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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!!
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!!