Hello Hello!
I wanted to dedicate a blog post to candida. A nasty little yeast that when given the proper (toxic) conditions in the body, will proliferate and cause all kinds of problems! I will be using the copy/paste function a lot in this post :)
Candida: Candida yeast is a part of the gut flora, a group of microorganisms that live in your mouth and intestine. When the Candida population starts getting out of control it weakens the intestinal wall, penetrating through into the bloodstream and spreading throughout the body. As it spreads it produces toxic by-products that cause damage to your body tissues and organs, wreaking havoc on your immune system. The major waste product of yeast cell activity is Acetaldehyde, a poisonous toxin that promotes free radical activity in the body. Acetaldehyde is also converted by the liver into ethanol (drinking alcohol). (from www.thecandidadiet.com)
Experts estimate that over 80% of the population suffers from candidiasis (an overgrowth of this yeast). Things that can trigger the overgrowth can be anything from a round of antibiotics, oral contraceptives, diets high in sugar and carbs, or even a period of stress.
Here is a link to some of the symptoms of candidiasis: http://www.thecandidadiet.com/candidasymptoms.html
I have been battling candida with my son. He started getting a rash when he was a few months old. It didn't seem to bother him, so I didn't really mess with it other than try to keep it moisturized. Several months in I finally had it diagnosed. The diagnosis was yeast and the treatment was a special diet and several supplements.
The reason I am writing this post is because I believe that this special diet/detox to kill candida is a great way to start a program! I believe it can benefit everyone! The diet is a ZERO sugar (or sugar substitute, so no 'diet' crap) and ZERO carb (with few exceptions) diet. There are a couple grains such as quinoa and brown rice that you can have in stage 1 of the diet. The website I have been posting from, www.thecandidadiet.com, has lists of foods to eat and foods to avoid. I have the lists printed and up on my fridge :) I started the diet for my son, and in only a couple days I felt better, had more energy, and my son's rash had gotten almost 100% better! If you are serious about killing the candida you will want to add a few supplements to your routine. Including a great fish oil, a probiotic, B12, and I also take a garlic supp (and a few other things specific to mine and my son's needs) So that is my rant on Candida!! I hope some of you try the diet out!!
"Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food"
— Hippocrates
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Sunday, July 24, 2011
My road back from baby
Hi friends!! I wanted to sit down and write from the heart tonight. I want all of my fans to know who I am, what I stand for, and how I got here. I follow a fellow blogger who coined herself 'hybridrasta mama'. I love this. I am definitely a hybrid. I take a little of this and a little of that. Through a lot of research, listening to my instinct, and some very key people, I have come to live a lifestyle that works best for my son and me. I want to state for the record that I am not perfect. I do the best that I can. My journey has been full of fun, hard work, tough times, curve balls, losing, winning...you name it. I want to use this blog from now on to motivate and educate. This particular one will tell a little about my personal story.
The Journey:
I started competing in 2008, and took the stage at my first NPC show in the summer of 09. Dieting for a show is tough! But the rewards were worth it! I met so many awesome people and loved every minute of it all! Then I got pregnant in December of 09. During my pregnancy I suffered from depression and gained a lot of weight. That kind of abrupt lifestyle change played tricks on my mind. However, once I gave birth to my beautiful baby boy, I knew it had all been worth it, but that I had a lot of work to do to get my body back!! I probably tipped the scale at 215 by the time I gave birth (I have never admitted that until just now), my pre-pregnancy weight was 145. That is a whopping 70lbs! I had decided during my pregnancy that I would definitely nurse my baby, and I think I can attribute a lot of my weight loss to that! However it was very slow in the beginning. I wasn't willing to put the baby in the childcare center at the gym when he was super little, so I did what I could at home as far as working out. But I didn't cut calories for fear of messing up my milk supply. I would say when the baby was about 7 months old I started back at the gym intermittently, but it wasn't until he was around 9 1/2 months that I started making it to the gym regularly. He just turned 10 months and I am at the gym 5 days/week now! I do all my cardio at home while he sleeps still which I love. My current weight is 132!! So I have lost 83lbs. to date! The goal is 129 by August 13, which happens to be my 29th birthday and the Europa super show. I am still nursing my sweet baby (the goal is a year) and I won't have complete control over my body until I am through with that, but he is worth the wait as far as I am concerned :) That is my story to date! I hope any of you momma's out there that might read this find it inspiring! It has not been easy for me, but it has all been worth it!! I have big plans to make it back to the stage and I won't stop til I get there!!
'Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly set about remedying them - every day begin the task anew.' -Saint Francis de Sales
See you soon!! Jen
The Journey:
I started competing in 2008, and took the stage at my first NPC show in the summer of 09. Dieting for a show is tough! But the rewards were worth it! I met so many awesome people and loved every minute of it all! Then I got pregnant in December of 09. During my pregnancy I suffered from depression and gained a lot of weight. That kind of abrupt lifestyle change played tricks on my mind. However, once I gave birth to my beautiful baby boy, I knew it had all been worth it, but that I had a lot of work to do to get my body back!! I probably tipped the scale at 215 by the time I gave birth (I have never admitted that until just now), my pre-pregnancy weight was 145. That is a whopping 70lbs! I had decided during my pregnancy that I would definitely nurse my baby, and I think I can attribute a lot of my weight loss to that! However it was very slow in the beginning. I wasn't willing to put the baby in the childcare center at the gym when he was super little, so I did what I could at home as far as working out. But I didn't cut calories for fear of messing up my milk supply. I would say when the baby was about 7 months old I started back at the gym intermittently, but it wasn't until he was around 9 1/2 months that I started making it to the gym regularly. He just turned 10 months and I am at the gym 5 days/week now! I do all my cardio at home while he sleeps still which I love. My current weight is 132!! So I have lost 83lbs. to date! The goal is 129 by August 13, which happens to be my 29th birthday and the Europa super show. I am still nursing my sweet baby (the goal is a year) and I won't have complete control over my body until I am through with that, but he is worth the wait as far as I am concerned :) That is my story to date! I hope any of you momma's out there that might read this find it inspiring! It has not been easy for me, but it has all been worth it!! I have big plans to make it back to the stage and I won't stop til I get there!!
'Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly set about remedying them - every day begin the task anew.' -Saint Francis de Sales
See you soon!! Jen
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Website Wednesday!!
I think I am going to start a trend of sharing helpful websites with you on Wednesdays!! So for this first entry I will share with you one of my all time favorite sites!! If you follow me at all you know I am a huge stickler for eating and living in an organic 'intended life' sort of way. I am not perfect, but I do my best!! My absolute go to website for all things health and wellness (and more) is www.naturalnews.com This website has several contributing writers and also searches the web for relevant articles regarding health and wellness. The main guy Mike Adams, aka 'The Health Ranger' has a passion for health and wellness! His articles are wonderfully informative and I highly recommend you all go check out the site and read a couple articles! You will get hooked!! He also has tons of videos to watch and be sure to use the search box, type anything from benefits of garlic, to breastfeeding he will have articles on it!! He also does reviews on supplements, which is extremely helpful since there are tons and tons out there to choose from!! I hope you will all take the time to go check it out, please feel free to leave comments about what you think!! Thanks everyone, make it productive hump day :)
Also be sure and look back through my older blogs!! There is some good stuff from way back when :)
Side note: A couple movies I recommend that will change the way you look at food are; Food Inc., Killer at Large, and Food Matters
Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food. -- Hippocrates, father of medicine, 431 B.C.
Also be sure and look back through my older blogs!! There is some good stuff from way back when :)
Side note: A couple movies I recommend that will change the way you look at food are; Food Inc., Killer at Large, and Food Matters
Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food. -- Hippocrates, father of medicine, 431 B.C.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Self-Made: The Art of Creating Yourself!
Have you ever noticed how only successful people claim to be self-made? Why is that? It's very simple, successful people have a proactive mindset, 'if it's gonna be it's up to me' type attitude. So they take an active role in their overall development; mental, physical, and spiritual. Where, sadly, the rest of the people take a victim type approach to life. Meaning they feel the environment, their genetics, family etc are totally responsible for who and what they are and they have no control, they let life happen to them. The funny thing is, whichever one you choose to believe is true, you are absolutely right.
So I could go on forever about this but a long story short is this... There is a law called the law of accumulation. Basically what this means is that everything counts, everything! It's all the small things in life, all the small habits that make up the big things. Every TV show you watch, every song you listen to, every person you associate with has an effect on you. So it's very important that you make a conscious effort to surround yourself with only the best, and limit how much time you spend on trivial things. The radio and TV in moderation are okay, but just remember they are just chewing gum for the ears and eyes, you don't gain much of anything by watching or listening, in reality you may actually lose a bit if you do it to often, when you could be out there doing the damn thing, LIFE.
To give you an idea of what I mean, and how I apply this in my life is, now that I am getting back in to the fitness world I wake up and immediately write down my goals and to do list for the day. I also reread over my goals from the previous day in order to make sure I am on track. I have to make certain that I have set a clear vision in my mind of how I want the day to turn out, and what I need to do to guarantee I accomplish my short and long term goals. Then I watch a couple videos (love youtube!), like workout, health, and/or motivational videos to get my mind right. You know what they say, motivation doesn't last. Well neither does bathing and that is why we must do it daily :). Then I make a conscious effort to surround myself with uplifting motivated people who bring the best out of me. Sometimes I listen to an audio book in the car to take advantage of that time. Again, every little bit helps! Then the same goes for TV, I watch very little TV! I have one or two shows I watch during the week (my guilty pleasures). Garbage in, garbage out ya know! So to sum up! I am working on getting my mind and my body right and to do so I must remember that everything counts. Success is not a random thing, it's not genetics or circumstance, and you're not a victim unless you choose to be! Remember you don't know what you don't know, so always keep learning and keep growing. Surround yourself with people better than you in some way and then learn how to do their way, but better:) That's what my mentor always says to me! So get off your A and let's do this thing BIG!!
'Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming - "WOW, What a ride!!!"'
So I could go on forever about this but a long story short is this... There is a law called the law of accumulation. Basically what this means is that everything counts, everything! It's all the small things in life, all the small habits that make up the big things. Every TV show you watch, every song you listen to, every person you associate with has an effect on you. So it's very important that you make a conscious effort to surround yourself with only the best, and limit how much time you spend on trivial things. The radio and TV in moderation are okay, but just remember they are just chewing gum for the ears and eyes, you don't gain much of anything by watching or listening, in reality you may actually lose a bit if you do it to often, when you could be out there doing the damn thing, LIFE.
To give you an idea of what I mean, and how I apply this in my life is, now that I am getting back in to the fitness world I wake up and immediately write down my goals and to do list for the day. I also reread over my goals from the previous day in order to make sure I am on track. I have to make certain that I have set a clear vision in my mind of how I want the day to turn out, and what I need to do to guarantee I accomplish my short and long term goals. Then I watch a couple videos (love youtube!), like workout, health, and/or motivational videos to get my mind right. You know what they say, motivation doesn't last. Well neither does bathing and that is why we must do it daily :). Then I make a conscious effort to surround myself with uplifting motivated people who bring the best out of me. Sometimes I listen to an audio book in the car to take advantage of that time. Again, every little bit helps! Then the same goes for TV, I watch very little TV! I have one or two shows I watch during the week (my guilty pleasures). Garbage in, garbage out ya know! So to sum up! I am working on getting my mind and my body right and to do so I must remember that everything counts. Success is not a random thing, it's not genetics or circumstance, and you're not a victim unless you choose to be! Remember you don't know what you don't know, so always keep learning and keep growing. Surround yourself with people better than you in some way and then learn how to do their way, but better:) That's what my mentor always says to me! So get off your A and let's do this thing BIG!!
'Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming - "WOW, What a ride!!!"'
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Don't call it a come back :)
Question of the day: How do you get back to what you once were when you have given up complete control of your body for an entire year??
First things first, there has to be a plan. My husband/trainer always says 'if you fail to plan, you plan to fail'. So I started out with small goals, the first few were 30 minutes of cardio each day, eating every 2-3 hours, setting up my vision board (placing the pics strategically in my home), and I started altering the way I see/talk to myself. It may sound strange but the way that you talk to yourself is a huge deal. I went from telling myself that I was a fat pregnant chick, to telling myself that I am a hot, healthy, fit mom! I started to tell myself that regularly, I also avoided mirrors so that I wouldn't be critical and get down on myself. I didn't try to focus on the final product (b/c it seemed so far away) but I did focus on doing everything right on a daily basis. Think of it as if you wanted to build a wall, if you only think about the end result it can be overwhelming and discouraging, if you focus instead on laying one brick perfectly that day, eventually you will have a perfect wall. Now I am doing my cardio and am also back to weight training 5 days a week and eating healthy consistently. I was 145 (a high off-season) when I got pregnant, and I topped out around 205 (I didn't even weigh myself those last couple weeks)...I am now only about 5lbs away from my off season weight and 15lbs away from my goal weight! Now I am looking to my larger goals and am planning to do a small contest and photo shoots by the end of the summer, but of course I plan to be swimsuit ready as soon as summer starts ;)! I will be blogging regularly so be sure and come check it out and tell your friends!!
"Risk more than others
think is safe. Care more than others think is wise. Dream more than
others think is practical. Expect more than others think is possible."
First things first, there has to be a plan. My husband/trainer always says 'if you fail to plan, you plan to fail'. So I started out with small goals, the first few were 30 minutes of cardio each day, eating every 2-3 hours, setting up my vision board (placing the pics strategically in my home), and I started altering the way I see/talk to myself. It may sound strange but the way that you talk to yourself is a huge deal. I went from telling myself that I was a fat pregnant chick, to telling myself that I am a hot, healthy, fit mom! I started to tell myself that regularly, I also avoided mirrors so that I wouldn't be critical and get down on myself. I didn't try to focus on the final product (b/c it seemed so far away) but I did focus on doing everything right on a daily basis. Think of it as if you wanted to build a wall, if you only think about the end result it can be overwhelming and discouraging, if you focus instead on laying one brick perfectly that day, eventually you will have a perfect wall. Now I am doing my cardio and am also back to weight training 5 days a week and eating healthy consistently. I was 145 (a high off-season) when I got pregnant, and I topped out around 205 (I didn't even weigh myself those last couple weeks)...I am now only about 5lbs away from my off season weight and 15lbs away from my goal weight! Now I am looking to my larger goals and am planning to do a small contest and photo shoots by the end of the summer, but of course I plan to be swimsuit ready as soon as summer starts ;)! I will be blogging regularly so be sure and come check it out and tell your friends!!
"Risk more than others
think is safe. Care more than others think is wise. Dream more than
others think is practical. Expect more than others think is possible."
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