What makes Me Me and You You? (Day 25)

Dear Diary,

What makes Me Me and You You?

 “This is the question that is at the heart of the genetic puzzle. It is also central to our exploration of blood types. The key is genetic heritage - the story line of your life. Even though you are living in the 21st century, you share a common bond with your ancestors. The genetic information that resulted in their particular characteristics has been passed on to you.

People who are O blood type have a different set of characteristics than people who are Type B or Type A - they are susceptible to different diseases, they should eat different foods and exercise in a completely different manner. Some believe that personality is influenced by blood type! Dr. D'Adamo, author of the best selling books Eat Right for Your Type and Live Right for Your Type, among others, gives us a blueprint for living in his books. Read on to learn more about the Type O individual.” Dr. Peter D’Adamo

I’ve been doing a lot or reading and researching recently… And have just added these 2 books to my Amazon shopping cart. As we all know, there are an overwhelming assortment of diet & detox information available. It all gets a little overwhelming, sometimes confusing, and often contradicting. I am honestly loving the 80/20 raw “diet” and focusing on proper food combining! It is becoming habitually ‘normal’ for me. With that said, I also believe that its just not that ‘simple’ for everyone; and brings me back to the “What makes Me Me and You You” question. I mean, we are NOT all created equal, and what makes our “diets” any different? Yesterday, I was having this very enlightening conversation (with my dear friend Linda) about ‘eating for your blood type’. And I have to say, I found this topic as a whole very interesting. What is most interesting to me is that I DON’T even know my own blood type. First thing first, is to make an appointment with the Lab. Secondly, I am very interested in learning more about what I ‘should’ be eating to support my blood type.

“Type O-People with type O blood fare best on intense physical exercise and animal proteins and less well on dairy products and grains, says Dr. D'Adamo. The leading reason for weight gain among Type O's is the gluten found in wheat products and, to a lesser extent, lentils, corn, kidney beans, and cabbage, Dr. D'Adamo explains. Ideal exercises for Type O's include aerobics, martial arts, contact sports, and running.”

“Type A-Those with blood type A, however, are more naturally suited to a vegetarian diet and foods that are fresh, pure, and organic. As Type A's are predisposed to heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, "I can't emphasize how critical this dietary adjustment can be to the sensitive immune system of Type A," says Dr. D'Adamo. Type A's prefer calming, centering exercise, such as yoga and tai chi.”

“Type B-Type B's have a strong immune system and a tolerant digestive system and tend to resist many of the severe chronic degenerative illnesses, or at least survive them better than the other blood types. Type B's do best with moderate physical exercise requiring mental balance, such as hiking, cycling, tennis, and swimming.” 

“Type AB-Blood type AB, the most recent, in terms of evolution, of the four groups and an amalgam of types A and B, is the most biologically complex. For this group, a combination of the exercises for types A and B works best.”

Dr. D'Adamo. 

Does anybody know anything about this ‘topic’? To be continued…

Hmmmm...

Maggie

Gut Feeling (Day 24)

Dear Diary,

So, I guess we all get to this point. Or maybe we don't, but I'm getting there. And since Maggie's opened the door, I'm going to step over the threshold, too. I'm having some thoughts about colon hydration, you know - colon therapy. My interest began a couple of weeks ago when thoughts from two different parts of my life seemed to come together. Let me tell you how it happened ...

First, I want to explain that I have some really wonderful people in my life. I'm married to one of them. A large number are part of my family while still others, I've met along various avenues of this life journey. Two of these people are part of the latter group, women I met through a mutual friend, now long gone, but these two connections remain strong. We live in different parts of the country now, but rarely miss a week of sitting down and connecting with one another. We share all manner of things and, to be truthful, there are precious few things we don't discuss with one another. We talk of travel and relationships, we talk of our homes and our lives, but through it all is an underlying theme of spirituality. (You're starting to wonder how in the world I'm going to tie these two things together, aren't you? Well, stay with me, but at your own discretion. I know that what I'm about to say won't be everyone's 'cup of tea'.)

I've learned a lot over the fifteen some odd years I've known these women and I continue learning. One thing I've learned of is the connection between our mind, our body, and our spirit and that we're spiritual beings having a physical experience. I used to think we learned life lessons or spiritual lessons in spite of our physical bodies, as if our bodies are burdens to be carried around. What a ridiculous notion. Then I began to realize that we have these wonderful life lessons because of our bodies. Our bodies are our vehicles. Just think of the wonderful things we experience while living in these wonderful bodies of ours. The embrace of a loved one, the sound of their voice, the feel of the wind in our hair and the sun on our face ... Rebecca just brought a beautiful new soul into this world, the ultimate in physical experiences. None of these wonders are possible without our magnificent bodies.

