accounts for the small amount of palm sugar in the kale chips I just bought :p . Can't seem to master making these on my own.
-When eating away from home, choose healthier things, but not impose our dietary preferences on others. This does not give us free range to binge eat cupcakes and salt & vinegar chips at the next brithday party. This gives us the ability to attend potlucks, parties, showers, etc without worrying there will be nothing for us to eat, and we will have to explain to everyone why we are not eating. This is the way it is when doing a Whole30, but it is no way to live your life forever.
-Work out together at least 5 days a week
-We are also discussing the possibility of making one treat once and a while. The frequency is still under discussion, but it will probably be once a month. Once a week seems far too often.

We have also talked about how we will define success at the end of these 30ish days. We both agree that weight loss is a goal of ours. We would also like to feel better, and we are going to re-evaluate our habits at the end of it, to make sure we haven't fallen back to old ones.

Now Eric doesn't at all want to do the Whole30 again, so this is motivation for him to keep this up and keep me accountable. So as much as it pains me to "quit" something, Eric has urged me not to see it that way. He knows I am not a quitter when I say I will commit to something. He wants me to look at this like I am taking permanent steps towards a healthier life, and I am trying to see it that way. I learnt so much on my first Whole30. These things I still carry with me, and want to live my life according to them. I am not at all giving up on this way of life. The Whole30 creators themselves have said that doing a Whole30 was NEVER meant to be a permanent solution. There will always be splurges and we need to decide if they are worth it or not!

Now please do not take this post the wrong way. I am SO SO SO happy we did a Whole30. And if you have never done one, I urge you to try. YES it is strict, but I felt that made it easier. Plan out ahead of time when you want to do it, and make sure it doesn't conflict with any major social events, birthdays and holidays that you are just going to torture yourself on. Potlucks and other parties can be handled on the Whole30. Eating out can be done. Being on the go can be done. I have done it all. You just need to PLAN AHEAD. That is the biggest thing. Try to get someone fully committed to do it with you. RESEARCH. Research until your fingers fall off. Read everything you possibly can on www.whole30.com. Join the FB group and ask questions. Stock your pantry. Just commit to it. You can do it!

If I did it once, anyone can do it.

A Work Trip, A New Cycle and A Whole60

This past weekend/week, Alyssa and I went on an impromtu trip to Vegas for a photography expo (WPPI).

We had 4 really solid days there. Our first morning was spent traveling. Getting up at 4 am, gaining 2 hrs flying and arriving in Vegas at 11 am. We checked into the hotel and sat in the sun by the pool. Our first hotel was by Fremont street, which is vintage Vegas. We grabbed some food and explored there for a while, before heading back to the hotel for a 3 hour nap to catch up on lost sleep from a 4 hr night and 8 hours of flying! When we woke up it was still only 7pm! We bought a selfie stick and some supper, and spend the rest of the evening exploring Fremont some more. It was the longest day ever!

On day 2 we rented a car and headed out to the Valley of Fire, about 45 minutes northeast of Vegas. This was the best decision ever. We spent 5 hours with huge smiles on our faces exploring this gorgeous place! It was a cold day, and it rained a bit! On the way back we stopped at a Target to stock up on some groceries, we dropped all of our bags off at the new hotel near The Strip and took the car back to the rental place. Or we tried to at least. There are SO many turn offs, and they don't give you warning, so we missed the sign and had to drive around the ENTIRE airport again. Needless to say the car was returned late, and by the time the bus came and we got back to our hotel we were exhausted. We originally wanted to go to a restaurant for supper, but we were too exhausted. Pizza it was!

Day 3 was for the expo. We spend 5 hours scouring the show floor, looking at products, talking to vendors and listening to speakers. It was a full, but awesome day. We found some really great products that we will be adding to our lineup. The expo ended at 4. We relaxed at the hotel a bit and then headed to Burgr for supper. We spent the rest of the evening shopping at the Venetian, and watching the volcano show at the Mirage and the fountains at Bellagio. We soothed our sore muscles from all the walking in the hot tub and went to bed.

Day 4 we stowed our bags at the hotel valet and headed back across the street to the expo. We mostly sat at the Nikon booth and listened to top photographers speak. We soaked in SO much valuable info from these seasoned pros. We were sorry to have to leave so early. We grabbed a cab to the airport, and had a nice supper before we caught our flight home.

The last day in Vegas my cycle started, so the next day I called Heartland first thing. I have already started medication for another transfer, which will most likely be towards the end of the month.

Because I want to be as healthy as possibly for this transfer, I have decided to do another Whole30, but turn it into a Whole60. I started yesterday.

