So Determined!
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I hope nobody minds if I continue to use this thread as a sort of personal account of my journey back to health. If it isn't appropriate, I will cease and desist...:)
Each day gets a little better. I feel utterly liberated by the article I found with the top 20 fat loss tips. Clearly, they should be my top 20 recovery tips. I am focusing solely on walking, on getting comfortable in my body again. At that point, I will begin working with weights. They won't be very heavy: with my spine issues, I have to be VERY careful. That's for later----I still have foundation work to do. And such a pleasure it is! This is a great time of year to walk in the mornings and later evenings. It is cooler and the air is fresh and it's nice to feel like you have the world to yourself. (Such as my little corner of it is.)
Food today is fine-
B: leftover chicken stew, 2 TB. coconut butter
L: chicken stock with beet greens and 2 eggs
halibut cooked in butter, broccoli, salad with oil and vinegar, glass of wine (The out to dinner dinner I though I was going to have yesterday but am having today instead.)
If I am hungry, I will have some kale cooked in coconut oil, perhaps leftover beef.
Rosey0 -
I rely heavily on eggplant, tomatoes and peppers, especially this time of year as they are abundant in our farmers markets.
I can relate. I need to minimize my use of them, and this time of year they all show up weekly in my CSA box.
What I wind up doing is - rather than using peppers or tomatoes every day, I use them all in one fell swoop, like in a pot of chili. I just understand that the next day or so I'm gonna hurt a bit.
But my Gold Rush Chili is worth it!
Yup, watch those nightshades. I mentioned them in my first post here. Anyone with joint problems should consider eliminating them for a time and then try a careful reintroduction. I only had to eliminate them for a short time and now just have to monitor how much of them I eat. Yup, I love nightshades too but I love being pain-free even more.
I'm not a huge anti-alcohol person and I love my wine, but have you considered giving it up just for awhile to maximize healing?0 -
^ what she said.
When I was desperate to deal with joint pain, I did the Whole 30 for a month and went one further, incorporating AI protocol. I especially remember eliminating nightshades, eggs, and nuts -- that was hard! I'm thankful for the amazing variety I learned through the Whole 30 process. I didn't really realize how limited my preferred food choices had been before embarking on this journey.
Thanks, Rosey, for posting that article. Good stuff, and a reminder that I have gotten sloppy lately. I know I am not getting enough calories because I'm never hungry anymore. I need to do a little more planning and deliberately eating to get more than 1000 calories a day. When I'm logging I aim for 1500. 1800, like the article recommends, sounds like I'd feel full-to-bursting all the time. What a problem to contemplate, after spending my whole life (up to about 18 months ago) dieting.
p.s. I can now eat eggs and most nuts without a problem. Still can't do nightshades. Sad, because fresh home grown tomatoes were my favorite summer food, and potatoes are (were) a favorite winter staple.0 -
I have tried to do a whole30 and the mental approach isn't good for me. What I mean is "one bite of something off the list and you have to start from the beginning." That mindset can be detrimental, as it is for me. Far better for me to feel good about the day even if I ate a bite of eggplant or even some dark chocolate amongst the otherwise "perfect" day than to feel like I 'blew it' and have to start over.
Good enough is better than not at all----at least for me, at this time.
So this morning I am heading off for my annual appointment with my primary care doc. I am going to ask for a panel of labs to include inflammatory markers and I want to come back every 2 or 3 months to be reevaluated on this program. She's open-minded and flexible, and I like her.
I AM NOT HUNGRY THIS MORNING! THIS IS A MIRACLE! I usually wake up feeling like I'm starving. But in general, I can actually feel my blood sugar stabilizing. Yippee! And my 1.67 mile walk this morning was a piece of cake, you should excuse the expression!
Rosey0 -
I have tried to do a whole30 and the mental approach isn't good for me. What I mean is "one bite of something off the list and you have to start from the beginning." That mindset can be detrimental, as it is for me. Far better for me to feel good about the day even if I ate a bite of eggplant or even some dark chocolate amongst the otherwise "perfect" day than to feel like I 'blew it' and have to start over.
Good enough is better than not at all----at least for me, at this time.
So this morning I am heading off for my annual appointment with my primary care doc. I am going to ask for a panel of labs to include inflammatory markers and I want to come back every 2 or 3 months to be reevaluated on this program. She's open-minded and flexible, and I like her.
I AM NOT HUNGRY THIS MORNING! THIS IS A MIRACLE! I usually wake up feeling like I'm starving. But in general, I can actually feel my blood sugar stabilizing. Yippee! And my 1.67 mile walk this morning was a piece of cake, you should excuse the expression!
