Are vitamin IVs right for you?

Hey Hey Diva friends!

WOW what a whirlwind this past month has been. My blogging has taken a serious hit with everything else going on - if you want to make sure you don't miss anything ( blogs, youtube videos, podcast episodes and more) make sure you're subscribed to my newsletter! I roundup everything I've been working on weekly and share it with my VIPS (pssst! thats you!) :)

I just got back from the 2018 Mindshare Summit in San Diego and I am STILL running running all day every day trying to keep up with everything I learned, the changes I'm making, connecting with new friends etc.... stay tuned... some SUPER exciting things are coming down the pike- I have a feeling 2019 is going to be AMAZING!

I'm also only a few days out from heading BACK to San Diego for the 10 year anniversary FDN conference. I'm particularly excited to meet all my fellow FDNs in an environment of networking, business education and further health education. I can't wait to learn more and more!

Because I knew that this month would be so busy (hello jet lag!) I wanted to give myself a boost and try some IV nutritional therapy (or vitamin IVs). I've been aware of them for a few years and didn't think much of it outside of extreme health cases or cancer treatment.

Like many things however, vitamin IV therapy can be used in many ways for many reasons and, because I always like to try things (within reason) before recommending them to my clients I began to search out local places to get them done.

I thought this month would be perfect to help boost my energy in between business trips. I figured the additional side effects of boosting my immune system and increasing my vitamin levels would be a bonus, but it turns out the timing couldn't have been better.

Just before my first IV, I received my Spectracell micronutrient testing results back and they showed a few vitamin deficiencies including a few B vitamins and Vitamin C. 

There are many reasons for deficiencies like this, but since I'm still in the process of working on my own gut health and I just wrapped up a protocol to eliminate 3 (yes THREE) parasites, 2 of which were intracellular (meaning they wreak havoc on my cell structure) and a suppressed immune system, it made sense to me that the vitamins I am absorbing from my food  - particularly vitamin C and B vitamins used for metabolism, energy production and immune system regulation would be depleted.....

SO back to the IV therapy! The timing was perfect. I received my test results only a few days before going into my first appointment. The particular clinic I went to is run by a doctor and so the initial patient visit was able to be submitted to insurance as my annual physical ( two birds!) but the IV treatments were/will be all out of pocket.

Once I got my physical, I showed the doc my tests results and began discussing the IV therapies. Luckily for me, this doc (one of only 2 I found in the area) is pretty flexible and actually asked if I'd like the IV that day. Knowing that I was traveling soon I said heck yes! And can I schedule another one for the 10 days I'm home in between trips?! :)

Depending on who you go to, you may be able to get personalized vitamin therapy - they mix the IVs before each one so you can actually change the dosage and types of vitamins in each bag. Most of the time they will offer certain popular combinations like the Meyers Cocktail, Vitamin C, or a Glutathione boost.

For me and my test results, a Meyers Cocktail addressed almost everything I needed anyway so instead of asking them to personalize it I just asked for a Meyers IV.

Meyer Cocktail

• B complex
• B12
• Vit C
• Magnesium

My experience:

The first IV was no problem! I hate needles and always get a little uncomfortable but other than a slight ache in my forearm it was no big deal. I had been curious how I'd feel since my only IV experiences have been in emergency situations where they pump you full of pain medications and by that point you really don't care about anything because you're so loopy!

The first IV was fairly slow - it took about an hour - once the nurse noticed it was going so slow she sped it up and it seems to go much faster.

Don't expect to come out of the office feeling way different- it's not something that takes effect immediately. Rather, you will probably notice results over the next few days to a week! 

The next week I was having a great time in San Diego hob nobbing with some of the coolest people in the health industry and functional medicine fields. Being on west coast time and staying up late was EXHAUSTING and so I was super excited when I noticed one of the vendors was offering IV's right there at Mindshare! So of course, I signed up to get a boost.

Initially, I was going to get a full bag but I was running short on time so I opted for a smaller bag with just the B vitamins. This IV was super fast super easy, and super helpful midweek.

I had already scheduled a full Meyers cocktail for a few days after I got home and I figured it couldn't hurt to help me get back on track and minimize jet lag so I could be as productive as possible the 10 days in between trips. This IV didn't go off without a hitch but it wasn't too much of an issue- the nurse wasn't quite ready with everything and before she hooked up the IV I gushed blood but nothing painful or traumatic ha! 

Overall I noticed that my energy and digestion both improved over the past few weeks. This was probably particularly effective for me since like I said I was actually deficient in a few of these vitamins to begin with, but most people who struggle with digestive issues, autoimmune conditions or chronic fatigue would most likely be in a similar boat and experience similar results!

Let's talk about the pros and cons:

Cons:

• Must pay out of pocket (approximately $130-180 per treatment)
• Take 1-2 hours of your day including drive time depending on location the office and duration of IV
• Difficult if you are squeamish around needles or blood
• Not many people offer these services so shopping around is difficult and you may not LOVE your provider if you have limited options in your area

Pros:

• Bypasses your digestion (super helpful for those working on gut health -this can be a HUGE boost in terms of speeding up your healing process and helping you navigate lifestyle changes by increasing your energy levels)
• Fast results! IV's get straight into your blood stream expediting your body's ability to absorb and utilize the vitamins immediately
• Optional treatment which means YOU are in control - you can request to get this done as often as you feel is helpful
• Can potentially be personalized - unique IV mix for YOUR nutritional needs
• Can help those with fatigue, pain, malnutrition, digestion problems, those who travel regularly or have vitamin deficiencies get a leg up and begin healing more quickly.

Takeaway

Overall, I found the experience to be incredibly helpful. I realize that this is a significant investment for most, but think about this...If you are someone struggling with fatigue to the point where you are missing work.....you are so tired you can't get out of bed to get your kids on the bus....your gut is damaged to the point where you aren't absorbing the nutrients from the awesome food you are eating....or you are spending hundreds of dollars on supplements that you can't properly utilize.....spending a few hundred bucks to get your body on track is SO WORTH IT. 

Many don't realize that a something as simple as a vitamin deficiency can cause anxiety, inflammation, fatigue etc!!!!

After investing in the IVs you can maintain this level of energy and health through lifestyle, nutrition and targeted supplementation to keep you on track ( which is what I'm doing!). I'm currently supplementing with my deficient nutrients and will continue to do so for a few months before retesting to see if I'm back to normal.

Remember, supplements and protocols aren't for life. It's difficult to get what we need from our food particularly if you are really active, use a lot of energy during the day, live a stressful life, travel a lot, or struggle with chronic illness!!! 

I would highly recommend giving it a try and researching good providers in your local area.

What are your thoughts? Have you, or

would you try nutritional IV therapy??

When things aren't perfect...hacking your digestion and PMS bonus tips!

Hey Hey Diva friends!

Recently I've been sharing my free guide: 5 steps to crushing your PMS where I share my biggest lifestyle tips on how to reduce inflammation, support your hormones, and get your cycle back on track. These are simple, but big steps  and ones that may take some time to implement....

So....what happens if you're say...on vacation like I was when my last period started and things are NOT to perfect? You're drinking coffee, enjoying some sweet treats....etc....

Here are some extra bonus hacks to go along with the guide to dig a little deeper and give your body that extra support!

4 bonus tips to crush your PMS

1) Take extra nutrients.

During our vacation I KNEW I would be splurging so I planned ahead and purchased some Bulletproof Unfair Advantage

This little liquid supplement is good for your brain, cells and mitochondrial health. I took 2-3 a day while on vacation!!!

You may also want to increase your magnesium intake as stress (travel) can deplete it (most of us are already deficient!). I like Dr. Mercola L Threonate as it's one form of magnesium that has been shown to cross the blood brain barrier. Magnesium is important in over 700+ enzymatic functions in the body including recovery, muscle soreness, energy, and quality sleep!

2) Get on top of inflammation.

I knew my period was coming, even though I thought it would come once I got HOME....so I wanted to make sure I stayed on top of any inflammation that may occur from less than stellar nutrition choices that week. I made sure to take 1-2 fish oil supplements at each meal in addition to eating lots and lots of REAL fish that was easily available at the resort!

We (American's) are often too high in omega 6 fatty acids. This is often due to poor diet and exposure to processed oils like soy, peanut, and canola in our processed foods and not enough omega 3s which are anti inflammatory. One 3s are found in fish, walnuts, and seeds like chia and flax. Recommendations vary but an acceptable ratio is 4:1 omega 6 to omega 3 and most in America are more like 26:1. Ideally in a perfect world you could get 1:1.

I also took some ALEVE. Not much, but I have had SUCH pain in the past it made me nervous if I felt anything at all and I wanted to stay on top of it. NSAIDS can really wreak havoc on your stomach lining and gut in general. Often regular use of NSAIDS for pain, sinus infections etc... are a precursor for leaky gut and inflammation in the first place. So we want to avoid them as much as possible. They can however provide a valuable service on occasion when used in the appropriate way.

