My Wellness Testimony...Minus the Hype

This is my wellness testimony, pure and simple!  Minus the hype, of course.

There is no hype about my journey to wellness.  I have not quickly lost massive amounts of weight nor do I look like a fitness model even though my husband would say the contrary.   The truth of the matter is, I was tired of frequently getting sick, feeling sluggish and always hungry.  For many years now, I had always thought that I had been eating well and really taking care of myself.  When I was constantly getting sick, that became a testament that my body was lacking the proper amount of vitamins and nutrients.  I knew I had to do something about it quickly!  Since my "Quest to Ultimate Wellness" post on June 24,  2013, I have been doing fantastic.  Usually during this time of the year I would have been infected by every little sick bug, my daughter brought home from school.  Fortunately, I am  happy to report that all has been well so far and I do not believe that it is just luck.  I have become a believer in true, all-natural foods and the positive effects it has on my health!

So here I share my story once again,  in hopes to be an inspiration for many that struggle with wellness.  In my "Quest to Ultimate Wellness" post I mentioned that I cleared out my fridge, pantry and cabinets of unnatural foods and began stocking it with natural foods, in which I still continue to do.  Not only have I seen the results, but I feel the results!  I knew when I started the journey that results would not be instantaneous and that was exactly what I realistically expected.  Remaining hopeful that the quest would transform not only how I felt, but also transform the way I think.  It has definitely transformed the way that I think!  I no longer think about or obsess about weight and just allowed it to come off naturally.  Many times in the past, when I was on some type of diet, I lost the weight quickly, but after I got burnt out from the diet, the weight quickly came back.  Focusing on natural foods to promote wellness does not mean you cannot enjoy your food nor indulge a little every once in awhile.  Honesty is the best policy, right?  Well, be honest with your body and the foods you consume.  Eating natural, unprocessed foods a couple times a week and expecting that to overpower the junk and processed foods that was consumed the rest of the time was just not cutting it.  

I truly think about how it means more to me to stay in good health in order to keep up with life - I simply do not have the time and patience to be down fighting a cough, cold, flu, etc., so I concentrate heavily on how to stay well.

There has never been any hype about what I do.  Frankly, I feel like there are a lot of people who are afraid to ask me what it is that I do because they do not want to hear that consuming high amounts of greens and more truly natural foods, getting rid of processed foods in the house, minimizing the overall junk, exercising and managing stress are the essential components to great health.  I have mentioned this to many who have asked me time and time again, but does it really register nor does anyone ever take me seriously and do it to take the accountability for their health?  It truly is that easy to take control of your health, but do not do it by taking shortcuts...have faith and patience.  Truthfully, I have never felt better and I am not even taking any vitamin pills, drinking crazy drinks that contain ingredients I am uncertain about nor am I spending insane amounts of money on weight loss products.  All the vitamins I consume come directly from the natural food sources!  THAT IS IT...PLAIN AND SIMPLE! 

I am being truly serious that I have noticed an amazing change in my immune health since I have made drastic changes to what I consume nutritionally...it truly is that simple!  Even with my child, there is nothing complicated about giving her fresh fruit or fresh veggies instead of a pouch of artificially made, flavored and colored fruit snacks (regardless of what the packaging says on how natural the flavors are, etc.).  For the last several months, I have focused a lot on: immune health, intestinal flora and digestive health.  During my research, I encountered an awesome article that basically summed up all of my core beliefs on natural foods and wellness.  http://drlwilson.com/ARTICLES/FLORA.htm

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Natural Foods Rule!!

Kale: The Part of My Family that was Missing!

Greetings to all!  Today, I will talk about KALE and how it has become part of my family!  What is kale?  Dictionary.com - a cabbagelike cultivated plant, Brassica oleracea acephala, of the mustard family, having curled or wrinkled leaves: used as a vegetable.

