I studied food, live for my next meal and can shove a cupcake into my mouth faster than a relationship fizzling with a mother-in-law. Thankfully I have never been overweight, I have good genes and I have always had the knowledge of dietary requirements. My upbringing consisted of a veggie patch at every home, and tears over a spoonful of spinach, there were very few moments of "I'm too lazy to cook good food for you kids."
Yes we had pizza nights and yes we were taken to Spur, but not on a regular basis, it was a treat and we knew that. There always has been sweets in my home, always available, but we did not like them enough to devour silly amounts, we knew better. Yes I loved coco pops for breakfast, I still do, but do they sustain me? No! Did they ever? No!
Breakfast is my worst, I am just not hungry when I wake up. I don't eat eggs, I don't enjoy a fry up or the thought of starting your day on carb filled toast and sugar filled jam. I enjoy my food between 10am and 1pm, real food, I love leftovers!! I can kick on to dinner happily then, a cuppa tea here and there. I do not drink enough water, I should really have more (note to self).
I have battled with stomach issues for a long time, really battled! Infection spread to my pancreas and I was in hospital bordering diabetes with Pancreatitus. All this happened to a health conscious person, why?! I was diagnosed with IBS and leading up to Crohns Disease, the specialist said there was something in my diet that affected me negatively. Being the nutter that I am, I cut out dairy, wheat, garlic, spices and all processed or manufactured foods and drinks. I kept this up for about 6 months, it was not easy as during that time I travelled to Australia and New Zealand staying with people that did not understand, I had raging attacks every now and then, but once I was home in my own kitchen it all started settling down and I started reintroducing foods. Except for the heartburn! I am big on homeopathy and had begun taking alkaline powders after big meals to neutralize the acid build up. I lived a much more comfortable life.
I started hearing about Tim Noakes, LCHF and Banting, I was interested. I had always been firm on moderation, but this seemed structured and it seemed to have major benefits to lifestyle (minimizing cancer and diabetes, which play a huge part in my family). I read about it, I met people living by it and I started discussing it with my family, who gladly jumped on board. I am a huge fan, I have seen improvements to my energy levels and I have seen weight loss in my family, I now do not even require the alkaline powder. I kept saying that I would be flexible because weight is not a problem for me, but eating carbs now makes me uncomfortable, my heartburn returns and I feel lethargic. I will be honest, if I pig out it is purely on baked goods, I cannot resist a milk tart, I miss this the most and it is my regular cheat. No more sugar in tea, I now drink coffee - with cream too! I do not miss juices, I do not miss bread or pasta.
As my meals began to convert so did my energy levels, I could never, nor wanted to, walk 12kms. I do not have afternoon naps, I am known as the snooze queen in my household and have always been known to nod off on any couch.
I feel so alive, I have a flat stomach due to the lack of bloatedness, I even try my hand at yoga!
I preach food at every opportunity, this is not a diet for me, this is my lifestyle, I literally cannot go back to IBS, I cannot have sugar as there were numerous diabetics ahead of me, cancer is one of my biggest fears, I am the white girl lathering on layers of sun lotion on the beach, this too has been through the generations, so yes I am happy with it, I am at ease knowing the benefits and having read up a lot, I understand that our bodies have begun to resist all the starches and sugars.
I have had bags of stress, I got sick, I had a cyst of my face!! I still face my stress daily, I am not emotionally stable, but my ailments have shoved off, which in itself is 1 less stress.
I have my hair done 6 weekly, always! I have mini facials fortnightly. I buy clothes to suit my budget and I throw out the old and declutter my wardrobe regularly. I am a minimilast and I feel great this way!
Health is about knowing when you feel good, being comfortable when you wear skinny jeans and having no shame because what you are doing and feeling is just right!
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