I do try to balance my NSAID use with a scoop of Innate - GI RESPONSE which is loaded with gut soothing and healing ingredients. This allows me to rest easy and I would recommend taking a scoop along with the NSAID.

**I would also not recommend you continue taking ALEVE every 2-3 hours or anything like that...take as minimal a dose as you can to feel comfortable and move on.

3) Digestive enzymes.

I take these anyways but if you don't you might want to on vacation. I ADD one on vacation called GlutenEase in case of cross contamination. The nice thing about this particular supplement however is that it also helps you break down casein so if I am choosing to eat extra dairy for example, I'll still take one. 

Enzymes are just an extra boost to help your break down and process your food efficiently. The LAST thing you want on vacation is to get constipated or bloated - yuck!

4) DETOX.

Let's face it - NO ONE is perfect on vacation. You may want to include some gentle detox a few times that week. Activated charcoal is a great natural binder. It swoops in and grabs things like heavy metals, toxins, and things that may cause you discomfort, bloating or gas. It binds to those buggers and sweeps them out with your poo. :) 

Let's just stop for a moment and clarify that I am NOT recommending you take these additional steps as an EXCUSE to binge and party for a week. We still ate incredibly healthy while on vacation - got lots of vitamin D, even worked out several times that week. But out of our normal routine we also included lots of treats, we relaxed, didn't stress and enjoyed our time and food.

Stress can play a MAJOR factor in how you feel, how you digest, and how your body handles your next cycle. I am happy to report than when my period came it was non-eventful. No pain, issues - just hello I'm here, have a nice day.

To ME that is progress. To ME who used to WRITH on the floor in pain, that is a miracle.  So a few dietary tweaks, a few changes here and there, thinking ahead for vacation...TOTALLY WORTH IT.

Think you can't have a perfect period? Think it's too good to be true? Download my free guide today and get started!

*Kylene is an Amazon associate and the links provided in this post are affiliate links.

Flourless Orange Chocolate Scones

Hey Hey Diva friends! It's my birthday so....YOU get a recipe :)

But FIRST!! Are you signed up for my weekly newsletter? If not, you really should be! Recipes, tips, podcast and blog round-ups, first dibs on discounts, and more! Click here to get an email from me every Thursday morning!

When I was a kid, I would start planning my birthday like 4 months in advance...yeah I know I know, overkill....I don't really know where that came from, but I SERIOUSLY love the day.

Fun fact:It's also Flag day (my Mom used to tell me that they put all the flags up for my birthday) ha!

Anywayyyy.....I remember somewhere in my teens it was Oprah's 50th birthday. She was this icon, this rockstar, this super woman who had achieved so many life goals....and I remember her saying that each decade gets better. For whatever reason, that stuck with me. I really didn't like it when people worried about aging, and would dread their birthdays like "oh no! I'm 3 years away from being 30!!" ......I wanted to adopt the Oprah attitude - it's jsut a number, and it can get BETTER with age....

So I did. And it does :) Life DOES get better with age. Here are just a few things for me that have improved each year:
My health
My strength
My attitude
My life purpose
My business....

Now, working as an FDNP it's my job to help you get to the point physically where each year gets better for YOU! To that end, I wanted to give YOU a gift on my birthday!!

In August I'll be launching #HormoneHacker - a 10 week program focused on gut health and supporting your hormones naturally. I created this program because so many of you wanted to go a step further than #GetGutsyWithMe and learn more about your cycles and how your body works AS A WOMAN. 

So before I officially launch the 10 week program (stay tuned for all the awesome details!) I wanted to drop this little gift for you. It's my free guide to hack your PMS. 5 simple but major tips to get you on your way to cramp free month!!

I'd love your feedback, so make sure you hop into my free FB group Stop Dieting and Live Your Life to stay in touch as you begin to implement it!!!

p.s. Find this tool useful? Share this blog with a friend so they can download it too!

Without further ado - my birthday scone recipe:

Flourless Orange Chocolate Scones 

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cup cassava flour
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/2tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• orange zest
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 4 eggs
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/3 cup enjoy life choc chips

Directions:

1. Mix the wet ingredients
2. Mix the dry ingredients
3. Combine
4. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes or until slightly golden around the edges. Enjoy!

Note** I've noticed that cassava flour recipes tend to be best warm out of the oven, but we reheated these scones for breakfast and they were just fine! If anyone knows how to make them slightly fluffier I'd love to hear your tips!!!

I suffer from adrenal fatigue....what now?

Hey Hey Diva Friends!

Hey all! Thank you so much for taking the survey recently - if you haven't had a chance yet please take 2 minutes to answer few questions below so I can provide more information and fun content that YOU want...

I was reviewing your answers and one question stuck out to me and I got really excited to answer it!
 

"I suffer from adrenal fatigue like many women.
How can gut health, diet, or exercise help?"

I LOVE THIS QUESTIONS because I too have struggled with adrenal fatigue. In fact being aware of adrenal fatigue and the importance of hormones was what prompted to seek natural healing paths and ultimately led me to FDN!

 Gut health, diet, and exercise are CRUCIAL components in the healing process so let's talk about each one...But before I jump into that, what IS adrenal fatigue? HPA axis dysfunction is the sciency-term for what we commonly call adrenal fatigue. There's a lot of huffing and puffing going on about the name of it because the more we learn about what it actually is, the more we realize it's not that your adrenals are tired but it's actually a breakdown in your stress regulation system.
 

Your hypothalamus receives signals from your environment (mental, emotional, or external) that communicate stress. Your hypothalamus then translates that information to your pituitary gland and your pituitary gland tells your adrenals what hormones to pump out. When we are in an acute stress state your adrenals are pumping out adrenaline, cortisol, and other fight or flight hormones.

Typically, this stress goes away shortly and there is a feed back loop where your adrenals communicate back to your brain effectively shutting everything back down and your body returns to homeostasis. Adrenal fatigue is when this hypothalmus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis has been activated so long, that the wires get crossed and the feedback loop is no longer effective. When this happens certain hormones become imbalanced and your body cannot regulate them in the appropriate ratios anymore. 

This is  when people begin to feel symptoms of fatigue, exhaustion, inability to cope with stress, blood sugar irregulation, anxiety and more.

There are many reasons that this can happen. Severe acute stress or trauma can induce adrenal fatigue, but more commonly in our society it's brought on by chronic stress. Chronic stress can be environmental (think mold or chemical overload), nutritional, mental/emotional, or physical. So let's talk about gut health, diet and exercise and they can help or hinder your healing process.

Gut Health 

Your gut is commonly called the "second brain" but some experts wish it was more accurately called the first brain. Your gut sends more signals to your brain than your brain does to your gut. That's right....your gut essentially controls your brain. All those little microbiota in there are crucial for brain health... 2 parts of the HPA axis are in....the BRAIN! 

You can get really in depth and talk about the science of how neurotransmitters and hormones are regulated in the gut, or you can go the woo-woo route and talk about how you manifest stress in the gut. It doesn't matter which angle you come from, the health of the gut is incredibly important for regulating your hormones AND your brain.

Diet

What helps your gut health the most but diet?  Anything from inflammation in the gut, to hyper permability (leaky gut), to gut dysbiosis (parasites or bacterial imbalances etc...) can be influenced in a positive or negative way from your diet.

• Foods can cause inflammation or they can calm it. 
• Foods can cause the tight junctions to open up in your gut lining or food can protect and soothe your gut lining.
• Certain foods can regulate hormones
• Food and fiber and regulate hormones, increase gut motility, and eliminate toxins (buildup of which can cause brain and hormone imbalances)

Thankfully, this is one aspect of our lives we have complete control over. When we commit to a pesticide free, chemical free, whole food approach to our diets, we lay the foundation for other changes to be more effective.

Exercise

While exercise is a helpful acute stress for healthy people, if you are in the exhaustive stage of adrenal fatigue (low cortisol, depleted hormones, tired often, inconsistent sleep and diurnal rhythms...) then exercise becomes another stressor that actually DEPLETES your body of the few resources it has left. 

When trying to heal from adrenal fatigue calming exercise like walking and yoga are the best options. As your body heals you can increase the amount of exercise but since chronic exercise and over exercise can damage the gut, that's just another reason to take it easy until you've made lots of headway in the right direction!

Takeaway:

Stress relief, the right nutrition, targeted healing for the gut, and health promoting movement are all steps you can take to reverse your adrenal fatigue, balance your hormones, calm anxiety and get back to your best life! I know because I've been there and this year, 2018, I feel better than ever! I'm not done healing and I have more to work on, but I have seen amazing sleep, more libido, and tons more energy just to name a few improvements! 

Interested in digging deep to find the root cause of your hormone imbalances? Click the link below to schedule a free call to find if working together is right for you!