Let me tell you how kale has become part of my family.  My journey with kale began about 3 years ago.  Though I wish the journey began a lot sooner.  After my daughter was born, I started to experience pain in my upper inner thigh.  As time went on, the pain worsened and it became chronic.   Being a stay-at-home mom and having an over-active toddler in the house compounded an already stressful situation, which pushed me to the edge and I almost fell into a deep depression.  Many asked if I consulted a doctor for the pain, but I did not.  Truthfully, I did not want to risk the chance of becoming medicated and did not feel comfortable about taking medication everyday...I do not even like taking vitamins.  So, this is what I did.  Given that the pain was localized and occasionally throbbing, I researched everywhere on the Internet for foods that had natural anti-inflammatory properties.  To my surprise, #1 = KALE!  I was amazed...it gave me hope that I did not need to medicate myself daily!  Because of kale's elevated amounts of antioxidants, Omega-3's and Vitamin K, not only does it inhibit the onset of inflammation, but in my case, it made it disappear.  When, I first began my kale consumption, I did not incorporate it into my daily diet plan, but had it maybe every 3 days.  Even though the pain was starting to subside because I was consuming kale more often than never, it was still present, so I had to increase the frequency of my consumption.  Before I knew it, kale was the quickest food to disappear from my fridge because my husband started to consume it as well.  He said he thinks I am going to outlive him by decades if he does not jump on the all-natural green band wagon.  For about a year the pain came back intermittently, maybe about once a month for less than a week.  Now, a year and a half later, it is completely gone.

During my journey, there were 4 very important components that I had to change in order to elevate my consumption of kale - to make certain the results would stick.  Number 1 - change to a truly all-natural foods nutrition plan - I started to incorporate more natural foods into my daily regimen (not boxed foods that state"all-natural"), more produce, whole grains, less sweets and less junk.  Number 2 - Incorporate more whole body exercise in my weekly routine.  Number 3 - Dedication - you must want to devote that time to wellness.  Number 4 - Consistency - be consistent with your nutrition plan (do not go one week where you are doing everything right and fail to do so the following week). 

Great ways to consume kale along with other greens: blending in smoothie, juicing, steaming, salads, stews, stir-frys, etc. 

Currently, I can proudly say that I am pain-free from frequent headaches, body aches (from working new muscles) and fatigue.  Another thing I noticed was I was constantly getting sick before, especially when my daughter picked up a bug from school which rarely happens anymore.  I am living proof that taking huge steps for change really does make a difference.  I will be 35-years old in 15 days and feel great - no daily medications, no vitamin pills (my vitamins come from food sources), no weight issues and I am in overall great health.  Kale, along with many other whole, natural foods is considered part of my family now and we all enjoy the benefits of it! 

I did much scientific research about the antioxidants and vitamins in consuming truly all-natural foods, especially kale and if I were to talk about it in my blog, I would never be able to discuss my true experiences and results.  If you experience chronic pain or just unhappy with your overall health, I encourage you to do your research and start making those important changes.  There is a wealth of information about the benefits of true nutrition from many trusted sources on the Internet in addition to blogs like mine.  Here are several sites I trust and received a lot of my information from:

World's Healthiest Foods 

LiveStrong.com - Benefits of Juicing Kale

Natural News

Awesome Superfoods (click any to buy from Vitacost website - best deals around):

Spirulina



Yaeyama Chlorella




Wheat Grass Powder



Chia Seeds



Thank you for reading!!  Please contact me if you have any questions about my journey or need a coach!!

I love kale!!  I hope you will love it, too!!





 






 

Dear Mom - Are you a diet dropout?

Dear Mom,

Are you a diet drop-out?  Stop kidding yourself and simply try the "truly all-natural" route!  In order for a diet to truly work, you must want to make a complete transformation, not just a short-term one until you lose the weight because you will end up on the same path you were on before you started the diet (read my previous blog post "Are You Truly Healthy?").  In order to have that hunger for true, lasting results, you must have that hunger for true nutrition and wellness.  You cannot be afraid of eating truly all-natural foods (fruits, vegetables, legumes, lean proteins, whole grains, etc.), tasting vegetables in your smoothies and drinking water without added flavoring. I am not saying that you have to go cold turkey here and can never eat another slice of pizza or a piece of cake ever again.  I am simply saying to choose an everyday lifestyle, where you make the full-fledged effort of consuming truly natural, nutritious foods and engaging in some form of exercise.  

I hear and read excuse after excuse that eating well and choosing a truly nutritious lifestyle is difficult and processed foods is easy.  Well, let me put it this way:

• Is it easy to carry excess weight around?
• Do you feel great eating processed foods?
• Are you scared of being diagnosed with prehypertension, high-blood pressure, high cholesterol, Type 2 Diabetes, etc? 
• Which is easier on the wallet - a medicinal regimen (taking various medications daily because of high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diet-induced Type 2 Diabetes, etc.) or simply eating truly nutritious foods? 

