La-la-Lizze on The Plan! Day 2

La-la-Lizze on The Plan!

Day 2 Weight: 154.2
Heaviest Weight: 166.6
The Plan Start Weight: 156.6

Mood: Positive. A little sleepy, but alert.

Menu: Lyn-Genet Recitas' The Plan, Day 1 REDO

PRE-BREAKFAST
16oz of water with lemon, Twining English Breakfast Tea (Adam said he would pick up my Detox Tea last night, but he couldn't find it in Walmart)

BREAKFAST
Flax Granola, Blueberries & Coconut Milk.

LUNCH
Sauteed Broccoli, mixed greens with pumpkin seeds, 1/2 a pear and carrot ginger soup with sunflower seeds.

SNACK
Medium Fuji apple

DINNER
Sauteed Kale with Veggies and Spicy Coco Sauce with a side of Beet & Carrot Salad with pumpkin seeds.

DAILY RECAP
I still lost 2lb even though I deviated from the plan and ate a steak. TERRIFIC! I can't imagine how much I could have lost if I hadn't gobbled that steak. Though I did lose weight, I am still repeating the first day. I want to give myself the best chance possible. I forget to go out and get my detox tea again, but I am taking my probiotic daily and drinking all the water.

I enjoyed breakfast yesterday, but today, I made a few changes that made a huge difference. I did not combine the components of breakfast. I ate the flax granola with cranberries dry, taking sips of coconut milk and nibbling at blueberries. It was a great taste and texture experience. Ollie tried my cereal and liked it so he has a little mixed in with his.

We read a few books, played with his number blocks...and then woke daddy up around 1pm so mommy could take a nap. Usually I need a solid 1-2 hours to make up for the 3-5 hours I missed out on overnight. BUT I only slept for 20mins and woke up alert and ready for coffee! Wait, scratch that...ready for English Breakfast Tea! I hung out with my guys Adam, Ollie, the roommate Jon and the dog Booga before the big boys ran off to work.
Yesterday I felt that Lunch was bland..so today I went CRAZY with the spices. So much better! Ollie wasn't interested in sharing today, so I made heated up some chicken and rice soup from the deep freeze. We had our lunch together picnic style on the floor.

After Lunch, we watched Little Einsteins as I rocked him to sleep. As soon as he was out, I moved him to bed and went to work. I always clean like mad as soon as he take that first nap. Three boys, a dog and a cat make a big mess daily. When I was done, I got online to research the right online college. I want to finish my Bachelors in Health and Wellness..so I can start the Masters of Montessori Education at Loyola. Ollie will start Montessori next year and I hope to return to my assistant teacher role. when I return, I want to be working towards being a head teacher rather than the Bilingual Directors Assistant. I have a lot of work ahead of me!

Dinner was just as good reheated as it was fresh. I anticipated the hunger I would feel so I ate more roughage today.

After Dinner, Ollie and I took a bath and got in our pjams. We read a story or too and played 'chase me' in the house, complete with zombie growls. After playtime we picked up our mess and I did dishes while Ollie practiced his alphabet with his Leapfrog fridge magnet set. We settled down for the night. Now, we're listening to music while I blog and he plays with Mega Bloks.

I am vowing not to have any hiccups tonight. I'm on my last cup of tea and then I'm cut off from liquid until tomorrow.

See you tomorrow!

La-la-Lizze on The Plan! Day 1

La-la-Lizze on The Plan!

Day 1 Weight: 156.6
Heaviest Weight: 166.6

Mood: Sleepy and irritated because I will have to take a nap at some point today (babies! pft!)

Menu: Lyn-Genet Recitas' The Plan, Day 1

PRE-BREAKFAST
16oz of water with lemon, Twining English Breakfast Tea, no Liver Detox Tea to be found in mah house!

BREAKFAST
Flax Granola, Blueberries & Coconut Milk.

LUNCH
Sauteed Broccoli, mixed greens with pumpkin seeds, 1/2 a pear and carrot ginger soup with sunflower seeds.

SNACK
Peppermint tea and a medium Fuji apple

DINNER
Sauteed Kale with Veggies and Spicy Coco Sauce with a side of Beet & Carrot Salad with pumpkin seeds. Spicy Coco Sauce is AMAZE-BALLZ!