Do you or have you struggled from adrenal fatigue? I'd love to hear your experience...share in the comments below!

Reverse engineering your health goals, and becoming your biggest advocate.

Hey Hey Diva friends!

Happy Friday! So, I know that not everyone can afford getting tons of personalized lab testing, doctors visits, supplements, or personal trainers. I do. While I do encourage you to invest in yourself as much as possible, I also encourage you to be your own advocate and do as much of the groundwork as possible YOURSELF.

You know your body the best, you know how you're feeling, and YOU can answer the following questions in order to reverse engineer your own health journey. So let's get started...

1) What am I struggling with?

Sort of obvious, you need to identify what you're struggling with. Is it weight loss resistance? Blood sugar instability? A disease? Inability to be consistent? Lack of knowledge of where to start?

Step one on any journey is to identify and define the problem. Be aware that several symptoms or underlying causes may overlap. For example, blood sugar imbalance may be due to an infection in the gut etc....Only when you know what your goal is can you move to step two.

2) What causes this?

Really dig deep. If its an emotional struggle that you identified, this part might make you feel vulnerable, defensive, scared, or angry. Why can't I maintain a habit? Why do I allow stress to derail all my efforts? Why can't I take the first step?

If those are questions you're struggling with begin to dig deeper. Is there a trauma, mental association or insecurity that you haven't yet identified? Is there simply lack of commitment - maybe you don't fully understand WHY you are making a change? 

If it's a physical condition you're working on this might require some time, effort, and research on your part! It's taken me many years and hours of personal research time to find the paths that have led me to the healthy road I'm on today. Don't skip this vital step by always trusting other people's opinions. Combine your research with your own intuition and listen to your body.

Most importantly have integrity in how you communicate with yourself. Don't make excuses to yourself and be willing to face some uncomfortable realities when you answer this question. This step will take time because you are the only one that can answer it. The good news is, if you're willing to put in the effort to answer this question you can continue on to the final step.

3) What activities, foods, supplements support this?

Regardless of whether your goal is mental, physical or emotional growth, there are always diet and lifestyle factors that can support you. The #1 thing that you have in your control EVERY day is the food you put into your mouth.

Your food not only affects your weight but it affects your moods, your energy, your ability to think clearly and work productively, and your ability to reach your goals. How awesome is that?! You have 100% control over something that can dramatically change the course of your life.

How have YOU implemented these steps in your own life? In what cases have you been your own advocate? Share the changes you've seen below!

Don't miss out on more tips, videos, an fun in the free FB group:

Stop Dieting and Live your Life! Join today!

Are you an under eater?

Hey Hey Diva friends!!

I touched on this last week when I answered the questions, "Where the heck do I start?" but I wanted to dig a little deeper into this concept of under eating because it's a pretty common habit actually!

I'm going to give you some personal examples. I pick on my family because I love them and as a health coach I bug them all the time about this stuff. My Dad is a chronic under eater. He was a professional athlete in college, in amazing shape, and still is. He also began his own business, raised a family of 3 daughters and subsequently has dealt with a tremendous amount of stress in his life! He clings to his health by working out hard, but I constantly see that in order to sustain the burden of stress (mental and physical) that he endures, he needs to eat probably 2x the amount of calories he is currently taking in. As with many people, the fear is there of weight gain.

Quickly I'll give you another example (surprisingly these are both MALE examples but typically this is a common factor in FEMALES)...my husband. Now my husband doesn't do this on purpose. In fact, since I estimated his calories a few weeks ago he was shocked and has become intentional about packing MORE food for work. The problem for him is that he gets busy. He eats a great breakfast, he heads to work, he eats whatever he has packed, and then he eats whatever I make for dinner. This is probably ok if he isn't running several times a week and lifting heavy several times a week. But in THOSE cases, he needs to be more intentional about fueling his body and could stand to almost double his caloric intake.

So let's talk about the fear of weight gain. Because I totally understand that! Here's the super GOOD and also super obnoxious thing about our metabolisms. They adjust. So if you eat less, your metabolism slows down. You eat more, your metabolism speeds up. This is an interesting phenomenon that is certainly a mental game at first because when you begin to experiment with this you MIGHT GAIN WEIGHT. Typically, that is short lived and your body will find a new balance eating MORE calories than before. You WANT to be on the highest end of this as you possibly can be. Essentially, you want to get as many calories (aka NUTRIENTS) in your body each as possible to fuel your brain, hormones, energy, etc....as possible while maintaining a healthy weight.

So how do you know if you're an under eater? Here are 3 tips:

1) You are extremely active but can't lose weight. 

In my recent podcast "Workout Obsession" I shared how when I was training for the Beachbody classic I doubled my workouts AND cut my calories. Not surprisingly ( looking back) I plateaued immediately and could no longer lose weight. I should have INCREASED my calories to support the extra burden I was placing on my body, but instead I increased my exercise and decreased my fuel.

The night the show was over I had a huge steak that was probably soaked in butter and the next day after WEEKS of the scale not budging, I lost a pound. A POUND! Normally physique  competitors tell stories of gaining 5lbs overnight from all the salt and garbage foods they ate (just another reminder that REAL FOOD ACTS DIFFERENTLY IN YOUR BODY THAN PROCESSED FOODS).

If you've increased your exercise recently but haven't lost weight, your body may be begging you to support it with the proper nutrients.

2) You lowered your calories but didn't lose weight

If you have recently cut your calories and haven't seen a budge your body might be in survival mode. When your body thinks it's in danger whether from a tiger or lack of food, it produces cortisol. Too much cortisol for too long a period of time stimulates fat storage and makes it difficult to lose weight. 

This may be an indication of calorie deprivation OR nutrient deprivation. For example - are you getting enough healthy fat? Healthy carbs? Vitamins and micronutrients? Make sure you're getting ENOUGH food so that your body knows it's safe. Once it's in the safe zone the weight will being to shift again.

3) You miss your cycle or it becomes irregular.

Hormones are a delicate thing. As women, it's easy to look at guys get all shredded and think " I can do that too!" And in fact you CAN....but it might not be HEALTHY. This can become more of an issue after a certain age and/or after a prolonged period of time. Sure - you want to try competing one time? If you have no health issues, no hormone imbalances, and are young - go for it. 

But more often than not, our bodies are not MEANT to be that lean for long periods of time...or...ever really. Women in particular have more subcutaneous fat. This is by DESIGN because of our hormone cycles and our physical ability to create and carry other humans. It's for our protection! 

When a women goes through an extreme body change, diet change, or any situation where her body fat dips too LOW, she is in danger of essentially ruining her metabolism and creating a life of hormonal imbalance and struggles.

Missing a period, while we might think that sounds GREAT, is actually very dangerous. A woman's fertility ability is a good indicator of her overall health. Not to mention the delicate balance between your hormones, mood, and energy levels. Want to see a cranky woman? Find one that is carb deprived, body fat of 14% and prepping for a competition!

Fun tip: 2 of the first things to go when the body is under stress

are digestion and hormone regulation!

Here's the deal. Your body is a survival MACHINE. It's designed impeccably to keep you safe- NOT to keep you shredded. When you deal with stress whether too much physical exertion, mental strain, emotional burden, or not enough fuel from food, it will react to what it finds most important at the moment and normally that doesn't align with our physique goals. 

If your body deems itself unsafe it will take the appropriate measures. Cortisol is released, fat storage is turned on, digestion is deregulated and hormones are an afterthought....Don't brush off these signs that your body needs some love and affection. 

Make sure you're fueling your body with nutrient dense foods DAILY and let it tell you what it needs. When you and your body are in sync, the world is a happy place.

Share below! Have you discovered you're an under eater? Did something in this article ring true for you?

Anxiety...what you can do.

Hey Hey Diva friends!!!

I want to share a very personal story with you today. I have struggled with anxiety for YEARS. In fact, it started when I developed OCD in my early teens. I would have to take multiple showers, wash my hands to the point of bleeding and touch nobs with kleenex. It wasn't pretty....

THANKFULLY I have really grown out of that (although you'll still see me with wipes and hand sanitizer when I fly I mean...HELLO)....but periodically the anxiety monster rears it's ugly head in my life and in 2015 I had 2 weeks of crippling anxiety accompanied by insomnia, fear, non stop crying and....well....it was bad. 

Since then I've worked double time on getting healthier, listening to my body and understanding why and how this happens. More importantly, my ears perk up anytime I hear about something that can be connected, exacerbate, help or prevent anxiety. I've learned a lot and now feel like I have the tools I need.

So today I wanted to share a few things that I've noticed affect my anxiety and several things that actually help keep it at bay.

1) Gut Health is KEY

The #1 thing I've noticed is that it directly correlates to my gut health! For example if I eat a food I'm sensitive to I'm more likely to have some mild anxiety the next few days.

