Cleanse: Day 1 Down

I should start with the basics, like what this cleanse entails. It is meant to be a somewhat gradual cleanse. I understand week 1 is going to be very hard. Week 2 will be better and I'm going to feel so awesome by week 3 that I'll never want to go back to my old ways! We'll see. Honestly, I'm sure I will make some permanent changes. I'm just not completely sure what they will be (after day 1!). I've already given up dairy and plan to stick to that one.

The Plan
A liquid breakfast (shake, smoothie or homemade juice)
Snack (anything on the approved list)
Regular lunch, so long as it falls within the perimeters
Another snack if needed
Liquid dinner (soup or shake)

It's also very important to give your body at least 12 hours between dinner and breakfast the next day. The liquid meals make it easier to digest food so your body can spend more time repairing and getting rid of the toxins.

Day 1 I had the following:
Breakfast: "Becky's Morning Shake"(you can find this on the Clean Program website, but it consists of almond butter, coconut milk, flaxseed meal, avocado, protein powder and I added a scoop of stevia)
Snack: cashews
Lunch: The hubby made a bean soup that also had chicken and buffalo sausage (I'm not sure sausage of any kind is ok, but I ate it anyway) and watermelon
Snack: (Here is where I started to lose it. Headache kicked in & I didn't feel so great) handful of cashews and leftover roasted beets and parsnips (I'm not sure beets and parsnips are normally a snack, but they were staring at me from the fridge and they are good for you.)
Dinner: "Green Smoothie" which was made up of kale, coconut water, mango, avocado and coconut milk

I expected the first few days to go relatively smoothly for me. I gave up dairy almost a month ago and I've been off gluten for a week. I'm prepared, or so I think. However, I wasn't prepared for the caffeine withdrawal. I was so tired after lunch and then the headache set in. After dinner I was also feeling extremely bloated. Turns out bean soup on day 1 was not a good idea. I referenced the book and ended up slicing up a garlic clove and eating it between 2 slices of apple. I wasn't supposed to eat anything solid after dinner, but I did eat it early enough that my body will still have 13+ hours before I eat again. Beyond that: did you read that I just ate a garlic clove? I think this is supposed to have all kinds of health benefits, but it was not pleasant. I've never done this before. I had a Skype appointment with the hubby following this action and he clearly was trying to move as far away from me as he could. In the end, I do think it worked. Also the unpleasantness erupting in my mouth from the garlic clove made me entirely forget about the headache! Bring on day 2 (note that I still have garlic breath)!!! Next I will post some of the things that make or do not make the list of things to eat.

Never too late for a Spring Clean!

I've been reading "Clean" by Dr. Alejandro Junger, M.D. and it has motivated me to do a 21-day cleanse. It seems like cleanses have become extremely popular over the past few years and until I read this book I thought it was essentially an extreme diet. It's not. At least this one isn't. You will likely lose weight, but the purpose of the cleanse is to get your body operating the way it was intended. Our bodies are amazing! The Almighty created them in a way in which they would heal themselves in many situations. It all works together. However, due to the processed food that we eat and the toxins in our environment, our bodies have gotten out of whack and they've stopped working properly or they are focused on the short-term fix (getting the latest toxin out) and aren't able to do some of their other important functions. Specialists are trained to treat a particular area or function of our body, but they often fail to look at the whole and consider how it all works together. Dr. Junger wrote this book for the average person (like me) who has a few issues, but nothing major, with the intent of getting our bodies back to operating as they were intended. I am starting this cleanse today and will document my journey along the way.

He mentions that it is important to document the reasons you are doing the cleanse in advance. This will serve as a reminder and perhaps as motivation in the moments that you feel like quitting. Below are my reasons.

Why I am doing the cleanse
It would probably be too easy to sum this up in 2 words, but that's mostly why I'm doing it. Here they are: MUFFIN TOP. I can't say for certain when this thing first reared its ugly head. Maybe after child #2, but it seems to be here to stay. I work-out 5-6 days a week. I've changed up these work outs over the past number of years. Each time it seems to make a bit of a difference, but never does the muffin top go away. I cut out soda years ago. I engaged in a 21-day ab strengthening challenge with my girlfriends and have kept up with ab exercises since. A couple weeks before giving up dairy, I gave up sweets (though I did not give up my sweet tea). I don't eat after 8 PM. I don't eat a lot of processed foods. I don't eat out much. Through all this, the muffin top remains. It is my most loyal companion.

If the cleanse also did something about any or all of the following, I would be a happy camper:

I intend to be around for my kids for a long time
I could stand to lose about 10 pounds
My skin is doing weird things: specifically blemishes I don't particularly like
The older I get, the uglier my legs get with veins & I actually have knee fat!
I have varicose veins that appeared in an unmentionable area when I was prego with #2

So begins my cleanse. My next post will include what all this entails. I am fortunate in that my hubby is doing it with me. He is really the cook in the family and his support, along with his creative culinary skills will be of great value!

