Oh my word. I just spent the last week as sick as a dog. Needless to say, I completely terminated the candida cleanse. Did I do enough to get that crap out of my body? I hope so. Basically, I think the cleanse was eliciting such an immune response (the stuffed nose, swollen glands, etc.) that I ended up with a massive sinus infection. I haven't had one that bad since before my sinus surgery 6 years ago.
Anyway, I'm well on the road to recovery now and ready too move on. Today I started back with a light workout (TurboJam Remix) and I'll do something similar tomorrow. Thursday I want to pick back up with TurboFire and my plan is to mix in some Brazil Butt Lift and P90X Legs and Back. Afterall, swimsuit season is close. Ack!
Now I need to get my nutrition dialed back in, too. This week my goal is to get some raw foods made, specifically some flat bread so I can eat some veggie sandwiches. Yum!
More details on the raw eating later.
Showing posts with label Cleansing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cleansing. Show all posts
Monday, March 19, 2012
Saturday, March 10, 2012
The Candida Cleanse
So during the fitness challenge some friends and I have been doing, I wrote a bit to them about the fact that I decided to do a candida cleanse.
What the heck is candida? Brace yourself. It's yeast. Gross. I'm talking about yeast. And I'm talking about it beyond, you know, your private parts. Eeeek! I swear, I'm not going to get THAT personal.
My point is that candida goes way beyond that. Yes, you can have it on your skin (Finn used to get it on his bald head when he was undergoing chemo), babies get it in the crooks of their fat little arms or behind their knees, etc. But you can also get it as a systemic infection in your bloodstream.
How?
I think it happens all sorts of ways (you can Google it and see about 5 million different explanations for it), but for me, I think it tied into my melanoma surgery back in early December and then eating too much sugar, wheat, and all sorts of other goodies over the holidays.
When I was able to start working out again after the first of the year, I noticed my recovery from workouts wasn't the greatest. My joints were sore, I was really tired, and I just had weird muscle fatigue. At first I thought it was just beause I hadn't been able to work out for those 3 weeks (I read that you can lose aerobic endurance in as little as two weeks--bummer, but good incentive to keep up with your high intensity workouts). Then I remembered a few years ago when I was consulting with a nutritionist and she had me do a candida cleanse.
According to natural health people, candida overgrowth in our bodies is rampant in Americans because of our highly processed diets. Really, it all comes down to what you believe and buy in to. I felt really great after I did the cleanse last time, so I thought, I'll do it again.
And so I did. I bought the same products I'd used before and away I went. I didn't even call my friend, who is a naturopathic doctor. I figured I'd have no problem.
Holy cow, I was so wrong.
So if you do your Googling, you will see that there might be some side effects as the yeast in your bloodstream start to die off and get expelled from your body. I was fine for about the first three days and then the die off hit me like a ton of bricks. UGH! At first I thought I was getting sick, but the severity and how fast it all came on got me thinking and that's when I discovered the yeast die off side effects/symptoms.
It was really bad for about four days, then moderately bad for another three. After that things simmered down.
So what I experienced:
-Massive histamine reaction. It was like having the worst sinus infection ever. My sinuses closed almost completely off.
-My lymph nodes were like golf balls and so sore that I could barely eat or drink. Yawning or even opening my mouth very far were both incredibly uncomfortable. That was the symptom that has taken the longest to go away. It was a week before I could eat without wincing. But then, I'm a total baby about such things.
-Complete and total fatigue.
-My tongue had a lovely white film on it.
-The skin on my jaws felt bumpy and itchy.
Literally, it was like I had the flu, except I didn't. At one point I took my temparature, but I never had a fever that I know of.
I did also have night sweats and trouble sleeping. My husband said I was snoring up a storm (I don't THINK I normally do that) because of all of the swelling in my nose and throat.
Sounds lovely, eh?
My Internet doctoring lead to two different trains of thought: don't stop the cleanse because you need to keep going, or stop the cleanse and let your body recover because this massive die off is taxing your immune system even more.
WTF?
So I did the only thing I could think of at that point. I went to my naturopath and we decided on a course of action that dialed back on the supplements to let my body recover, but to still keep going with the cleanse.
