Nadia's PW30. "Let's fix it" journey.

[LadyM]

Gottfried is good in theory, yes. I've read her book and followed her for a while. I have a couple of concerns with her methods, though. She's definitely pro-paleo, though she's in the business of selling her own protein powder which is a pea/rice blend and encourages this as a daily breakfast. She also suggests lots of supplementation to readers after prodding them to self diagnose. The longer I work with FMD the more worrisome it is to me that people are encouraged to pick up any old (brand of) supplement at whim. Get one that doesn't work for your body or is at the wrong dose and you end up adding another stressor to the body. I just think it's irresponsible. And this is coming from someone who for YEARS, decades, really, supplemented at whim.

[Nadia B]

Omg, your input is priceless. Thank you. I should stop my monkey mind from trying to achieve million things at a time. Stop inflammation first.

[LadyM]

Omg, your input is priceless. Thank you. I should stop my monkey mind from trying to achieve million things at a time. Stop inflammation first.

I'm here for you, sister. One thing at a time and trust the body. We all need the reminder once in a while. You've certainly done it for me on more than one occasion!

[Nadia B]

Two new posts on the blog. I am still playing with it. I like how organized it is. But I love the way we all communicate here and I love feedback, chatting and discussing. I need to stick to one place. Blah.

These days I started AIP10, cooked pork heart for the first time (and loved it), obsessively tried to make egg free mayo, fell in love with apricot saffron and cherry vanilla kombucha, danced a lot, didn't get any good sleep, have KP and scalp flare up, ate too much fruit and didn't miss coffee too much. Cook up this weekend. Two steaks and 0 clue how not to turn them into shoe sole. Lots of relaxing since everything is closed for the long weekend.

Scoop on what's up in pictures.

[LadyM]

Love the abundance of meat photo and your reflection on being able to love food without guilt now. That's something to remind ourselves of over and over again!

[percypat]

Your lunch boxes always look so nice! Whenever I put food in containers it looks like Jackson Pollock has been having a slinging session with my leftovers. The kombucha sounds divine. I've never even tasted kombucha but you had me at apricot saffron vanilla cherry.

[dukunbayi]

Your lunch boxes always look so nice! Whenever I put food in containers it looks like Jackson Pollock has been having a slinging session with my leftovers.

Hahaha... that gave me a good chuckle. Now, I would actually like to see a photo of your packed lunches.

Nadia, I agree, the meat photo is fabulous. Where is that and is it all pastured etc? I continue to try to economically source good meat.

[dukunbayi]

This is why I've turned to functional medicine. Very frustrating.

How did you find your functional medicine provider?

[dukunbayi]

Nadia, can I offer an unsolicited opinion? 18% body fat is too low for you. It sounds like that's what your body is telling you! Estrogen is stored in body fat etc etc.. you know all that.

I don't think that explains your gut issues, but does explain your amenorrhea. IMHO FWIW etc...

[Nadia B]

Your lunch boxes always look so nice! Whenever I put food in containers it looks like Jackson Pollock has been having a slinging session with my leftovers. The kombucha sounds divine. I've never even tasted kombucha but you had me at apricot saffron vanilla cherry.

Ahaha you can tell I am a bit of a neat freak, right? Do you have kombucha over there? You can grow a scoby from the store bought stuff. I agree that we need a picture as a proof and a mood booster

Nadia, I agree, the meat photo is fabulous. Where is that and is it all pastured etc? I continue to try to economically source good meat.

Yea pastured alligator It's the market near my office. They have any food you can imagine. My little paradise this game meat counter is my favorite. Funny, but most of their stuff is cheaper than GF beef. It's like 9$ per lb here. I'd rather eat ostrich, camel and other cool stuff. Most of their suppliers are good and all meat is at least antibiotic free. About the fat - I have no clue what to do. I have this "fat girl" syndrome (I've never even been fat) - thinking that this will reverse over night and fear of changing. I know it's inevitable (babies etc) and I can't control everything, but... I am working on it, I am in a much better place now.

Quick check in before I crawl back to bed. Photos on blogroll, link is in my signature. Long weekend is going good, but I am grumpy and tired.

Trying to focus on happy stuff, do stuff that excites me (good times with friends playing and walking, going to the circus festival at the harborfront with M (happy realization that I am over this breakup and it's not weird to be around this circus boy anymore), taking care of my herbs and playing with kombucha).

Food is compliant. Too much of fruits (in my head only I think) and odd hunger. I am a little bit paranoid and have a crazy talk in my head all the time. Wtf. Big cooking day today. Protein party. I have two steaks and freaking out, because I always screw them up

Skin is sort of better. I had to eat carnitas from chipotle yesterday and got a flare up and new breakouts by the evening. Sleep is a disaster. My tummy hurts every night. This is something new. I guess coconut milk is tolerated in a very kimited amout here. Can't think of any other triggers in my rather clean eating. But I am happy that my digestion is improving. Sort of, kind of. am going with AIP with no end date. I think I am taking hormones to start my periods.

