The Vanishing Divas

Good Intentions (part 1)

2006-06-11T21:03:00.000-05:00

OK, I promised you a plan so here it is: Diet & nutrition, supplementation, exercise & lifestyle.

Firstly, as we know, before you can jump into any type of change you have to mentally prepare yourself for it. Not only to develop a plan but to stop making excuses for not starting. You have to take a good look at yourself and see the ugly parts that you want to make better. But don't forget to notice the good things too, the things you like, as they help you continue when you feel like stopping.

This is Diva T's PLAN to change her life. I am not a doctor (nor do I play one on TV) and if you decide to follow any of this you do so at your own risk. Don't sue me because you harmed yourself, did not lose weight, etc. as I don't have any money anyway. Seek the advise of your doctor and blame him (since it is in my opinion most doctors' heads are up their ass, but that's a different topic all together). Based upon my own education and experience I am putting together a system that I believe will work for me; your mileage may vary. (Sorry, my lawyers made me say that.)

DIET & NUTRITION
This should be simple but for most people it isn't. Let's start with some basics: to lose weight you must expend more calories than you consume, that's a given. However, to be healthy you need to eat good quality food with a high nutritional value. That being said, free range meat and organic veggies (no hormones, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc.)

I know I need to avoid my food allergies/sensitivities along with sugar (the hyperinsulemia thing). When you consume food that your body has a sensitivity to it reacts like there is an invader, such as a virus or bacteria. It then starts to fight this "invader". And think about it, if you are eating multiple sensitivities everyday and with every meal, your body is in a constant defense mode, i.e. under stress. Your immunity lowers (thus making you more likely to get a cold), your cortisol (stress hormone) level increases causing weight gain and systemic inflammation and you experience fatigue.

My diet:

Avoid food allergies/sensitivities and sugar
Consume less food/calories
Eat healthy, low calorie foods, preferably organic
Modify diet to be mainly Mediterranean or Asian in style
Eat more raw veggies and whole grains
Try to eat complex carbs vs. simple
Reduce fats (especially the bad ones)
Drink lots of water
Minimal fruit/fruit juice, and alcohol (and do I really have to say no soda?)
Healthy, low cal snacks only

Along with the above I will also need to make sure I eat a minimum of 3 meals a day and no food in my belly past 8 p.m. And I need to eat my largest meal at breakfast and my smallest at dinner, thereby boosting my metabolism first thing in the morning and giving me a chance to burn off the calories I consume during the day. Eating a small meal in the evening and not eating late gives your digestive system a chance to "rest" and you can burn calories in your sleep.

SUPPLEMENTATION
Anything you eat you need to be able to digest; if your body has problems digesting a something (sugar, fat, protein) then you'll not be able to absorb all the nutrients in the food and your body has to work harder to process it. One of the solutions is to use digestive enzymes to help break down the food so you can digest it.

It also goes without saying that if you are eating a well balanced diet you shouldn't need to take a vitamin / mineral supplement. However, as we've seen with our food supply in the past 30 years or so, due to farming practices your food may not have the nutrients you think it does. So, I plan on taking a good quality vitamin everyday (or at least when I can remember). For me, I usually get my supplements through Nick since they are pharmaceutical grade and the quality is known to be high.

One thing I do take faithfully is 5-HTP. 5-HTP is great as a appetite suppressant, mood elevator and insomnia treatment. It is an amino acid that is the precursor for serotonin production. Raising your serotonin levels is shown to relieve depression, which is a good thing if your kinda in a funk due to being overweight.

The last thing is adding Omega 3 & 6 oils (fish oil and flax seed). This is great for reducing inflammation in your body. People that are overweight usually have a higher inflammation levels in various body systems, i.e. muscular, digestive, nervous, and by reducing the inflammatory response it helps to relieve various aches and pains and will help you become active sooner.

My supplements:

Digestive enzymes
Vitamin/mineral supplement
5-HTP
Omega oils

Of course, I will add supplements as needed (I really do have a cabinet full from when I was practicing BioSET). When I do I will add the "what" and "why".