Rosey
I'm no big fan of Whole30. However, the benefits from this lifestyle, especially when there are serious health issues to resolve, DOES rely on a full commitment. Stop focusing on what you CAN'T have and focus on trying all the new wonderful foods that you CAN have. Try new foods and new recipes.
Sometimes one bite of something is a big deal. For me that one bite that I refuse to ever have is anything containing wheat.
No don't throw in the towel over a bite of something (for me one bite usually becomes a binge), but shift focus to the positives of this lifestyle and everything will be much easier. Later on, when you are pain free and feeling awesome is the time to see what can be re-introduced and how much. Get well first. No food is worth being sick or in pain over imo.0 -
Rosey I have been post stalking this for a number of days and I finally have to chime in, I LOVE your attitude. Hopefully, one day I will fine the courage and determination to embrace this lifestyle with the same attitude as you! Kudos!0
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If a small portion of dark chocolate doesn't cause you issues or to binge then there is nothing wrong with eating it. I decided a long time ago that quality chocolate was not going away from my life. I can regulate how much I eat so it is okay. If it is "junk" chocolate like Dove or Hershey's I'll eat the entire bag, but something like Lindt or Green & Blacks I can eat one square and feel satisfied.0
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If a small portion of dark chocolate doesn't cause you issues or to binge then there is nothing wrong with eating it. I decided a long time ago that quality chocolate was not going away from my life. I can regulate how much I eat so it is okay. If it is "junk" chocolate like Dove or Hershey's I'll eat the entire bag, but something like Lindt or Green & Blacks I can eat one square and feel satisfied.
The above is true for me as well. If I stick to VERY dark high quality chocolate (which has barely any sugar) a square or two is all I want, and not very often. I love the cocoa camino but the darkest they have is 80% (which is ok since I rarely have it). Lindt has a 90% one but I have trouble finding Lindt without soy lecithin. Endangered species has some really dark ones but they use something I didn't like (probably soy, again).
If I eat any other of the cheap commercial milk chocolate products, I will eat and eat and eat and have no brakes.0 -
I find with the Dark Chocolate. I get full fast.... I buy the 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips .. and 16 of them have like 8 carbs and 60 Calories... and literally you CANT really eat more then that... dark chocolate makes me full faster.. HOWEVER if i ate a snickers.. i could have 2 of those.. lol!!!0
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I love how impassioned we can get about chocolate! I just came home with some organic, 90% dark chocolate that has no soy lecithin in the ingredients, and I know I will be ok with it in the house.
Spoke to my doc today who referred me to a staff nutritionist. I explained the diet to my doc, who says it sounds very healthful and she reassured me that the nutritionist will be able to work with me on this. She did a HgB A1c and a C-reactive protein along with fasting blood sugar and the usual battery of labs, and I will see her again in 3 months' time to reevaluate my condition. I am going to stay focused on food quality, and "walking like a vagabond" for now.
All is well. My mood is uplifted just from having gotten started.
Rosey0 -
I have tried to do a whole30 and the mental approach isn't good for me. What I mean is "one bite of something off the list and you have to start from the beginning." That mindset can be detrimental, as it is for me. Far better for me to feel good about the day even if I ate a bite of eggplant or even some dark chocolate amongst the otherwise "perfect" day than to feel like I 'blew it' and have to start over.
Good enough is better than not at all----at least for me, at this time.
So this morning I am heading off for my annual appointment with my primary care doc. I am going to ask for a panel of labs to include inflammatory markers and I want to come back every 2 or 3 months to be reevaluated on this program. She's open-minded and flexible, and I like her.
I AM NOT HUNGRY THIS MORNING! THIS IS A MIRACLE! I usually wake up feeling like I'm starving. But in general, I can actually feel my blood sugar stabilizing. Yippee! And my 1.67 mile walk this morning was a piece of cake, you should excuse the expression!
Rosey
Oh, how I know that mindset! The benefit I got from the Whole30 was the wide list of foods to choose from. i tend to fall into ruts and eat a very narrow range of foods. I've never actually stuck to a Whole30 all the way through (I mean, I didn't legalistically start the count over, I just reminded myself I was in the Whole30 mindset for the period marked out on my calendar, even if I had done something non-Whole30 the previous day) because I still weighed myself once a week, and special events (like birthdays) always seemed to fall during one, so I treated the Whole30 in an 80/20 manner... which I'm sure they probably wouldn't appreciate at all.