[percypat]

I never would have guessed! Was just looking online to try and find out if I can buy kombucha in Aussie but there doesn't seem to be any commercial brands. You can order starter kits but I'd like to taste some before committing to that! I can just imagine poor hubby's face when he discovers I've brought a pet scoby to live in our house ...

[percypat]

Hahaha... that gave me a good chuckle. Now, I would actually like to see a photo of your packed lunches.

Nadia, I agree, the meat photo is fabulous. Where is that and is it all pastured etc? I continue to try to economically source good meat.

Gee, pressure's on now ... Will have to make them extra messy to be sure I deliver

[Nadia B]

What's up with me and what's up with me pictures.

-I am off coffee for slightly over a week. It's huge. I still miss it but I don't crave it as badly as I used to. Little win.

-Skin is getting better and better. I hope it's and AIP power but I suspect that it's the bloody hormone pill course I've started to remind my body that I am a woman.

-I am going to stick with AIP as long as my brain will allow me.

-My tummy hurts frequently. Mostly at night or mornings. My BM are getting slightly better.

AIP + low FODMAP + minimual starches is brutal. I totally overestimated my abilities. Then Sarah B. said you can't heal your body and think about weight at the same time. And this launched a crazy and very unhealthy thoughts. Thought I am at much much much better place emotionally right now I just can't switch my brain to "it's over, relax and maintain" mode. I still have anxiety about putting it all back on sometimes.

-I believe that calculating is evil. I do, with all my heart. But sometimes I wish there was a little bit more to this. Simply because the measure "do you feel good" is not applicable here. I don't feel good most of the time. I have mind clarity and energy, yes, but my other health issues make it so hard to evaluate. Eat to support your activity level. What the hell this means truly. My "gogogogo" self will always think that it's just an average activity level. Maybe it is maybe it isn't, you know what I mean? This is where "what if" comes. What if I am putting too much stress for my body? What if I am over estimating my activity and eating too much? What if I am not eating enough? Does it have something to do with my odd cravings...like this week I wanted fat. I could eat a spoon of duck fat straight from the jar. Weird and gross? Oh well, this is what was happening. What if I am stalling my healing with ___. Can I do something like CF? Will I rise my cortisol level so it will affect my healing? And so on and so forth.

- I am having headaches after I eat or in the mornings. What's that?!?!

-I actually think that the major stress in my life is me stressing about stress. This has to end.

- I am practicing "if you feel like" - do it. I had cooking, cleaning and everything in the world planned yesterday. I was dragging. I said fit, grabbed blanket and slept in the sun for 2 hours. Got home and finished everything. It felt pretty good. I am not used to do stuff like this.

When I am not having these panic moments I am pretty happy, productive, positive and very determined to figure it all out. Ballet season is starting soon and I have tickets for the play with Malkovich, my circus aerial silks training is starting soon too. My herbs are growing, kombucha has new house, parents eat paleo but I have a bit of issue with them I will talk about later, Dad seems to be calm about his cyborg arm and half year of treatment starting this week. I hope I will feel better soon. I am so grateful I have a place to spill it all out because I can't really share these with family (I try to be as convincing as possible about their new diet) and friends (no close friends here and my best people abroad are so far from this concept that my trials to explain it to them failed big time).

Anywho, this morning I did everything I could to boost my mood. I sang and danced a bit, and exercised "I love myself". And I took out my funky bag for a good mood. This model is called "Nadine" and that's how it ended up in my closet

Good stuff part or what's up in pictures.

[LadyM]

Fab photos! Sorry you're struggling so much right now. Yin yoga. Seriously. Slow it all down. Or what about a meditation class? I totally get it: stressing about stress is the big stress. Ugh.

Also, why are you limiting starches? I would think daily sweet potatoes/plantains/winter squashes would be ideal.

[kb0426]

My dear Nadia,

Your body is getting hormones added to it. Breath. It will all be okay! I am going to guess that they are messing with your head!

Your kombucha looks amazing, I would eat the offal it looks so good, and I love your namesake bag.

Did I mention to breath?

[calee]

Bravo on grabbing that blanket and napping in the sun. It sounds just like what you needed. I remember your advice to me last week to not push exercise and activity while my body was busy healing. It finally got to where I didn't have a choice. I'm happy today it's getting better.

I miss the coffee too! That said I don't want to add it back in. The only thing I'm craving is beef because I'm sick of pork!

[Nadia B]

Fab photos! Sorry you're struggling so much right now. Yin yoga. Seriously. Slow it all down. Or what about a meditation class? I totally get it: stressing about stress is the big stress. Ugh.

Also, why are you limiting starches? I would think daily sweet potatoes/plantains/winter squashes would be ideal.

Thanks for the photo compliment. One day I will get a fancy cam and go wild. For now it's me and my Iphone cam The description itself makes me die inside. Sitting still. What? I should look for a class around my hood. I can't do this unsupervised.