WOW. This seems so unrelated right? How can our BRAIN and our GUT be connected? Well, without getting all nerdy on you, many of your neurotransmitters ( you know the things that make you happy, calm and feel good) are regulated in your gut!  If there is inflammation or damage whether from mental, emotional or physical stress (like food sensitivities) that can lead to negative signals being sent and disruptions to the normal balance of the body and brain.

Sign up for my weekly newsletter and stay in the know!

Essentially, your body says "I'm stressed from these outside factors!" and tells your brain to react accordingly. What's really devastating is that we always think the brain is OUR fault. While there are lots of studies that talk about neuroplasticity and the ability we have to TRAIN our brains to think positively (valid and VERY helpful by the way), if you struggle from chronic anxiety and your thoughts feel as if they aren't your own, that may be due to something going on in your gut. 

Resources for dealing with anxiety, learning how to think more positively etc...

The Mind Connection - book

Battlefield of the Mind - book

So Long Insecurity - book

This could be anything from parasites, bacteria, inflammation, food sensitivities etc....this should be encouraging to you because there is a solution and it doesn't involve you taking anti-depressants the rest of your life (the only thing my Doc could recommend by the way!)

Quick story to drive this point home. A young girl named Alyssa began hallucinating - scary stuff for anyone but especially a child! The medical community wanted to treat her with anti-psychotic drugs for the rest of her life. Luckily her parents took her to Dr. Jess Armine a functional medicine doc who has  done extensive work with neurotransmitters, mood disorders and reversing chronic illness. 

He was able to dig deeper into the root cause of WHY these hallucinations began and found several areas of gut dysbiosis, inflammation and bacterial imbalance in Alyssa. Once stressors like food sensitivities were removed, the bad bugs were killed and her body was supported and rebalanced, Alyssa returned to normal. She grew up avoiding the foods she wasn't sensitive to, became an honor student and never had to be on medication to maintain her health.

THIS is why I became an FDN. I want to help YOU dig deeper into the root cause of your health issues and together we can build your body back up. It knows what it needs to do, we just need to get rid of anything hindering it from getting the job done!

2) Caffeine

While almost everything falls under point #1, you might have great gut health and still be sensitive to caffeine. Some people are fast metabolizers and some are slow. Caffeine has a really long half life which means it stays circulating in your body for many hours after consumed. This is why it's normally encouraged to stick to 1 black cup of coffee before noon.

If you struggle from anxiety however there may be a period of time where you need to eliminate it all together. Caffeine stimulates your adrenal glands which are already working overtime when under stress. The last thing you want to do when your body is pumping out cortisol is to throw an external stimulant onto the fire! 

Join my free FB group "Stop Dieting and Live Your Life!"

If you have struggled for a long time with chronic anxiety I would eliminate it 100% for several months. If you find that you are only sensitive occasionally, then I would check to see if it corresponds with your monthly cycle. You may notice you are more sensitive to caffeine when you're ovulating. 

It's your liver's job to filter out the excess hormones being produced during this part of your cycle and it's also the liver's job to eliminate the caffeine efficiently. If both are happening at the same time you may notice a heightened sensitivity and want to back off the coffee. Personally I have noticed that my energy is elevated from the higher levels of hormones anyway and coffee isn't necessary during that time.

3) Poor Sleep

There are sooooo many benefits to getting a good night of sleep. But it isn't just about the number of hours you spend in bed, it's about the quality of deep sleep you get each night. People do vary on the number of hours that make them feel most rested, but I find that people who deal with chronic stress in their life typically need more sleep than others.

Prioritizing it and making it a non-negotiable is key. Part of the reason sleep is so important is because it's when your body processes information and heals itself. If your brain doesn't have time to process then when you wake up you are less likely to view things in a state of reality. I mean, lets be completely unscientific here - when you are sleepy EVERYTHING seems worse am I right?! :)

Don't feel bad about going to bed early, sleeping in and honestly - if you have chronic stress and lack of sleep I'd encourage you to take a self care weekend where you sleep as much as you possible can for at least 3 days! Let your body reset, rejuvenate and heal.

WHAT CAN I DO NOW?

1) Get Tested

If you think that you may have some food sensitivities or gut imbalance of any kind, find out for sure! My job is to work with you to uncover the hidden stressors in your life that are causing metabolic chaos and breakdown in your body.

Through functional lab testing I'm able to help you discover what's really going on, come up with a personalize protocol just for you and help you return back to health for good! I take a functional whole life approach meaning I don't medicate - I educate. I will work with you on nutrition, stress reduction, appropriate supplementation and more based on your personal test results.

Not sure this is for you? Email me: TheTinyFitDiva@Gmail.com to set up a free 30 minute discovery call where we can talk about what's available and right for you.

2) Eliminate known stressors

This might sound obvious but often we resist making changes we know are good for us. Cut out the processed foods, eliminate carbonation, sodas, and sugary drinks. Cut caffeine for a period of time and give your gut a chance to heal itself! 

I might sound like a hard ass, but this step is non-negotiable if you want to achieve long term health! Your gut is called the second brain but really it's the FIRST. If it's not functioning properly then neither will your actual brain....

I you even have and inkling that a certain food is bothering you, eliminate it for a minimum of 1 month. If you feel better AWESOME! If you can't tell a difference bring it back in and monitor how you feel each time.

3) Intelligent Supplementation

Don't go crazy with supplementation without supervision. However there are a few supplements that are generally safe and helpful. L Theanine, Vitamin C, and a  good probiotic and  are a great place to start with anxiety.

L Theanin is a great tool to take "as needed" when you feel some day-to-day anxiety popping up. Vitamin C has about a million benefits (including helping your liver)  and is extremely difficult to overdose on. A good probiotic helps balance your good gut bacteria - I would recommend rotating brands every few months to get different strains.

I hope this helps!

If you are really ready to get YOUR gut back on track then consider joining my 8 week gut health program Get Gutsy with Me starting January 15th!!! We are going to go in depth with information on healing your gut and you will have access to recipes, shopping lists, tips, and support through the process!

 Each participant will have the option to upgrade their 8 weeks with gut testing and discounted coaching from me which would include a personalized protocol  based on the test results.

 Don't let this go on another year! NOW is the time to take back your health.

Additional resources:

"3 steps to healing your gut" - blog

"Breaking Negative thinking Patterns" - podcast

"12 principles to change your brain and your life" - podcast

"Microbiome Solution" - podcast

The Gut Brain Connection - article

Disclaimer: This is not intended to diagnose or treat any medical condition. Do not go off medication without talking to your doctor. Consult with your doctor before making any changes in an existing protocol.

When to push hard and when to take a nap...

Hey hey Diva friends!

The past few years have been a rollercoaster of ups and downs in my fitness journey. Sometimes I wondered if I was doing enough, and sometimes I wondered if I was doing too much. Ultimately, knowing my body and being willing to shake things up has paid off!

Today I wanted to keep it simple and tell you to always:

Listen to your body!

There are so many things that go into deciding whether you will workout today and if you do decide to workout what workout is best? The super intense program you've done all month or is it time for  a break? Below I'm going share 3 ways you can begin to tune into what your body is telling you.

1) Do you feel energized or sleepy during and after a workout?

If you are feeling excessively sleeping during and immediately after a workout it may be a sign that it's too much stress on your body at this time. Symptoms are one of the last things to appear when something is breaking down in the body...when we are under chronic stress and that begins to turn into metabolic chaos ( breakdown in multiple systems) we notice things like fatigue more frequently. The last thing you want to do in those situations is add stress to your body by doing some crossfit, HIIT, or bodybuilding work. Instead, focus on getting quality sleep, and incorporate healing movement like yoga, and long walks. Make sure you are moving as often as possible ( in a gentle way) as that promotes healing throughout the body.

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If on the other hand you leave a workout feeling pumped up an energized then you're doing what's right for you at this time! Push those weights up, run a little faster and see what makes you feel your best!

2) Is your body refusing to budge?

Maybe you've started doing a lot more than you used to but your weight isn't shifting. There are several reasons this may be the case:

a) You're not moving as much as you need to (up those weights, or increase the amount of time you move in a day).

b) You're eating the wrong foods for your body causing stress and inflammation.

(see my blog on #Youtrition here)

c) Your hormones are out of whack causing you to store excess fat.

d) You're under chronic stress and your body thinks it's protecting you by storing the fat.

Some of this is relatively simple to experiment with on your own. Even C you can make great strides in diminishing your stress and increasing your quality of life. However sometimes working with a practitioner to dig a little deeper opens doors and explains things you simply cannot guess on your own. If you suspect a lot of hormone issues and/or gut imbalances of any kind we should talk! (comment below or email me: thetinyfitdiva@gmail.com)

3) What is your cycle telling you? 

This is my most recent fascination. Tracking your cycle and how you feel working out during each phase can be very beneficial! Some weeks you may find that you're consistently a little fatigued and others that you're charged up and ready to go!