(edited to add, oh, yeah, I also was 100% on avoiding all grains during my "Whole30" periods. I do have grains, even gluten, on occasion now, but not often, and I don't crave them the way I used to)
Still, it gave me a framework to work within, and as long as I wasn't all-or-nothing or legalistic about it, it worked for me and gave me a jumping off place. I *did* avoid dairy, nightshades, sugar (even honey and coconut sugar), eggs, and nuts 100% for that first 30-day stretch, and that was valuable in figuring out what sorts of things were impacting my body and contributing to joint pain.0 -
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I'm no big fan of Whole30. However, the benefits from this lifestyle, especially when there are serious health issues to resolve, DOES rely on a full commitment. Stop focusing on what you CAN'T have and focus on trying all the new wonderful foods that you CAN have. Try new foods and new recipes.
Sometimes one bite of something is a big deal. For me that one bite that I refuse to ever have is anything containing wheat.
No don't throw in the towel over a bite of something (for me one bite usually becomes a binge), but shift focus to the positives of this lifestyle and everything will be much easier. Later on, when you are pain free and feeling awesome is the time to see what can be re-introduced and how much. Get well first. No food is worth being sick or in pain over imo.
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I have to agree with you on the gluten/wheat connection. I have found this for myself over and over again. This last flare was so bad that I feel absolutely committed to a GF lifestyle. I don't think dairy has ever bothered me, but then again, I only eat grassfed butter and once in a while, whole fat yogurt I make myself from grassfed organic milk when they have it my coop. I'm avoiding it for now until all my pain is gone, then I will test it carefully.
Rosey0 -
Doing well.....finding my groove....feeling settled and calm.
I'm going to Maryland overnight so I won't be online until late Sunday night. I will keep a paper journal of my food.
My son Matt, 22, is home temporarily after spending two months in Europe. He lost weight there, and this morning he expressed what is different in Europe: people don't snack. They eat real food. They eat three meals at the table, with company most of the time. They don't eat out all that often, except for coffee or tea. They might eat one meal a week but it's a good, nice meal. Not fast food.
For the most part, anyway.
Just interesting!
Rosey0 -
Really enjoying following this thread.0
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Down a little more on the scale but more importantly, starting to feel better----less pain, less morning immobility, more energy. The one thing that seems a little "off" is less deep sleep. That could just be because I have a lot on my plate (metaphorically!) or I have this idea that I have gone too low-carb, and maybe need to eat some plaintains, yucca or sweet potato. That's what I am craving, anyway, so it could be self-serving to imagine that would help me sleep better.
However, one of my intentions to cultivate the art of not being at war with my body. Here is one thing I believe: there are vastly different food culture all over the world that have better health profiles than the US. And the ONE thing those cultures all have in common is real food. I also know that I have gotten myself into a state in the past few years, and that I need healing, which calls for a more thoughtful approach than just eating well. I also know that for me, a gentle, obsession-less approach is in itself healing. So finding balance in healing can be an engaging and ever-shifting act.
Today I have to spend some time in the kitchen seeing what I've got on hand and what I need to shop for.
Carrying on! Be back later with today's Health Report.
Rosey0 -
Got a call today from my primary care doc. Seems my thyroid hormone levels are wacky----she says I am "very" hyperthyroid. I don't believe it: my thyroid hormone levels are always wacky, I always run a low TSH and high thyroid hormone levels. I am NOT clinically hyperthyroid by a long shot. This happens every year and every year the endocrinologists scan my thyroid, run tests, do ultrasounds and always tell me not to worry about it.
She did tell me that my cholesterol levels are moving in the right direction....:) Total down, LDL down, triglycerides down, HDL up. All good.
Walked 45 minutes today. Will walk again tomorrow.
Today:
B: can of sardines, V8 juice
L: cole slaw, broccoli salad, organic pastured goal cheese beef liver with onions, corn on the cob, butter
snack: whole milk organic grassfed yogurt, almond butter, maple syrup
Feel good.
Night*
Rosey0 -
Got a call today from my primary care doc. Seems my thyroid hormone levels are wacky----she says I am "very" hyperthyroid. I don't believe it: my thyroid hormone levels are always wacky, I always run a low TSH and high thyroid hormone levels. I am NOT clinically hyperthyroid by a long shot. This happens every year and every year the endocrinologists scan my thyroid, run tests, do ultrasounds and always tell me not to worry about it.
She did tell me that my cholesterol levels are moving in the right direction....:) Total down, LDL down, triglycerides down, HDL up. All good.
