Cleanse Day 10 - I'm Clean...now what?

I made it!  I wanted to do this 10 day cleanse for a few reasons.  I needed to jumpstart weight loss, I wanted to clean up my diet, and I wanted to see if it helped my fibro symptoms to eat better.  How did I do?

1.  I lost 6 lbs!
2.  I am really encouraged that I can now eat healthier!
3.  I am feeling really good!

I'd call that success.

So what now?  Well I've come up with a plan.  I have more weight to loose, so I'm still going to be fairly strict with my diet.  Since following this cleanse, I know I'll do well with the diet from Perfect Weight America.  I'll be in Phase 1 for awhile.  On their web site you can sign up for a FREE year of meal planning and support and plenty of other resources.  I signed up and played around with the meal planner, cut out all the icky stuff I know I wont eat (like fish and eggplant and their meal shakes)  I like that it's customizable.  I may not follow all of their recipes for lunch and dinner, but I have a good idea of what is acceptable and I can make that work for my family.  What is most important to me is that there are no processed foods.  I'm sure that is what has made the biggest impact on how I feel.  Which is very, well... clean.



To recap, I did the 10 day Perfect Cleanse from Garden of Life.  The instructions for the cleanse can be found in the book Perfect Weight America.  The author is Jordan Rubin who also wrote The Makers Diet years ago, in which he writes about his journey healing from Crohn's Disease.

Cleanse Day 7 - I think I'm getting used to this

Another good day.  I was thinking this afternoon I wonder what it will be like to eat other foods next week.  Trying to come up with a plan of what to eat next.  I'm really liking Perfect Weight America and think I might give that diet a try.

The last few days I have really noticed how things smell.  Like bread.  I just smell it while making the kids lunches.  I don't think I'll be eating white bread anymore anyway, but I've noticed that it is very satisfying just to smell it.  Same with pizza that I made for the boys the other night.  Just smelling it was fine.  And then while in the grocery store they were baking brownies.  Just stopping to think about those foods & smell & enjoy just that was enough.  I didn't take a bite, I didn't need to!

New fruit tomorrow, and YOGURT and fish!  (not a fan of fish, but I will stomach it for 3 days)

I am feeling really good today.  Not too tired, not much pain, my mind is very clear and I feel...well...clean. 

Cleanse Day 5 - Half Way There!

Yay for Day 5!  Didn't start out so good.  Days 5-7  I'm supposed to have cantaloupe for breakfast and I picked out a bad one.  So sad.  I ate a few bites but couldn't even think of anything else to have, so I just waited until my first snack of peaches.  Thankfully those were good!  It was nice to change up the fruit today.

I had about the same energy level as yesterday.  I'm having some low back pain that has been bugging me, but I don't think it's related.

I was super excited to add nuts and seeds to my dinner salad!  I choose pecans and sunflower seeds and I added a lot!  Probably a little too much.  The meal was very filling and I think I ate too much!

For those that are interested in the directions for this cleanse, you can find it in the book Perfect Weight America. 

Cleanse Day 4

Had some internet issues last night, so wasn't able to post, but here were my thoughts;

Today was a good day.  Feeling not so tired (other than my normal Monday beginning-of-the-week tired)  Had some energy to get a few chores done.  Looking forward to tomorrow where I will have different fruit to eat (and yes, I already went shopping so no excuses) and NUTS & SEEDS on my salad!  Yum.

Cleanse Day 1 - Graperific

I've never done any type of cleanse or fast before.  This was a little scary for me!  I was worried I would be cranky, hungry, have a headache, not have the will power to follow through.
I prayed this morning for God to give me the strength for just today to endure.  And He has!  I'm in a great mood, I am hungry and have a slight headache, but confident that I have made it through Day 1 of 10.

The cleanse I am following from Perfect Weight America teaches that on day 1, I need to drink lots of water 3/4 oz per pound of body weight, and 4 meals of grapes (any kind, I got both) throughout the day.  Along with some special supplements that you can get at Perfect Cleanse.  It's a good thing I like grapes! 


I did alright during the day.  Around 4pm I was starting to get hungry and was worried that grapes for dinner wouldn't be enough.  It was just fine, even though I wanted what the rest of my family was eating.  

I'm feeling pretty good tonight.  My tummy is growling (for the first time today), but I'm heading to bed (it's just after 10) as soon as I finish the last of my water for the day, so I wont be tempted by leftover dinner or popcorn.  I'm looking forward to my mango for breakfast in the morning!  Night!