Use a tracker like MyFlo that assists you in noticing these patterns. When you identify which weeks you have energy to spare then assist your body by lifting heavier and running faster. On the weeks where you notice you're consistently more fatigued prioritize walking, yoga, and rest!

Ultimately, YOU know your body. If it's giving you signs like headaches, fatigue, regular injury or pain of any kind then it might be time to take a break.

If you notice an increase in strength, energy and vitality then kick it in to high gear and keep doing what you're doing!

Just remember  - it's OK to take a break.

Often you come back stronger when you do!

p.s. if you are struggling to find out why YOU haven't been seeing results and you're READY for a change I'd love to have you in my January 2018 program Get Gutsy With Me! Don't wait, you'll miss the early bird discount available until December 15th!

Not sure you want to jump in? Feel free to set up a 30 minute call with me so I can get to know you and hear your goals and your struggles. Just e-mail me at TheTinyFitDiva@gmail.com or comment below!

#YOUtrition

Hey hey Diva friends!

I was trying to think of a fun way I could refer to my personal food philosophy and YOUtrition is what came to mind. I kinda like it, what do you think?

So what IS #YOUtriton? (that's right, I aded a hashtag....get out there and share this post - I want see #Youtrition everywhere because when you embrace it your life will CHANGE!) :P

Simply put, #YOUtrition is the nutrition that is right for YOU. It's as wonderful, unique, individualized and special as you are. Everyone's genes, life history, mental/physical/emotional stresses are different and so the right combination of foods to fuel your body is just as unique. Just because a food is healthy doesn't mean it's healthy for YOU.

#Youtrition has 2 main steps: 

1) Eliminate the garbage. This covers everyone regardless of genes, environment, lifestyle, age, gender....and is beneficial for any lifestyle.

If the "food" is processed, modified, hybridized, ditch it. If it has chemicals, sugar, or words you don't recognize on the ingredients list, pass it over. Focus on REAL, whole, unprocessed, organic-as-much-as-possible food. 

2) Once you have #1 under control, this is where it gets fun. Personalize your diet to fit YOUR body and YOUR life. For example: How do you feel on low carb? How do you feel on high carb? What about high fat or low fat? How do you feel with squashes or tomatoes? Do you feel energized and awesome or do you get gassy or tired? What about Dairy (raw, organic, pasture raised of course)...do you tolerate it or not?

Just because butternut squash is packed with nutrition and could be an amazing source of carbs for Jim down the street doesn't mean that's the right food for Sandra next door. She may experience a headache, gas or bloating. In that case, put it on the no-fly list and move on.

You have to DISENGAGE to make this fun!

Drop the mentality that because something isn't right for you the world is OVER ha! Trust me, I've been there. I got sad for a minute when I realized I couldn't have cinnamon or mint this year. HELLO holiday EVERYTHING :) But your mentality is super key in making this enjoyable. Take a "can do" attitude and make it an adventure. For everything you CAN'T eat there are tons of new foods, flavors and spices you CAN. Be open to trying new things, experimenting and expanding your palate. 

If you have trouble with your mentality - WORK ON IT. This is not something innate to people. In fact, people are naturally pessimistic, fearful and negative. Positivity, productivity, and discipline take practice and personal growth. Some awesome books you might like to check out are:

Extreme Ownership

The Mind Connection

Eat That Frog

Finding the right #YOUtrition can take some time, but it's rewarding!

Keep it simple. Master step #1 first and you may find that's the only step you need. Your weight, rosacea, mood swings, and bloating may disappear when you get ride of the junk. 

If you have other goals or specific complaints that stick around then move on to step #2! Break it down, keep lists or a journal and give each change you make at least a few days to really determine it's effectiveness if not longer.

During step #2 you might find you need some guidance of WHERE to start. I know that I was surprised to learn of "healthy" things that were not healthy for me (At least not at this time) like yellow squash, and chicken! 

The MRT Leap food sensitivities test helped me a LOT and gave me a strong foundation to build my own #Youtrition from the ground up. I've adjusted and modified since taking the test and it has helped so much. Now I'm helping my clients do the same!

Be your own health advocate and discover whats exactly right for YOUR unique body.

If you're ready to take YOUR health to the next level and you want some FREE recipes, fun, and accountability along the way, join my Facebook group "Stop Dieting and Live Your Life!" I'm running my FREE Holiday Survival Guide event now through December and you can download that here!

If you really want in-depth support, 1:1 attention and guidance on gut health, balancing your micro biome and restoring your heath from the inside out, check out my new 8 week program "Get Gutsy With Me" Launching January 15, 2018!!! You will have access to additional testing including the MRT Leap food sensitivities testing to personalize your experience! 

I'd love to hear YOUR story! Comment below with any thoughts or questions!

3 steps to stop the yo-yo cycle TODAY

Hey Hey Diva friends!

So this is a pet peeve of mine and I just REALIZED it's a pet peeve...so idk...does it count as a pet peeve if you haven't had it for longer than a few days?! Anyway ;P

As you know, I'm a personal trainer and Functional Diagnostic Nutrition practitioner helping people achieve success in their gut health, weight, hormones (and more!) through natural, holistic practices...ones that don't include extreme dieting, counting calories, portion control, or old "diet" mentalities....My greatest desire is to give you FREEDOM. Freedom from the scale, freedom from cravings, excess weight, bloat, and up-down up-down weight cycles. 

I especially want to help you navigate the holiday season without THIS as a result:

So here it is...here is my pet peeve: I hate that people gain 20 pounds just because they know if they "diet" a very specific way they can then lose it again. In the body building community it's called bulking and cutting seasons.... But in our world it may simply be yo-yo dieting or, "crash"dieting for specific events or occasions....or even no reason at all except habit.

This tells me two things: 1) The way you normally eat isn't comprised of the right balance for YOU because if it was, you wouldn't pack on the pounds in the first place. Your cravings would diminish, your weight would balance and you would find your perfect homeostasis.  I call this #YOUtrition.

2) You're setting yourself up for health concerns down the road if not ignoring them already. (i.e. metabolic syndrome, diabetes, heart disease, hormone imbalances, intense cravings, fatigue.....) It's never ok to binge on garbage food...no matter the reason or the end goal! Your body doesn't say "oh she's drinking this coke for this reason, so I'm going to shunt this over to muscle because in a few months she's going on a "cutting" program and we want to see abs...". If it's bad for you on Tuesday it's bad for you on Wednesday. Simple as that.

"If you can't maintain your weight then either it's not a healthy weight

in the first place, or you're choosing the wrong foods for your body."

I even see many health coaches sharing posts on social media that they have "fallen off the wagon" and show pictures of how they have gained weight and need to "get back on track". They will share these pictures when they are advertising a new program, health product, or workout while asking you to join them. They are trying to be relatable and may, in all honesty, be struggling right along with you. But to me that just says they haven't figured out how to really maintain a healthy lifestyle in the day to day...

Here's the truth:

"When you find what works for you then your

before and afters stop because you live your after forever." 

Once you Stop Dieting and Live Your Life  sure you might fluctuate here and there - hello water, stress, and periods....but anyone that consistently gains and loses 10+lbs or more needs to go back to the drawing board because clearly something isn't working for them it's working AGAINST them.

So instead of keeping it a pet peeve, I'm going to tell you how to fix it in 3 steps:

1) DITCH grains.

Yep I said it. Ditch em....you may find you can indulge occasionally based on your own body chemistry and personal health on things like rice and quinoa, but for now if you haven't stabilized your weight, your blood sugar, and your energy levels... ditch the grains and don't look back. And no you don't need them for fiber ;D, I'll address that in a future blog!

Try this for 30 days and watch the results pour in. If you don't see results, the toaster pastry will be waiting for you on day 31.

2)  Fill your plate with vegetables.

AT. EVERY. MEAL. Literally. Make a CRAP ton of vegetables over the weekend if you have to. Heat up organic frozen veggies if that's what works. Make recipes that incorporate them into the main dish. Just MAKE IT HAPPEN. (By the way, there's your fiber!)

3) Move your body and move it frequently.

Now don't freak out, I don't mean become a cross-fitter. NO! In fact, for many with chronic health complaints excessive workouts can exacerbate instead of help the situation! When I say move I mean get that blood flowing in a way that encourages healing. If you have been a chronic dieter then chances are you have some metabolic issues, some underlying health complaints, some achy joints, some fatigue etc..... so I encourage you to move in a way that encourages healing.

By that I mean take long, brisk walks. I love that the fitbit motivates so many people to hit 10,000 tips a day! That's the perfect place to start. If you feel good abut it add some restorative yoga to your week as well and work on some deep breathing practices. You can d intensity from there once you feel energized and balanced!

So there you have it!! Ditch the grains, add more veggies, and walk your brains out for the next month and see what happens! 

