Change to Health

Due to years of digestive problems, fatigue, weight gain, and depressive episodes, I am changing my diet completely. Now, I don't mean "diet" like, "I'm on a 'diet' to lose 50 pounds", I mean "diet" as in what I eat as a living creature. Of course, I am expecting weight loss to be a welcomed side effect of my dietary changes but that is only one of many things I look forward to happening.

I would like to thank those that have help my decision to make a change.

First, my mother.
She has always been an advocate for my health and has tirelessly researched to figure out what the heck is wrong with me. Now, I know moms do this kind of stuff and, if your mom is a nurse, they probably are better and more motivated than those that are not. But, if you combine the mom thing, the nurse thing, and then multiply that by the strength of a nuclear warhead...then you have my mom. I can't imagine what I would feel or look like now if I didn't have the upbringing in health that I did and if my mom didn't continue to send me information or force me to go to the doctor to keep me aware of my need to pursue the answers to my health. Thanks mom, I love you! I love you too dad! (he is the silent, supportive partner of the "Keri's Health Quest")

Second, my aunt Nina.
Through her own struggles with her health and nutrition, I have seen myself and the similar path I was traveling (before the changes she made). I have been aware of my aunt's nutritional choices for years and have always understood them and the healthy reasoning for them but, I didn't know all the reason WHY she (and my uncle, Clark) made those choices. Thanks to my mom for sending me the link to Nina and Clark's website and thanks to my aunt for openly sharing, I now understand why it was necessary for them to change their diet. Nina and Clark have ALWAYS been two of the healthiest people I have ever know (maybe THE healthiest) so, to see their struggle and now success is a great inspiration to me. Below is the link to their page. Even if your body isn't as sensitive as Nina's (or mine), I'm sure most everyone can say, "Oh, that happens to me too!! Maybe it is the food I am eating." Anyway, check it out...or don't, it's your choice.
http://www.svrikki.net/RTT/LowCarb/Low-Carb/Welcome.html

Lastly, Michael Thurman.
Yes, I am talking about the trainer from Extreme Makeover (body edition...haha). Years ago, I ordered the 6-Week Body Makeover. The eating plan is VERY low carb, only allowing carbs (in the form of rice or potatoes...as far as I remember) at lunch and dinner in small amounts. Along with eating 5 times a day, it increases the amounts of protein, veggies, and water. Not only did I lose 20 pounds in a month but I felt FANTASTIC. Please don't ask why I fell off the wagon. poop! Anyway, I am thanking him because, through that experience, I know how I feel when my carbohydrate consumption is low and I want to feel like that again.

So, if you hadn't caught on, I am changing to a carbohydrate restricted diet. In case anyone is reading this that doesn't know what a carbohydrate is (which is probably no one since I don't think many people even know about this page), in a nutshell, carbs are in tons of things. It is not just bread, pasta, rice and potatoes. Carbs are SUGARS. That includes sugar (of course), honey, molasses, all those sweet things, your breads and starches, and a lot of fruits have high amounts of natural carbs/sugars. I am far from an expert in nutrition but I do educate myself and am probably more knowledgeable that a large percentage of the general population. For example, did you know that there is sugar (or high fructose corn syrup) in canned or jarred pasta sauce? Maybe that is why most of them give me heart burn...argh! Anyway, sugar makes your body react in a rollercoaster like fashion. If yo-yo diets stress your body, don't you think that it would be unhealthy for the reactions in your body to behave in this way MULIPLE TIMES A DAY?! Yikes! Anyway, I am not going to go on and on. If you want to learn more, check out my aunt's website and/or do some research, ask questions. People living the low-carb lifestyle are not trying to take over the government or the world. Like my aunt, they are just people that are living a healthy way, getting some fantastic results in blood pressure, cholesterol, weight management, energy, emotional wellbeing, etc, and maybe wanting to share their experience and information so other people can experience being healthy too.

Sure, sometimes I want I piece of my homemade banana bread but, when I did eat a little bit, my body said, "What the heck is that stuff? Get it outta here!" I didn't like being out of synch with my body so I leave the banana tastiness for others to enjoy if they choose. And, honestly I like having healthy BMs. Sorry if that is a little icky for you but, really, don't you like having healthy BMs too? If you like the icky ones, that is really icky. Please, if you know me, you know I am not embarrassed to talk about body functions. I am the daughter of a nurse and see no reason to try to pretend that we don't all poop, fart, burp, barf, snot, etc. If it wasn't natural to do, we wouldn't have the parts to do it. While I won't go into detail, I will say that everything functions at a much more comfortable level than before.

Finally, to all you veggers and vegans out there (who probably don't read this blog), I don't hate you, I want to BE you! Unfortunately, being a vegger made me unhealthy, fat, slow, and out of wack. This is very challenging for me because I would love nothing more than to know that nothing I consumed came from an animal. Maybe, over time, our bodies will evolve into more of an herbivorous type machine. But, for now, I am in a body that doesn't tolerate all nonmeat products as well as other bodies do. If I come back in another life after our bodies have evolved, I would not have such an emotional battle going on inside me. But, this is for another blog on another day. For now, I need to find my healthy self because the unhealthy one isn't working.

Happy health to everyone!