A little experiment

I've been doing these little experiments to myself a lot it seems. My latest was to test some knee pain I have been having for the last 8 weeks. I initially thought I had hurt my knee exercising or had just slept wrong or something. I do not remember hurting it or doing anything that had caused the pain. It just showed up one day. So for the last 5 days I have been off gluten, the last 3 of them have been knee pain free. Yesterday, my oldest came to visit and ordered pizza. I shouldn't of had any but I didn't feel like cooking or making a green drink. Especially when it Papa John's. 15 minutes after eating, the headache came and I started getting tired, like always. But an hour later, I noticed my knee was bothering me. I didn't want to go to bed at 8pm so I decided to take a shower (which also makes my headaches feel better) and the trip up the stairs confirmed my knee pain was back in full swing. Now I'll have to wait a few days to see if the pain goes away after eliminating gluten again.

Was it worth it? It was at the moment. I think I'll skip the pizza next time and make that green drink.

The incredible, edible...

vegetables! Yes, I know it's supposed to be eggs but I've never had a problem with eggs. I always eat them. Even way back when there were new studies that eggs were bad. What I didn't eat was vegetables. Ever. In fact I was 36 years old when I voluntarily ate green vegetables. And 'ate' really isn't the right word. It's more like drank my vegetables. I was up late one night watching TV with my husband and we happened upon a NutriBullet infomercial. He's another non vegetable eater. Well he did eat peas and carrots but they were usually from a can, not fresh. Anyway, we bought one and I vowed that no matter what it tasted like, I was going to 'eat' my vegetables. Turned out they weren't so bad! Even crazier, we got our kids on board. My son still makes a face when he drinks his green drinks and needs a water chaser but he is drinking it. So since starting the Paleo diet and using a nutribullet, grocery shopping has really changed.

Veggies and meats and hardly anything in a box. When I think about it, it's kind of amazing that almost everything we bought came in a box and the only reason for even stepping foot in the produce section was for fruit. Now the basket is filled with it. I even know the names of not-so-common vegetables now. I'm kind of proud myself. It's been a year since I bought the Nutribullet. At this point in my life, I could care less if I ever eat a vegetable. I'd be happy drinking them if that's all I could ever do.

I accept full...

responsibility for the destruction of my gallbladder. I ate the candy bars and cheese burgers and donuts and pizza. I was "too busy" to cook and popped in countless boxes of "food" into the microwave to feed my family. I did it. I did it all.

8 years ago, I was sent to an ear, nose, and throat specialist due to my daily headaches and sinus issues. After the exam and a thorough allergy test, it was concluded that I was "allergic to Colorado." That's all I was ever told. It wasn't until last year that I suspected I might have a gluten sensitivity. I have never hear of such a thing and since I have never been allergic to anything ever, I didn't think it was likely. 6 months ago, I was sick and tired of being sick and tired so I decided to try an elimination diet. For 2 weeks, I eliminated dairy and grains. Let me just say that I was feeling f@#!ing fantastic! I had more energy than I could get rid of. At day 5, I no longer had headaches and I was blowing out snot in huge amounts. My ears were popping and starting to clear. I was excited. At week 3, I decided to add dairy back in. I never thought dairy could be a problem in the first place and I turned out to be right. There was no change to my euphoric feeling. At week 4 I added wheat back in. Here's where the problems began. Within 20 minutes, I had a headache brewing. After 4 days, I started losing my energy again and had to nap in the late afternoon to make it through the day. It was all the proof I needed to self-diagnose a gluten sensitivity. But just to be sure, I stopped eating gluten for 2 more weeks and introduced it again. No doubt at all.

Naturally, I began to research everything I could about gluten. I bought the book "Wheat Belly" and it made a lot of sense out of what I had been going through for years. Then I read "Grain Brain" and was just disgusted by what I had learned. Then I wanted to search for a new way of eating and decided the Paleo diet was a good fit for me. I'm not a religious Paleo eater except for the gluten. I eat rice on occasion because I am half Japanese and I enjoy far too many dishes that are great with rice. Besides, its in my DNA and I'm sure its impossible to be allergic to it.

So now that I have pinpointed my problem, my next challenge is staying away from it. I'm going to be honest, bread tastes wonderful and the food companies made it that way. It's extremely addictive and I have yet to go more than 3 weeks without it. And I can't stop at one gluten contained food. If I have one, I want another, then another. Next thing I know I've eaten a gluten with every meal for a week. Its only when I feel like total dog shit that I snap out of my gluten induced trance and realize whats happening to me. Then I stop gluten again and the whole ugly cycle continues.

Today is my first day without gluten (again). I was gluten free yesterday until my husband came home and decided to grill some burgers. Yes, I had one, they're figgin delicious! I'm not blaming him at all. It was my choice to eat it and I don't regret it. I have never been addicted to drugs but perhaps I should act like an addict. Eating gluten when you have a gluten sensitivity can have the same effects in a way. It has the ability to destroy your body. I may not rob my friends and family for my next fix but if I'm going through my day dreaming about bread products and weighing my options on the consequences of eating a piece of pizza or some jelly toast, is it really that different? Could I live with that headache or sinus congestion? It's just one...Stop the insanity.

Appreciation

The last time I appreciated my abs was 11 years ago when I had my son. It took me 7 minutes to push him out. Before that, 14 years ago to push out my daughter in 3.5 minutes, and 19 years ago to push out my oldest daughter in 6 minutes.

I appreciate them today because I had my gallbladder removed. I now realize how much movement is dependent upon my abs. I have always known. It's just now, I'm thankful.