If you're ready to take YOUR health to the next level and you want some recipes, fun, and accountability along the way, join my Facebook group "Stop Dieting and Live Your Life!" I'm running my FREE Holiday Survival Guide event now through December and you can download that here!

If you really want in-depth support, 1:1 attention and guidance on gut health, balancing your micro biome and restoring your heath from the inside out, check out my new 8 week program "Get Gutsy With Me" Launching January 15, 2018!!!

I'd love to hear YOUR story below! Comment below with any thoughts or questions!

My milkshake's better than yours

Hey hey Diva friends! 

ok, ok, stop.... get it out of your system and just sing it now "My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard...d*** straight, it's better than yours."....WHEW! Ok. Don't feel bad, it was totally going through my head while I was making this post ;) Now back to business....My milkshake IS better than yours and I’m going to tell you something that no one else will.

You deserve a milkshake.

You deserve a milkshake that isn’t going to send you onto a blood sugar roller coaster and mess with your healthy gut flora. You deserve this milkshake. A perfect treat on a day when you want a nourishing clean energy boost.

Raw cacao is beneficial in so many ways. Not only does it contain phenylethylamine which helps boost happy hormones, it’s also loaded with magnesium. A large percentage of the population is deficient in magnesium but it’s important for healthy digestion and a relaxed nervous system, so drink up!

Ingredients

Serves 1

• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon raw cacao powder
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 frozen banana
• 1 tablespoon of raw honey or stevia

Directions

1. Add all the ingredients to a blender. Blend until smooth.

When you’re gut health is off kilter it’s important not to overload your body with refined sugar. That’s where recipes like these come in. You can’t just flip a switch and never want a milkshake again, so it becomes about creating healthy substitutions to unhealthy foods.

Sugar feeds bad bacteria, fungus, and yeast in your gut and promotes digestive distress and hormonal issues. The more you can swap it out for healthy recipes like this the faster you’ll be on track to feeling amazingly energized and balanced.

If you’re seriously interested in getting healthy, restoring your digestion and boosting your energy then check out my new comprehensive program Get Gutsy With Me,

In the program you get a ton of delicious satisfying recipes that you can enjoy without guilt, and that will help rebuild your intestinal flora.

Or join me on my Facebook page Stop dieting and Live your Life! where I’ll be sharing more information, tips and recipes to help you live a happier, healthier life, along with a Holiday Survival guide packed with tips and recipes for free this Holiday Season!!

p.s. up the cinnamon for some fall flavor or replace it with 1 drop of peppermint essential oil for a Christmas twist on this delicious treat.

Comment below - what's your favorite holiday treat?

Sneaky Food Allergies

Hey hey Diva friends!

Well I'll be a butternut squash...wait...that makes no sense....if I WAS a butternut squash I wouldn't have a food sensitivity to it. That's right...add it to my list! :)
 

If you want to know more about the Food sensitivity testing process read my blog here!

To learn more about how food sensitivities, gut health and more, click here!

Let me start with the positives....since embarking on my journey of testing I have seen marked improvements! More energy, bloating gone (THANK YOU!!!) anxiety lowered and sense of wellness UP! WOOHOO!

What to look for

Much of this began to come together once I eliminated the food sensitivities on my MRT Leap test and began treating a bacterial overgrowth found on my stool test. It's very important to balance the environment in our gut. When there is an imbalance or dysbiossis of any sort, it can lead to:

• Bloating
• Fatigue
• Skin issues
• Hormonal imbalances
• Mood swings
• IBS
• malabsoprtion
• food sensitivities
• pain
• headaches
• foggy thinking
• etc....

We are more susceptible to bacteria, yeast, parasites and fungal growth (or overgrowth) with any of the following:

• Food sensitivities ( they can be a result, OR, triggering even for gut imbalance)
• birth control use
• prescription use
• antibiotic use
• stress
• poor sleep habits
• exposure to chemical or environmental toxins ( aluminum in deodorant, bleach, hair/skin/beauty treatments)
• etc....

The longer I think about my history the more I come to understand the struggles my body has had to overcome and...well...detox from! I am constantly amazed at this efficient machine that God has created to heal from within! Without our help our bodies do a LOT to detoxify and protect us on a daily basis. There comes a point however where knowledge is key and taking action on the knowledge can help reverse disease, prevent disease, and help you live your happiest, most energetic and mentally present life!

Personally I have a history of:

• Antibiotic use
• Birth control use
• Excessive Nsaid use ( excedrin and advil cold and sinus DAILY at some points)
• processed foods, sugars and wheat consumption for years
• Chronic stress for many years in young adulthood
• Traumatic event in early childhood
• etc....

Over the past few years food sensitivities has been and ever evolving journey as I become more aware of, test, and listen to my body. As my body adjusts and changes I am able to identify more easily the foods I'm sensitive too.

Think about it this way - when you are eating 20 foods your body is sensitive to and it's totally overwhelmed, it's really hard to pinpoint the problem. Once you've eliminated the main stressors however, it becomes way easier to go "oops! this food must be a problem".

The past few days I was super annoyed because I felt very fatigued, had a headache, and got really gassy (embarrassing!!!). Nothing in my life patterns had changed, and as I was thinking about it my food was basically the same as well UNTIL.....

I remembered I had added in a homemade pumpkin pudding. Seemingly innocuous, I had eaten a large portion for breakfast one day and had had a few servings 2-3 days in a row. The only major change in my foods, I thought it through and realized the last time I at butternut squash I got gassy as well, and on my food sensitivities list is yellow squash. It seems that I am actually sensitive to winter squash and all the varieties! Guess what went away as soon as I stopped eating the pudding....the reactions!

Be Patient

As you go through a process of healing, it may seem that you become more sensitive to more foods...and this can be disheartening. But don't feel bad! In reality, you are just becoming more AWARE. Once we know how to identify things and listen to our bodies the amount of information our bodies give us is incredible! It's like flipping a switch and suddenly receiving and processing information we never acknowledged before. Or think of it this way....your body is a printer and has been printing and printing analytical reports on what it needs and how to treat it but we never turned the printer on, so we were never receiving the reports.....when we begin to eliminate stressors and really listen to our body it's like turning that printer on and receiving all those pages of information that had been stored in the printers memory....overwhelming at first, but it's been there all along.

What to do next

It's important to remember that our bodies change. They change as we age, and they change as we heal. There is a high probability that you are more sensitive to something NOW than you were BEFORE. There is also high probability that as your lifestyle changes and your nutrition becomes more...well....nutritious...that your food sensitivities list changes as well!

1) Keep a food journal - it's tough sometimes to think about what we've had to eat the past 24  hours. Making it even a little more tricky is the fact that many food sensitivities can show up within 24-72 hours. This means something you ate Saturday may affect your your mood, your digestion, or your skin on Monday! It's important to look back so you're able to make correlations.

Join  the health revolution and download my free Holiday Survival Guide today!

2) Build up your gut strength. When we have multiple food sensitivities the lining of our gut becomes inflamed and the tight junctions in that lining that protect the blood from large or unwanted particles becomes compromised. This is why you can have external symptoms like skin rashes, mood swings or neurological reactions to an unhealthy gut ( toxins are crossing the blood brain barrier!). Consider bringing in fermented foods like sauerkraut and kombucha while also supplementing with a digestive enzyme and quality probiotic.

3) Consider getting tested. There are so many nutritional approaches out there - paleo, primal, whole30, grain free, autoimmune protocols, specific carbohydrate diets etc....while all are valid and effective, getting tested gives you specific information on your own personal body chemistry.  It also allows for you to work with a practitioner that can guide you, encourage you, and provide supplementation to help your body heal more quickly as you go through the process!

Take Action Now!

Gut health is incredibly important to me and that's why I'm launching "Get Gutsy With Me" January 15th of 2018!!! It's an 8 week program that will include:

• 4 bi-weekly, jam-packed eBooks overflowing with every piece of information you need to get the results your body craves—think of it as the ultimate go-to resource guide for your gut!
•   A mouthwatering Recipe Guide packed with over 59 chef-approved food and drink recipes to keep you nourished, satisfied and toxin-free!
•   8-Weeks of suggested meals to make gut rebuilding easy as 1-2-3. for the entire 2-month period—yes, you heard that right—no need to plan for 8 weeks (go ahead and take a deep breath)! I made life easy for you.
•   8 Shopping lists to make your trips to the supermarket 110% hassle-free!
•  Email support from yours truly—I’m here to make sure you succeed!
•   Handouts with simple reminders for your gut health journey
• · A Food Diary so that you can reflect on how your meals make you feel and unleash your maximum potential!

PLUS online support from me through the whole program AND the option to personalize and improve your results through your own gut testing at a discounted rate! If you sign up before January 1st, you'll receive the early bird discount of $199. Don't wait, because it jumps to $247 in the new year! 

p.s. not sure you want to work with me yet? Or simply want to start NOW? Download my FREE Holiday Survival guide first and get to know me over the holiday season! 

p.p.s. Do you have gut troubles? I'd love to hear your story, thoughts, comments and experiences below - leave me a comment! 