Today I am SO over it. I just want to stuff my face full of snacks right now. Which is even more reason to keep going, I would be stuffing my face if I was not on this plan. Another 58 days of this just seems so sickening. I am trying to convince myself it's ok to quit. I just might. Where did all my willpower go from round 1?

Life after the Whole30

Is garbage. Or feels like garbage rather. As soon as you let those questionable ingredients creep back into your life, so does the upset stomach, the tiredness, the feeling of hopelessness.

I was SO afraid to stop eating Whole30, for this reason exactly. I don't think the work in me was finished at 30 days. I think some people need a little bit longer for bad habits to be broken.

I think for the most part, our meals at home have been pretty good. We have had a few totally off the track, last minute meals, and I just hate that. I don't want those foods in my cupboards. I don't want them to be accessible to me when I am in a pinch. I want to be forced to cook from the healthy ingredients I have available in my home.

So I cleaned out the cupboards. Eric and I have had some heated discussions on what stays and what goes. I want everything gone. And he wants some things to stay. Namely sauces and spices that have sugar in them. His main argument is that you are not going to binge eat BBQ sauce, and you are not going to have sugar craving because of a little Piri Piri sprinkles on chicken. My logic agrees with him, but my hardcore all - or - nothing nature does not. I still don't know what to do about it.

I know that sugar is a huge stomach upsetter for me. The second I have even a bit or two my stomach starts churning. I also cannot eat sugar like I used to, which is a good thing. I am satisfied by much less now.

That is all fine and dandy, but I don't think I totally slayed my sugar dragon. And I don't think I changed my afternoon and evening snacking habits. And I didn't cure my mindless eating habits, I just started mindlessly eating healthier things. But just because its a healthy food, does not mean it is a healthy behavior. And it's my behavior and relationship with food that needs mending most of all.

Sooooo, I am going to do another Whole30. Rather a Whole60. I need more time for the habits to sink in. I also need to eliminate snacking, limit fruits & nuts, and totally cut out dried fruits.

I am going to start March 4th, if anyone wants to join I think that would be fun! I have a FB group for support as well. I would start sooner but I am going to Vegas for a photography conference, and that is my first day back! Eric is also excited and anxious to get back at it. And that tells you something because he is not normally excited about all my crazy plans!

Whole30 - Day 27

Three more days.

I am excited.  I want it to be over.

I am nervous. I am scared for it to be over.

The last few days cravings have come back real bad. Probably connected to eating snacks again. I need to stop snacking. I don't need it.

I can't wait to eat some chocolate cake.

I never want to eat cake again.

I want some ice cream.

I never want to stop eating Whole30 foods.

Ugh, it's so back and forth today. Driving me crazy. I thought I was past this.

I am frustrated today as well, because I feel like I have no lost ANY weight. I feel like I have gained.

Yet I know that the Whole30 is NOT a weight loss plan. It is a nutritional reset. It's goal is to help you form a healthier relationship with food. I do think it has done that for me, or at the very least it has started one.

Every person's Whole30 will be different. Some people will be able to eat fruit, but some cannot because it might feed their sugar dragon too much. Some people can eat nuts, some people cannot because they end up being "food without breaks".

I have been thinking a lot today about what I am going to do going forward. I know I want our family to eat paleo-style, but I obviously do need something for weight loss. I am thinking of doing another Whole30, but stricter this time. I have stuck to the plan 100%, and at this point it has gotten quite easy. I think I am ready for another challenge. I want to do Round 2 with no potatoes, no sweet potatoes, no fruit and no snacking, just 3 square meals a day. With PCOS, it makes it quite a bit harder to lose weight, so I think I need to be stricter because of that.

Whole30 Days 8-24 - Journey To Health

I was planning on writing every week about my Whole30 journey but I kinda fell behind. The newness wore off, and I got into a groove.

The hardest day was Day 10. They said alot of people quit on Day 10. The newness has worn off, and I just wanted to eat endless amounts of chocolate cupcakes. My mind was focused on all the things I could not have, and I wanted to whine and stomp my feet and have a fit about it. I regetted saying it was "easy" the days before. So I am not surprised people give up on Day 10

After that, things got better. Both Eric and I are really enjoying eating like this. I love having my fridge stocked with veggies. Meal planning is pretty easy. I decide what kind of meat/protein we are going to have then peer in the fridge and grab a veggie or two to cook/prepare. I don't spend hours making meals. We eat pretty simple, but we eat delicious.

I think it is important to keep a wide variety of veggies on hand to avoid food boredom. It's been fun thinking up new ways to have veggies.

Looking back on the past 24 days, it has been quite easy over all. There has been some difficult moments. We shared a meal at a restaurant the other day because it was the only compliant thing on the menu, but it was $30 a plate and we didn't have the money to spend $70+ on a meal. Not only did we feel stupid, we were hungry.