The thing is: I have to be super clean with my diet and really only eat meat and veggies. Super. Clean. Ugh! I know I can do it, but it seems overwhelming because there's no time limit on this--it's just until the symptoms go away and it's clear the candida is gone. That could be next week (very unlikely) or two months! ARGH! I don't do well with undefined deadlines.
Guess I'll learn pretty quick!
So do go out and learn more about the negative health issues candida can cause if you're so inclined. As with many other things, much of the traditional medical community kind of poo poos the whole concept, but there are stories about how in autopsies people organs are just covered in the candida fungus. Personally, I think candida is a real problem and I want it gone!
What the heck is candida? Brace yourself. It's yeast. Gross. I'm talking about yeast. And I'm talking about it beyond, you know, your private parts. Eeeek! I swear, I'm not going to get THAT personal.
My point is that candida goes way beyond that. Yes, you can have it on your skin (Finn used to get it on his bald head when he was undergoing chemo), babies get it in the crooks of their fat little arms or behind their knees, etc. But you can also get it as a systemic infection in your bloodstream.
How?
I think it happens all sorts of ways (you can Google it and see about 5 million different explanations for it), but for me, I think it tied into my melanoma surgery back in early December and then eating too much sugar, wheat, and all sorts of other goodies over the holidays.
When I was able to start working out again after the first of the year, I noticed my recovery from workouts wasn't the greatest. My joints were sore, I was really tired, and I just had weird muscle fatigue. At first I thought it was just beause I hadn't been able to work out for those 3 weeks (I read that you can lose aerobic endurance in as little as two weeks--bummer, but good incentive to keep up with your high intensity workouts). Then I remembered a few years ago when I was consulting with a nutritionist and she had me do a candida cleanse.
According to natural health people, candida overgrowth in our bodies is rampant in Americans because of our highly processed diets. Really, it all comes down to what you believe and buy in to. I felt really great after I did the cleanse last time, so I thought, I'll do it again.
And so I did. I bought the same products I'd used before and away I went. I didn't even call my friend, who is a naturopathic doctor. I figured I'd have no problem.
Holy cow, I was so wrong.
So if you do your Googling, you will see that there might be some side effects as the yeast in your bloodstream start to die off and get expelled from your body. I was fine for about the first three days and then the die off hit me like a ton of bricks. UGH! At first I thought I was getting sick, but the severity and how fast it all came on got me thinking and that's when I discovered the yeast die off side effects/symptoms.
It was really bad for about four days, then moderately bad for another three. After that things simmered down.
So what I experienced:
-Massive histamine reaction. It was like having the worst sinus infection ever. My sinuses closed almost completely off.
-My lymph nodes were like golf balls and so sore that I could barely eat or drink. Yawning or even opening my mouth very far were both incredibly uncomfortable. That was the symptom that has taken the longest to go away. It was a week before I could eat without wincing. But then, I'm a total baby about such things.
-Complete and total fatigue.
-My tongue had a lovely white film on it.
-The skin on my jaws felt bumpy and itchy.
Literally, it was like I had the flu, except I didn't. At one point I took my temparature, but I never had a fever that I know of.
I did also have night sweats and trouble sleeping. My husband said I was snoring up a storm (I don't THINK I normally do that) because of all of the swelling in my nose and throat.
Sounds lovely, eh?
My Internet doctoring lead to two different trains of thought: don't stop the cleanse because you need to keep going, or stop the cleanse and let your body recover because this massive die off is taxing your immune system even more.
WTF?
So I did the only thing I could think of at that point. I went to my naturopath and we decided on a course of action that dialed back on the supplements to let my body recover, but to still keep going with the cleanse.
The thing is: I have to be super clean with my diet and really only eat meat and veggies. Super. Clean. Ugh! I know I can do it, but it seems overwhelming because there's no time limit on this--it's just until the symptoms go away and it's clear the candida is gone. That could be next week (very unlikely) or two months! ARGH! I don't do well with undefined deadlines.
Guess I'll learn pretty quick!
