So much for homemade bread!

Well, my cleanse has been going great! I feel healthier, more energetic, and I have lost 8 pounds. However, I discovered with my cleanse that I am allergic to wheat!! UGH!! HOWEVER, I am happy because I can now eat without the pain! I found that everytime I ate something I was in pain and constipated. I thought it was just cooked food in general, but it was any wheat (bread, pasta. . .). I did end up altering my cleanse a little though. I ended up doing a 20 day cleanse through my Chiropractor. It was still based on natrual whole herbs. The diet was pretty strick. Only fresh fruits, veggies, smoothies, and a few cooked veggies. I feel great on this kind of eating.

After the 20 days I went back to the herbal regiment I posted earlier. I love my energy levels! The cleanse helped me to discover my food allergy and I have felt great ever since.

100% CRUNCH!!

Great day today! Had a green smoothie for breakfast and veggie sandwich for lunch. I notice that my Chlorella makes me nauseous when it finally dissolves.

For dinner I had my favorite homemade bread with a little olive bruschetta. The bruschetta has black olives, green olives, capers, and olive oil all chopped up. I said in my last post that I would be eating only homemade bread that I am in control of. I decide what does or does not go into my bread. I still do not want to be in the habit of eating it everyday, but I am not going to eliminate it all together for now.

Anyway, my favorite bread is called 100% Crunch and I want to share it with you. I use a bread maker so I have no instructions other to put it in the bread machine, put the setting on whole wheat, and set it at a 2 lb (or large) loaf.

100% CRUNCH
1 1/4 c. +1 Tbs. Water
3 c. whole wheat flour
1 1/2 ts. salt
2 Tbs. honey
2 Tbs. molasses
1 Tbs. gluten
2 Tbs. olive oil
2/3 c. seeds (I use equal amounts of sunflower, flaxseeds, & pumpkin seeds)
2 tsp. fast rise yeast or 3 tsp. active dry yeast

A "CLEAN" Slate Begins!

So I went to sit down with a journal to record an experiment I wanted to try. I was first going to make a list of all of my current health "issues" so that I might have a record of progress. Then it dawned on me that this is what my blog is for.

First, the experiment: I want to do an herbal cleanse of the body. I have been between 20-25 lbs over weight and miserable for months now. Never have I not been able to lose weight, but my body is screaming at me in so many ways. I came to realize and learn that my body will not let go of the fat without letting go of the toxins! It is nearly impossible for the body to let go of fat when it holds SO many toxins (especially in the LIVER).

Here is the cleanse: Dr. Christopher's Blood Stream formula, Kidney formula, and Liver & Gall Bladder formula. The first two will be taken for 30 days and the Liver will be taken for 90. I will also be taking a double dose of Dr. Christopher's Vitalerbs which contain Jurassic Green, oastraw, rosehips, ginger root, purple dulce leaf, dandelion root, spirulina, irish moss, kelp, beet root, nutritional yeast, cayenne 40 mhu, blue violet leaf, & carrot. I will be taking mega doses of Chlorella (10,000 mg a day). BarleyMax w/alfalfa will be taken daily as well. I will also be drinking Bentonite Clay. And to keep my hormones in check I will be taking my MSM. And of course you can't forget heaping doses of fiber (chia seeds, psyllium husk, and flax seeds)to clean out the bowels.

As for the food I will consume in order to help the cleanse along: NO refined processed sugar of any kind and no processed food of any kind. My food intake will consist of whole raw fruits and veggies, smoothies, salads, nuts, seeds, and some occasional home made bread (made w/wholesome ingredients of course). YUM!!

I would now like to make a list of my health issues so that I might be able to record my progress.
sluggish/lack of energy
weight gain (inability to lose it)
itchy bum (sorry, gotta be completely honest)
headaches
sleepiness (not quiet the same as sluggish)
irritability
general brain fog (forgetfulness, stuttering, slurred speech)
constipation
gassiness (both ends) sorry, again trying to be honest
bloating
I think that might sum it up for now. If I think of more later I will post them. I actually began this regiment yesterday (4-3-10)

I am actually quit excited to see some positive changes in my health. Next to my religion and my family, health is the most important thing. I've heard a saying that says, "We spend our health trying to obtain wealth. Then we retire and spend our wealth trying to gain back our health." Well folks, I am still young enough that I would rather spend my time and energy on my health so that I might be "rich" in health when I am old enough to afford the finer things in life. What good is a good retirement if your health isn't good enough to enjoy a cruise right?

