"New-Life Diet,"
by Aimee Nadow:
How educating myself and overhauling a modern diet changed my
energy, optimism, and weight loss goals.
(Disclaimer: The
following information is intended as educational and is not meant to be
followed without the advice and permission of your doctor and nutritionist. The
foods and videos below are chosen by myself and I did not receive compensation
for any of them.)
Stage 1: 2005-2012
'Eat
Right For Your Blood Type': In 2005 I was hospitalized because of a week of
Tropical Smoothies which lead to toxic leaching into my stomach, learned more
about my blood type, and then struggled to find all of the right vitamins and nutrients
after cutting out lots of processed foods, and you can read my story here.
Stage 2: 2012-2014
The
Asian diet: In 2012 I went
"gluten free" for two years and ate a mostly Asian diet while hosting
Chinese foreign exchange students. I struggled at first with gluten withdrawal, and then the
quick weight loss and energy boost eventually went away as I added gluten back
into my diet at the end of 2014.
Stage 3: 2015-mid 2017
Pregnancy
and Postpartum: I had the delightful
experience of Hyperemesis
gravidarum (morning sickness for duration of pregnancy,) gestational diabetes and preeclampsia: yay! I ate what I could.
Postpartum I nursed for ten months and ate what helped, and naturally my weight
dropped, then went back up again when I stopped nursing.
Stage 4: July 2017-present
"Go
Big or Go Home:" Everyone has
different dietary needs and restrictions. I've been dogging my own for years so
I decided to cut out everything that I think is causing my dietary challenges
or may be unhealthy for me in some way. I decided to stick with the following (Thyroid,
Adrenals, and Lymph-node healing) diet:
-No caffeine*
-No dairy
-No gluten
-No added sugar(s)
-Add apple cider vinegar for acetic acid 1-2x/week
-High protein/fiber oatmeal for breakfast everyday
-Add vitamin (whole food)
-Reishi tea detox (every few days)
-Daily calorie limit 1500-1700 plus any extra from exercise
-Exercise 30 min+ (3-4x/week)
-Add sleep/more REM
-MINIMAL processed foods (trying to eat foods with less than five natural ingredients)
-MINIMAL processed foods (trying to eat foods with less than five natural ingredients)
WEEK 3: 12.5 pounds lost total
UPDATE! Week 4: 13.4 pounds lost total
UPDATE! Week 4: 13.4 pounds lost total
*I know all of you coffee
lovers were cringing and considering ex-ing out of your browser as soon as you
read 'no caffeine.' If you're committed to consuming coffee/caffeine and you
want some great recommendations of my favorite blends from when I was a coffee addict check
out my coffee review. If you're a tea drinker and that thought
also makes you cringe you can check out my blog post: "The powers of tea! A review of my favorite
blends." or, my blog post: "The secrets of Chinese Green tea."
But if you're GENUINELY
interested in weight loss or nutrition or body health then I think you should
forge ahead and learn a little about your adrenals and why you have to heal
them (cutting sugar and caffeine) before you're going to get any results even
if you're a warrior in the gym.
Caffeine Detox duration: 6 days (only 3 bad days) of withdrawal
symptoms.
No caffeine day 1: random
feeling of alertness/wakefulness
No caffeine day 2: extra
energy; did two workouts!
No caffeine days 3-5: Tough
days. Uncharacteristically weepy emotions and general frustration. Luckily, still married.
No caffeine: days
6-current: No cravings for coffee, only any 'hot' beverage in the morning;
craving lasts for only about fifteen minutes (old habit) and then goes away.
(For "cheat" days during and post caffeine detox: Decaffinated almond milk or soy Starbucks latté with sugar-free vanilla and their Canadian bacon certified gluten free breakfast sandwich.)
(For "cheat" days during and post caffeine detox: Decaffinated almond milk or soy Starbucks latté with sugar-free vanilla and their Canadian bacon certified gluten free breakfast sandwich.)
Gluten Detox and Sugar Detox duration: 14+ days of symptoms.
My Gluten detox did not
coincide with my caffeine detox so that I could better monitor the overall
withdrawal symptoms. It was worse than the caffeine detox. Many days of a
zombie-like "brain fog." The thought of eating gluten by accident and
having to start that detox all over again is frightening.
- Additional note: My old list of "Top Ten Detox foods," can be found here.)
Now I would substitute the Bolthouse Green Machine type-drinks (so much
sugar) for the Suja Daily Greens.
- Alternative Organic Products
review: http://nadow.blogspot.com/2013/09/2013-organic-product-review-guide.html
So why did I go to these diet changing extremes? I learned that I had
completely worn out my adrenal glands from decades of caffeine intake and sugar
consumption and that my lymph nodes were chronically swollen and I wanted to
heal them. These issues are fairly common amongst Americans. To learn how to
test for adrenal fatigue watch the following video and the subsequent educational videos which is how I also educated myself about the topic.
Or, skip below the videos, to see some of the foods that I've been eating for that past month or so.
Adrenal and Lymph Node educational videos: (Content intended for adults.)
Now, here are some of the foods that I've added into my diet to replace old habits or to add newer, healthier choices in:
Finally: Get a fitness/weight/nutrition/calorie App Tracker. I like: My Net Diary Pro. I've been using it for four years and I love the Lifetime weight and exercise tracking charts. ($3.99) This app also helps me track nutrients so that I can be sure I'm getting the right nutrition.
Final health plug: If you're interested in tracking cholesterol or your iron you can always give blood and find out for free! Plus, saving lives is a bonus!