But for the most part, it has been really enjoyable and simple. I could easily live like this!

We only have 6 days left, but I don't feel like it's a countdown at all. I don't want to stop this. In fact I am afraid to stop. I don't think I have a good control on my sugar dragon yet, nor do I think that my emotional eating is under control. I am still looking forward to being able to have cake. I want to be able not thing about that anymore. Not even sure if that is possible.

Something odd that I have experienced is food dreams. I am dreamed about gorging on unhealthy foods, and feeling guilty about it. I wake up feeling disappointed that I have screwed up the Whole30, only to realize it was all a dream! PHEW!

When I get to thinking that I have been doing this for 24 days, I start panicking that I must have screwed up somewhere along the way. I cannot believe that I have stuck to this for 24 days. I have NEVER gone 24 days into anything without cheating a little bit. But I have. I have done this, with not even ONE bite of anything non-compliant. It is possible. If I can do it, anyone can! I have terrible self control.

One thing I love about the Whole30 is that it changes your relationship with food. I look at food a different way now. I THINK about everything I put into my mouth now. I read every label. I ask questions about how things are prepared. I want to be informed about what I am eating, so I can decide if it is worth it or not.

I am not going to say that I will never eat *insert food name here* again. I will eat it again. But I will eat in knowing that it is not going to make me healthier, and knowing there will be consequences. I will decide whether that food is worth it or not. Sometimes it will be, sometimes it won't.

As for results, I don't think I have lost much weight. The creators didn't design this to be a weight loss plan, and I need to come to terms with that. I think eventually the weight will slowly drop off as I continue only eating things that make me healthier. But I am used to dropping lots of weigh fast. But I need to remember that it has always come back. Slow and steady wins the race. It is better if it comes off slow and permanent than fast and temporary anyways.

That being said, I KNOW Eric has lots a tonne of weight already. I can tell when I look at him. He will probably have lost 20lbs at the end of this. I will be lucky to have lost 5. Thanks PCOS!

Whole30 Days 1-7 & Ranch Dip/Dressing Recipe

Ah! Day 7. It feels great. I am done with most of my sugar withdrawals now and the cravings have lessened.

It has been a fun journey so far. And alot easier than I anticipated. The first 2 or 3 days were the hardest as I had to make myself conscious of not just grabbing a handful of sugary snacks. I got a headache on the evening of day 2, and it lasted until the end of day 3.

I am super proud of myself for making it this far without giving up. A lot of things I would have cheated by now. I am glad the Whole30 is so strict for this reason.

The biggest change in my body that I have noticed so far is clearer thinking and more evened emotions. I just feel really level headed and relaxed, which is super odd for me. I feel like I am able to focus on things a lot better. I love eating like this and I don't want to stop at 30 days.

My favorite recipe to date by far has been the Cracklin Chicken from Nom Nom Paleo. So good and hard to believe it is healthy.

Our second favorite is Ranch dressing. On day 1 I attempted to make mayo, but I miserably failed. I made it in my magic bullet and it ended up a watery mess. (I used this method for my second batch and it turned out perfect) So I used the mixture for ranch dressing. It was our favorite dressing for salad. Today we had none left at lunch and decided to make more.

I already had the fool proof method of making mayo, but I also knew how to screw it up.  So because we wanted dressing, I decided to whip out the magic bullet blender. Well wouldn't you know it, it turned into a perfect batch of mayo! Shoot. We tried making ranch with it anyways and the result was super yummy!

Dueck's Ranch Dressing or Dip:

1  batch of Homemade Mayo, (we use 1 egg, 1 1/4 cup light tasting olive oil, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp dry mustard powder)
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic (we have the prechopped stuff in a jar, but you could press your own)
2 tsp dried parsley
2tsp chives (we used freeze dried)
1 tbsp white vinegar.

Stir all together. Let sit for 10 minutes or so and stir again. Enjoy on salad or with your favorite fresh veggies!

It Starts With Food & The Whole30 - Journey to Health

I am going to stop short of saying I have found the holy grail of healthy eating. I have said that before and life has showed me different. But this just makes SO MUCH sense.

I cannot even remember how I found the Whole30. I think I was just a bunch of googling for low fat high carb lifestyles and came across this plan. I was originally going to start it October 1st, but nobody jumped on the bandwagon with me and I didn't have enough time to properly prepare and research. November we went on a big road trip, and December, well thats the holidays. Sorry but I am going to have treats during the holidays. I will never change this. Ever.

January it was. And why not the 1st. A new year. A fresh start.