Update on the Dairy-Free Experiment

I am reminded of when my child was an infant and we first discovered he had food allergies (or hyper-sensitivities). We cut out all milk (aka dairy). He was clearly better, but he was still screaming more than what's normal. The next thing on the list per the GI Specialist was soy so we cut that out. About this time I started keeping a food diary, documenting what I ate and when he had a bad moment. I was able to make a clear correlation with wheat. Once we got all three things out of his diet, he became the happy little bouncing baby that everyone dreams of having. I was never truly sure he had an allergy to soy.

After 3 weeks of giving up all dairy products during our recent experiment, there was no denying that he was much better, but he was still coughing and snuffing more than he should. I mentioned to my husband that maybe we should cut out gluten again and see if that helps. "I was just thinking the same thing," he said. Oh boy! Here we go again! We've been doing this for one week now. On day 5 we both commented once again that it appears to be helping. This is good and bad. I'm happy that we've figured out the potential problem and we can help him get better. But, I will admit I'm a bit bummed that this is going to require big lifestyle changes on our part. You can't just pop in a pizza or swing through the drive-thru in those busy moments. It requires planning and thinking. We will adjust. And we will all be healthier for it.

I have given up these things with him. And so long as I'm putting things out there, why hold back? I do not really drink milk, but I do like cheese and I love having a parfait for breakfast. So most every morning I was eating blueberries or strawberries with plain yogurt and granola. Yum! I figure I'm getting my probiotics this way too. For about the last 6 months or so (its hard to remember when things start), I've been really gassy. It's embarrassing. I even considered taking something for it. After about a week of giving up all dairy, the gas is gone. Also, about a year ago I started breaking-out every month, right before I "started". I've never done this, not even as a teenager. I bought new facial cleaning products. Nothing helps. I finally decided its hormonal, perhaps I'm pre-menoposal and this is just going to be part of it. Until...I did not break-out this month! I've never thought I'd be anxious for my time of the month, but now I'm curious to see if this was a total fluke or if it has to do with the milk in my diet.

To summarize our update: we are officially a milk-free family and have the potential to be gluten-free as well. I will continue to post about our journey and provide recipes and other helpful items we learn along the way. Already I've been reading a few new books which are about to lead us down new paths that I will share. Let the journey continue!

My Duh Moment

My oldest suffers from seasonal allergies. Or, at least I think he does. He gets colds that don't go away and don't appear to be contagious. I've tried all of the over-the-counter allergy medicines and nothing seems to make any difference. When I asked one doctor about whether or not he has allergies she said, "give him allergy medication and if it goes away, it's allergies". So I continue to try different brands. I'll freely admit: I'm not a fan of taking medication every day. So, I'll give him something for a number of days, it doesn't make a difference, so I stop and there's probably a possibility I'm not giving it to him long enough. Said child also wears glasses. At his last eye doctor appointment, the eye doctor said something along the lines of "I see you have seasonal allergies". At least now I have confirmation that the relentless colds are truly allergies. He gave me some eye drops for allergies. In my mind, these won't have side effects so I'm pretty happy with this 'treat the allergies with eye drops' idea. Enter the 6-year-old whose only experience with eye drops was for pink eye and they stung. Fail!

Sometime in March his allergies kicked in again and this Spring has been the worst so far. All the crap gets stuck in his throat/sinuses. And, it is GROSS! He is constantly making this clear the throat/snotty/mucusy/coughy sound and I'm about to lose my mind! Now I'm yelling at him to blow his nose constantly. I'm harassing him for not blowing the junk out. I can't help it. It's like nails on the chalkboard. He already doesn't feel great and now I'm yelling at him. Splendid. Then, due to the stuck junk, he gets a double ear infection. In addition to the antibiotics, the doctor tells me to keep up with the Allegra indefinitely (which was the thing I was currently trying...again) and give him Mucinex for 2 days to clear the junk. I followed orders. Ear infection is gone, but other than that there is no change, not after 2 days, not after 2 weeks, not after a month. I took him off the Allegra and there is no difference. He's still hacking with the best of them...on it or off.

In life we sometimes have "a-ha" moments. You know, those moments when something profound hits you and in some cases, alters your thinking or changes your life. I feel like I had a "duh" moment in this instance.  During a playdate a good friend was talking about a new book she's reading and how all illness stems from the gut. I've written before about said child's food allergies when he was an infant. The biggest issue for him was milk, aka all dairy products. I began to make connections between the "allergies" and milk products. For instance, the allergies started around the same time his school started allowing string cheese as a school snack. He's eating 3-4 cheese sticks a day! He also eats a turkey and cheese sandwich most lunches and has a glass of milk at dinner. This poor kid has already displayed a propensity for a milk sensitivity and he's eating it like there's no tomorrow! DUH!

