Friday, January 8, 2010

*** MAGIC ***

 I think my word for 2010 is  * MAGIC *

This year already feels full of possibilities & opportunities.

& I'm seriously working on reducing clutter, both at home & in the office
(& yes, need to get off-line & on task!!!)

I take part in an on-line 'conversation' group of women who respond to questions every few weeks. This morning, the gal who invited me to participate sent a personal e-mail quiring if the ~ 20# weight loss I experienced over ~ 8 months & mentioned recently had been 'mostly' from the switch to coconut oil.

While that's defiantly contributed, the switch to Gluten Free has played a big part as well! This is what I sent to the group:

yes, (much of the weight loss) seems to have resulted from the shift in oils (using coconut
& olive oil while avoiding others) in the spring, then going GLUTEN FREE in the summer!
I love having a waist again :) The main
thing I notice if I get some stray gluten is bloating.
I use high quality digestive enzymes or vinegar in water with questionable meals.


My energy level is up, & I WANT to move/exercise more because of the extra
energy, I find myself craving 'bad' stuff (anything with gluten, high
fructose corn syrup, & unsaturated oils) tho I still love things like GOOD
chocolate, fresh fruits etc. Pomegranates - I will miss those when the
season's over!!

This link to Grain Damaged offers a good overview of gluten sensitivity.
(the gal who asked about my weight loss suffers from IBS, & this article focuses
on food sensitivities usually playing a huge role in IBS, with wheat/gluten being the main
cluprit!!)

Hmmm - I also got a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) membership this
year, with a local organic farm. I tend to buy local/Organic as much as
possible (I choose coconut as one of the 'from far' foods - still OG) but
having the CSA membership really cuts down on buying 'other' (non-organic)
food. & prompts me to eat more veggies, which we 'should' anyway!

So that's another slight shift. Since 'my farmers' use water from their own well, the
veggies are grown fluoride free - & fluoride interferes with the body's
ability to absorb necessary iodine, while the chemical fertilizers used by
NON OG farmers cut the amt of Magnesium available.
One of my 'additions' this year is a good water filter - that removes the
fluoride! Sigh. Why do *they* have to mess with our lovely NW water??

& 'of course' cutting soy as much as possible from my diet has helped (my
dau still uses some in cooking, & it's also 'hidden' in lots of things)
since soy depresses the thyroid, & coconut balances it, the inclusion of
coconut combined with the exclusion of most soy tends to boost the
metabolism (unless one had an overactive thyroid, then coconut would help
calm it down!) & much commercial soy sauce contains gluten, so Chinese
restaurants are pretty much 'out' unless they're conscious & REALLY offer
gluten free (soy sauce free) options.

Many women start eating more soy during menopause, for the phyto estrogens
- but with the thyroid depression, I suspect that's tied to weight gain!

Restaurant eating has gotten much more selective - I'm a Virgo, & have
been 'health conscious' for years; going gluten free gives me the 'excuse'
to say "Aw, I'm grain damaged - can you bring me . . . ." (a salad w
olive oil & vinegar - or no dressing, a soup not thickened with flour, not
something breaded or fried . . . ) & lots of nice veggies . . .& watch
my friends scarf down a huge plate of something greasy . . . (fried in
un-saturated un-healthy oils to boot!)

****** so that's my personal 'formula' for having dropped ~ 20 # in the last 18 months. & people
have begun noticing - one of the NDs that shares our office asked how much I'd lost the other
day! Her husband has dropped 30# since going Gluten Free last spring; she & their teen son still
eat some, but much less than in the past.
"LIVING WITHOUT" mag has a list of 10 'Must Dos for New Celiacs' (I so like the term 'Grain
Damaged!)
1: Understand your disease - research!
2: Build a Medical team
3: Join a Support group (my dau's best friend is part of ours, I haven't gone yet)
4: Check your Pantry (read lables & toss. Segragate gluten-containing food if one or more family
members still eat the stuff!)
5: Stock the Basics, including some good GF mixes! - Personally, I enjoy having a 'larder' of flours
as well, so I can add play with tweeking recipes (like the chestnut scones!) but I've always been
a 'creative' cook!
6: Dust off your apron (& make some new ones!)
7: Buy a bread machine (my dau got one for Christmas that has a low carb/gluten free cycle
I'm more an oven gal, myself! But do have access to it! & a dear client brot me several GF mixes
as a Christmas gift!)
8: Patronize Local Businesses - YES! & if they accomodate you, TIP WELL & let them know you'll
return!
9: Don't settle
This could be our motto for life - don't settle!! Breathe it in!
10: Exhale - relax - it will be all right - & even better!