The thing I loved MOST about the Whole30 is that the entire plan is available online for FREE. I was tired of investing money in books and special foods. This was just a simple plan with simple food you can find in the grocery store.

Because of this, I originally did not plan on reading It Starts With Food. I did NOT want to spend any more money. But an Instagrammer I follow did the Whole30 in November, and convinced me to read it. And boy, am I glad I did.

I honestly thought I had read it all. I mean, I have been doing so much reading since the summertime, there couldn't possibly be anything new for me to learn. Ah but yes, there was.

One HUGE thing that popped out to me was sort of discrediting the glycemic index. This has basically been my bible on determining what foods are good for me to eat or not. The glycemic index is a one dimensional look at a food. It does not tell you what nutrients are in the food, or if they are healthy. It just tells you how they raise your blood sugar. I do, however, feel that it is still good to know these values about food. But it shouldn't be your only measuring stick when determining which healthy foods to put into your body.

For example, the GI of watermelon is 72, and the GI of peanut M & M's are 33. On a scale of 0 being no blood sugar spike, and 100 to be the same as pure sugar. Which is healthier? The peanut M & M's. But common sense tells us that is not quite right. Obviously watermelon is the better choice. But the GI does tell us that maybe we shouldn't eat the entire melon at one time.

The authors look at food using 4 different criteria to determine if the food is worthy of the Whole30.

These are:

"1.Promote a healthy psychological response. As a rule, we think the foods that are good for your body should also not mess with your mind. And we think the psychological effects of your food choices are perhaps the most important factors to consider during your healthy-eating transformation.

This is why the Whole30 includes rules like, “No Paleo-ifying desserts or junk food” or “No stepping on the scale for 30 days.” The guidelines aren’t just about how these foods (and behaviors) are affecting you physically, but also how they play into our unhealthy relationships with food, eating, and our bodies.
 
2. Promote a healthy hormonal response. Chronic “overcarbsumption” of food-with-no-brakes leads to reliance on sugar for fuel, an accumulation of body fat, triglyceride buildup in the liver, and an excess of glucose and triglycerides in the bloodstream. But you can stop overconsuming, dial all the way back to insulin and leptin sensitivity, retrain your body to burn fat and, to a significant degree, restore normal cortisol levels, by doing one simple thing: changing the food you put on your plate.

This is why our plan includes nutrient-dense, whole foods (no nutrient-poor-but-technically-Paleo options!) and why we include guidelines like, “Eat three meals a day, trying not to snack,” and “Start your day with a breakfast focused on protein and fat.” The food choices and mealtime habits you’ll develop on your Whole30 will start to restore a healthy hormonal balance quickly.

3. Support a healthy gut. We believe you should consume only foods (and drinks) that support normal, healthy digestive function; eating anything that impairs the integrity of your gut impairs the integrity of your health.

This is why the Whole30 is 100% for 30 days—no cheats, slips, or special occasions. If you’re sensitive to a particular substance, it only takes a tiny amount to promote disruption in the gut (and elsewhere in the body). You must completely eliminate all potentially problematic foods for the full 30 days to allow your gut time and space to heal.

4. Support immune function and minimize inflammation. Your food choices should result in a well-rested, highly-effective defense system. In other words, food should not cause excessive ongoing immune activity, also known as chronic systemic inflammation. Chronic systemic inflammation is at the heart of metabolic syndrome.

This is perhaps the most significant standard of them all, because systemic inflammation is related to just about every lifestyle-related disease and condition you can think of. It’s also sneaky, and can manifest itself in any number of different ways in the body—no two people’s symptoms are alike. And it’s why we eliminate the foods and beverages we do, as they have all been shown to promote inflammation either directly, or indirectly through impaired gut integrity."

I love the 4 dimensional look at foods. To me, this just makes so much sense. It seems so natural. It just feels "right".

I highly suggest you take a look at these links:

Whole30 Program Info
Whole30 Downloads - Shopping lists, meal planning guides and more
Whole30 Blog - Tips, recipes, support & more

Eric and I started the Whole30 yesterday. Today I feel fantastic. I feel like I am ON FIRE. But I know this will soon fade, and things will get tough. I will have to be creative with food. It will take a little more work to eat somedays.

But we are committed to this. We NEED to change our eating habits. We cannot keep living like this. I need to get healthier. We have lost 3 of our babies already. I need to make my body as healthy as possible, I cannot bear to lose any more.

Moving On - Paleo & More - Journey To Health

This has gone on long enough, months and months. I have read a few other books but I am going to quickly recap them because I am SUPER excited to talk about what I am doing right now.