To your health!

p.s. the advice contained in this article is not meant to diagnose or treat any diseases and does not take the place of a qualified medical practitioner or physician.  

Eating organic for under $15/day

Hey Hey there Diva friends!  I'm SUPER excited to bring this blog post to you today. As someone who used to eat the S.A.D. (The aptly named Standard American diet), I too once though that healthy food must be more expensive. 

Stated simply, eating whole food, natural, organic, unprocessed foods is NOT more expensive and doesn't have to be. When we originally began our pantry transformation our first step was to take all the wheat filled gluten foods we normally ate and replace them with gluten free processed foods that mimicked the familiar treats. In that instance YES we would spend more money if we continued to purchase gluten free oreos instead of regular oreos. The bills would also remain high as long as I continued to buy a lot of junky snacks, chips, ice cream in ADDITION to the healthier foods on the list....

What I noticed as we progressed in our thinking and continued to tweak our diets however, was that if you really focus on eliminating processed foods (gluten free and all) it is highly probable that you with either break even or SAVE when changing your diets. The KEY is to focus on real foods. The bulk of my grocery cart is almost always from the produce section (fruits, veggies, herbs...) with a little meat (grass-fed organic) and a few canned/boxed/bagged items here and there like flax seed, non-dairy milk, and canned tomatoes or beans.

As I became more aware, it's become a habit for me to listen for the persons total in front of me at the check out in curiosity. What I have discovered is that people who use coupons, shop the sales, and stock up on chips, canned goods, frozen goods, cheap bread, snack items and soda, almost always pay over $200 for their cart. When I check out my total ranges somewhere from $130-200 for the week depending on how thorough my list was ( aka if I have to go back later in the week), if I included any splurge/treat items, and if we needed any household items that week (those always add up).

It's very frustrating to me when people say they cannot afford to be healthy and eat clean foods. Fruit and vegetables are some of the most inexpensive things at the grocery store! Even if you do something "expensive" like juicing or blending your veggies which uses quite a few at a time, it's still way more affordable than going to out to eat for most of your meals or grabbing that daily coffee habit. Not to mention you are substituting incredible nutrition for harmful toxicity that can shorten your lifespan at worst and at best make the life you have less enjoyable. 

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To illustrate this point, I created an example meal plan, went to Krogers new Click List feature, input the items needed, calculated the serving size portion you would need per meal, and added up the total for one person in a day. I made sure the ingredients I chose were the ones I would personally use - organic, grass-fed when applicable etc...

With my ONE example ( which included a few more "expensive" items like juicing, Shakeology, and grass-fed beef) I found you could eat high quality, nutrient dense foods that will reverse disease and nourish your body for under $15 a day!

Here's the menu:

Breakfast:

• 2 pasture raised eggs = .81c
• Homemade green juice ( 1/2 bunch organic kale + 1 honey crisp organic apple + 1 organic lemon ) = $1.87
• Chia Seed Pudding ( 1 can full fat coconut milk from a can + 1/4 cup grand chia seeds + 2TBS honey) = .95...estimated over 6 servings

Breakfast TOTAL: $3.63

Snack:*

Many people balk at the concept of a $4.00 superfoods shake when I talk about incorporating Shakeology into their day. But when it includes superfoods from around the world, high quality adaptogens to help the body deal with stress, probiotics and digestive enzymes to help your gut health, not to mention the help it provides in curbing your cravings, I'd say it's worth it. Just replace the sodas or Starbucks with this instead.

*Replace this with some veggies, fruit, or a salad and while you won't get the nutritional variety, you will still spend the same or less and be getting quality foods in your day.

Lunch:

• Microwaveable Sweet Potato = $1.29
• Applegate organic, grass-fed hotdog = .75
•  Whole bag of frozen veggies like peas ($10/10)  ... may add some spices and/or grass-fed butter

See the recipe here

Lunch Total: $3.04  

Snack:

Organic honeycrip apple = .62c

1TBS peanut butter = .13c

Snack Total: $.75

Dinner:

Betty Crocker Crockpot Chili = $3.47 when having 4 servings

Dinner Total: $3.47

Total for the day $14.89

Of course your days will fluctuate, but this is approximately 1625 calories for $15.

Conversely you could always choose to have a day like this:

• Breakfast: McDonald's bacon egg an cheese biscuit (450 cal)
• Lunch: Subway 6 inch tuna sandwich ( 480 cal)
• Dinner: Chipotle burrito bowl with chicken, white rice, black beans ,mild salsa, cheese, guac and lettuce (890 cal)

For a grand total of: $13.94 and 1820 calories. This is all assuming of course that no beverages, chips, snacks, or extras were consumed.

You only have one body to live in.

Studies have shown that your gut health is directly correlated to your brain health. This means if you suffer from depression, anxiety, moodiness, or if you are prone to demential, Alzheimer's and brain fog in your family...these are things that can be prevented, and even reversed by the health of your gut. Processed foods not only provide lackluster nutritional value at best, but can cause inflammation to the gut as well as hindering the absorption of any nutrients you are actually consuming. 

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I launch my 2018 total gut health makeover program!!!

You won't be perfect over night. There is a learning curve. But the extra time and effort is ALWAYS worth it. Spending a few extra minutes looking at labels, making a meal plan, and cooking up some fresh veggies may give you an extra 15 YEARS in health, longevity, and LIFE. 

I don't know about you, but I want the last 20 years of my life to be living not dying. 

Change the mind, change the body.

Change the body, change the mind.

What are YOUR cost saving tips? I know there are many of you who are more budget conscious, and better at looking for cost saving tips that I am! I'd love to hear your tips below!!

To your health,

Why I HATE the word detox...

Hey there Diva friends!

Detox is such a buzz word isn't it? Let me share why I HATE that word...it implies that you do something healthy for a short period of time, to support your body in a way that allows it to be strong enough to then handle the crap we bring back in once the detox is over....Basically we do something that makes us feel GOOD so we can continue poor habits that make us feel BAD...

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 There are occasions however where that extra little oomph to bring in more vegetables, provide more nutrients, go easy on your digestion and provide gentle and nourishing foods can be good right? Right. And that's where I found myself last week. I'm always looking for new foods to try, new meals to keep it interesting and new ways to strengthen my gut, boost my energy, and get as many nutrients in my system as I can feasibly handle.

So I decided to make a concerted effort to do just that and I actually planned my meals.... My goal was to dust off my juicer, include a green juice every morning for breakfast, a salad for lunch, and even go vegetarian for dinner (although that only sort of happened).

So I planned my breakfast and green smoothie ingredients to be the same every morning. The combination was truly delicious so I knew I wouldn't mind. I planned a salad ( see last week's blog post) and I googled vegetarian dinners that would work for me....Here is what my week ended up looking like:

Breakfast:

• Green juice: 2 stalks celery + greens ( kale, swiss chard, bok choy or collard greens depending on the day) + 1 organic lemon + 1 organic green apple + 1/2 organic honey crisp apple + ginger root ( optional) *
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup chocolate chia seed pudding
• 1/2 grapefruit, or sometimes a piece of Eban bread toast

*Notes on the green juice ingredients:

1. Celery provides: excellent source of antioxidants and beneficial enzymes, in addition to vitamins and minerals such as vitamin K, vitamin C, potassium, folate and vitamin B6
2.  Leafy greens are high in dietary fiber, and rich in folic acid, vitamin C, potassium and magnesium, as well as containing a host of phytochemicals, such as lutein, beta-cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene.
3. Lemons contain vitamin C, citric acid, flavonoids, B-complex vitamins, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and fiber. Lemons contain more potassium than apples or grapes
4. Apples are extremely rich in important antioxidants, flavanoids, and dietary fiber. The phytonutrients and antioxidants in apples may help reduce the risk of developing cancer, hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease. Green apples in particular have proteins, vitamins, minerals, and fiber. They are well known for their benefits, fighting digestive disorders, their low levels of good cholesterol, regulating glucose levels, and improving your appetite
5. Ginger has powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects and has been used to treat various stomach problems.

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Lunch:

For lunch I stuck with my kale salad! It was delicious and filling. Sometimes I would add something to it like leftovers from the night before. It was easy to prep every day because I made the dressing in advance and shredded some kale leaves up at the beginning of the week.

• Kale salad

Dinners:

Pakistani Kima Beef Curry (UM you guys this ended up being a new favorite - You're welcome!)

Quick Chana Masala (SO YUM!)

Vegetarian West African Peanut Soup (we added grass-fed hot dogs)

I realize my pictures aren't that pretty - that's another skill for another time... but the recipes are DELICIOUS and I would definitely recommend you try them all. Keegan and Patrick both loved them too! Technically this next recipe was from this week, but it fits the theme and is one of our favorites, so I wanted to include it for you as well!

