What am I supposed to eat ?

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Help, I am hungry but have no idea what to eat!I here this from people who for many reason have gone on many different diets and are just well confused . The same goes for those who want to eat healthy but really have no idea what to eat or how to find the right foods .Well your in luck because in this post I will give you the fast facts on how, what and why you should be eating these foods. I’m going to cover many misconceptions as well .

We all know we need to food and water to live,right?But what types of food are key. With all the diet crazes out there , how in the world can we find what is best for you . Well the good news is its simple !

Take a look at what grows in nature! Simple as it may be many of  have forgotten good old fruit , vegetables,nuts ,seeds, and herbs .With the Keto,low-carb ,Candida and many other healing protocols out there we seem to forget that the best food is the simplest food and that these carry the most nutrients because we were designed to eat them above other food sources.Many of us are scared to touch a piece of fruit because we think out blood sugar will go crazy. Please remember fruit and veggies were not the villeins that got you into this place of disease in the first place. A lifestyle heavy on processed junk food , sugar, high animal fats and rancid vegetable oils should hold the blame .

Why Diets are a short term answer to a long term problem. Most diets are designed to detox your body of toxins that have accumulated over the years. Some diets do this better than others. Here are a few popular diets circulating in the health world today.

Paleo– The Paleo diet eliminates processed foods, grains, dairy,legumes and sugar. 

Candida Diet- Eliminates sugar of all forms from foods. Helps starve the body of a yeast called candida albicans. Limited foods include – non starchy green vegetables, low sugar fruit like lemons and avocado, meat, cold pressed oils . The diet also includes herbs that help eliminate fungus over growth in the body such as  – cinnamon , garlic , cloves , ginger , pau d arco . Supplements are usually a good quality probiotic and multivitamin.

Keto- This diet has gained much popularity in the last year . Its not a new concept and has been used to help auto immune disorders for years. Its approach centers on saturated fats , protein, non starchy green vegetables and little to no fruit .Many come to this way for eating because you see fast results once the body is in ketosis , which is a fat burning survival stage. The down side of this diet is it takes a toll on your health after a while because there is not many benefits to tricking the body into starvation mode long term. Although good for weight loss .In reality your body is using up much organic sodium and potassium trying to save your pancreas and other organs from starvation mode. It is always a good idea to start adding in healthy fruit and vegetables in there raw form to replenish these much need minerals . Our bodies thrive on simplicity , not on to many dense nutrients. Although short term results are gained from this diet. Some people will find themselves needing to bring back in fruit and vegetables of every kind. Honestly, No one should go long term on fat and meat for true health. Both are the hardest for the body to digest and go rancid as they sick in the colon waiting exit.

Vegan Diet – A healthy vegan diet consists of fruits ,vegetables ,nut ,seeds, cultured vegetables and whole grains properly prepared by soaking and or sprouting . Many vegans are healthy and fit because of the easy digestive process of these powerful foods they are eating . Sadly many others are still suffering because they still consumed , sugar, white flour , rancid oils and fake foods. If you choose vegan make sure you are eating real whole foods and supplementing with vitamins to make sure nothing is missing from your diet.

Vegetarian diet – A healthy vegetarian diet may consist of eggs, fruits , veggies , nuts , seeds , whole grains , cultured veggie, cultured dairy and some fish. Many vegetarians are thriving on this diet, but as I said before eliminating fake foods , processed foods , white flour,and sugar is key to optimal health on this diet .

Gaps diet , anti-inflammatory, autoimmune protocols and SCD diets – These are all specific healing diets for those struggling with but not limited to , Autism,Leaky gut, Chrohn’s disease,eating disorders, candida, insomnia, food allergies,  and poor absorption of foods.

So which one is right for you ?

I am one who believes in simplicity . If you are a healthy person just looking to lose some weight or improve your energy I would start with a Real Food Whole Foods approach to eating . This means you eat from all these groups. For instance – you will eat  fruit, vegetables of all kinds , whole grains in there whole form not as bread , nuts , seeds, cold pressed oil such as coconut and olive , organic meats if you feel you need them , organic legumes , and cultured veggies and dairy in small amounts.

If you dealing with other health issues then you may want to look into one of the above diets to see if these can resolve your issues and them move back to a whole food/ real food life style . Never get stuck in a food crisis. Food is fuel and medicine but should never be your God and take over your entire life.

Drop me a line and let me know if this post was helpful.If you need more help just ask, I would be happy to hear about your issue and give you advice .

Overcoming temporary health setbacks.

I love how each day we are promised Sunrise or Sunset . We know that while living the morning will always come.But when it comes to our health it seems like sometimes we are left searching through the darkness of memories from a time we felt much better than we do now. Setbacks are something everyone deals with. No matter how perfect on the outside, how much money someone makes or good they look.We ultimately deal with a setback of some kind in our life. So how can you keep going after something knocks you down?I often tell clients that setbacks are our bodies letting us know to slow down and smell the roses. If you are ill your body is alerting you of an issue . Many ailments we face do not just show up out of the blue,but are waiting like a ticking bomb ready to explode. Yet many of us are surprised when we get results of our ill health.We are so programmed to be busy and push through pain that we have forgotten how to rest , refresh ourselves and give out bodies time to heal. Here are a few tips that will help you overcome a health setback or health crisis.

1. Ask yourself to reflect on the root of your issue – Very few of us are completely healthy one day and on our death beds the next . Slowly overtime our negative thinking, our daily eating habits and movement or lack of it, reveal our state of health. Our you a chronic worrier ? Then you may be more prone to stress related illness. Do you keep long hours and not get adequate sleep , than adrenal burn out may come knocking at your door. Does your daily diet consist of lifeless food choices mostly from packages ?Then you may be overweight, have high blood pressure and diabetes. There is usually a root to most illness and I believe if we catch illness in time it can be treated and it many cases reversed.

2.What are you willing to change to see yourself move past a health setback?

Be a goal setter when it comes to your health and do not let anyone or thing keep you from the goal if possible. I remember back when I has horrible hormone imbalance after the birth of last child. I needed a healing but it seemed no one could really figure out what was wrong with me. I felt like I was dying. I instead made a goal to live . With that I decided to go back to school and study herbs and medicinal plants and became a Master Herbalist. Now four years later , I am completely healed of hormone issues and continue to see renewed health. I did not magically heal , it was hard, painful and long . But I  healed.

3. All the suffering is worth it the end.

Sometimes we view our suffering as something that is a sign of weakness. The reality is everyone is going through something at sometime that looks a lot like pain and suffering. So what makes some come out stronger than others.I believe much of your ability to overcome suffering lies in your thoughts and gratitude. Someone once said ‘If you change your thoughts, you will change your life.” I believe having a healthy mind is also key to overcoming setbacks during illness. Thanksgiving being key. How thankful are you on a regular basis? How concerned are you with seeing others happy and healed over your own . Sometimes we are so concerned with our suffering we forget to be thankful for all Gods gifts we still have or we tend to be so absorbed with our self’s that we forget that we are still living and have many gifts to share.

So where do you go from here? I would encourage you to take the information in this post and apply as much as you can to your life . I will be posting a series soon on other healthy practices to implement into your daily routine for balance and continued healing . Please leave me a comment or question . I would love to here from you .