Yes. I know. Even my eyes roll back into my head when I hear myself say that. But taking steps towards health is better than doing nothing. I have failed SO MANY times, but it is no excuse to stop trying. I am picking my heavy body back up off the ground, dusting it off, and trying again.


My desperation to read about ALL types of low carb, high fat diets lead to me read these books.

NeanderThin - This book was about the Paleo diet. I think the general idea of the Paleo diet is on the right track, but this takes it a bit too far. We have to be reasonable. We are not Paleolithic people anymore, our bodies have changed, as has the availability of food. This books highly suggests eating pemmican. I don't even know where I would get pemmican, nor does it seam appealing to me.

From what I gather, the Paleo community can be VERY strict about what you can and cannot eat. If a paleolithic person couldn't have it, neither can you. This is too restrictive for my liking. I want to eat foods based on what is healthiest for me. Not on what someone ate 6000 years ago ( or a million years ago according to the book. That doesn't fly for me either, but that is a while other post).

Wheat Free: How I lost 90 Pound in 6 Months by Eliminating Wheat from my Diet & How You Can Do It Too:  Despite this lengthy name, this is actually a really short book. I read it in one sitting. It is not so much about any diet. It really just is a story about a women who when wheat free and found her way to health. There is also not much for suggestions. I also don't like how wheat was the only thing she cut out, and she speaks about going to the gluten free bakery for doughnuts. Wheat free does NOT mean healthy in my mind. Especially if you are changing out the wheat for other carb loaded flours and sugar. It was a cheap book, 2.99. But honestly it wasn't even worth that. I wouldn't recommend that anyone read it. It's mostly about her boyfriend drama.

And with that note, I *THINK* I am up to date with everything I have read, save for what I am going to post about next. Probably today cause I can't wait. :)

The Complete Low Carb High Fat No Hunger Diet - Keto-Hybrid Diet - Journey To Health

After reading THM, Wheat Belly and Grain Brain. I wanted to read more about this low carb, high fat diet/lifestyle. I wanted to read about the different types of diets that there was out there. The two mains ones are the ketogenic diet and the paleo diet.

This book is, obviously, about the ketogentic diet. You may have ready about this diet before, in online articles and blogs about children with epilepsy. It has been proven to reduce the amount of seizures they are having, just by eating a low carb, high fat diet. If that isn't reason enough that everyone should be eating this way, I don't know what is.

I do remember first reading about that diet, and thinking how hard it would be. Now that I have been doing so much reading about this, it doesn't seem so hard. Mind you, if you are using it to help a child with epilepsy, you have to be quite a bit more strict than and adult just using it as a lifestyle change.

I will admit, I read this book (most of these books) in the summer, so they are not really fresh in my mind. I am not about to read them all again, so I will try to give my best opinion on them.

The Keto-Hybrid diet book was written by a mother-daughter duo . They simply wanted to share how this diet change has greatly changed their lifestyle for the better. It is a blend of the ketogenic, low carb and paleo diets, but most of the focus is on the ketogenic diet.

They are all about counting their "Macro" percentages. So keeping track of the percentage of calories that come from carbs, fat and protein. At first they say to record it, but eventually it is supposed to be come second nature and you wouldn't need to write it down anymore.

It was a good read, and I like the general idea of this diet. But there were a few things that kinda bugged me. Like not eating carrots or bananas. I understand wanting to keep the carbs low, but I think getting carbs from veggies and fruit is part of a healthy diet.

Again, this was another "diet". You can make it a lifestyle, but there was so much focus on losing weight. It is also not as well researched as some of the other books out there.

I did record my macros for a week, and I did go into ketosis (where you burn fat for calories), but it's alot of work keeping track of that stuff every day. I don't really have a tonne negative to say about this book, it's just another good read to reinforce the benefits of a low carb, high fat lifestyle.

Grain Brain - Journey To Health

Grain Brain is quite similar to Wheat Belly, except it's focus is more on what grains do to your mind. It's actually quite an eye opening read. Even after Wheat Belly.

I am not going to talk too much about it, because it is so similar in its recommendations. It's dietary guidelines differ slightly, but the low carb, high fat premises remains the same.

Again, I do recommend reading it if you want to do more research into what grains do to your body.

Wheat Belly - Journey To Health

My step-dad had a copy of Wheat Belly laying around for quite some time, slowly reading through it. And then I heard a few other people talk about it, and I was convinced it was time for me to read it.

It taught me a tonne about grains, and especially about our modern wheat and how it has been genetically modified SO much.

Reading this book turned me into a very anti-grain individual. I don't think anyone will ever be able to convince me that I NEED to eat grains to be healthy. 

Will I occasionally eat wheat products just for the plain enjoyment of the food? Bet your sweet tuchas I will.