DAILY RECAP
I woke up after another night of struggling to fall asleep for 4-5hrs. I was woken by a hungry baby. After a brief nursing session, Ollie whined and grumped at me while I took care of morning necessities including weighing myself as required by The Plan. I discovered that my Liver Detox Tea never made it home from the grocery strore. I crossed my fingers and prepared English Breakfast Tea with lemon and honey instead. While my tea brewed, I slugged down the morning 160z of lemon water.

I put my breakfast together, Flax Granola, Blueberries & Coconut Milk. And then Ollies, Cheerios, Blueberries & Almond Milk. He prefers almond milk over cows milk. I've got one cool kid! Breakfast was enjoyable, the combination of textures was really appealing and satisfying. However, tomorrow I will NOT pour my coconut milk over my granola, as the last few bites got slimy. I will also eat my blueberries separately. Ollie tried my granola and wasn't really excited about it. This is actually nice, he won't be begging me for bites! After breakfast, I felt full and satisfied. I ended up falling asleep in our rocking chair with Ollie watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.....the nap was awesome!

Lunch was a little bland, I blame that on my light spicing hand. What did I eat? Sauteed Broccoli, mixed greens with pumpkin seeds, 1/2 a pear and carrot ginger soup with sunflower seeds. The Carrot Ginger Soup is sweet, I'm not used to sweet soup. I only ate about a half cup. Tomorrow, I will definitely make use of the 20+ approved spices! I am full, not really experiencing any toxic hunger symptoms or cravings. The highlight of lunch...the pear &pumpkin seeds. :)

Snack timing was perfect. Right between Lunch and Dinner, I though I would die I was so hungry! I wanted to eat my sons almonds and fruit sooooooo badly. Once I had a cup of peppermint tea and a medium Fuji apple, I felt so much better. It held me over until dinner and I didn't count the minutes once!

Ahh, dinner. Sauteed Kale with Veggies and Spicy Coco Sauce, as wells as Beet & Carrot Salad with pumpkin seeds. Spicy Coco Sauce is AMAZING! I could drink it! I am so hopeful that I am not reactive in the shrimp test down the road...because Shrimp with Spicy Coco Sauce sounds incredible. I love the Beet and Carrot salad with pumpkin seeds, it sweet and the texture is so crunchy! I felt so great after dinner!

I had my last glass of water, followed by a cup of tea about an hour after dinner. I had been pleasantly surprised when I noted that I was actually sleepy since it rarely, if ever happen at night. THEN my first toxic hunger symptom showed up, a massive headache. No chance was I falling asleep. I warmed up my body and did some light yoga to relax my brain. Then the fiance showed up from work (he works 3rd shift) and threw steaks on the grill for his dinner. It smelled so amazing and looked so delicious. I knew if I ate a steak the headache would go away. I resisted for an hour, but finally gave in. The headache disappeared. Now, I get to do the first day all over. Usually a slip up like that would have sent me into a shame spiral that twisted into a guilt-binge. Not this time. My body said it needed steak. Tomorrow, I will know better.

Goodnight!

I've been chopping, shredding, mincing and mixing for hours. My son is not happy about this. He wants to read and play with me. I felt guilty, so I sat down and gave him a bowl. We made a snack together and read a book. Now I'm fully prepped for the next few days. I am very glad that I gave myself another day to prepare. It would have been incredibly stressful to take care of this while trying to eat the right things. I think taking the probiotic and drinking the water for another day will only benefit my end results. Just those two changes have made a big difference in the way I feel. I've always been good about drinking the recommended 64oz a day, but the extra 13.8oz has made me feel better. It really does make sense that a 128lb woman wouldn't have the same water demands as a 165.6lb person!

The most interesting thing I made today? Flax Granola. I used Red Mill Whole Flaxseeds, it was the best price per ounce at Hy-Vee and I've always been happy with Red Mill products. It was simple, but time consuming. Soak whole flax seeds in water (spiced with all sorts of warm, sweet spices, think cinnamon & cloves) for around 8hrs and it looks like this:

After the Flax has soaked, you thinly spread it onto a cookie sheet and bake it for 50 minutes at 150*, flipping and turning it so that all bits are baked dry. I went ahead and made the whole package, which is why it took me forever to cook! The recipe in the book allows for dried cranberries or raisins, so I added dried cranberries for sweetness and textural contrast. In the end, it looked like this:

It is far more appealing in person, crunchy in texture and very fragrant. If you're used to sugared/salted cereals, the flavor will probably seem bland at first. One of the goals in The Plan is to sensitize your taste buds to natural flavors. I know that so much of what I eat is flavor enhanced with sugar or salt. I've gotten used to amping up food with salt that I've forgotten how delicious things used to taste!