Reality check: I don't want to be too inconvenienced by taking him off milk. We have an upcoming vacation and this will force us to be very conscientious of where and how we eat. Also, school is almost out and it will be much easier to do this over the summer. So my plan was to wait a few weeks before diving in. It takes 2 weeks to get things out of your system, but I can limit things and then really go full-force when its more convenient. However, he woke up the next morning with that cough that sounds like a seal bark and immediately I found myself buying almond milk in the grocery store at 6 AM! It has been 5 days since I have eliminated milk (this includes cheese, whey and butter) from his diet. He is not clearing his throat as often and it doesn't sound as nasty as it did. My husband, who is somewhat skeptical, even commented on it last night. But time will tell for certain. So far as I can tell, pollen and other causes of seasonal allergies are still rampant so if he is truly clear after the 2 weeks, we will know.

I'm also giving up the dairy. In support of him, so that he's not the only one in the house not allowed to eat certain things, and also because I have this oh-so-lovely muffin top that I cannot seem to get rid of no matter how hard I work out. When said child was an infant and I had to cut all the allergens out of my diet, I was skinnier than I've ever been. I want to figure out if milk is the big contributing factor to my weight issue for my particular body type. I will keep you posted!

School Lunch Ideas

School is in! For my oldest, this marks the beginning of many years of going to school all day, 5 days a week. I thought I was ready. My sweet child is handling it like a champ. I am not. Day 1 was great...it was a half day. Day 2 was a really long day for me. It hit me that his teacher now sees him more than I do. She is now a huge influence in his life. I'm lucky: I actually like her! I will manage. I will get used to the new routine. I enjoy watching my kids grow and gain independence. Eventually I'm guessing I'll wonder how I managed when they were home all the time.

Another struggle of going to school all day...lunch. I've watched enough of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution to know school lunches contain a lot of well, crap. On the other hand, we do live in a district where it seems they are trying to do some of the right things and if I let him eat the school lunches he just might try some new things. It's funny how they are more willing to try new things at other places. At the end of the day, he made the decision for me and reminded me how much they pick up. He assumed I would be sending him with lunch based on some of my comments/actions in the past (I hope they weren't too over-the-top). Excellent! Decision made.

Now begins the struggle of what to send. I've read ideas from other mommy-bloggers, but for some reason it seems they normally involve girls who willingly eat fruits, veggies, and even salads (no joke)! Make no mistake: I subject my kids to fruits and veggies on a daily basis and we even have fun times picking these things out at the store or the CSA, but for the most part, they don't eat them. (My younger one does eat most things fruit, but not my older guy.) Also, the first few days I sent him with his lunch, I sent a little more than what he would normally eat and it wasn't enough. He came home with an empty lunch box, stating that he was still starving afterwards.

Below is a list of the foods I've come up with so far this year to send in his lunch. These might not work for every kid, but maybe it'll give you an extra idea or two. My child loves sandwiches! If you have other ideas, please comment with those as well. I think we can all use as many ideas as we can get on this one!

• Pizza Rolls (think like a cinnamon roll only with pizza ingredients, not the store-bought mystery meat frozen variety)
• Mac & cheese (healthy brand, without the coloring & such. I like Crazy Bugs, but was just told those aren't cool for school)
• Sandwiches rolled up in flatbread (filling & fun, with nitrate-free deli meat)
• Sandwiches in whole wheat pita pockets
• Quesadillas (melted cheese between 2 tortillas)
• Veggie Rotini with a little olive oil
• Hot dog "squids" (nitrate-free, cut the hot dog, insert dry whole wheat noodles & cook per noodle directions, see pic)
• [Jury still out on this one, as the rice paper turned chewy, maybe I'm doing something wrong???] Sandwiches rolled in rice paper (think spring roll: buy the paper & some noodles at the oriental store, get the paper damp, put whatever ingredients inside you want, along with the noodles & roll it up)

Along with these "entrees" some of the sides I've included are the few fruits he will eat, raisins, peanut butter cracker sandwiches, hummus cracker sandwiches, veggie chips and cashews. All along with a couple Hershey Kisses and a little note from mom that I couldn't resist!

Spaghetti Sauce & Enticing Pizza Rolls

Before I got married and learned to cook, I lived on chips & salsa; turkey sandwiches; canned soup; and occasionally pasta with Ragu. I have not gone back to look up the potentially harmful (or not) ingredients in the sauce. Maybe there are a few... maybe there aren't any, but it turns out sauce is very easy to make and if I can eliminate the processing, I will. I make a bunch and freeze it in mason jars, which tend to be close to the amount I want each time I use it for something. I use the same sauce for spaghetti, lasagna, home-made pizza, ziti and pizza rolls.