But I will never eat it as part of my "healthy" diet. There is not one single vitamin, mineral or fiber in grains that I cannot get in veggies and fruit. Not even one. In fact, veggies tend to have the same if not more fiber in a cup by cup comparison to grains. They are just not necessary.

It kills me now to see people grabbing products labelled "Healthy Whole Grains" and consuming them like they are doing their body a favor. That term is no more than a marketing gimmick created by the food industry to sell more products. They don't care a lick if you are healthy, they care if they sell you as much crap as possible.

Anyways, I digress. Wheat Belly build upon the low carb, high fat concept that I was introduced to through Trim Healthy Mama.

My ONLY issue with Wheat Belly, is that he would would say never ever ever have any grains ever again. That, and fake replacement for junk foods. I want real food people. I just want to eat food that is healthy for me. If I am going to eat junk, I want it to be the fully gloriously terrible for me junk. Not a terrible tasting replacement for junk.

Also, I got the message from the book that if you eliminate grains, all your health issues will resolved forever. IBS? Gone! Allergies? Gone. Cancer? Gone. Athritis? Gone. Your dead? Alive! You catch my drift? Don't get me wrong, I am sure so many of these things will improve when you change you life. But it's not a cure-all.

Or maybe it is. Honestly I haven't followed the diet for more than 2 weeks.

That being said. Go read "Wheat Belly". It's worth the read. I own it, I will borrow it to you. It is a great start, and lots of good science!

Trim Healthy Mama - Journey To Health

I have written about Trim Healthy Mama (THM) before, so I won't go into too many details. 

THM was my very first intro to a high fat diet. It taught me that fats are healthy. That we need fats in our diets. It introduced me to so many healthy and delicious recipes, that are super quick! 

Pros: 

-good, easy recipes 

- LARGE online community for support and recipes 

-encourages lifestyle change 

-healthy fats 

-you can make your own chocolate easily and eat it every day! 

Cons:

- S , E , Fuel Pull and crossover meal types can be confusing. 

- 3 hour window between switching between S and e meals make snacking complicated 

- there are some pretty oddball ingredients needed

- some recipes are downright awful. I could not handle anything with glucomannan in it. The texture was not for me 

My conclusion: 

I love THM and everything it taught me. I learnt so much about optimal nutrition from those ladies. I did find the protocol hard to follow and stick to, but that was before my change in mindset.

I also found the change between meal types to be too much thinking and planning at times. 

THM does still include starches in moderate amounts, and things I have been reading lately are steering me away from that all together. I do think grains are  fine occasionally, and if you are going to eat them occasionally they should be in the healthiest manner. 

A lot of THM recipes have become beloved staples in our home! And they will be here to stay. 

But I don't think THM was meant to be the end of my journey to health. There was still so much more left to learn...

Made To Crave - Journey To Health

This book is not really a diet or lifestyle plan at all. It is more for use in conjunction with whatever you deem as a healthy lifestyle. It encourages you to replace your cravings for food with God instead. It urges you to pray every time you feel temptation to cheat. 

I really liked it, I remember thinking when reading it that I wanted to read it over and over and over until it stuck! 

I do want to read it again, now that I have chosen the healthy lifestyle changes I want to make! I think it would really help me to stick to these healthy choices! 

Thin Within - Journey To Health

I did two versions of Thin Within, the personal book and the group bible study. I am embarrassed to say that I didn't finish either of them. Story of my life. 

Thin Within is a grace based approach, it works on you spiritually, emotionally and physically. It tried to get behind my reasons for emotional eating. It's weight loss approach was to make you conscious of your hunger. And to only eat when you are truly, hungry or at a 0. It encouraged you to chew slowly and pause between every bite to re-evaluate your hunger number, 10 being overstuffed and 5 being perfectly satisfied. You were never supposed to eat over a 5. 

There were no particular foods to eat, as long as you only started to eat at a 0 and stopped at a 5. 

Pros:

-eat whatever you want

-works on all facets of your health

-involves God in the process

Cons:

-difficult to make a habit out of eating that way. 

-Arriving at a 0 often happened at inconvenient times, not at regular mealtimes. Made it difficult to do at work. 

-didn't teach you to eat healthy foods (although maybe it moved on to that if I would have finished the 30 days, I only got to 25)

-really required great willpower and self-control, something I obviously don't have much of. 

My conclusion:

I found Thin Within hard to make a permanent life change. I thought it would be "THE" answer because it is Christian based program. But I did find myself still wanting to learn about how to fill my body with foods that are good for it, not just to empty and fill my stomach with anything. I still may go back and redo the bible study one day! 

