Pursuit of Health
 

I recently tried the South Beach Diet and found it was a very extreme way of eating, and triggered all kinds of binge eating urges for me (I have had a binge eating disorder for many years). In the past I've done Weight Watchers, Atkins, Protein Power Plan, Slimfast, Intuitive Eating, fasting, and a whole range of binge eating in between these... Over the past year I've come to realize that dieting is NOT the answer for me, and looking back at my weight history, the only evidence i see of a truly health lifestyle was when I was NOT dieting. As a child I was very petite and slim. Then puberty hit and WHAMMO! I went from being this little ballerina-type body to a voluptuous woman. I was still slim (at 5'4" and 130 lbs), but compared to my pre-pubescent body, I felt enormous and awkward in my own skin. To add insult to injury, my mom, who was quite overweight, started nagging me about what I was eating, and I started sneaking food to avoid her lectures... Over the next 14 years I managed to put on 110 lbs... When I got pregnant with my son I was 239 lbs and miserable. The during my pregnancy I stopped worrying about weight loss, and just ate for my health. It was the healthiest I've ever eaten as an adult! I ate only when I was hungry, only until I was satisfied (not bursting, as that meant I'd immediately throw up), and only what really appealed to me. I only gained 17 lbs during my pregnancy and after the birth of my son, I dropped down to 230 lbs immediately. Then people started warning me about regaining my pregnancy weight cause my appetite would increase so much while nursing, so I joined WW, and dropped down to 205 lbs. I was CONSTANTLY hungry though, and couldn't maintain it, and ended up binging my way back up to 230 lbs. A year ago I got totally fed up with the whole diet INDUSTRY and threw all of my diet foods and books in the trash and gave up dieting for good. I have maintained my weight just by switching to healthier options like whole wheat and whole grains instead of white flour in things like breads, pasta, tortillas and rice... I completely eliminated all artificial sweeteners and after some experimentation, discovered my favorite beverage is club soda and unsweetened cranberry juice or unsweetened organic teas. I have also started buying as much organic whole foods as is available, and leaner cuts of meat, such as salmon, chicken, and lean beef. Unfortunately I'm surrounded by chocolate bars, candy and chips at my work (I work for a movie rental store), and that has been my downfall... I'm wanting to commit to eating healthier and want to cut those out of my diet now too.

So here's a challenge... Anyone that's interested in pursuit of health is welcome to join this thread (sorry about the SBD thread that died such an early death... :blush). This is NOT a diet... it's about making healthy life choices, including exercise, food, and lifestyle. Please post any suggestions you have to promoting health in your own life.

Here's mine in bullet form:

• Eliminate all artificial sweeteners
• Drink lots of water
• Walk my son to and from preschool everyday (40 min) and go on a couple longer walks each week
• Add as many organic, whole foods to my diet as are available
• Eat treats and sweets in moderation (1-2 times a week)
• Lean protein
• Better time management for university studies
• Reduce sugar/processed carbs/additives

I can't think of anymore right now, but I'll add to my list if I think of any others...  :think

April

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

Have you read If It's Not Food, Don't Eat It! by Kelly Hayford? It addresses quite a bit of what you're talking about. It's not a diet book, just a health-by-nutrition book. The author talks about her journey from sickness to health and everything she learned about food and the food industry along the way. I'm nearly done with a in Holistic Nutrition, and this book covers the basics of what I've been learning the past couple of years. I'm going to suggest they add it to one of the intro classes.

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

Hey April, how are you doing? Being surrounded by snacks is really though. Are you still bringing snacks to work?

I know SBD wasn't working for you, so I'm not sure I should bring it up, but... thanks to you I've lost 2 lbs in the last 4 days. I am stunned. Of course I'm getting sick of eating this way - and I'm on a seriously adapted program.... Not sure how much longer I'm going to want to keep at it.

and thoesly, I'm really interested in your Holistic Nutrition degree. Could you tell me where you are studying? (pm me if you like) I'd like to look up that program. I've been thinking off and on about studying nutrition - once my kids are in school maybe.

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

Let's see if my attempt to link works. I just wrote something about this on another thread: http://www.gentlechristianmothers.co...?topic=78132.0

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

I'm doing great! I brought myself an apple, cheese stick, pistachios and sesame snacks to work today, and had no trouble foregoing the Reeses Peanut Butter Cups that were calling my name... I did have a coke, but that's cause I forgot to pack my water :td I even went out for coffee at a donut shop and just got a can of sprite (yeah, I know, more sugar), but at least it wasn't accompanied by a donut! :giggle

Ellyanne, and anyone else, please feel free to share whatever you are doing... just cause it didn't work for me doesn't mean it doesn't work for everyone... and congrats on the weight loss! That's awesome!!! Surprisingly, I was actually down 2 lbs this morning too... :shrug :grin I'll take it! :woohoo

thoesly, thanks for the info about that book. I'm going to see if my library has it... I love reading, and I really love learning about healthy eating... I might even have to go buy it! :tu

April

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

I am sick today, and things are not going well. I have the worst cravings for cookies. Maybe because my body is not feeling well, and it thinks the cookies will make it better? I'd been doing really well up until today.

Of course part of it may be that because I am sick I cannot go out tonight with some friends, (where I was PLANNING to ignore my diet :giggle). So maybe it's the disappointment?