My first 7 years were spent in my Momzoe's house; where snacks were things like cheese, hummus, fruits, steamed veggies with a small amount of butter...delicious! The next 7 years were spent living with my Pops. Not too long ago. we had a frank and humorous discussion about the food we ate during that time. So much of it was McDonalds, chain Chinese, frozen Hungry Man Dinners, Egg-in-a-hole, pizza. I don't really ever remember having breakfast or many fruits or veggies in the house. At age 14, I 5' tall & 150 lbs! You know what? That has affected me negatively but I WAS lucky. I had a dad who kept me fed, clothed, housed and he loves me. We were not the model Daddy/Daughter Duo but get along amazingly well these days.

I have been fighting that 14y/o girl who has a taste for foods devoid of merit since I moved back in with my mom at 14. I was down to 110 lbs until my senior year in highschool. I left for my exchange year in Ecuador. The food was amazing and so was the experience. So amazing, that I gained 25lbs. I was still happy then. After I started college my food choices came in waves, HEALTHY for weeks and then SUPER UNHEALTHY for weeks. I found that I gain weight around my guy, Adam. I ballooned up to 166 at one point during our relationship. I was actually 163 lbs the day we found out I was pregnant. I had severe morning sickness and lost 30lbs while pregnant...then slowly gained it back, weighing 163 when I went into labor.
After my son was born I worked out and ate balanced meals so I could provide Ollie with optimal nutrition. I was down to 147 until I had Mirena placed. Then I gained back all the weight plus 3lbs...evening though I was eating and exercising the same way. My doctor told me flat out, that I probably wouldn't loose more than 10lbs until I stopped breastfeeding because of the overabundance of estrogen in my system. I wasn't about to sacrifice my sons health so I could be more aesthetically pleasing. I cut my workouts in half and started eating whatever I wanted. I stayed at the same weight. The weight I was at when I saw Lyn-Genet Recitas and her Plan. The idea of reactive foods and the way they can affect each person differently resonated with me. Maybe, just maybe The Plan can help balance my hormones and get rid of my laundry list of related symptoms!
I'll check in tomorrow. Tonight I'm drinking my last Diet Dr. Pepper and eating my last jalapeno popper for a long time!

Grocery Shopping Insanity

Grocery Shopping was not a pleasant experience for a 1,2,3!
1. Ollie didn't want to be in the store, let alone for 1hr+
2. Hy-vee, I am so angry with Hy-Vee. I know at one point they advertised Ad-Matching. I would have gone to Walmart and Trader Joes. They have better customer service and better prices. And they would never make me feel like such an awkward idiot holding my ads, overwhelmed with an angry baby. I should know better, except for 3 A+ employees who work overnights, my local Hyvee is filled with borderline rude "Unhelpful Smiles". It ended up costing me $65+ more than I planned on spending.
3. There was a snow storm that coated everything while I was in the very oddly organized Hyvee. I wasn't offered drive up service (with a 18month baby and a huge cart full of groceries)...so I had to push through all the snow to the car I parked way too far away for the extra bit of exercise.

A bright spot, Walgreens. I had purchased a probiotic supplement and a bottle of wine there yesterday. When I got home I opened the probiotic bottle and the seal was broken. They replaced it, no questions asked. the manager offered to get the replacement for me so i wouldn't have to go to the back of the store for it. Great customer service!

Oh, and the bottle of Red Velvet from Cupcake vineyards? Not bad, just not for me. Next on the list, Pinot Noir from Cupcake Vineyards.

I've decided to take my probiotic today and play with my baby. My water is down the hatch for today. I'll cook tomorrow and start Wednesday. I don't want to doom myself because I'm ill-prepared!