Here are my answers to the questions above:

• I feel terrible when I carry excess weight
• I feel like I am more susceptible to illness when I consume mostly processed foods for a long period of time.
• I am terrified if I even see my blood pressure get anywhere close to prehypertension and if cholesterol numbers even got close to being on the high side. 
• I would rather eat nutritious foods that my body truly craves over taking medication everyday - that can get pricey! 

I am not a certified dietician or nutritionist, but honestly I do not need to be in order to know that the consumption of truly natural, nutrition-packed foods and regular exercise is one of the best remedies out there to achieve ultimate wellness (read my previous blog post "Quest to Ultimate Wellness".  If you do not believe me, I challenge you to try it for yourself, for a week and you will find out...you will start to feel better overall.


Processed foods is not part of my daily nutrition plan; however do not get me wrong, if I go to a party/get-together and I want to try some of the foods served that are not on my daily nutrition plan, I will not hold myself back from trying.  One of the major reasons I eat the way I do is because my food choices are truly nutrition-packed (earth-grown foods).  Why does our body crave nutrition-packed foods?  We are living organisms and we also crave foods that come from the earth and natural sources, just like plants crave water & sunlight and animals feed from grass, etc.
 
This is what I would normally eat throughout the course of the day. 


BREAKFAST (choose no more than 2)
1/2 cup - 1 cup: cooked steel cut oats or regular oatmeal

1 egg white + 1 whole egg

1-cup Greek yogurt with fresh or frozen fruit

Large green smoothie with tofu

coffee okay (moderation - no more than 1-2 cups/day)

MORNING SUPPLEMENT - high fiber

Psyllium husk (pure fiber) - mix with drink, mix with yogurt/fruit, smoothie

SNACKS (these are some I typically choose from)

fresh fruits

pistachio nuts, almonds or dry roasted peanuts
peanut butter

fresh salsa with pure corn chips
frozen fruits

salmon packs
homemade fruit, nut & grain bars

LUNCH (eat as much greens you can , 1 heavy grain, 1 protein)

beans (red, black or Edamame)

vegetables (dark green vegetables)

salad (natural dressing balsamic vinegar & olive oil)

salmon or chicken (choose 1)

DINNER (high protein, high greens/low-carb veggies, low grains; similar to lunch)

tacos with ground turkey (extra lean)

fresh chicken salad (homemade dressing)

bean salad

Couscous or quinoa salad

Large green smoothie with tofu

Sweets can be had in moderation, but try to keep it all-natural (low amount of ingredients) - I usually have fruit and a bit of dark chocolate to satisfy my sweet tooth.

#earthgrownfoods
#cravenutrition
#truenutrition
#trulynatural 
#nutritionandwellness 

Now if you are a diet dropout, get back in, but try the all-natural, truly nutritious way!

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Thanks for reading,

Are you truly healthy?

More so now than ever, there is that craze of getting "healthy".  Now, how about staying healthy?

Are you a Weight Watchers, high protein diet, low calorie diet, low-fat diet or any diet drop-out?  No worries, so was I; however, read on...there is is still hope!

Dictionary.com definition of HEALTHY: possessing or enjoying good health or a sound and vigorous mentality

Now, many of us may possess these intentions of desiring good health, but are we really doing what we can to achieve it?  To a certain extent, we are all healthy because we are still living - we are doing something right to keep us alive.  The definition of healthy does not mention a "quick-fix" or a "short-term" solution.  The definition specifically uses the word "possessing", so in order to be truly healthy we must truly possess that desire to have good health.  The desire to have good health should not be a roller coaster - for a short time we are on a high doing great, then for a short time time we are on a low, doing not so great!  This roller coaster does not exemplify a desire to be healthy.  Truthfully, this roller coaster could be more detrimental to our health because we are altering our body chemistry so often and our body experiences NO CONSISTENCY.  

NEWS-FLASH:  There is nowhere in the definition of "healthy" does it say - must be super skinny, super toned or look like a skeleton.  On the flip side, there is nowhere in the definition either that states obesity or over-indulging is okay.    

If one desires good health so much, why is it that there are many in society that are always dieting or are on a "get healthy quick"/short-term weight-loss plan (ie: 30, 60 or 90 day)?  Here is a personal example - for my wedding 9 years ago, I stopped eating sweets for 1-month straight, exercised 2x/day and ate nothing but an apple for breakfast and split a bowl pasta for lunch and dinner.  Did I lose weight?  Of course, I did...in fact about 10lbs in 2-months (and I was already pretty small...dropped down to about 88lbs).  Now, here is what happened after the wedding...I was burnt out from that diet plan I put my body through, so I reverted back to my old self and have not been 88lbs since then.  I deprived my body of the proper nutrition it needed.  Through the years, I have gotten wiser and started to realize what truly works.  Yes, moderation, watching calories, low fat, low sugar, etc. still matters; however, what matters most is TRUE nutrition and being honest with yourself.  Ask yourself this - am I truly providing my body with "true nutrition in order to get those natural results"?