Moroccan Lentil Stew with Raisins ( seriously - gotta try this!)

I loved my "experiment" so much that I have continued my daily green juices!!! I even think it's better than coffee *gasp*!. I would challenge YOU to try it every day for one week....it doesn't take much time and cost per juice is so low when you make it at home, PLUS you are getting fresh nutrients delivered in an extremely efficient and bioavailable way!

Have you ever tried juicing? I'd love to hear your thoughts/recipes below!

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All about food sensitivities and getting tested...

Hey Hey there Diva friends!! 

Many of you may have seen my recent video talking about my MRT blood test results that showed me several SURPRISING food sensitivities that I have....if not keep reading! (or watch here-->)

"Whyyyyyyy??", "Are you KIDDING me?", "I can't believe I have a reaction to that""waaaahhh that's my favorite." Were just a few thoughts that ran through my mind as I read my results. But THEN it gave me hope. Hope that this is another piece to my puzzle of health...a missing link so to speak that can take me a few steps closer to where I want to be. Let me explain why...

When you are ingesting food that your body then has a negative reaction (sensitivity) to, this causes inflammation and a cascade of stress inside your body whether you can recognize it or not! The thing about food sensitivities is....you often don't "see" them. We are so used to looking at the dramatic examples with anaphylactic shock, hyves, swelling, etc....the only difference with a food sensitivity is it's you can't SEE it, so we often don't put 2 and 2 together, and/or we write it off as unimportant.

See how eating foods you are sensitive to can affect your gut here

For example...since it's not life threatening, shows up within DAYS instead of MINUTES, and can be related to what we consider "normal" things like gas, bloating, a day of bad poop, acne, etc....we often don't think about it or recognize the connection....but long term these "little" sensitivities can affect your hormone balance, immune system and potential, or susceptibility, for chronic disease!

What's even CRAZIER is that the most seemingly benign foods can be causing this which, in my case, is EXACTLY what was happening.... 

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This (potentially) explains SO MUCH! I had already eliminated the major common allergens - wheat and dairy. I was even pretty low on my consumption of grains and beans! But...after all that, I would still have some issues of bloating, fatigue, etc.... now granted, I've come a long way from the debilitating stomach pains, the kill me now PMS cramps that lasted for HOURS at a time and render me completely useless for the day, the rosacea on my face etc etc.... BUT even with all those amazing improvements I'm on a journey and want to see HOW healthy I can be! Feeling fatigued at the most inopportune times, struggling with getting my hormones back to a desired level.... those are things I am determined to solve...These things brought me to my FDN certification which in turn brought me to the MRT food sensitivities testing and I'm happy it did.

Come to find out, food I NEVER would have considered as being reactive are top on my list when I got the results back. Chicken, carrots, cinnamon, vanilla,  blueberries, and avocado were all reactive foods (as were several others but these ones really hurt!). These are foods I eat not just regularly but weekly if not DAILY!!! Even MANY times a day!!! No WONDER I still have some recurring issues... my goodness!

So then - that gives me HOPE! While I have to eliminate everything on my reactive list (including BANANAS and mint!) for 90 days, I also expect to see some great results from that.

Another thing to keep in mind with food sensitivities is that they aren't always forever. When I get retested in 3 months or so, there is the potential that after fully eliminating the irritants and adding some things into my lifestyle and diet to HEAL my gut, the list may be much smaller. That's the goal!

One major reason I think EVERYONE should get this test is because of how HIDDEN these stressors can be! It's tough to detect on your own because not every sensitivity you have would be an obvious or even common one (hello chicken?!), so getting tested gives you a clear path forward.

It's not necessarily an easy thing to do - the test is an investment and if you aren't willing to put in the work I wouldn't waste the money. You HAVE to be willing to go through a mental transformation as well as a physical one because trust me - it can be overwhelming at first. But this I know. You CAN do it, and if you're willing to, I can help you get through it! 

If you are interested in getting this test done make sure to send me an e-mail! Or go to my FDNP link at the top of the page to set up your FREE 30 minute discovery call to find out if working together is the right choice for you! 

I'm looking forward to helping YOU reach YOUR optimum health goals too!

Bye for now!

If you didn't see my video check it out here! See my reaction, my results, and my PLAN!

When "normal" simply isn't....

How many of you have ever been to the doctor only to be told "The tests say nothing is wrong with you." or, "It's all in your head" or, "there's nothing I can do for you....it sounds like you need an anti-depressant?"

More than likely if you have struggled with extreme fatigue, hormone issues, anxiety, inflammation, headaches, joint pain, or any number of other chronic but not life threatening (well immediately anyway) illnesses you are probably frustrated by similar responses from your physician. You've probably tried several doctors, taken lots of blood tests, and are sick of hearing the tests are "normal". Maybe you have even begun to believe there is nothing you can do to feel better!

I was talking to a client about this earlier, which led to me thinking about this blog post, and then I received an e-mail from my subscription to Mark Sisson's Daily Apple regarding a similar topic - you can read his blog post here. It's cosmic!

                                 To learn more about my journey click HERE

As I go on, I don't want you to misunderstand me, I LOVE doctors. They are skilled and educated people who save lives. Heck, a few weeks ago they saved my finger and thanks to their fast, kind, and careful work pretty soon you may not be able to tell that I caught it in a blender! They have a skill set that is very specific and that is to SAVE your life. Not necessarily to make sure you have an OPTIMAL one in the meantime.

So WHY when you are feeling so bad do your tests come back "normal"? (if they are even willing to give you tests at all. When I asked my doctor in 2015 about testing my hormones she said i didn't need to as long as i was getting my periods regularly....). Simply put if you were able to get tested and you feel like crap but your numbers were "normal" it's because clinical ranges are very broad. And again, doctors are looking for something that is life threatening. Which is FINE - that's why they are there.....

But there is a whole segment of the population that needs MORE. Like me. I knew that I needed hormone support. I knew that something was wrong. I know my body and I know myself and when I feel lethargic, unmotivated, unable to handle stress and TIRED ALL THE TIME, i knew that wasn't "normal".

Through nutrition I have already come REALLY far! I went for YEARS with painful monthly cramping to the point where I would be on the floor in total agony just WAITING for it to go away. I couldn't function and the pain was unbearable. Thankfully it happened frequently and consistently enough that I knew it WOULD go away within a few hours, but it was difficult to take in the meantime.

      Subscribe to my Youtube VLOG here documenting my FDN journey to better hormones!

There was also a time I had severe stomach pains - different than the cramps but similar in the amount of pain. I would double over not understanding where they came from - was it an ulcer? What was happening? At the time I thought "well soda is super acidic maybe thats the problem?" So I gave it up for a really long time and sure enough that helped! 

Eventually, through a healthier diet and lifestyle both of these issues went away completely. Unfortunately, due to all the years of BAD nutrition AND stress, I still have residual things to heal from and right now my main focus is on healing my hormones and restoring them to optimal, healthy levels. While nutrition has helped TREMENDOUSLY ( I cannot underscore that enough and will come back to it later!) there is extra support needed!

Through the process of searching, researching and learning the past few years.... I found FDN! 

FDN stands for Functional Diagnostic Nutrition and when I graduate I will be an FDN-P (practitioner). So what's the difference? Yes FDN-P's still test. Test don't guess! BUT the ranges are very different. FDN test ranges are very small and based on OPTIMAL health. That way we can really see where you ARE, if it correlates to how you FEEL, how far we have to go, and what healing opportunities are available whether it be through organ detoxification, hormone support, digestive support and/or further testing! 

One thing I love about the FDN approach is their DRESS for success™ approach. DRESS stands for: Diet, Rest, Exercise, Stress Reduction and Supplementation.

This approach fits into my personal view that you have to attack health issues from a whole world, whole body, whole lifestyle perspective....if you really want to see a long term change and NOT just treat the symptoms that is! 

I won't be certified to test for a few more months. HOWEVER,  you can always start on the Diet step TODAY! And I'm happy to help you with that. No matter where you are or what your goals are, nutrition is KEY and if you are using supplements or hormone support they simply will not be as effective if this step isn't already securely in place to support your system and help them do their job! You may even see some awesome results JUST from this step alone!

You might feel embarrassed to admit you feel tired all the time. Maybe your friends give you a hard time about it, maybe you have struggled over and over to lose weight but you just CAN'T. Or maybe you are just annoyed of hearing you're "normal" but you don't feel like that's the answer....let's chat :)

p.s. I'm going to leave this nifty picture here to get your wheels spinning about how much chaos stress in your life can cause in your physical body....AND (more importantly) the areas that you can support, detox and potentially heal through DRESS™! 

                                                         Follow my journey here!

p.p.s. Message me to chat about nutritional support, getting on my FDN waitlist, or simply chatting to see if working together is a good fit!