Clean-Eating Challenge!

My plan was to post this last night when I got home from San Francisco but guess who came down with an awful case of food poisoning? Yup. This girl. I've never had food poisoning before and it's just as awful as I thought it would be. I'm finally feeling a little better today at 2pm Arizona time, but it was a horrible plane ride home and a rough night. However, the trip was great (more on that tomorrow) and I refuse to let the second half of Sunday and today change that! :)

With that said...it's Monday! I'll reference you back to the original post for details, meal ideas, and more specifics, and be sure to link up below so we can all visit each other's blogs!

Remember, you don't have to get crazy; small changes are great as well, so if you want to join in but in your own way, do it! This is all about getting healthy, so any way you get there is awesome.

Also don't forget to label all of your tweets with #SScleaneating and feel free to send me updates to @danihampton. If you end up posting recipes, send me the link via Twitter with the hashtag so everyone can check it out too! And if you're "new" to twitter, all of you have to do is click the hashtag to see all the tweets grouped within it.

Good luck, and here's to a week of health!

Sugar-Free Me

It's been a week and a half since I visited the naturopath for the first time and thanks to her advice it's been just as long since I've had any sugar or processed food.  I knew it was coming- my Mom had told me that my skin and overall blahs could be helped by cutting it out, but it's different when your Mother tells you something versus a doctor.

I think because I was so motivated to see results it wasn't terribly difficult for me to start this new way of eating immediately.  I already didn't drink soda or juice, but I did consume a lot of sugar in the form of fruit. And even though I'd consider myself a very healthy eater, I ate a LOT of processed "health" foods. On any given day I'd find myself eating various Annie's snacks, Lunabars, fake meat products, things like that. At night I'd also occasionally indulge in Skinny Cow treats which I knew all along were bad choices but hey, a whole ice cream sandwich for 120 calories?! Too bad they literally include 50 ingredients. Gross. Once I paid attention I was shocked at how bad my eating really was. For instance, did you know that Quorn products actually have hydrogenated oils and MSG in them? I had no idea and never bothered to look, since I viewed them as "healthy."

So anyway, when I started the first few days were easy. I was motivated, feeling good, and the reasons why I was doing this were fresh in my mind. I saw immediate results in my daily mood. To be honest, I can be quite up and down throughout the day. My naturopath said that this was a result of my body hitting highs and lows, many times a day, due to sugar consumption.  I also noticed that after I drank alcohol I would feel really, really terrible throughout the next week- I would get super depressed and just feel sad. This was one of the reasons I chose to drink only on rare occasions, but now I know why I've always felt the way I did, and why alcohol is just not for me.

On the fourth day of no-sugar I felt like I wanted to give up. I remember telling Hank how it just wasn't fair that I couldn't enjoy frozen yogurt or cupcakes. That MY LIFE WAS NOT WORTH LIVING (yes, all caps because I probably was yelling this in an overly-dramatic way) without sweet treats. But he supported me and reminded me that these 6 weeks were not a punishment for my body, but a reward. So I didn't give in. And now it's been almost two weeks and I've honestly never, ever felt better. Food flavors are so much more vibrant and I'm not as hungry throughout the day. I'm seeing physical changes, as well as emotional. I've lost some extra weight (not the goal but a nice bonus), my skin is clearing up and I've been in a great mood. It's weird because I know most people see me as a very positive person, but it absolutely takes work to stay in this positive place. It's easy for me to slip into depressed thinking or a negative mindset, so every morning I had to make the choice to be happy and positive. But honestly since starting this new way of eating I not only sleep better, but I wake up sincerely pumped to start my day. I don't experience those highs and lows, I feel great all day long, and I'm just in such a good place.

Tonight we met one set of my in-laws at one of our favorite Italian restaurants in town. Typically I eat what I want, and I'd always go for the bread and the pasta. But tonight I ordered a huge salad full of veggies and the formerly "good" stuff didn't even seem appealing. This was huge for me, because I was kind of dreading dinner, knowing I'd be around some of my favorite things. But to be honest, I feel so good and there's no way I'm interested in feeling bad again.  It's just not worth it.

Now, before I get into this, I want all of you to remember that I am NOT a registered dietician, doctor, or in any way qualified to give any health or diet related advice. The information supplied here is simply from my own experience, and I am not suggesting you follow it. Please keep that in mind.

Okay. That's out of the way so let's get to it.

Sugar is sneaky. It's in EVERYTHING. Literally. I mean, it's in ketchup, spaghetti sauce, breads, you name it. It can be hard to look through every ingredient to check for all of the undercover names it goes by (if you're up for it, check out this list), so the easiest way to avoid it is to say no to all processed food and go with natural, whole foods.

My naturopath recommended that I cut out processed foods, breads, pasta, potatoes (sweet potatoes are okay- just no yams), fruit, and refined sugars of any kind for 6 weeks. And why no bread or pasta? They both convert to sugar in your body. She did make allowances for a serving or two of an Ezekial bread product a day (these are sprouted grain products and contain no flour) and 1/4 cup of berries OR a small apple.  Light Rye Wasa crackers are okay too. And remember, this is what was recommended to me, so if you're interested in getting a personalized program, be sure to find a naturopath in your area!