Walked 45 minutes today. Will walk again tomorrow.
Today:
B: can of sardines, V8 juice
L: cole slaw, broccoli salad, organic pastured goal cheese beef liver with onions, corn on the cob, butter
snack: whole milk organic grassfed yogurt, almond butter, maple syrup
Feel good.
Night*
Rosey
Do you mind sharing your thyroid numbers? Did they run the full panel or just TSH?0 -
I don't know the full numbers...I will ask when I see the endocrinologist. I know from history that my TSH runs very low. Last year my endocrinologist was unimpressed but my primary care doc freaks out. I have a goiter but I am not clinically hyperthyroid. It's just lab values. So I don't know what to make of it. They will probably do an ultrasound scan, thyroid antibodies, and maybe another biopsy (which in the past is benign nodules).
Ok, so this morning I walked what I call my "double eagle" route: 2.4 miles. It all felt good with no pain! I am not at all hungry this morning, so I am not forcing myself to eat. What I notice in myself, and what I want to continue and encourage, is a healthy, natural relationship with my body's needs.
Here's how I think of it: it's like a telephone connection. Eating crap---especially sugar and the "whites"----put static on the line, by causing hormonal havoc, so hunger and thirst signals get screwed up. By eating whole, real foods and avoiding those static-causing foods the signals from body to brain are clearly discerned and easy to respond to. AND I AM NOT HUNGRY THIS MORNING and I am choosing to trust that signal.
It's all good...:)
Rosey0 -
Boy do I feel different. Better. My out of control appetite is way normal now----I think it from smoother blood sugar issues. Hunger is hunger, not that light-headed, gottaeatNOW feeling that I used to get sometimes 30 minutes after a meal.
Saw the endocrinologist today. My thyroid seems to have grown since last exam, and has thrown off another nodule. But doc agrees I am NOT clinically hyperthyroid and no need to panic. He does say, however, that the gland is now so big it seems to be causing a deviated trachea. I am aware of my goiter's mass and I do have difficulty swallowing pills. So he is recommending I have surgery to remove my thyroid and then go on thyroid hormone replacement for the rest of my life.
I have mixed feelings about this. Yes, my thyroid is growing. I can feel it. But man oh man......you hear all kinds of horror stories about not getting thyroid replacement right and people feeling really crummy.
So I did the smartest thing. I made a follow up appointment for January and said let's see what my condition is then. I can always have the surgery and it isn't urgent. I have a lot of things yet to get through----my disabled adult son's transition to supported housing, my elderly parents and MIL's care.....ME losing some weight first.....so I punted!
Good day. I am eating to satisfaction. I am able to walk for 45 minutes without a problem and I am already feeling better!
Rosey0 -
I've just been busy as all get out but I'm hanging in there! We've got a few very pressing items in our lives right now----like getting my son's living situation squared away. I notice I struggle more around food when I am stressed, but I do realize that taking excellent care of myself when stressed means eating well. And I know from experience that eating the Paleo/Primal way helps me feel better.
So, onward!0 -
Met with a nutritionist today and liked her. She encouraged me to eat 3 meals and 2 snacks and she's completely on board with me using a Paleo framework. She also doesn't want me to count calories per se, but to concentrate on have meals and snacks with some veggies, some protein, and some fat. She uses a plate model, so I'm to focus on filling my plate half with low-starch veggies, 1/4 of the plate with starchy veggies (or more nonstarch veggies if desired) and 1/4 plate with meat, fish, fowl, or eggs. I am to use 1 fat exchange for each snack, and 2 for each meal. (An exchange is about 1 tsp of fat.)
This fits in beautifully with the meal plans in THE AUTOIMMUNE COOKBOOK so tomorrow I am going to start batch-cooking and freezing items from the cookbook, like meat patties, chicken patties and salmon patties as the basis for meals. It's all good!
Rosey0 -
I hope you're still doing well, Rosey!!0
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I fell off the wagon, but have picked myself up and am back, more determined than ever. My life should soon change for the easier----my disabled adult son and his brother are moving into an apartment together; my younger son will be there for a year while studying languages in college and his brother will be getting some staff support for his independence. I will have more mental and emotional room for ME in short order.
The good news is I have significantly less pain from remaining gluten-free, so I was able to go out for a walk this morning with NO PAIN. That is huge!
On Monday I start a 2 month program at the local Y for diabetes prevention. I'm looking forward to making an exercise buddy or two.
Other than that......all is well. Thank you for caring!
Rosey0