17 Day Diet - Journey to Health

I shouldn't even talk about this diet, but it is something I tried so here I go. A couple friends at work were doing the 17 Day Diet and getting awesome results, so I wanted to try it too. At this time I still had the mindset that if I could quickly lose all the weigh, I could just go back to eating whatever I wanted when I was this.

The 17 Diet has 3 17 day phases. The first phase is very low fat and low carb, leaving mostly lean poultry proteins veggies and low sugar fruits. They also allow yogurt. The second phase adds in lean red meats, natural starches, beans, and starchy veggies. Phase three adds in even more meats, breads, cereals, pasta, all fruits, nuts, cheese along with some other things. There is certain food servings for all these phases of course. There is also a 4th phase that is basically a maintenance phase. You can pretty much eat whatever you want.

Eric and I started the diet right before Christmas. Bad idea. I tried to start it again after but for some reason it fizzled. I had probably moved on to another new fangled diet by then!

Pros:
-only 17 days until you can change, anyone can stick to anything for 17 days
-easy to follow plan, well explained, simple foods.

Cons:
-does not promote a permanent healthy lifestyle change
-loaded with grains/carbs, even in earlier stages of the diet

My conclusion:
I feel like I can't really come to a conclusion for this diet because I didn't give it a good try. I have been wondering if I should give it a try again just to say that I did. But from what I have been reading lately, I don't think this plan is the way to go. I KNOW it works for weight loss, I saw my friends succeed on it. But I did NOT see anyone succeed permanently because of this diet, and thats what concerns me the most.

Jeepers going over all these diets makes me realize how ridiculous I must sounds, jumping from this to that and the other thing. However in the last year I really have had a different mindset. I remember thinking for HARD the first 17 days are. And now I look at the food list and think it would be so easy to stick to that now! 

Gi Diet - Journey To Health

The GI Diet was my introduction to the glycemic index. It was highly recommended for the treatment of the symptoms of PCOS, so naturally I had to give it a try.

The plan was basically a low carb, low fat diet. You only eat foods that won't spike your blood sugar. Spikes in blood sugar result in high insulin secretion which leads to obesity. Keep your blood sugar stable, lose weight.  I am not here to explain the science behind it all, if you want to know you can read up on it!

Pros:
-short book, easy to follow plan with a simple chart of green, yellow and red columns. Green is eat freely, yellow is eat with caution and red is never eat.
-great for PCOS and diabetes.
- there was some really great recipes

Cons:
- low fat, did not allow much for red meats,
-required some hard to find ingredients
-allows for a lot of grain products & carbs

My conclusion:
This diet was a great introduction to low GI eating. It is short and simple. However I feel that humans do require a decent intake of healthy fats for optimal nutrition. In my opinion, it would be hard to maintain this diet for a lifetime. I definitely would like to go back a read through it again and try some of the recipes again.

Naturopathic Medicine - Journey To Health

Naturopathic medicine was something I sought out after battling a terrible bout of anxiety that lasted months. I have often been heard saying that I never felt better than when I was seeing a naturopath.

I love the whole idea of naturopathic medicine. I loved that the Doctor listened to me and examined every single symptom I had, instead of giving me pills to fix one singular symptom.

I did eventually stop going to a naturopath because the one I was seeing in Gimli left, and it wasn't convenient. It also became quite the financial burden to keep up with all the things. We were also set to start out first fertility treatment, and I wasn't supposed to be taking any sort of herbal medications at the time. I ended up getting pregnant and didn't pursue naturopathy any more.

Pros:
- I feel like everything about it is a pro. Love that the medicine is based one listening to each individuals body. And not only does it care for your physical body but also every facet of your health, mental, spiritual, emotional.
-I felt great

Cons:
-Can get expensive for the extra tests, supplements, herbs, etc.
-Time consuming for the appts.
-She had me avoid dairy, which was very difficult. It made it hard to go anywhere to eat.

My conclusion:

I love naturopathy, and I would like to go again! However this time I would like to be more vocal about what I can and cannot afford. I don't want to walk out with 10 different kinds of  supplements that will cost be $600 a month to maintain.

I would encourage everyone to go see a naturopathic doctor! But again I would encourage you to be vocal about your finances and get them to recommend affordable options for supplements!

Visalus - Body By Vi - Journey To Health

Oh Visalus. My best friend/ sister-in-law / business partner Alyssa still laugh about this one. We thought we were going to be so rich from it.

Visalus is a direct selling company that basis is protein shakes for weight loss. The program was simple, shake for breakfast, shake for lunch, healthy well rounded meal for supper with healthy snack in-between. My cousin first introduced me to it, and I had no interested for the first few months. But I had gotten into drinking protein shakes for several months, so I figured I would try out this brand.