If one truly wants to get "healthy", it should be a long-term plan.  Why put our body through a roller-coaster?  How about a long-term maintenance plan instead?  Stop spending massive amounts of money on products and plans to lose weight, just concentrate on "TRUE NUTRITION", "GOD'S FOOD", "TRULY NATURAL".  There are no shortcuts!  You have to be willing to consume truly nutritious in order to get the truly natural results - rid of the unnatural.  Also, educating yourself on what is truly nutritious is very important.  Do not always rely on what you read on food boxes, since there is a lot out there at that says "all-natural, "healthy", "good for you", etc.  It is a marketing trap!  Do your research!  This is when being honest with yourself comes into play - read ingredients and ask yourself if something is truly nutritious/natural, if it was grown in a garden or engineered in a chemical lab. 

If you concentrate on long-term maintenance focusing on the aforementioned, you will see "natural results" that will truly stick and you will actually start to feel great.  Forget the short-term results...change for the long-run.  My journey has become "My Quest to Ultimate Wellness" - I invite you to read this blog post, too.

Thanks for reading!!  Good luck on your journey!!

Faithfully Yours,

Kids and Nutrition

Time and time again, I remind people that it is never too early to start a child (once they are able to start eating the foods we eat) on nutritious foods.  Unfortunately, I did not grow up learning about proper nutrition and it was not highly emphasized in my household either, just like I emphasize it in my household now, as a parent.  As soon as my daughter (who is now almost 4-years-old) was able to eat many of the foods my husband and I eat, we started her on vegetables, fruits, all-natural smoothies, grains, Greek yogurt, lean poultry and meats.  As I have said in one of my previous posts that we are our child's first teacher and showing them proper nutrition based on what we consume is what they will pick-up first.  I thought about it after giving birth how I can properly emphasize nutrition with my daughter knowing that I still want her to have fun at birthday parties, camps and friends' houses, etc, where she might not be given the same foods I give her at home.  I began to realize how important it was for me to keep the most nutritious foods at home because of the fact that it is where she will be spending a majority of her time.  Now that she is almost 4-years old and can open cupboards and the refrigerator by herself to pick out something to eat, I have to truly make the best decisions of what I stock it all with. 

I understand it now why many (including their children) have an aversion to vegetables, fruits, plant-based foods and truly-natural foods...it is because it was not something they grew up eating or at least was not emphasized in their household!  It is sad to see these days what households fill their cupboards and refrigerators with.  I understand how harsh this can seem, but it is really what we are used to and what our society is used to.  There are many documentaries out there that talk about the dangers of processed foods and the positive effects of plant foods and all-natural foods!  I am not saying that we have to completely give up having a good burger, pizza or delectable desserts...I am merely saying "make nutrition consistent"; therefore, it will remain consistent in our child's life, too and they will learn the difference and will make better choices with what they eat.  It is so wonderful to see my daughter open up the fridge and opt to eat vegetables, fruit, grains, nuts, etc. because it is all I stock it with!  Of course, if I stocked it with foods with little or no nutritional value and still had the nutritious foods, she will choose the junk...hands down!!  I post this to help spread awareness that it is never too early to educate our children on proper nutrition.

As parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. we always make a conscious effort of keeping potentially harmful substances and poisonous items out of reach from children.  The sad part is there are poisonous ingredients in processed foods that many consume, but do not cause harm until so much of it has been consumed...slow, silent killers is what they are called.  They are just disguised with attractive packaging, amazing aromas and a presented so beautifully on a plate.  Who wants to eat fresh plant-based foods that does not have any added salt or sugar?  We do all we can to take care of and protect our children, so why is it we cannot make a conscious effort to lead them to be more nutrition-conscious?  Of course there is that falsehood that children are young and they should be able to eat junk food and why should we deprive them.  Not all humans are designed equally, some who eat junk food all their lives will not ever show up in their appearance because of how they are built genetically, but there are some that are not so lucky and it starts to alter their appearance at a young age.  As many of us know appearance means a lot to young ones (even though it should not), but given how cruel many of them can be nowadays, having an appearance issue can be detrimental to their social status...sad, but true!