In this group of mine, we discuss the connection between our experiences (both past and present, both physical and emotional) our body, and our soul. I've learned that the memory of certain experiences can be held in certain parts of our bodies. I was thinking about this last week when I was reading Natalia's interview with colon therapist, Gil Jacobs. Alright, I know this sounds rather indelicate, but again, with Maggie's encouragement to 'keep this real', I'm going to go ahead and discuss this. So here we go, and don't say I didn't warn you. 

Processed food is really hard for our body to break down. Essentially, all the food gets processed out and we're left with something our body doesn't recognize. I keep hearing that over time, food that isn't digested tends to stick to the walls of our intestines. Yeah, I know, kind of a disturbing thought, isn't it? And if that's not bad enough, this stuff tends to keep building up as 'sticky sticks to sticky'. This therapist explained that those of us who grew up eating the typical American diet, no doubt have intestines impacted with undigested food consumed as far back as our childhood. Are you kidding me? Good grief!

And grief it is. Let's think about this. We've all heard that detoxing can be an emotional process. Now, I think I know why - and here's where it came together for me. Is it possible that whatever emotions we were feeling at the time we ate this stuff are still with us as well? Whether it be grief or sadness, fear or joy ... whatever that emotion was that we swallowed along with that meal, is that still in there, too? Is that why our gut is the seat of our emotion? Where we tend to hold so many feelings about our past experiences?

Okay, I'll just say it. I'm feeling a little bit crummy this week. No, not physically - physically, I feel pretty terrific. It's emotionally that I feel kind of like a ship adrift at sea. Apparently, eating raw tends to "awaken the demons from years of ... bad eating". Well, I certainly have had plenty of years of bad eating.

Ah, yes, maybe that's why I feel like I'm battling demons this week.

Rivers of peace,

deborah

Thin Tuesday? (Day 23)

Dear Diary,
Remember when, a few years back, I used to keep that saying taped to my fridge, No food tastes as good as being skinny feels.  And, no matter how right that expression was, it rarely stopped me from opening said fridge and binging on something naughty, if I was so inclined.  It just laughed in my face when I went to put the (nearly empty, probably) container back inside when I was finished.  Like Maggie said, the remorse for eating "bad" food is instantaneous.    And for good reason.  The new saying I'd like taped to my fridge is:

No food tastes as good as eating raw feels.

You see, for me at least, eating poorly comes from one of two reasons:

1. I am eating for emotional reasons, not physical ones.

2. I am eating because I am thirsty or craving actual nutrition that I am not getting.

In the last week, I have hit a couple rough patches - and for good reason.  My daughter turned four years old, which was a bit of an emotional thing (she is getting so grown up!) AND another type of challenge too:  we had four birthday celebrations for her.  FOUR!  From the family party (bagels and donuts last Sunday) to the actual birthday celebration (lunch at the club with Grandma and Papa, which boasted ooey, gooey comfort food followed by a molten chocolate cake) to the birthday dinner at home (followed by amazing cupcakes from Sweets bakery) to the kid party (my favorite bakery's cake at home then an outing to the movie theater with 6 little girls under the age of six), I somehow managed to opt for the garden salad, the bag of carrots, the handful of berries every single time.  It was hard, really really hard.  But I did it.  I didn't lick the frosting from my fingers cutting the luscious pink cake, I didn't take even one bite of that old-fashioned glazed donut...I didn't sneak a handful of movie popcorn at Beauty and the Beast 3D...rather, I marched on, eating raw, following the rules.  Then, in the ultimate act of self-sacrifice, I choked down a glass of beet juice like it was that Three Wisemen shot I did on my 21st birthday (I know I should't admit this, it is SO uncool of me, but I HATE BEETS).  Then spent the next hour heaving and nauseous.  THAT WAS THE LAST STRAW.  I about lost it!  (As you heard in Friday's post.)