It seems kinda simple but I know from experience that the system isn't the problem; my staying focused and motivated is. I'll add part 2 within the next day or so outlining the exercise and lifestyle changes. I hope writing down my plan will inspire you to formulate a plan of your own. Here's to our health!

Rough Draft: VirgoDiva's Diet Plan.

2006-06-06T19:51:00.000-05:00

This picture is so me, but minus the brown air. Under the color blond (bleach) is exquisite natural color: ash brown/red. Yuck. I liked this picture because it's girlie, but it's just like me to sit down at my computer and figure stuff out. I wish I was just as skinny too! Anyway! I am not sure what kinds of foods my body likes. I know some people do not do well with carbs at all and some people do ok with them. I am trying to remember successful attempts at dieting. Jenny Craig was one of them. I ate smaller portions throughout the day and I watched carbs. I do well with protein and veggies. I need to read a bit more and see if it comes to me - what does my body like to feed off of? I know when I diet well, I lose weight quickly. That has always been the case. I think Poetic Diva has seen me go through that a time or two - *wink*. However, I will say this! Now that I am 35, wow! I don't lose weight as quickly. I can surely see this. However, I am still not slow at losing weight when I get real about it.

I am going to try my hardest not to combine bad carbs with protein. Ok, wait .. I won't eat carbs at all with protein other than the carbs that are in certain veggies. It might not be a good idea, so I will consult with Susan Somers. I trust her way of thinking and eating. She has great info out there and is rarely disputed! I was good today. I held up! I ate only my protein for dinner! No side carbs at all! I have had a total of 30 something ounces of water today. I can easily drink 32 to 64 a day when I put my mind to it.

Shopping: I am going to make a list of all my favorite healthy foods and all of my favorite snacks and good treats that Trader Joes's sells. I am going to make these foods into meals. What will I eat with what? I will write down snack and meals that will be acceptable for the carbs/protein route - food combining. I will take this list and go to Trader Joe's and find anything and everything else that I can eat, that I like, and mark it on the list. I will stick to small amounts of meat: chicken, fish and very small amounts of pork and red meat. Pork isn't actually that bad depending on what kind of pork you buy. I am going to add a lot of grains to my diet and watch bad carbs like: sugar, potato, white breads, processed crap etc ... I am already buying organic breads that are multigrain, wheat with high fiber. I don't do well with a lot of soy, as most people don't. It's gassy and causes a weird reaction in me at times. I will try to steam or bbq my food/veggies. DivaT recently read me an article about bbq'd food and temperatures. If you don't get the food hot enough it causes some kind of reaction and it goes against weight loss. I am sure she will talk about it. I forget the whole story. Anyhoo - I am going to make sure I do my "juice blend" in the morning, the one I shared in a previous post. I will always have healthy snacks around so if that horrible craving comes along I will have an alternative. Remember the brown rice bread with creamed honey and cinnamon? Not diet, but surely much more healthy than chocolate! I won't feel guilty having one slice!

exercise: I will try to walk more and not use the car for every little thing. I want to get to the gym 2 times a week for starters. I want to buy a bike for everyone in the family. There are so many places to bike around this area. I can buy an infant tag-a-long thing, so Logan can sit comfortably in the back and ride with us. We can start off slow. A 30 minute stroll on a bike path or even the prairie path. Brenna loves to ride her bike and Kyle and I like biking too. When he gets a job we will do this. That will hopefully make up for the time I am not in the gym. Miss DivaT has a bike too. Do you PoeticDiva? I can't remember.

I want to live normally. I don't want to obsess over this. I want to go out and have fun with friends and eat out from time to time, but if I do this at least 75% of the time, I know I'm in business! I know that it works for me. If I can be super strict from time to time and step up exercising, then I will be in even better shape for it.

Next post will come my shopping list. I don't want to do one until I hear from you guys. I might be totally missing something. I guess I did not talk about high grade supplements and vitamins. I will take them as well.

I am excited! For real.

I have Questions and I'm Curious - read on my fellow Divas!