Whatever it is, it is hard.

But I feel proud of myself. I went out (to buy tissues and cough drops) with every intention of buying cookies. Either pre-made dough or bakery cookies or chocolate chips to make them myself. And instead I bought a tiny single serving bag of chips ahoy. So now I've had my cookies, and I feel like I can resist further temptations better. And the bag was only 170 calories, as opposed to the hundreds of calories I'd have eaten if I'd baked them myself.

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

I tried South Beach and could not even get through one day on stage one. It was too hard for me. I could not do it at all.
I did weight watchers a couple of years ago and am a lifetime member and went back this month.
Have you ever tried WW? It is a healthy way of eating.
I know it is healthy to eliminate artificial sweetners, but I don't know if I can do that.
How are you doing with that?
I drink diet coke zero and diet peach tea with artificial sweetner. I'd have to quit all that and drink just :jawdrop water.
I think that should be a goal for me but I don't know if I can do it.
What do you drink?
I can't drink milk - lactose intolerance.

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

I actually really like water. I also like it with a splash of cranberry juice for flavor.

For me, getting a brita filter makes a big difference, I really don't like the taste of my tap water. You could try it with a squeeze of lemon too, it makes a big difference.

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

Yes, I have done WW more times than I care to admit. :giggle I've lost weight doing it in the past, but find that I get to obsessive compulsive about counting every little thing... it's not healthy for me to "diet" in any way that requires counting, weighing or measuring food cause I just become obsessed with it... It starts taking over my entire life...

As for the artificial sweeteners, I did some research online about it a few months ago, and decided it was the same as eating small amounts of poison, and realized that was just completely ridiculous. I was having difficulty concentrating, and my memory was getting progressively worse all the time, my stomach always felt like a nervous stomach (you know, all butterfly and knotted up), so I decided to just cut it out of my diet completely. I don't buy ANYTHING now that has any artificial sweeteners in it, and I used to be a complete diet coke addict. I'd drink about 3-6 cans a day, and did that since I was 13 years old (and I'm 30 now). Once I decided that it was really that bad for my health, it was no hardship to stop having it.

I experimented with different things, organic sodas, juice, tonic water, etc, and found it was all too sweet. I really like carbonation though, but none of the sodas I tried were thirst quenching like I found diet coke to be. Finally I decided to mix a half and half combination of unsweetened cranberry juice and club soda, and I had it! The perfect beverage... low in calories, healthy, and still had that carbonated punch! (I really ought to patent the idea!) I also love green jasmine tea, green mint tea, or chai black green tea (none require sweetener) for something hot to drink. They are also refreshing iced. Sometimes I'll make a big mug of chai black green tea before bed and put it in the fridge and have it with my breakfast for my caffeine fix in the morning.

I'm a big fan of brita filtered water too... I always keep a full jug in my fridge and fill my water bottle throughout the day... mmmmmmmmmmmmm

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

I am a certified Biblical Health Coach and I recommend "The Maker's Diet". It is great!!!

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

Oooooh. This reminded me of another book you might like -- The Truth about Beauty by Kat James. Whereas the "food" book I listed above is all about health, this is about health and appearance. The author describes her journey from food obsession (I think bulimia, but it's been awhile since I read it) and having to use *lots* of make up to look good to her current state of health and minimal makeup (and looking better than ever). The book was interesting from the nutritional standpoint -- what consuming those chemicals can do to our health and appearance (think about what smoking does, and it's not even ingested) -- and also from a beauty standpoint (using the "wrong" products to achieve beauty today can lead us to problems later). It listed tons of products that I had never tried before that have since become favorites -- everything from Teeccino and Yogi cocoa spice tea to Zia makeup. And there are many simple, satisfying recipes like your club soda/cranberry juice (I think she might add pomegranate juice, too). Definitely worth a look for the drink "recipes" alone.

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

Cutting back on sugar has been a big help for me - I highly recommend Sweetleaf stevia Plus. It's got inulin fiber and it's not an aritificial sweetner, just an alternative one. :grin

More later...gotta run...it would be TMI if I told you why, ha ha...

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

Stevia is great! Xylitol is good too but its gotta be pure! The non-pure stuff is not great.

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

I guess the xylitol I got was not pure, because it was :crazy2

I am trying to get a regular exercise routine now. Evening sugar cravings are what kill me. During my period, I have almost no appetite, but the rest of the time I am like a weasel on crack when it comes to sugar...baked goods esp. I am over the candy craving phase so far (and Candy Season is upon us, staying around until MArch, when the last of the Valentine candy is on sale).

So by "cutting back" on sugar, I mean cutging out soft drinks entirely, and not putting sugar in my tea. I drink mainly iced and hot tea, and water. To overcome ice cream cravings, I eat low fat homemade custard or lowfat chocolate milk (organic lactose free). And like you, April, I just generally try to eat whole, natural foods.

What I would like to know is, how do you do a regular exercise routine with a toddler? I don't know how to fit it into my day. i have some tapes I have loved in the past but I am not sure how I could do them every day with ds. :think

Re: Pursuit of Health
 

I do tapes at home too, and I'm actually doing pretty well just letting him play near me while I do them. He's gotten used to them. I think it took him a few times to get used to it, but mostly now we do fine. Of course sometimes he has off days and wants to be held. (Man, the squats those days are intense :phew)