When you give up processed foods at first it seems like the end of the world. "What will I eat?!"

Here's a typical day of eating for me:

Breakfast-
4 egg whites with 1 yolk scrambled with a ton of veggies
1 slice of toasted Ezekial bread

Snack-
handful raw nuts (cashews, pecans, macadamias, Brazil nuts, walnuts)
slices of organic turkey and cheese

Lunch-
big bowl of beans and veggies with an avocado and Greek yogurt (in place of sour cream)
hummus and cucumbers

Snack-
3 Wasa crackers with almond butter with 2 raspberries smashed on top of each cracker

Dinner-
homemade veggie burgers
sweet potato
broccoli

There are a MILLION things I am able to eat, and this break-down is just an example. The internet is a huge resource for me for finding delicious recipes, and my most favorite is the Eat Clean Diet Cookbook and website.  It's all about clean-eating (eating only whole, natural foods) and being healthy.  My favorite magazine is Whole Living, and my most favorite healthy-living blog is My New Roots.

The main thing I keep in mind is how much I CAN eat, rather than how much I can't. Yes, I had cravings at first (especially at night) but I just reminded myself of why I am doing this and it helped me to stay focused.

As for me, although my doctor recommended I do this for 6 weeks, I am looking at this as a permanent change. I will absolutely still partake in the sweet treats of life, but only in small amounts and on special occasions like holidays and birthdays. I will continue to avoid processed foods. I'll probably add in a few more fruits, but overall like I mentioned above, I feel way too good to stop eating how I am now. And plus, the sweet stuff just isn't as appealing.

So, with that said, I'm going to be posting a challenge later this week that will begin on Monday. In it I will include meal ideas and recipes to get you started. In this challenge I'll be encouraging all of you to make healthy changes and eat clean for ONE WEEK with me.* Maybe you'll hate it, maybe you'll love it, but I feel like it's worth a try and we can all do anything for a week, right?  I'll share more info about this later, so keep your eyes peeled.

*edited to change the sugar-free challenge to an healthy change/eat-clean challenge.

I've been getting tons and tons of interest about this, so I hope this post helped to answer some of your questions! Let me know in the comments if you have anything else you'd like to know and I will respond as soon as I can. Thanks for reading, I know this was a long one! :)

xoxo

image via appleaday

My 1st Visit to the Naturopath

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After talking about it for what seems like years, I finally had my first visit to a naturopath this past Friday.  I've always been interested in natural medicine but for some reason or another I hesitated when actually finding one in our area.  I finally decided to go through with it though, after feeling unbalanced and out of wack over the past couple of months. Since having Henry my usually clear skin has been horrible- acne on my face, eczema on my forearms, and my scalp has been super dry.  I actually went and visited my regular dermatologist when I stopped breastfeeding a couple of months ago and he prescribed me acne medication. I saw a small improvement, and when I went to my follow up appointment last week he said I needed to go on antibiotics. Now, I am not opposed to medicine whatsoever- I do believe in "regular" doctors, we choose to vaccinate Henry (on a slow schedule, but we still do it), and even though I try and avoid taking medicine whenever possible, if it is needed, I'll take it. But with that said, I prefer to go the natural route whenever possible. So when my dermatologist prescribed antibiotics I got a little uncomfortable. My skin has been so bad lately that I felt like taking anitbiotics wouldn't get at the real problem or fix it long term...only mask it. But I took the prescription home, and with my Mom and Hank's encouragement made my first appointment at the naturopath's.

On Friday afternoon I headed to my appointment feeling a little nervous. I had no idea what to expect, and although the doctor came highly recommended by quite a few friends, it was still a bit scary. When I got there they had me fill out the expected paperwork but unlike most doctor's offices I'd been to, this paperwork included lots of open ended questions and even a timeline to record significant events in my life. Very cool.

I waited for less than 5 minutes in the room, and once the doctor came in I immediately felt at ease. She was AWESOME. All caps awesome. We talked for an hour about everything- my history, my health, my issues, what I hoped to gain from the visit. She really, really listened. She asked questions and made me feel so comfortable.  It was like talking to a friend, but a friend who knew everything about everything and wanted to help me feel better. It was truly the best experience I have ever had at a doctor's office.

She prescribed me a couple of things- sepia drops (10 drops under my tongue for 7 days), a homeopathic cream called pharMAX heal (it's actually a trans-dermal wound healing cream but it's already almost cleared up my rash in TWO days!) for the eczema, and most notably, a sugar-elimination diet.  My Mom is extemely healthy and into naturopathy so thanks to her I knew there was a good chance the doctor would recommend this to me. My Mom had actually told me the same thing months earlier, but I chose to ignore it because it's quite hard to cut out all sugar and frankly, I didn't want to. It's no fun, and we're not just talking about cupcakes and candy- it means all sugars- fruits, carbs like bread and pasta, potatoes, processed foods, etc. Although I don't eat a lot of sweets, the real problem was all of the other kinds of sugar I was consuming without even realizing it. So much fruit, so many carbs that turned to sugar in my body, you name it.  And it's not that fruit is bad- but my body has been having a hard time with any sugar, so cutting it out during these 6 weeks would be important.