2006-06-06T13:25:00.000-05:00

I am going to assume you have not had a chance to go to some of the links I have posted about eating carbs/protiens "food combining" as my friend Diva T informs me of the official term. I REALLY want to afford a blood test, but after doing research with creditable sites and doctors, the test are not 100%. I have read that some people do have success, so where do you go from here? Miss Diva T said that when she ate well and stayed away from things that were known allergens, she lost a lot of weight. She also lost that weight because she ate very pure and consumed less, and also ate really good calories. When you are heavy, it seems like the first couple of months are good weight loss months. I think I will table the blood test for now and continue research. What is most important is what works best for all of us right?

PoeticDiva- what are you plans for eating healthy? Do you plan to research food and what and how you should be eating? I ask because I would love to hear from you as well as DivaT as you both come up with your plans. I want to learn and see if there is anything you guys are doing that would benefit me as well. I will share my plan too. I hope we can support each other and help each other with our plans. Some of us know more than others about nutrition, some of know more about vitamins, stress, fatigue etc .. I would love to see/hear about your plans and I will share mine too!

One thing I will note is that eating well can be expensive. What a shame too! I don't always have the money to go to Whole Foods. I can shop at trader Joes most of the time, and sometimes I can get to Fruitful Yield. We need alternative places to buy fresh fruits and veggies. I know of some great fruit markets where we CAN buy that stuff inexpensively. I am not sure where to get organic and healthy meat/snacks more cheaply other than going to trader Joes. I guess we can read labels and try to match products at other places? I also know of two food co-ops in Chicago.

I am not sure on PoeticDiva's methods for weight loss, but I am familiar with DivaT's method. I would like to know more about both. I think I am mostly on the same page with DivaT, and I wouldn't be surprised if PoeticDiva agrees too!

Positives: I am great about going out and getting all that I need to be on a food routine. I love all kinds of foods and I am very picky. I am open minded and will try most things. Negatives: eat too much sugar and I need more staying power. The weight loss thing is just tough isn't it? My biggest problem won't be what I eat so much as getting out of the house for exercise. I have time for it, but life is so nuts right now I feel like it's a hard thing to plan for. Having a newborn doesn't afford TOO much flexibility. I now have tons of sitters to baby sit for us, but no money to pay them regularly at the moment. Not until Kyle or I get a job. So I can manage weight by food intake - quantity, combining and type. For now I think I can get to the gym at least 2 times a week to use the treadmill. Hopefully, Diva T will go with me at least one of those times, if not two!! I would love to see PoeticDiva there too, but I don't want to push! :) :) :)

I realized I have a phone appointment to keep, going to cut this short for now. Will be back later. I did well today! I ate only carbs this morning. I waited and then ate fruit. For lunch I am eating proteins. I have had 24oz of water too.

I agree with DivaT - I need to still come up with a plan. I have it in my head, but I need to write some stuff down. Next - I just need to DO DO DO.

This Diva is vanishing!

On the Road Again...

2006-06-06T00:30:00.000-05:00

I've been spending the past few days trying to organize my thoughts and prepare myself for this huge undertaking of changing my lifestyle...it seems overwhelming and is such a long journey. But I have done it in the past with great success and I know quite a good bit about nutrition and healthy eating...however, my problem is not my lack of knowledge but of motivation. I'm just too damn lazy and I hate to sweat!

For me, the best way to lose weight is to avoid my food allergies. My good friend Nick is a holistic health physician and specializes in women's issues. He routinely sees women with fibromyalgia and weight issues and most can be treated by diet. I know, it's hard to believe and I didn't myself until I was just about at wits end 5 years ago and finally decided to give it a try. He did a bloodtest (not the usual one you can get at your docs, it's quite specialized) and we found out that even though I was eating healthy, it was actually harming me. What I thought would be good for my body was causing inflammation because I had sensitivities and allergies to many of the foods I ate!

