I keep asking myself, why what am I doing an extreme change of my world? I know my post about my nutrient density life change last week did seem a little whiny. But I am just being real with my feelings and my journal entries. I also realized that I really didn’t explain exactly what I was doing and what I was changing. So here goes. Let me try and explain this paradigm shift. Oh, and I am so grateful to my wife Jodie from Jodie’s Touch of Style for joining me on this journey.
Why Alternative Medicine
With my past successes with alternative medicine, I wanted to explore a different way to fix my ailments. As much as I love the idea of popping a pill for the quick fix, I didn’t want to chance any side effects which most of the time seem worse than the illness. And just for the record, I am a fairly conservative guy so sometimes in the alternative medicine world I need to push through some of the mambo jumbos to get to receive the benefits this type of medicine has to offer.
Nutrient Dense Eating
According to Wikipedia Nutrient density identifies the number of beneficial nutrients in a food product in proportion to e.g. energy content, weight, or amount of detrimental nutrients.
The way I understand it is not how much you eat but it is what you eat that matters with your weight and health. There are many granular explanations but to put it in terms that I can understand I gleamed onto this simple one. 100 calories of kale are packed with healthy nutrients to aid your body’s health. Conversely, 100 calories of sugar have next to zero healthy nutrients but are packed with detrimental nutrients. So it is not the number of calories you eat but the quality of calories. And of course, the highest healthy nutrient-dense foods are generally plant-based.
LIFE STYLE CHANGES
When I enlisted Arizona Natural Health Center (ANHC) they suggested a lifestyle change program. And this program is based on one of Joel Fuhrman’s, M.D books titled EAT TO LIVE Quick & Easy Cookbook. In this book the eating outline as listed on page 4 of Dr. Fuhrman’s book is as follows: All your meals should include eating large salads, large servings of cook vegetables at least 3 servings of fresh or frozen fruit. Also include at least 1 ounce of nuts and seeds such as walnuts, hemp seeds, chia seeds, flaxseeds, or sesame seeds. He suggests some cooked mushrooms and a mix of raw and cooked onions. Did you know cooked mushrooms are healthier than raw mushrooms? And to make sure you get enough protein you need to include at least half a cup of beans. He also mentions that you should eat few if any animal products and limit it to small servings, two to three times per week.
I CAN’T EAT BEANS
Fortunately, this is not a vegan lifestyle because I have an issue with my esophagus which does preclude me from eating any legumes. Some may say this is a blessing but not me because I love such foods as hummus made from chickpeas and all kinds of lentils, pea, and bean dishes. But I have to keep those out of my diet for now. So to get my protein I can eat wild-caught salmon, mackerel, sardines, and anchovies as well as grass-fed, grass-finished beef and pork. And of course free-range organic chicken and eggs. Yes, it is expensive but Nancy, Jodie’s stepmom always says your health is your best investment. For my meats, I have been really enjoying the quality and experience with ButcherBox. If you go through this link you can get $30 off your first order. Wow, don’t I sound like Jodie? LOL.
MY 21 DAY RESET
Jodie and I have been trying to eat clean about 80% of the time for a few years. But my gut problems have been getting worse. As a foodie, I love cheeses, pasta, and everything in-between. And I love bread of all shapes and sizes with the exception of wonder bread LOL. Now for 21 days, I need to cut out all sugar, alcohol, dairy, bread, pasta, grains, oils ( yes olive oil), spices, and any processed foods. On the positive side, I can have 2 cups of black coffee each day.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE FOOD
Jodie was invited as an influencer to attend a soft opening of a new restaurant in Scottsdale, AZ called Culinary Dropout. They had their soft opening back in October. This place has such an innovative outdoor/ indoor layout which has been designed around a large wide-open space. The food and the people are fantastic. We enjoyed among other things the following.
WILD CAUGHT – Roasted Salmon with brussels sprouts, cauliflower, caramelized sweet potato, lemon-pecan pistou.
HEARTY and DELICIOUS – Spicy Vegan Curry with griddled sweet potato, eggplant, snow pea, cauliflower, shiitake mushroom, black rice
ADDICTIVE – Harvest kale with roasted brussels sprouts, cauliflower, green apple, medjool date, pine nut, parmesan, maple tahini vinaigrette
A Little Journaling Glimpse
DAY 5
I woke up with an awful stomach ache and was ready to call it quits. ANHC has a fantastic learning portal and the first set of lessons focus on mindset. And boy do I need to change my mindset. I keep focusing on psalms reading to help with the mid-set. Then Jodie received an invitation to attend a soft opening of a new restaurant call Culinary Dropout. She asks if I wanted to attend. At first, I said no as I was too depressed but Jodie convinced me that a night out would do us good.
We had a fantastic time. The staff were so friendly and accommodating and there were a lot of things I could eat. Sort of. The kitchen put a lot of the sauces and things on the side for us and really tried to make it work. Ok, I cheated. I had a cocktail and I am sure there were spices and oils in our food. But this was a turning point for my attitude. I realized that after these 21 days there will be places and recipes that can taste so very yummy.
DAY 6
We are taking blog photos at Arcosanti, you can check out Jodie’s post here and we are leaving early so I will not be eating until 11:00 AM. So far I am feeling pretty good. Lunch at Arcosanti had a small selection of mostly vegetarian options. We had a mushroom sandwich and a kale salad. Surprisingly they both tasted yummy. Who knew? I just realized that my stomach aches and bloating were almost gone as well as my depression. PTL.
DAY 7
Okay, we are getting the hang of this. We are making great-tasting smoothies and soups. And because of my blood results, I can start eating nut butter (Raw Nuts). Nut butter on apple slices is my saving factor.
DAY 8
My digestion is much improved and my bloating is pretty much gone. I had a stomach ache before bed but all in all a really good day.
Thanks for stopping by.
Rob