So do go out and learn more about the negative health issues candida can cause if you're so inclined. As with many other things, much of the traditional medical community kind of poo poos the whole concept, but there are stories about how in autopsies people organs are just covered in the candida fungus. Personally, I think candida is a real problem and I want it gone!
Thursday, May 12, 2011
I Made it Through the Cleanse!
Isn't that a song by Barry Manilow? Just kidding.
I finished my Shakeology cleanse yesterday and weighed in this morning. I knew I felt pretty good, but I had this grand plan that I wouldn't eat one single thing that wasn't on the cleanse over the course of the 3 days. That, of course, is always the plan. But it's hard when I'm making dinner, touching all sorts of food that I'm not supposed to be eating.
This time though, I was a rock. Until last night. In the last hours of the cleanse, I ate a little biscuit. WTF? Totally annoyed with myself.
The first day of cleansing is hard. I'm usually hungry and going through withdrawl and also trying to break that habit of popping stuff in my mouth here and there. The second day I'm usually in good shape. I was actually traveling for work on the second day (Wednesday), but I stayed on track. I took my Shakeology and my shaker cup and just drank it in my car before my meeting. Then after my meeting, I went to Whole Foods and made my required salad for dinner.
Did great all day yesterday, but then there was the biscuit. Ah well, progress, not perfection. I keep telling myself that.
So overall, I lost 7 pounds on the cleanse. That's pretty exciting because that takes me to yet another record low weight--post-babily speaking that is. We're getting in the range of grad school era weight now. But the 7 pounds off is a little deceiving because I had eaten a bowl of popcorn the night before. Water retention anyone? So if I go from the weight I was when we got back from England, I'm down 3.5 lbs. Still very pleased with the results.
Here is the cleanse that I followed:
Pre-breakfast: a cup of green tea
Breakfast: Shakeology with water/ice only. May add 1/2 fruit if needed.
Snack: piece of fruit
Lunch: Shakeology with water/ice only. Follow with a cup of green tea.
Snack: Shakeology with water/ice only.
Dinner: salad greens with 3 servings of veggies, 2 Tbsp salad dressing, 4oz. white meat
Drink 2-4 liters of water per day.
The hardest part for me is drinking that much water a day. But I'm always bad at that.
I woke up this morning and had...Shakeology for breakfast. I usually only drink the chocolate, but this morning I had the Greenberry flavor with almond milk and half a banana.
I'm crazy that way.
Workout of Fire 30 and Upper 20 is already in the bag. Now I'm going to go to Costco and try not to eat any samples. Hopefully all of the sample people aren't out yet!
I finished my Shakeology cleanse yesterday and weighed in this morning. I knew I felt pretty good, but I had this grand plan that I wouldn't eat one single thing that wasn't on the cleanse over the course of the 3 days. That, of course, is always the plan. But it's hard when I'm making dinner, touching all sorts of food that I'm not supposed to be eating.
This time though, I was a rock. Until last night. In the last hours of the cleanse, I ate a little biscuit. WTF? Totally annoyed with myself.
The first day of cleansing is hard. I'm usually hungry and going through withdrawl and also trying to break that habit of popping stuff in my mouth here and there. The second day I'm usually in good shape. I was actually traveling for work on the second day (Wednesday), but I stayed on track. I took my Shakeology and my shaker cup and just drank it in my car before my meeting. Then after my meeting, I went to Whole Foods and made my required salad for dinner.
Did great all day yesterday, but then there was the biscuit. Ah well, progress, not perfection. I keep telling myself that.
So overall, I lost 7 pounds on the cleanse. That's pretty exciting because that takes me to yet another record low weight--post-babily speaking that is. We're getting in the range of grad school era weight now. But the 7 pounds off is a little deceiving because I had eaten a bowl of popcorn the night before. Water retention anyone? So if I go from the weight I was when we got back from England, I'm down 3.5 lbs. Still very pleased with the results.
Here is the cleanse that I followed:
Pre-breakfast: a cup of green tea
Breakfast: Shakeology with water/ice only. May add 1/2 fruit if needed.
Snack: piece of fruit
Lunch: Shakeology with water/ice only. Follow with a cup of green tea.
Snack: Shakeology with water/ice only.
