Day 16 - Becoming Clear

When starting this program, I had the hidden hope that I would also find out if my body was sensitive to a particular food.   I had not completely removed dairy, wheat and soy but I had significantly reduced them, especially the first week.  I had no wheat, had maybe one serving of dairy and no soy during the first week.  When adding a shake mix (Designer's woman's shake called "Aria") that contained 50/50 soy and whey proteins, the second week, I discovered that all of sudden I had GI discomfort again.  Interesting....

I love having shakes in the morning.  It is a quick and easy way to get my protein, veggies, fruit and fiber all in one quick, delicious combination and I don't want to give them up.  I was recently turned onto hemp protein (no not the marijuana kind!), which is a complete protein (contains all 8 amino acids that your body cannot produce) and is more easily digestible than soy or whey.  It is more expensive and does not have as long of a shelf life as the other protein shakes but I am not consuming a bunch of fillers and therefore I am getting more of what I need.

Am I lactose intolerant?  I am not quite sure.  It would be a shame because I LOVE cheese.  I really think I just have a sensitive stomach (complete with chronic gastritis) and I need to watch what I put into my stomach.  I have experienced acid reflux and all the lovely symptoms of such (heartburn, gas, etc) and it is not fun.  Lying down in an elevated position all night is not ideal and continuing to take a proton pump inhibitor or H2 blocker is not an option that I am willing to consider because of all the possible long-term issues, especially if I can keep control of the symptoms with diet and NOT taking ANOTHER drug.

FYI - I think I have finished dropping the majority of the "toxic weight" that I had.  I lost one pound last week with no change in inches around my bust, waist and hips.  I admit I have not been doing any consistent exercise.  I start a stroller workout next week that is three times per week for the entire month of August and I am excited.  I think I am ready to add a new change.  The first couple weeks with making so many changes, it was a bit much for me to do everything I am supposed to do so I chose to focus on my eating habits.  I went from NOT cooking, to cooking EVERY night, NOT drinking water to drinking 80 ounces EVERY day, and eating ONLY 2-3 times per day to eating five times a day.  MAJOR changes for me and they are becoming a HABIT.  

Sooooo, total 8 lbs lost and 3 inches.  Yay!