Exhaling reminds us to - INHALE!
A psychic friend told me in a reading that when I found myself craving bread, to remember to
take a moment to breathe! That my body was craving more *fuel* - & to think of Oxygen first!
so go outside, hug a tree, & take a DEEP BREATH!!

Oh, dear!! Here's a link to an article on how agave nectar (which I use sporadically) is made!!
Guess I'm retiring that bottle!!

7 comments:

Nadya said...

sorry for the 'wrapped' words - cutting & pasting from my e-mail seems to have messed with the borders - & can't figure out how to correct it :(

Miss Robyn said...

I do use soy milk - mine is malt free, making it gluten free & it is also organic and no GM at all.. I know that there is so much against it but for me, it is better than dairy.. and I only have a little each day .. I am actually trying to go easy on myself this year (last year I stressed about so much food, chemicals etc that I was getting sick from worrying).. so now I have decided to have a little of what I like and to correct it with good healthy organic eating and living :)

Sorrow said...

I have thought about going gluten free, but I love to bake bread. Love the way the house smells, and love the way it feels to Knead it.
Sigh
everything else on your list I have already been doing.
so maybe i need to look at it.
sigh
Thanks for the wonderful advice!

Genie Sea said...

YES! Thank you Dia, for all the info as I am now in the process of being gluten free. I react to soy to I can't eat it. I am scouring everywhere for coconut oil! :)

Nadya said...

Miss*R - it's SO about balance!! & LOVING what we cook/eat - & with soy - one thing they do in Japan at least, (& in sea coast N Europe) is eat lots of sea weed!! Kelp contains iodine, & I think it helps counterbalance some of soy's negative effects!!So go for the sushi :)

Sorrow - the only thing missing from making Gluten free bread is the kneading n the time!! If you do decide to go GF, try making GF scones (which are SO yummy) & look for sorgham & coconut flours - the house will still smell great!!

Yea, Genie!! There are several brands of C Oil available here, & I've been getting the Thai kitchen OG coconut milk by the can - using it for baking & in tea or on cereal (millet, oat groat, buckwheat & quinoa is my current fav. breakfast mix - & cooks in ~ 20 min. delish with coconut milk :)

Serena Lewis said...

This post was quite informative...thanks, Dia. Would you believe I just freecycled my bread machine? lol

I've been trying to cut down on dairy since putting on a lot of weight when I stopped being vegan and went back to being vegetarian at the end of 2008. Hence the reason I have a small amount of soy milk in place of dairy.

Recently, I've turned back to coconut oil and have kelp daily along with other vitamins.

I'm not sure I feel like gluten-free is for me as I've never had a problem with wheat products, however, I do wonder about my adult son who suffers terribly with IBS.

Like Robyn, I've felt so confused with conflicting information over the past couple of years with different foods/products that I've all but given up trying to fathom what's good for me and what's not.

Nadya said...

It is challanging to try to wend our ways through the conflicting advice!! I liked our La Leche League food 'motto' - "Eat (& offer your kids) a wide variety of food, in as close to its natural state as possible!!"
& DO find what works for you!! A gal friend gave me some stone ground cornmeal, from a historic mill she visited. I knew it wasn't truely gluten free (shared mill stones with wheat) so didn't offer any of the OTHERWISE GF corn muffins I made to my granddaughers . . . I took the muffins to a potluck, but there were some left, so I ate a few yesterday; & got SOOO TIRED (just like my oldest granddaughter does, when she gets some 'accidental' gluten!) & *had to* take a nap!
WOW - I was a bit surprised, but think that's what I reacted to! Good lesson in 'when in doubt, leave it out!'
& it was so thoughtful of my friend to bring that little bag - know she didn't think of it as 'contaminated' w/gluten!

moderation, right?