Yin Inspired Yoga – Deep Stretching for Connective Tissue

I have heard about how great Yoga is for people with fibromyalgia.  Good muscle stretching sounds like a great idea.  I had done some Yoga before I had fibro, taken a few classes from my best friend who is a wonderful Christian Yoga instructor, and I did the P90X program for a summer that included a tough Yoga workout, but I was far from being a yogi.

A couple months after I found out I had fibro, I was ready to do something to try and feel better.  So I went to a Yoga class (a class geared towards more advanced students and instructors!  OOOPS!).  I hadn’t exercised AT ALL since I quit running four months earlier.  There was my first mistake.  My second mistake was thinking I could still push myself like I could before fibromyalgia.  I did the whole 1 hour class.  Sure it was hard, but I didn’t feel too much pain, so I kept going.  My muscles were tight and I started to feel a little off, fuzzy head, but I brushed away the thoughts and went to lunch.  About an hour later I was driving home and started to sob.  I don’t know where the emotion came from but it felt awful and all consuming.  I just cried and cried.  Made it home and fell onto the couch in horrible pain.  I was upset because of what I had done to myself and I grieved for the person I was before.  I knew then that my life really was going to be very different.  I had to rest for the next few days as my muscles recovered, from what felt like a marathon I wasn't prepared to run, and thought I would never do Yoga again.   But I did try again, I took it very slow and modified every move to what I could do.  This is when having a Yoga instructor for a best friend comes in handy.  She recommends Gentle Yoga, Beginning or Aerial Yoga or Restorative Yoga is good for aching bodies.

Ok, let’s get to it.  Yin inspired Yoga.  I ran across this online somewhere and asked my BFF about it.  She was excited to tell me that a variation of this type of Yoga would be great for people with fibromyalgia!  Why?  Well, here is the definition according to Three Trees Yoga:

“Yin is a simple, quiet practice that explores the connective tissue and joints of the body. The major differences between a yin and a traditional yoga practice are that yin postures are passive and done with the muscles relaxed. The poses are held on the floor, for a length of time. This is because connective tissue does not stretch like muscle and does not respond well to brief stresses. The focus of Yin Yoga, then, is to keep the joints and connective tissues of the body mobile. The regular practice of Yin yoga frees areas of chronic tightness primarily in the hips, legs, and lower back.”

Well that sounded fantastic!  Especially because fibromyalgia pain is thought to be largely in the connective tissue.  Yin is a specific set of 25 poses or “asanas” that must be done in order.  You hold each pose 3-5 minutes (10 minutes for some!) so it is a long intense practice and should be done just once a week.  I was no where near ready for that, so my wonderful friend came over one day and taught me 9 poses.  We started with just 2 minutes each and I’ve been adding time to each pose ever since.  Here is what she taught me, click on each asana for more instructions and information from www.yinyoga.com.

Remember, they must be done IN ORDER.

1.       Melting Heart – 3-5 min

2.       Butterfly – 3-5 min

3.       Camel – 1-2min

4.       Cat Pulling It’s Tail – 3-5 min each side

5.       Caterpillar – 3-5 min

6.       Dangling – 2min

7.       Deer – 3-5 min each side

8.       Dragons – 3-5 min each side

9.       Straddle – 3-10 min

I do have difficulty with some of these.  I have tender points on my outer thighs and sitting on them for even a short amount of time is painful.   Not only that, I am also am very inflexible (scoliosis and short hamstrings) so I will never be able to fully do the poses.  I just relax and do what I can.  My friend showed me how to use blankets and bolsters for support.  Some of the poses work your back, so if you find it getting stiff like I did, my friend suggested adding
Child’s Pose in between as needed.

Always check with your Dr. before beginning any exercise routine.  It is very beneficial to have someone show you how to do each pose correctly.  Check out classes in your area!


***Thanks to Christy Parker for all of her wisdom, support and patience!  Christy is not only a Certified Yoga Instructor and Certified Christian Yoga Instructor, but an Instructor in Krav Maga AND has a wonderful blog about natural skin care, home improvement DIY's and more!  Check her out at journeytopowerhousediydarling.blogspot.com

Photo Friday!

I decided to share some of my photography with you all each Friday, and encourage you with God's beautiful Creation and His Word.  Something you can meditate on over the weekend.  You are welcome to download and use this photo with my watermark.  Share it on Facebook, Pinterest, or use it as a screensaver. (photos are not to be sold, or used for advertising, please link back to my shop when using photos online)  If you would like to purchase a print without the watermark, visit my shop on Etsy.  Discount prices for Friday Photos!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/105425688/2-corinthians-129-special-sale

Have a wonderful weekend!