My cousin introduced me to pizza rolls. She mentioned having them for dinner one Thanksgiving (we had the traditional meal for lunch & she wanted to make something easy for a dinner-snack). Not realizing there was a type of pizza roll that was not made of mystery meat in some fried & frozen pocket thing, I was horrified. I didn't want to offend her, so I went with it. Imagine my surprise when the pizza rolls turned out to be more like home-made cinnamon rolls, except with pizza ingredients. These have turned into a staple at our house and they don't last long. I dread the day my boys are teenagers and I have to make 2 batches to keep up with their appetites.

Spaghetti Sauce
1/2 onion, chopped
3 Tbsp olive oil
4 garlic cloves (I use a press, but you could chop)
1/2 cup pureed sweet potatoes* (or carrots which will make it not as sweet)
2 Tbsp basil
1/2 Tbsp thyme
1/2 Tbsp oregano
2- 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes
14 oz can tomato sauce
3 or 4 Tbsp sugar (we like it sweet)

Saute the onion in the olive oil 2 minutes or so. Add the garlic & saute another minute. Add the sweet potato and herbs and saute another minute or two. Add the rest. Bring to a boil, cover & simmer for 30 minutes. Salt to taste & add more herbs if desired. It's good in the refrigerator for 1 week. It can be frozen up to 6 months.

*sweet potato: prick the sweet potato, wrap it in 2 layers of paper towels (2 layers is key) and microwave for approximately 4 minutes depending on the size. If its soft, it's done. If not, add 30 seconds. Let it cool, peel off the skin and puree by putting it in the food processor. You may need to add a tiny bit of water.


Pizza Rolls
While making the dough for regular rolls,* add:
1 Tbsp Italian seasoning or a combination of oregano and basil
1/2 cup parmesan

When the dough is ready for the rising stage, roll it into a large rectangle (approx. 12" X 18")
(If you forgot the seasoning & parmesan above, you can sprinkle it on at this point.)
Spread spaghetti sauce on the dough (as much or little as you like)
Add the pizza ingredients that you like (I normally do half pepperoni & half cheese)
Roll it up like a log.
Cut it into 12 slices & place the slices in a greased 9X13 pan.
Let rise for an hour.
Cook per the roll directions.

Note: sometimes I add the cheese to the top instead of inside. I also just froze a few of these for an easy school lunch in the future.
*I normally use this roll recipe substituting butter for shortening & using half regular flour & half wheat flour.

Mama's Got Back...and Hips

After I had #1, my back hurt. Perhaps it was because I spent the first 5 months of his life trying to soothe him via rocking, standing & bouncing, going for walks, etc., etc. Mostly what I know is that one day I woke up with my back in such a sorry state that it hurt to breathe. It was time to do something about it. I went to a physical therapist who gave me exercises to strengthen my back. However, if I skipped a day or two I would completely relapse. It was as if I couldn't hold onto the muscle I was trying to build for more than a day. She told me to have X-rays to ensure there wasn't more wrong. I did. There wasn't. My time with the therapist ran out (according to my insurance) so that was that for a while.

When I was pregnant with #2, I again woke up one day and my back was out. I suffered through it & was up and around again after a couple days.

Following #2 my back was still in sorry shape, but that's life, right? I'm a mom with 2 little guys under 3 and I'm bound to have issues. I'd get the occasional massage and life would be good again...for a bit. Then I finally felt up to getting back into shape so I started running. My ankles started hurting. Yes-ankles! I am feeling old. Then the knees. Mind you-I wasn't even running far or much. Nothing like before kids. I found I had to do Yoga at least once a week to keep my back in a manageable state. As it was bound to, it eventually went out again. This time I went to a chiropractor. He started looking at my feet & declared that I over-pronate. Next thing I know he's talking orthopedic shoes. Yikes! However, he's also talking about a plan of stretches & exercises to get me where I need to be and it occurs to me that I should go to a physical therapist instead since my insurance covers physical therapists (and not chiropractors).

Enter physical therapist (aka the angel). He immediately starts looking at my hips. Turns out one of them is rotated back, rendering that leg shorter than the other, which is leading to the back and knee issues. After a series of awkward stretches and movements, he gets my hips back into place. I feel good as new! The problem with me is that my joints move easily so I regularly pop back out, but it's relatively easy to pop me back in again. I've gotten stronger and I've also found it helps to sleep with a pillow under my leg so I don't pop out as often as I used to. Sometimes I can even get my hips to pop back in on my own.

I share this story because I can't tell you how many women I've run into who have the same issue. I also have run into a number of women who are having issues like the ones I was having & have yet to find the physical therapist who correctly diagnoses the problem. I hope that this post finds its way to a few women that really benefit from it! If you have problems, determine if one hip bone is higher than the other when you lay down. If so, find a good physical therapist! When we feel good, it sure helps as we strive to be perfect (or maybe just decent) moms!