The Plan, Lyn-Genet Recitas

I've read it! I'm guessing the print version of the book is much more enjoyable than the ebook. The Plan is littered with testimonials from success stories, people who've lost weight and stopped or lessened the effects of disease and physical disrepair. Normally I read the practical information in a book first and then go back later to inspire myself with success stories...NOT possible with the ebook. The testimony was an irritating interruption from beginning to end.
I do feel prepared with informational to start The Plan. You start with a three day cleanse wherein you eat about 2000 calories of the least reactive foods to help the body repair and balance itself. NO added salt, no artificial sweeteners, no carbonation. Including the 3 day cleanse, The Plan outlines 20 days total. Each day you weigh yourself upon waking and record it, drink 16oz of water with lemon, drink dandelion tea or take a liver detoxifier and then enjoy the outlined meal plan. After the cleanse you begin to incorporate more reactive foods: some days you choose your own, others days they are chosen for you. Each new food day is followed by a rest day in case you are reactive to the new food. Some signs of reactions are weight gain or stabilization, headaches, and bloating. At the end of the 20 days, The Plan has helped you to discover foods that will consistently help you lose or maintain weight and feel great!From there you can continue to incorporate foods, testing them on your own. In the end, this isn't a diet. The Plan is a way to figure how to eat and eat what you love for the rest of your life.

Gripes
***No shopping lists even though they suggest you cook ahead, I am going to have to write down ever and tally ingredients
before I go shopping. That may not sound like a big deal, but it will be at least two hours.
***The links in the ebook aren't always accurate.
***I have a feeling the plan is going to be rather expensive based on the recipes and suggested supplements. I will keep
my receipts and post a total cost in the end.
***A lot of the food will be prepared for me and my son, my fiance will not touch things like Carrot Ginger Soup (so
I'll have took separately for him or say he is on his own).
***No salt added? I love salt, plain on my hand even. I will miss salt SOOOOO much
***Red Wine is encouraged daily after day four. I'm a Moscato girl and I have no idea what Red I would like.

I'm going to go ahead and write down all the food I need to buy including 16 spices I don't keep in my cupboard tonight so I can shop tomorrow. I have a feeling I'm going to be spending a good 120 dollars just to get through the first 3 days, after that I'll have a lot of the basics so the next bill won't be so bad. Also, I'll buy a bottle of red tonight to see if maybe I can find one I like. I've heard great things about Cupcake Vineyards Red Velvet. :)

In disrepair, but hopeful!

Oh, Dr. Oz! You've done it again. I've reevaluated my physical and mental health and found them both in disrepair

Evidence of Disrepair
***Daily headaches in the evening
***Toxic hunger for several hours, about every other day
***Moody, happy most of the time and then inexplicably despondent
***My ADHD is flaring madly
***I can barely stay awake with my son Ollie (18 months) when he wakes up between 8am and 9am
***Insomnia rears its ugly head in the evenings, keeping me awake until 5am-6am some days
***When I exercise (3-6x/week), my body bloats and becomes inflamed
***My skin is irritated and dry
***My body refuses to lose more than ten pounds when I have 45 more to go
***I'm cold unless I'm being very active (even in a 71* house)
***I don't feel sexy, I usually feel sexy even when I'm a chunk!

What was it Dr. Oz featured on his show that made me take such a critical look at my health? It was the tried and trued testimony of Lyn-Genet Recitas. She was sharing her outlook on nutrition, which can be found detailed in her book The Plan. The basic concept is that our bodies are each unique and can react differently to food. Reactions to food can be extreme or they can be less noticeable, causing bloating, weight gain, headaches and more. One of the big problems that Lyn-Genet outlined, is the fact that many foods touted as Health or Super Foods are highly reactive. For example, I eat black beans, raw broccoli and shrimp for the health benefits and the taste. I thought those foods should help me lose weight as part of a reduced calorie diet and regular exercise. Lyn-Gent says "No!" Those food are highly reactive and many people experience inflammation, weight gain and other symptoms by ingesting them. I could be one of those people. The Plan is targeted at women over 35, tough it is suitable for men and younger people with chronic issues. I am only 25, but I still think I can benefit from this. I am young and vibrant, I should not be experiencing so many health issues. I've written an email to Lyn-Genet's assistant Maggie, wondering if I could benefit from experiencing The Plan. It has been a week and I haven't heard anything back. It puts a sour taste in my mouth, I suppose...though, I have decided to go ahead and purchase the ebook. I'm reading it as soon as I post this! I want to be sure it won't affect my breastfeeding relationship with Ollie (one of the main reasons I've discounted diet, after diet). See you as soon as I finish the book!

Until then, I'm following Lyn-Genet's suggestion of drinking half my body weight in ounces of water daily(156.6/2 =78.3,so 78oz), last drink 3-4hrs before bedtime.