BUT..since Friday (Thursday, actually, I posted before I started the day on Friday), I have been given lots of advice, via comments and in person, that have really changed my outlook.  And I've been experimenting.  And I think I learned a lot.  Here's what I was doing wrong:

1.  I was letting myself get TOO HUNGRY (I have a big appetite anyway but being a breastfeeding mother and a runner and keeping up with the four kids means that I need to keep myself fed).  I had taken the "Fruit until lunch" rules to mean: get up at 6:30 in the morning, suck down 8-10 ounces of Green lemonade, eat a bowl of fruit, do the million things I have to do in the morning...and drink a bunch of coffee so I don't get tempted to eat anything else until lunch.  And what was happening?...I was okay, hanging in there, starting to lose it...SNAP!...STARVING (or dehydrated, masquerading as starving) and reached for something filling, like way too many nuts or a Lara Bar - something that felt "filling" -in hopes of feeling better.  That brings me to the next point.

2. I AM DEHYDRATED all the time.  I don't drink enough water.  Or juice.  And I drink way too much coffee (read: diuretic!).  Bad bad.

3.  I AM UNPREPARED.  While I have started meal planning (dinner) and juicing at night before bed if the morning will be too rushed, I have not stocked my house, my car...or my juicer...with the stuff I need for my busy, active day...and to ward off the afternoon blood sugar crash.

And speaking of that crash.  That's how I've always been.  I try mind over matter or whatever to stop myself from eating and I do okay for a while but then I have this MAJOR CRASH where I can't concentrate, can't make a decision, start snapping at Shawn and the kids, feel like I'm going to cry if I don't eat something NOW.  And, being in that position makes it really hard to make good choices.  I know the nuts/dates/Lara Bar food group (like Maggie said yesterday) is what I'm going to reach for in that situation every time because I want to feel full fast.  But there are two things wrong with that:

1. I HATE FEELING FULL.  I hate that feeling.  Full, for me, means feeling fat.  Bloated.  Sluggish.  Uncomfortable.  Hence, the immediate regret.  Also, in a weird irony, I feel more sluggish, less energy and decide to just eat more, hoping it will perk me up.  Never happens.  Damn viscous cycle.

2.  MY BODY was probably DEHYDRATED and craving less dense foods and I fed it with the wrong thing AND my body was probably craving nutrients which I just deprived it of getting by eating less nutrient-dense foods.

So...here's what I am going to do:

1. Drink 20 ounces of Green Lemonade in the morning.

2. Drink another juice at some point late morning when my blood sugar threatens to plummet.

3. DRINK WATER.  I just heard a couple of great ideas from friends at a party last weekend, and, putting them all together, this is my new WATER PLAN:  I am going to keep one of those glass to-go bottles with me at all times filled with water (I hate the taste of plastic and/or metal in my water).  I am going to Think Spa and float fruit or cucumber slices in a big glass water pitcher in my fridge.  Also, I am going to think of that pitcher as my daily water tally and make sure it's gone by the end of the day.

4. KEEP A 2-LB BAG OF BABY CARROTS WITH ME AT ALL TIMES.  Thanks, Emily for this trick.  It was a LIFE SAVER at the movie theater.  One of the perks of living in MN is that my car temperature is pretty darn close to my refrigerator temperature, so I am going to keep a bag in there at all times!  (BTW, do you think I'm going to start looking orange, like I got a spray tan, if I keep eating all these carrots?)

LAST BUT NOT LEAST, and in keeping with what Maggie said about CHEATERS NEVER WIN, I'm going to stop eating for the wrong reasons, and stop looking for the Loopholes in the Detox Diet.  No more:  Eat as Much as You Crave because it says "Raw" on the package...as a matter of fact, no more eating things that come out of a package.  Period.  Not this week.  I'd like to start thinking of Nuts, Bananas, Lara Bars in the same way I think of dark chocolate.  A lovely treat - but a little goes a long way.  They are NOT a staple of this diet, but more like an accessory.

MY PLAN FOR THIS WEEK:

• I will drink 20 ounces of Green Lemonade every morning.
• I will start my day with something that feels comforting but that is not cheating, namely my new UNCEREAL (a bowl of berries, drizzled in almond milk, eaten with a spoon).
• I will then eat ONLY RAW FRUITS AND VEGETABLES UNTIL DINNER.
• I will drink a glass of water first when I feel RAVENOUS and TWO glasses of water for every cup of coffee.
• I will drink ONE FRUIT JUICE in the morning and MORE VEGGIE JUICES in the afternoon.
• I will not eat from the nuts/seeds/dried fruit group as a snack, only incurring those foods if part of a planned dinner.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST: I will NOT let a small mishap set me off course but continue on, no matter what.

So, what do you think?  Will this work?  So far, so good.  Thanks, as always, for listening and for ALL THE GREAT ADVICE!

Love,

Becky