I am limiting things like yams, parsnips and plantains. I have them on gym days. I am eating butternut, spaghetti squashes and pumpkins almost every day. There are a lot of reasons for limiting them. A lot of resources point out that people with autoimmune issues and gut conditions (SIBO or fructose malabsorbtion eg) are better with lower carb. GAPS/SCD diets that are supposedly fixing the digestion limit them too. Mark Sisson lists them as pleasure foods. This kind of thinking. Second, I am feeling more hungry and tired if I eat lots of carbs. Even safe ones that don't spike my insulin. Third, I can't really estimate my need for them in terms of my activity levels. Last, I forget sometimes that I am in maintenance mode. Stupid I know. Super stupid even. Recently I've read the article that might explain why I wake up at night, so I'll experiment and eat a bit of starchy business before bed. Apparently liver regenerates around 3am and it needs glycogen in order to do so. If there is not enough - adrenal glands release adrenalin. It makes sense to the point, because I eat a lot of protein which can be converted to glucose if needed. Urgh. Over thinking again.

Your body is getting hormones added to it. Breath. It will all be okay! I am going to guess that they are messing with your head!

Thanks, dear KB. Maybe you are right. At least I like the idea I have something to blame this on

Bravo on grabbing that blanket and napping in the sun. It sounds just like what you needed. I remember your advice to me last week to not push exercise and activity while my body was busy healing. It finally got to where I didn't have a choice. I'm happy today it's getting better. I miss the coffee too! That said I don't want to add it back in. The only thing I'm craving is beef because I'm sick of pork!

We all know WHAT to do, but it's easily said than done. I am making progress with this and see benefits, so I feel comfortable to preach advice less is more concept. Wait, there are so many options except of pork...Veal? Lamb? Game meat? Goat? Turkey? Duck? Fish and seafood are pretty awesome too. What about these?

[Nadia B]

How much is too much? I am really wondering. Yesterday I ran home after work, destroyed enormous amount of cranberry pate and ran for the ballet class. It started to rain and I met a girl from flash mob rehearsal and stayed with her for the Afrofusion class. So much fun! Apparently I can't shake my ballet-tuck-in-ass. It's ridiculous. I did a flexibility class after. One shop that usually has crowds of people was still open and I went there to check their sale instead of going home. I felt over the moon - inspired and "high". Not ready to sleep at 9:30 PM (I am awake 6 AM sharp) at all. I couldn't stop moving. It got me thinking. Am I replacing my chronic cardio habit? Am I chasing this dopamine response that makes people run 10k? Am I dancing myself to the ground? In my head I scream no, but what if... I mean when people say I CrossFit 4 times a week and call it a moderate activity just dancing seems like nothing at all.

I am planning a big experiment. After my flash mob will be done I want to have a rest week. Aerial silks and one ballet class only. Slow walking, no salsa (GASP) and no gym (gasp). Yoga 3 times a week. Strict sleep regimen with bit of carbs before bed. I should see the difference after one week, right?

[Moluv]

Nadia is that pic in your apartment? Love!

[Nadia B]

Nadia is that pic in your apartment? Love!

It's the fitting room of the mentioned shop. Skirt test

[Beets]

Is the cranberry pâté the one you posted on the liver love thread? (With heart or something--)

Have livers I need to cook.

[Nadia B]

Is the cranberry pâté the one you posted on the liver love thread? (With heart or something--)

Have livers I need to cook.

Yes. Heart can easily be skipped. I use WAY less cinnamon, but more basil. Add some ghee or tallow/duck fat while pureeing.

I think that Mark's daily apple recipe is my favorite forever. 10 minutes. Best.

[Susan W]

It's the fitting room of the mentioned shop. Skirt test

I love love that photo. Send it in somewhere for an award.

I often wake up at 3. I hate it. Since I have incorporated starchies everyday fairly recently, I still stay up late and wake up early but no 3am wakeups. Just sayin'. :0)

[Physibeth]

I also wake up around 3/3:30 most nights (haven't been recently though) interesting thought about why....I'll have to pay more attention to that.

I think the important thing about exercise is doing things you love because you love them not making yourself do things you think you are supposed to do. I'm not planning on giving up my running anytime soon because I honestly enjoy it. Just my 2 cents.

[calee]

[quote name='Nadia B' timestamp='1369238041' post='103659'

We all know WHAT to do, but it's easily said than done. I am making progress with this and see benefits, so I feel comfortable to preach advice less is more concept. Wait, there are so many options except of pork...Veal? Lamb? Game meat? Goat? Turkey? Duck? Fish and seafood are pretty awesome too. What about these?

I do eat chicken, turkey and fish as well. I ate lamb for lunch daily for a week. I should go back to that! Truth told, I've been lazy. In the office 8.5 hours, walk to work and back, then just lazy after an evening hike. I have to get in the kitchen and get creative if I'm going to keep this up.