HAVE A HAPPY HEALTHY DAY!!

Gratitude

This month is a relflection of Gratitude with it being the spirit of Thanksgiving. I have been extensively teaching my children the history of Thanksgiving. I am teaching them the good, the bad, and the ugly of the first Thanksgiving. I hope and pray that what I am trying to get through to them will work. I REALLY want my children to learn to have a constant feeling of gratitude. I believe with gratitude we will find true joy in life. Having gratitude helps to keep us from feeling sorry for ourselves and our situation.

I am SO grateful for the knowledge Heavenly Father has given me about my health. I am even more grateful that I never give up on myself. I KNOW that I will master my natural man some day. I do know what is best for me, and it isn't always what I think it is. I am always learning and growing. I realize now that I don't have to be perfect. I do always have to be trying though. Sometimes in my quest to be perfect I stop trying altogether. So with that being said, I will NEVER stop trying! I love myself and know that my Father in Heaven loves me. Each day a little more motivation comes to me! I can and I will take care of this temple in which my spirit dwells; for THAT is the only true way I can show thanks for my body!

Letting go of the Control

I feel bad that I let so much time go w/out blogging. Life is great and I have learned and grown so much in the past few months. I have learned a lot about myself, my eating habits, and my family.

I love life, I love people, I love my family, and I love food. However, my love for food is a love/hate relationship. I wish ALL food was good for you, made you healthy, and never made you gain a pound. Wishful thinking just doesn't get you any where! However, I find that my relationship to food has everything to do w/my relationship to my Heavenly Father. If I let Him be in control of my life, then I, in turn, am in more control of my life. However, the more I try to control things on my own, the more I lose control.

So, one would say, "Then give up the control!" Oh. . .ok. . .that is easy! Duh! Guess what folks? It's NOT easy! We, by human nature, are control freaks. We must be in control of what happens in our lives, when it happens, who it happens with, how it happens, and in most cases, even why it happens. However, I am learning that the more I give in, the more I get in return.

So by holding on so tight, I wasn't able to get my stinkin' hand out of the cookie jar. I knew that I could do it by MYSELF because I am a strong woman. We are only as strong as our relationship with the Savoir. I have found that my level of dependance on him determines my level of happiness. This is not to say in anyway that we should not make any decisions w/out Him. On the contrary, I believe He wants us to take our decisions to Him and pray for His help.

I choose to eat healthy and I know I cannot do it alone. I don't HAVE to have the support of others as I thought I did. I just need devine intervention. I WILL make healthy choices both physically and spiritually. My husband taught be that all we need to do is PREPARE. It is an acronym for Pray, Read scriptures, Exercise, Plan, Accomplish, Review, End your day w/prayer! Do this daily, and ALL else will take care of itself.

HAVE A HAPPY HEALTHY DAY!

Green Smoothie Baby

This is my beautiful great niece Brooklyn. They were here for a visit this last week. The last day that she was here she kept trying to grab my smoothie from me. I had seen her mom feed her ice cream and other things so I decided to try the smoothie to see if she liked it. Well, she LOVED it! She could not get it fast enough. She got upset if I stopped long enough to take a drink myself. It goes to show that we know at birth what is good for our bodies. Isn't she the most beautiful baby? She is almost 6 months and is already loving the smoothies. BTW, her mom and dad both liked the smoothies a lot too.

Plantain Smoothie

Ok, so I have been doing some research on the herb Plantain. The beauty of this plant is that it grows wild all over this area. Free is beautiful. Everyone I know here has plantain growing in their yard. So this morning, I went out in my yard and cut me some plantain and made a smoothie. I took some pics of everything I put in the smoothie. I put in plantain, frozen strawberries, 2 very ripe bananas, chia seeds, 3-4 dates, and a dash of agave to sweeten it. To learn more about the health benefits of plantain go to: http://herbs.ygoy.com/2009/02/13/health-benefits-of-plantain-herb/



This is what plantain looks like.




This only shows one banana, but I ended up putting in another because I wasn't used to the different taste.




Not bad at all. My hubby and niece both liked the flavor. It almost had a coconut flavor in it. Yum!