If you get people to buy shakes from you, and you eventually get your shakes for free. Get even more and you start making money. I do know people who have done very well from this. I thought for sure I was going to be driving my very own Visalus BMW.

They also sell vitamins, metabolism boosters, and all sorts of other health products to go along with the shakes. The probably have even more products today, I haven't looked at them for quite some time.

I actually enjoyed the shakes, I had fun creating all sorts of flavours, I lost about 15-20 lbs while on that diet. But I felt awful. I spend a lot of time on the porcelain throne, if you know what I mean. There was something in that shake mix that did not sit well with my stomach.

It was not a healthy way to live. Plus the shakes are artificially sweetened which is now a big no-no for me.

Pros:
-cheap. Only $100 a month for two meals a day for a whole month. Even cheaper if you got other suckers to go along with you.
-Simple, easy, not very time consuming.
-Tasty

Cons:
-artificial sweeteners
-made me sick
-did not promote a healthy, long term lifestyle change.
-hungry

My conclusion:
I truly have nothing against Visalus and I think they have a decent product, but again it is not one for a permanent lifestyle change. I don't want to drink two shakes every day for the rest of my life. I want to eat real food. Healthy, nourishing, real food.

Plus it made me sick. I read other people experiences and I honestly wondered if there was some sort of laxative in it and that is why you lost weigh on this plan.

Weight Watchers - Journey To Health

Weight Watchers (WW) is probably the most well known weight loss programs in North America. I first tried it a few years back, and found it relatively easy and effective.

WW goes by the points system, the more fat and carbs in a food, the more points it is. Fruit and veggies are 0 points for the most part. It is essentially a low fat/ low carb diet. You also get bonus point for exercising, meaning you can eat more.

Pros:
-flexible, you can eat whatever types of food you want, so long as you don't go over your points.
- encourages exercise by rewarding you with bonus points.
-I loved the super handy iPhone app for tracking points.

Cons:
-does not teach you healthy lifestyle habits because you can eat a chocolate bar every single day and still be within your points range
-expensive. You have to pay a monthly fee which is just over $20, plus a sign up fee. You can also attend meetings if available in your area, not sure of the cost of that. You can join on a sale that waives the sign up fee, usually at the beginning of the year
-tracking points can be time consuming, especially if making your own food. It is easy to track points with something with a  nutritional label. I feel that this steers you towards processed foods because of ease of tracking.
-low fat, which equals high hunger. You cannot take out both fat and carbs and expect to be satiated.

My conclusion:

WW works to help you lose weight. If you stick to it. Forever. Stop tracking your points and start piling on the pounds. Although WW steers you towards making healthy choices, it does't really teach you how to completely change your lifestyle. It is only permanent if you want to keep paying for it for the rest of your life.

I think you are going to hear me sing this same tune a lot. If you want to change your health, you need to change you lifestyle. That is a lesson that has been hard learned for me. For some reason, in the last couple months this had FINALLY been engrained in my head. I really believe all these diet programs and plans that I have tried have taught me lessons. They may not have helped me to permanently lose weight, but there is something positive to take from all of them. 

T.O.P.S. - Journey to Health

I can't begin this walk back into my diet history without talking about TOPS, short for Take Off Pounds Sensibly.

I was 16 years old when my weight loss journey officially began. Looking back I was just barely overweight, maybe 20 lbs to lose, maybe 30 at the most. I would be wonderful to be that close to my goal weight again. I had been told my whole life I was fat, and had a huge gut to lose. Thus when my mom and aunties started attending TOPS, I did too.

I managed to lose 10 lbs before my graduation.

TOPS is not a diet plan. It is a support group than encourages you to make healthy choices. I have considered starting to go again just for the accountability.

Pros:
-weekly weigh ins
- support group
-education about healthy eating, sometimes with guest speakers
-prizes and incentives for weight loss (there are badges you can earn)

Cons:
- monthly fee
-no official plan to follow, you just do you own thing.
-doesn't necessarily teach you how to make permanent healthy lifestyle changes.

My conclusion:

TOPS is a positive environment, and it could be a great place to find support and encouragement. However TOPS alone was not enough for me to learn a healthy lifestyle change needed. I proceeded to gain 20 lbs while randomly attending a TOPS in the city, and then another 50 once leaving TOPS.

I do feel like TOPS encourages fad diets in a way, because there are no dietary guidelines, and there is prizes for the people who lose the most weight every week. Also every week after the TOPS meeting there would be a get together which would be a cheat night filled with sugary and carb loading treats. Not exactly promoting a healthy lifestyle.

Like I said before, I would be curious to join again now that I am an adult. Plus most of my aunties still go so it would be nice to spend more time with them! :)