Dinner: salad greens with 3 servings of veggies, 2 Tbsp salad dressing, 4oz. white meat
Drink 2-4 liters of water per day.
The hardest part for me is drinking that much water a day. But I'm always bad at that.
I woke up this morning and had...Shakeology for breakfast. I usually only drink the chocolate, but this morning I had the Greenberry flavor with almond milk and half a banana.
I'm crazy that way.
Workout of Fire 30 and Upper 20 is already in the bag. Now I'm going to go to Costco and try not to eat any samples. Hopefully all of the sample people aren't out yet!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Trigger Happy
On Monday I started a 3-day Shakeology Cleanse. It's not hard. Except when you're on Day Three and there are a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts sitting on the counter. I wrapped the box in multiple layers of Saran Wrap. I did this to keep them fresh and to keep the smell of them from making me faint.
Why are there a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts in my house? Every once in awhile when I go to Denver for meetings, like yesterday, I pick them up as a treat for Eamonn and the boys. We don't have a donut shop in the valley and if we want donuts, we have to eat nasty grocery store donuts. Needless to say, they don't even really appeal to the boys--that's saying something--so Krispy Kreme donuts are a special treat a few times a year.
Donuts are one of my trigger foods--all that sugar and fat wrapped up in a delicious little package of dough. Mmmmmm. I'm feeling woozy. My favorite donut is the sour cream cake. When I buy the boys' dozen, I usually buy just one of my favorites for me and eat in the car on the way home. Heaven on I-70.
Other trigger foods for me are tortilla chips, cheese and cookie dough. I try to only bake cookies on a cheat day or else I'm in trouble. And then of course, there's popcorn. Again, I save it for a cheat day. Surprisingly, chocolate is usually not a trigger food for me. I have noticed that if I eat milk chocolate, it seems to make me want more, but if I eat a really good quality dark chocolate, I can eat a square or two and call it good.
I'm curious. What are your trigger foods? How do you "manage" them?
Anyway, so far so good. I'm having great results with the cleanse--feeling good, lighter (mentally if not physically), and more disciplined, which is always my goal for a cleanse. I just needed to get my head back in the game.
And as a side note, I stopped into Kohl's in Denver yesterday with the intent to only buy underwear (in addition to not having a donut shop, the valley doesn't have any place to buy underwear except WalMart and I struck out there). I didn't get home until 10pm last night because I was reminded that trying on clothes and having them fit in a smaller size is very, very fun. However, I won't be wearing any of the new shorts I bought as it is snowing today. Sigh.
Why are there a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts in my house? Every once in awhile when I go to Denver for meetings, like yesterday, I pick them up as a treat for Eamonn and the boys. We don't have a donut shop in the valley and if we want donuts, we have to eat nasty grocery store donuts. Needless to say, they don't even really appeal to the boys--that's saying something--so Krispy Kreme donuts are a special treat a few times a year.
Donuts are one of my trigger foods--all that sugar and fat wrapped up in a delicious little package of dough. Mmmmmm. I'm feeling woozy. My favorite donut is the sour cream cake. When I buy the boys' dozen, I usually buy just one of my favorites for me and eat in the car on the way home. Heaven on I-70.
Other trigger foods for me are tortilla chips, cheese and cookie dough. I try to only bake cookies on a cheat day or else I'm in trouble. And then of course, there's popcorn. Again, I save it for a cheat day. Surprisingly, chocolate is usually not a trigger food for me. I have noticed that if I eat milk chocolate, it seems to make me want more, but if I eat a really good quality dark chocolate, I can eat a square or two and call it good.
I'm curious. What are your trigger foods? How do you "manage" them?
Anyway, so far so good. I'm having great results with the cleanse--feeling good, lighter (mentally if not physically), and more disciplined, which is always my goal for a cleanse. I just needed to get my head back in the game.
And as a side note, I stopped into Kohl's in Denver yesterday with the intent to only buy underwear (in addition to not having a donut shop, the valley doesn't have any place to buy underwear except WalMart and I struck out there). I didn't get home until 10pm last night because I was reminded that trying on clothes and having them fit in a smaller size is very, very fun. However, I won't be wearing any of the new shorts I bought as it is snowing today. Sigh.
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