My New Life

Today's post will be filled with lots of reading.  I know that many of you won't be interested in taking the time to read, and that's OK.  But I have something that's happened in my life that I'm very excited about, and I wanted to take the time and tell you about it.  It's changed my life, and if it can change even one of my reader's lives, that will make me very happy!

As some of you know, the past few years have been very difficult for me physically.  It seemed that when I turned the big "50", my body started to fail me BIG TIME!  I've spent the past few years going through an endless round of X-rays, MRI's, spinal injections, physical therapy, chiropractic treatments, and doctor visits.  What all of these things revealed was that I had osteoarthritis in many parts of my body.  In my neck and lower back, in my shoulders, knees, hands and feet.  I was a walking bundle of misery.  In addition to this, I was entering that wonderful time of life known as menopause!  I was experiencing all of the typical symptoms of menopause including hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, headaches and weight gain.  Also, my depression was getting worse, and my energy had left the building.  I spent many months feeling pretty darned hopeless about my life and my future.

Fast forward to August of 2011.  During this time I was discovering some new recipe blogs through Pinterest.  I don't remember exactly which blog I first saw this one particular website mentioned on, but I'll be eternally thankful I did!  The website that taught me a new way of living is Mark's Daily Apple.  The "Mark" of Mark's Daily Apple is Mark Sisson, who developed a way of eating/fitness/lifestyle, called The Primal Blueprint.  Mark's approach to health is similar to a paleolithic lifestyle, but it's a bit less stringent, which is why I think it appealed to me.  About the same time I discovered Mark's Daily Apple, I came across a review of a new book that was out called Wheat Belly.  The concepts addressed in this book fit in quite nicely with Mark's primal way of eating, and the combination of these things convinced me to give it a try.  Certainly losing some weight would be a good thing for me, but I was even more interested in experiencing the health benefits of this way of eating.   I'm including a link here to many of Mark's "definitive guides to..." posts that will supply you with tons of information should you be interested in reading further.  I also have lots of links in my text below to explain things more fully.


Here is some basic information on what I am and am not eating these days:


The foods/food groups that I have totally eliminated from my diet, or 99% eliminated (a girl does have to eat out sometimes, and it can be difficult to find great, whole foods when doing so), are:

grains
sugar
industrial oils
processed foods


So what do I eat these days?

MEAT:
I eat grass fed beef and lamb, pastured chicken, turkey, and eggs, and pork from happy piggies (nitrate, MSG, and additive free).  I also eat lots of liver, which I discovered is really a super food!  I'm very lucky to live near a farm that is dedicated to producing these wonderful products.  If you can find, at the very least, a farm where you can buy pastured eggs, you will be doing your family a big favor.  For those who might say they could not afford to eat these products, I can honestly say that all the money I save avoiding my off limit foods listed above more than pays for good, whole, healthy foods!

FISH:
I eat a variety of fresh/frozen fish and seafood.  I also supplement with cod liver oil. 

VEGETABLES:
I think I eat more vegetables now than I've ever eaten in my life!  Kale, Swiss chard, collard greens, spinach, romaine, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, celery, beets, turnips, parsnips, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, mushrooms, cucumbers, OK, I think you get the idea, I haven't met a vegetable yet that I do not like if it's prepared properly!   I buy organic when possible.

FRUIT:
I don't eat tons of fruit (I think I make up for that in my vegetable consumption however), but when I do eat fruit it tends to be berries (all kinds), apples, melons, and citrus fruits.

FAT:
I eat A LOT of fat.  This makes sense because if you eliminate all grains from your diet you have to make up the calories somewhere.  If you take the time to research this you will learn that healthy fats are a very important part of the diet (contrary to conventional wisdom).  I eat and cook with extra virgin coconut oil, lard and beef tallow, olive oil, avocado, seeds, nuts and nut butters.

DAIRY:
On the Primal Blueprint dairy is allowed if you can tolerate it.  One thing I learned is that many people who cannot tolerate pasteurized dairy products CAN tolerate raw dairy products.  This is because there's something in raw milk that allows your body to deal with the lactose in milk, but this substance is destroyed in the pasteurization process.  Hence why some people are "lactose intolerant".  My family has switched to almost all raw dairy products that I buy at a local farm.  Raw milk, cream, butter, yogurt, and cheeses.  I'd never even tasted raw dairy before discovering The Primal Blueprint, and I have to tell you that it is absolutely DELICIOUS!

MISC:
I try and eat a variety of fermented foods.  I've learned through my research that these things are good for our bodies.  I also make bone broth, and drink it often.  I occasionally partake in a nice glass of red wine, and some dark (70% or darker) chocolate (these 2 items are allowable on The Primal Blueprint, and do have some health benefits).  When I need a sweetener for something, my choices are stevia, raw honey, or pure maple syrup.

Now I would like to tell you about some of the AMAZING health benefits I've experienced since I started following the Primal Blueprint on Sept. 1st:

1.  I've lost 25 pounds (and that's over the holidays, folks), and have never once felt deprived doing it!  And along with those pounds I've lost the horrible cravings for sugar and grains that used to plague me!

2.  The pain in my joints is GONE!!!  I was facing a knee replacement operation because of the pain I was in, now that has been postponed indefinitely.

3.  ALL of my menopause symptoms have vanished, and I am no longer using the hormone cream I had been using to tame my symptoms.

4.  I had been taking 2 different anti-depression medications to help with the depression I was suffering.  I am currently just taking one of those medications, and at half dose of what I had been.  Soon I will cut that dose in half again, and if I still feel terrific I will try to go without the medication altogether.  I never thought this would be possible!  My moods are very steady and even these days!

5.  I have an abundance of energy.  I used to HATE exercise, but now look forward to my daily walks.

6.  I sleep more soundly.

7.  My acne and rosacea have cleared up, and my skin and hair have a healthy glow they didn't have before.

I've given you A LOT of information here, yet I haven't even scratched the surface of all the information that is out there.  Believe me, I've spent the past few months reading voraciously!  But it's totally been worth it.  The quality of the life I'm living now is leaps and bounds above what I was experiencing just a few short months ago.  I wouldn't trade what has happened to me for all the world.  Instead of dreading the aging process, I now look forward to my health improving as time goes by.  What more can one ask for?

If you have questions for me please feel free to ask them in the comments section below and I'll answer you there, or shoot me an email.  At some point I might do a post of some of the helpful resources I've discovered over the past few months.