Please educate yourself,

Quest To Ultimate Wellness...

Here is mine...what is yours?

Many of us have been or are always on the quest to lose weight, but here is the number one question?  Are we truly taking the proper steps to losing weight?  My quest to ultimate wellness has been a 
work-in-progress for as long as I can remember.  It has not been until recently that I finally realized what I need to do to achieve my ultimate wellness goals the pure and natural way!  It is not the low-carb diet/high protein diet, the starving yourself diet, the 30-day stay away from junk diet, Weight Watchers, the skipping meals diet nor is it the low calorie diet...in fact, it is none of these!  I will touch on these diets throughout my blog because I have tried them all, so stay tuned! The truth of the matter is that, it is a lifestyle change and keeping that change in tact. 

About me - I have never been super slim.  I do not have that body type, where I can pig out all the time and still not gain weight.  In fact, I am short (4'11 in height and slightly under a 100lbs), so I really have to watch it because the weight can creep back quickly!  There was a time in my life when I was about 90lbs and was still not happy with that weight.  We are our own worst critics, so even though we may have achieved our fitness goals, some of us still want to lose more weight.  Ultimate wellness is not based on how skinny one can get, how physically fit one can get nor how much stress one can eliminate, but merely how great one feels once proper nutrition, exercise and stress management become contributing factors to that.

How can one achieve ultimate wellness with proper nutrition?

Of course, sacrifice, consistency and dedication play a part in achieving ultimate wellness.  The quest to ultimate wellness is a dedicated lifestyle change...not a short-term change!  I have tried many of the crazy diets out there and yes, they work, but for the short-term, after I was happy with the change, I went back to my bad habits again!  Just recently, I went through an intervention with my "unwell self".  This is what I did: I threw out all heavily processed foods from my refrigerator and cupboards...replaced with truly all-natural, truly nutritious, truly high-fiber foods: fruits (frozen & fresh), dark green leafy vegetables, nutrition-packed vegetables (fresh & frozen), gluten-free grains, nuts, spring water, seeds (flax seed, psyllium husk, chia seeds, etc), algae powders, chicken breast, lean meat, salmon, steel cut oats, low-sodium or salt-free seasoning packs & marinades (with all-natural ingredients), green tea, black coffee (in moderation), etc. These are power-packed foods high in nutrition that will send all those wonderful messages to your brain that it is truly satisfied.  For more nutrition and wellness help and advice, visit livestrong.com.

Obesity and dieting are huge epidemics in the United States.  With the continuous modernization of technology, many things have become easier for us, so we are able to pack our schedules even more, but the sad thing is that we do not pack our lives with nutrition to achieve wellness.  Instead, we pack it with garbage...yes, you are reading that right...garbage!!  The more time we commit to having a busy schedule the less we have to commit to true nutrition and wellness!  I do not remember the last time I had a conversation with someone that said they do not lead a busy lifestyle.  There is nothing wrong with keeping busy, but this is how I see it...the human body is like a well-oiled machine...without the proper amount of "oil" our body can break down!  Our "oil" is proper nutrition, exercise, good night's sleep, avoiding drugs & alcohol, etc.  Once attention is given to these factors, weight will naturally shed and more positive changes will occur. 

Do yourself a favor, do not wait until it is too late to go on your quest to ultimate wellness. 

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Have a blessed day,

 

How to get huge discounts with Vitacost.com

Do you purchase through Vitacost.com?  Do you want to try out Vitacost.com?  If you are anything like me, you completely depend on them for your nutrition and beauty needs!  My family used to spend loads of money on the list of products from Whole Foods Market:

• face wash
• body wash
• shave gel
• toothpaste
• baby products
• shampoo/conditioner
• make-up
• flax seed
• chia seeds
• wheat grass powder
• nuts
• oils
• vinegar
• Spirulina
• Chlorella
• probiotics
• whole grain products
• and much more

A couple years ago, I discovered Vitacost.com!  It has been a tremendous benefit for my family.  Not only are their products 40-60% less than Whole Foods Market, GNC, Vitamin Shoppe, etc. (and sometimes 80%, when clearance items come up), but tax is also included and free shipping for orders $49+. Vitacost.com carries almost every brand-name health food on the market, so check it out!!

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My family and I love Vitacost.com so much and find the true value of their service that we have purchased their stock!!

Thanks for Reading,