So, I change my eating; not really a diet because I didn't reduce the amount I ate but just avoided my sensitivities. And you know what? The weight POURED off...I lost about 40 lbs in 3 months; 65 lbs over the course of 5 months. I felt great! Slept soundly, woke up with tons of energy, sinus problems cleared up, had no gastrointestinal issues at all. I felt lighter and my mind was clear...no brain fog! Doing this along with avoiding sugar is my key. I am hyperinsulimic, which means my body produces too much insulin. So with that excess insulin my body craves sugar (or a simple carb) to balance it out...which then causes the pancreas to produce more insulin because I ate sugar. Vicious cycle! Not to mention that having excess weight increases your estrogen level and promotes fat storage. God, gotta love hormones!

Here's a good link to the revised food pyramid that the government put together. You can also take a little quiz to determine your best pyramid. And as always, you can adjust it to suit you.

I am not happy at my size. I am within about 8 pounds of being my heaviest. I have self-esteem issues because of it and I know that the many aches and pains I have are because of my weight. I may be healthier than the 100 lb girl at work with high cholesterol, a heart condition and a nerve disorder, but I don't feel it. I'm sick of making excuses for my laziness and saying every damn day, "I'll start tomorrow" or "I'm not that big". Excuses are all they are and it's a false absolution. I don't want to think I'm healthy at this size...I want to be healthy about 70 lbs lighter.

My goal is the holiday party at the beginning of December. I had a terrible time finding a fancy dress for it last year and felt very self-conscious. I wanted to be sexy and stunning, damnit! But instead I got pathetic and frumpy. That is not me!! At least not how I see myself and I'm tired of wasting my time dreaming about what I want to look like or wishing I'd win the lottery so I can have the time and money to commit to this change. It's not gonna happen...I'm the only one who can change my life and it's time to step up to the plate and take action.

That being said, we each have to figure out what works for us and do it. Support instead of enable one another. With a little tweaking to my old plan, I am going to start a new one and add in a few more tricks to see if I can give it a kick start. However, knowing I suck at will power getting started will be the most difficult task. I've done some research recently and I've pretty much decided my route...it involves dietary changes, supplementation and exercise. And the support of the Vanishing Divas, of course!

I will post more details later...right now I have to get to bed.

A broken scale.

2006-06-05T23:17:00.000-05:00

Experimental scale evaluation procedure:

Calibrate the scale to read zero with no load.
Heave myself upon scale
Witness its grim determination.
Evacuate scale wearing horrified expression, hand over my gaping mouth.
Unburdened scale does not read zero.
Consider the relative probabilities of (1) having gained weight, or (2) having bought a faulty scale, or (3) both.
Repeat process at leisure.

I've been dieting two weeks, and I don't know what the results are.

I'll say this, though. A month ago, I routinely saw myself in a mirror that gave me a view down to my thighs, but I've gone a month looking in a mirror that shows only the chest up. Recently, I saw myself from the knees up for the first time in a month, and my first thought was, there's something wrong with the mirror. Yet, when I look down, it doesn't look very different.

Nutrition and the way you think are not all ...

2006-06-05T23:07:00.000-05:00

My mind set is growing closer and closer to curtail many things I love to eat and just take the plunge. I do believe the keys that Dr. Phil talks about. It's how you think that needs to change, not just the food you ingest. People think Dr. Phil is hokey because he is on TV giving advice etc .. etc .. but the truth is other professionals agree with a lot of what he says. He isn't trying to cure someone on a 30 minute show. He has good points. I have most of his books and I have his diet book. I believe in what he tries to do. We are all human and he has his faults.

Anyway, back to the weight loss topic. More than the way you think and what you eat, there is so much more you need to pay attention to - LIKE YOUR BODY. Your body has sensitivities to various things, including food. I do believe your body does react to certain foods more than others depending on your chemistry. There is a lot of information out there so do smart research. Nutrition is important, changing your way of thinking is too as well as food combining - it's all faboo, but I have learned that you really need to find out what your body prefers to eat! I know there are blood tests you can take, but not all practitioner use good labs to do these tests so you need to be careful.