Overall it's not terribly hard to follow this diet because it's actually pretty similar to how I normally eat, just with a few changes.  The main thing I've noticed (and missed) is fruit, and all of the processed "healthy" treats I find myself eating daily- Larabars, mini Luna bars,  little 100 calorie packs of cookies from Trader Joe's, dark chocolate...all of the good stuff. But the things I can eat are good too- lots of whole foods like produce, lean proteins, and nuts- and of course tons of water. I never, ever drink soda, but I'd imagine if someone was into soda this diet could be a little more difficult. But as far as what I've been eating, today I enjoyed lots of different types of food from an avocado to a sweet potato and broccoli, to Greek yogurt with almonds. And I know it's probably in my head but I already feel so much better.

I'm motivated to stick to it, and I'm curious to see how my skin clears up over the next few weeks. I have a feeling that the benefits will extend far beyond just my skin though, and I'm excited to just feel even healthier overall!

I encourage any of you who have been thinking of checking out a natural doctor to do so. I feel really empowered by taking my health into my own hands, and I am still glowing from my awesome experience. I'll keep you all posted on my progress, too! :)

3 Ways to Get Motivated Today

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If you're anything like me, with the new year usually comes a new resolve to get moving and get healthy.  I'm not sure if it's a subconscious thing, due to all of the new year, new body talk, gym membership price-slashing, or just the habit of making resolutions, but even if I'm on top of my fitness routine I still get the urge to step it up. I know I love fresh starts and all of the implications of a brand new 12 months on the calendar, but I think it's important to move beyond feeling like you have one shot to make and keep goals.  Resolutions are great, but I think with fitness and health it's important to acknowledge that the opportunity to change and move forward is always there. I think it's great to see a new year as a clean slate, but I think along with that mindset sometimes comes a certain attitude about failure. If you're making a big change in your life (or even small ones), there are bound to be missteps along the way. Let's say you got into a funk and didn't work out for a month...rather than get down on yourself, simply decide to change now. Being negative only perpetuates that downward cycle. Instead, recognize that you want to change, and make that change this very second. Not tomorrow morning, not when you have time, not on Monday.  Make the choice now- choose a healthy lunch, a walk around your neighborhood, and get back on track. It's so easy to fall into the trap of putting it off again and again and again, and like the saying goes, if not now, when?

So here are 3 little bits of inspirations to get you moving today.

1. Make a new workout playlist. Nothing is more inspiring to me than having brand new songs to listen to at the gym. I've recently been turned onto Spotify and I love it. For ten dollars a month you can make unlimited playlists to listen to on or offline, no ads, no skipping-song limits...it's awesome. There's a free version too, but I like it so much I had to upgrade. It's worth it to me though- every time I walk into the gym I look forward to listening to new music or old favorites. It's incredibly inspiring and makes my time working out not only more productive, but more fun too.  I mainly workout to rap and hip hop, but sometimes I'll throw some other things in there to mix it up- and feel free to find me on Spotify- I have a huge workout playlist going.

2. Visualize. I've talked about this many times before, but seriously, just take a moment and imagine yourself walking out of the gym, done with your workout for the day! This morning when my alarm went off at 4:45am I just stayed in bed for a moment, positively dreading stepping even one foot onto the ground. But I knew that if I didn't go, when Henry woke up at 7:30 I would be so upset with myself that I didn't take advantage of this wide-open "me" time. I remembered how great I would feel leaving the gym, sweaty and proud of myself. I know I'd be happier and more productive throughout the day knowing that my workout was done, and I reminded myself that I'd be able to just enjoy hanging out later tonight rather than using that time to fit in a workout. So I dragged myself out of bed and went. And now I sit here typing this as Henry naps, and I feel both proud of myself and excited for tomorrow morning's workout. And you don't have to go to the gym either- take a walk outside, pop in an exercise dvd (see some of my favorites here), or do some yoga. The more you get moving, the easier it gets.

3. Do it for you.  Really think about the fact that eating well and exercising regularly has such a great pay off in the long run. Making a change today results in feeling good today. You'll sleep better, you'll look better, and you'll probably be happier too. Show your body respect in the choices you make with food and exercise, try to get outside as much as possible, and make it a point to do something active everyday.  When I feel like I'm too tired and lazy to go to the gym, I remind myself that I'll feel even more sluggish if I don't go.  If I feel like I just want to sleep in in the mornings, I tell myself that I can go to bed a little earlier tonight so tomorrow morning will be easier. It's not always easy, but on the hard days when I push past my own negative talk and make good choices I feel even better knowing I overcame it.

I've talked about all of these things before, but I definitely needed a reminder this morning, so I thought I'd touch on some of it again. My wish for this new year is that we all get a little healthier and accept ourselves a little more...and all of that starts with today. 

Happy getting-healthy! xoxo