Running – It’s What I Love

I quit running back in September 2011 because of the horrible pain I was experiencing at the time.  This was before I went to see my Dr. and learned I have fibromyalgia.  I was never a great runner, but I loved it.  I had only started a few years before and worked my way up to running a few 5K races with an ultimate goal of doing a ½ marathon someday.  The Tinkerbell ½ Marathon at Disneyland to be exact.  A lot of my pain in the beginning was joint pain, in my feet, knees and hips.  I was stiff in the mornings and so very sore in the evenings I could barely walk.  When I did see my Dr. in November, he confirmed that I should not be running.  Walking instead would be best.  But when I went to see a Rheumatologist for a 2^nd opinion she suggested that I continue to do what I loved, just start slow, build up very slow, pace myself, and listen to my body so I don’t overdo it.  It turned out a lot of my foot/leg pain was Plantar Fasciitis, and I was able to get that under control by learning some stretches and wearing good supportive shoes all the time (very hard for this flip-flop or barefoot girl!  Thanks to my sister-in-law who also deals with this, I was able to find some pretty cute supportive flip-flops by Orthaheel) It took me a few months to try running again.  I wanted to focus on healing my body a bit.

When I first began running I followed the Couch 2 5K Running Plan from coolrunning.  It is a very mild approach of walking/running and building up slowly to avoid injury over 9 weeks.  I loved the program, so I figured I would try it again.  It turned out that trying to run 3 days a week was too much, so I dropped it down to 2.  I have learned a lot about energy management, and for me, this is what I can handle.  I also believe the supplements I have been taking have helped with my energy and opened up more of my day to be able to exercise.  I have to run on days when I don’t have anything else going on, to give myself plenty of time to rest and recover.  Sometimes I have overdone it and suffered for a couple of days after with pain and fatigue.

This was one thing that was worth it to me to try and get back from my life before fibro.  I missed the quiet prayer time with just me and God (and usually my little one ridding in the stroller).  Getting out in nature (well, suburban nature) and feeling the sun on my skin.  It’s always been a great stress reliever for me, and given me a goal to work towards.  So once again I have set that goal of running the Tinkerbell ½ marathon someday.  Currently I am on week 7 of the C25K program although I have been running for 10 weeks now.  I feel great over all.  It has helped with energy, motivation, stress relief and more!

I want to point out that I am NOT telling you to go out and run.  This may not be right for you.  I also understand that I may not be able to do this forever.  You should seek advice from your Dr. about what type of exercise is best for you.  Start slow and build up slowly.  The normal recommendations for people with fibro are
low impact; walking, yoga and aqua therapy.  Even with those
you must build up slowly.

It takes time! 

What do you do for exercise?

Priorities - Where Does Fibromyalgia Fit?

It sure takes a lot of time and effort to revamp your life.  Lots of reading, studying, testing and practicing.  I feel sometimes like this is a new job.  I guess it is.  I have spent hours and hours reading, and talking with others who are living with fibromyalgia, trying to find what God leads me to put into practice in my own life as steps towards healing.  This can quickly take over your whole life,  putting God and family responsibilities on the back-burner!  I KNOW that is not what God wants for me, so where does getting healthy fit into my priorities?

Here is an illustration that shows the Circles of Priority for a Christian Adult according to
Bearing Fruit in God's Family by NavPress:

After talking about this with my husband we came up with the idea that for me, fibro should fall between “Work” (I should point out that "Work" does not necessarily mean a paying job) and “Other."  We’ll call it “Self/Health,” not “selfishness,”  but “Self/Health.”  This is the place to work on getting healthy.  My list for “Self/Health” would include; 

-reading/research on my illness

-healthy eating

-supplements

-exercise (which for me includes lots of prayer time & scripture meditation)

-Dr. appointments

-resting (which could lead back to God)

-blogging (which could also be helping others)

Maybe you would add massage, chiropractor or acupuncture.  Whatever you do that surrounds your illness and healing.  All of these are important and have a place on our priority list.   Here is my new visual which you can grab, print & customize with your own priorities:

 

Certainly there are times in people’s lives where health needs to be moved up on the list.  If you are hospitalized, or going through something like Cancer, your priorities may look different for a season.  When your illness has you so down (physically or emotionally) that you can no longer do the things on your priority list, that is a problem that needs to be addressed.  You should seek help to get things under control.

As I spoke about in a previous post, Job - Help for the Hurting, God allows things to happen in our lives for the purpose of bringing us closer to Him.  Don’t let anything get in the way of that relationship!

My point is this.  Let’s not let fibromyalgia (or whatever illness you have) take over our lives to the point where we are ineffective Christians.

Let’s put it in its place.