Here are some good links that I hope you visit.

http://www.suzannesomers.com/Home/
http://www.internethealthlibrary.com/DietandLifestyle/Food_combining.htm
http://www.hps-online.com/food/index.htm
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Tests/cyto.html http://www.highbeam.com/library/docfree.asp?DOCID=1G1:3456415&ctrlInfo=Round20%3AMode20a%3ADocG%3AResult&ao= http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/qa-adf13.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/insideout/south/series2/food_sensitivity_allergy_vega_tests.shtml ******
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/Tests/allergytests.html

I found the blood test links interesting, and I am not sure what I believe, I am still deciding and doing research. Why? I wanted to take a blood test to find out my own issues. It seems like people do have sucess! I am not sure I want to spend my money on a not so sure thing. I will continue to research and ask many doctors I know. Have 5 in my family!

- on a personal note - I have been eating well, but still eating too much sugar. I have been really good today. I was pissed off when I saw my stomach in the mirror. It was going down - down -down after the baby, but in the last month I have gained 5-6 lbs. I am taking it off starting now.

nite nite.

Decisions...

2006-06-05T13:31:00.000-05:00

“You have a decision to make” Dr. Phil McGraw The Ultimate Weight Solution: The 7 Keys to Weight Loss Freedom

It really is all about decision isn’t it? That’s the hard part. We’ve become a society so focused on faster, better, instant gratification. It takes a lot to remember that we didn’t put this weight on in a day, and so we can’t take it off in a day.

There is no “lose weight fast” scheme that will do what you want to have done; unless of course you want to suffer health problems and the feelings of negativity when the goal isn’t reached (in my opinion).

I can tell you this. This decision to lose weight has to be a conscious choice. This has to be followed up or coupled with a decision to live healthier. This decision has to be followed with activity that promotes that, and mentally you have to prepare for the challenge of breaking habits.

It boils down to the decision.

Everyday, I decide to start fresh. The mistakes of yesterday are learned from; the accomplishments of yesterday are remembered and held high like a trophy. But the decision has to be made everyday.

Healthy at every size – today I choose again, to be healthy.

Caution Be careful not to fall into desserts :P

2006-06-02T08:15:00.000-05:00

Ok so I fell into a frosty. Well ok I didn't fall into it, more like stepped purposely into it... It wasn't a TERRIBLE mistake, it was just a small one. The frosty wasn't even the size of the smallest regular one, it was half that. But I still feel that I shouldn't have had it.

So today we start again.

I will pick myself up, dust myself off, and not get sad about my tripping into that cup of heaven :P I will simply do better today.

Healthy at Every Size... and loving myself the whole way, mistakes and all.

"Forgiveness is an act of self-love" ~Don Miguel Ruiz "The Mastery of Love" (this is so true in matters of weightloss. Love ourselves, including our mistakes. There is no wrong on this journey, only steps that take us a little out of the way. )

Where to start first?

2006-06-01T22:31:00.000-05:00

There are so many things I want to do concerning my health and weight. I have been inwardly and outwardly excited about the change in diet I have mad since the my son was born in December. I have been shopping at Trader Joe's and trying to eat organic when I can. I have been trying to eat a ton of greens and a bit more fruit and fiber. I also take note of "The Color Of The Rainbow" diet. Eating a variety in colored food is very beneficial. You can find an article here about this nutritional diet. I also believe that there is energy in color, and each color gives you a certain kind of energy. More on this later....

Anyway, I love eating more grains and fiber. I like being conscious of what I put in my body. It feels really good. Then the cravings come! I want to eat out with a friend and say "f-it" for the night. I am sure I can still do that once in a while, but I need to get more of a rhythm to my madness in regards to eating habits! I need to take Calcium/Magnesium! We women need that badly. You can't take one without the other. Osteoporosis runs in my family! I need to find a good grade of vitamin too. Most importantly I need to stop eating when I am emotional or bored. If I do need to eat or have a craving, I need to find good substitutes for sweet things.

Neat stuff!! My friend Diana turned me on to toasted brown rice bread with creamy honey and cinnamon sprinkled on top. It tasted like cake. I kid you not. She also turned me on to coconut covered dates with almonds. YUM. She gave me a sample of Kashi crackers (already loved those) with organic peanut butter and creamed honey on them. WOW. SO GOOD. I am going to Trader's tomorrow. I can do this. I can totally substitute chocolate and icing cravings with this stuff. She also turned me onto the Garden Patch Juice (has lots of greens/veges in it). It was good. She also makes a morning smoothie for herself that has the following in it:

2 tablespoons of greens - powder -organic.
1 tablespoon flax seed oil/omega three or ground flax seed powder.
1/4 cup straight cranberry juice (TJ's) no sugar added (really good for you)
1/4 cup of Dark very Berry Cherry frozen fruit. Also super good for you.
1/4 orange juice or pineapple.
1 dose of the calcium/magnesium (I think)
1 dose of greens/protein - if she is not going to eat a lot of meat that day.

She fills the glass the rest of the way with water or low cal juice, adds ice and puts it in a blender. Sounds gross, but it wasn't! She sucks it through a straw instead of sipping it and it goes down quickly. She does this every morning, especially on days she is not feeling like she ate so well. I am impressed and will start this too!

For now, I will stick to trying to make better choices, eat less and buy better food. I will work on the rest slowly.

I type this after I just ate a piece of banana creme pie. Someone kick me in the A**.

Dieting is for the birds!

2006-06-01T09:40:00.000-05:00

Truly it is...

No, I’m not condoning an unhealthy lifestyle… relax. I am however promoting the awareness of studies that are out there (Thanks to Kyle for the initial post of a blog entry that led me to this article) that show "Health At Every Size" is the best way to go.

This blog entry here talks in detail about it, and in the comments someone graciously posted this article here where the media (small though it is) discusses it as well.

Health at Every Size, I like that phrase. It’s my new motto and on day one, it’s the way I choose to work towards my goal of being healthy and becoming the true diva I know is inside me…for ME.

Cheers!

The beginning

2006-06-01T08:04:00.000-05:00

Many thanks to DivaT for this idea. I hope it’s received well and shared by many. It has such potential for goodness.

So all this hype about weightloss eh? Alright, nerves or not…here goes

I can remember as far back as 4 years old when food was everything to me. I have struggled with the overwhelming desire to eat one of everything bought at the store on shopping day from as far back as then. It’s something I still struggle with in my adult years. Going forward now, I know weight issues for me as an adult are more a combination of making sure I have enough (i.e. eat enough because you never know! It may disappear) and depression. Now that I know these things I have the keys to kingdom…I just have to step into the palace right?
Not necessarily.

Weightloss can be a tricky tricky thing. The success of weightloss evades me. I hope soon, to unravel the secrets of this “trick” and beat it at its own game. And I’m going to document it too. I’m not here to document my progress (or relapse) for any award. I’m just here to document it in the hopes that others can know what someone else goes through and maybe find what they need to help themselves or each other become the diva they can be.

We begin today…

So strap yourselves in, and get ready for a bumpy ride. ;)

Weight loss dieting doesn't work?

2006-05-31T23:10:00.000-05:00

The Case Against Weight-Loss Dieting:

Here’s a remarkable fact: There isn’t a single peer-reviewed controlled clinical study of any weight-loss diet that shows success in losing a significant amount of weight over the long term. Not one.

See the full article for a stricter definition of what's meant by weight loss dieting and what research has been done.

That said, I'm trying to lose weight.

Put The Chocolate Down? Ha! Help!

2006-05-31T21:53:00.000-05:00

Thank you to DivaT for having the idea for this site. I hope it's a success and we all get something out of it. I will start by saying I am PMSing and I need sweets. Help! Someone tell me to put the chocolate down! Until the next craving ... I am signing off!

Calling All Divas!

2006-05-31T20:17:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the inaugural publication of The Vanishing Divas blog dedicated to all the Divas out there who need support and inspiration to transform herself into the Goddess she knows she is inside.

So, join in! Meet some amazing women who know your struggles and will share in both the joy of your success and heartaches of set-backs...your personal cheerleaders! We'll laugh, cry and empathize...and know we're there for each other to lend an ear or a rational voice.

Come on, you only have one thing to lose, and so much more to gain!