Hold the milk & bread, please!

 (I started this post a year ago-but somehow never posted it and got too distracted by life to post at all.  Now, a year later, we are embarking on the same journey, but adding no gluten to what was only no dairy!)

OK.  I finally am ready to start the no dairy, no gluten trial - to hopefully help my little white-food only eater expand her food horizons and perhaps bring some focus to my dreamy ADD child.  We are going dairy-free & gluten-free for a month.  We officially started Friday, March 1st - although I started my more intense cleanse Monday (no dairy, no gluten, no soy, no corn, no strawberries, no tomatoes, and on and on!)

I have no qualms about not consuming dairy products - it has long struck me as odd that we eat & drink this food that is THE perfect food for baby cows.  No other animal drinks OUR breast milk.  Why do we drink theirs?  Although, I must admit that I do love cheese, yogurt, kefir, rice pudding...but I digress.  And contrary to what your mother told you, it is not a good way to get your calcium.  My health coaching clients get to hear all about this.

My misgivings about giving up dairy are two-fold.  First, dairy substitutes are expensive!  Even more expensive than the organic raw milk we have been drinking the last few years.

But more importantly, the dairy substitutes (almond milk, rice milk, soy milk, grain milk, coconut milk, hemp milk - did I miss any?) can have some unsavory additives.  Sugar being the most frequent offender, although all kinds of "milk" are available unsweetened.  Then there is carrageenan, a thickening agent.  Follow the link to see what Dr.Weil has to say about this suspect substance.  The Vitamin D most often added is D2, which is not bad - just not very bio-available.

Our "milk" of choice is Almond Milk - best if homemade, but Organic Whole Foods brand will work in a pinch!

Cheers!

Clean!

Today is Day 2 of my 21 day Clean cleanse.  Yes, I am doing another 21 day clean up my body diet!  No, I am not becoming anorexic disguised as health conscious, really.  The last detox was good, I felt healthier and lighter, but it was not quite deep enough - not quite clean enough.  I still have some kind of seasonal allergy thing going on - since last May!  Enough already.  I sound like a life-long smoker, coughing and clearing my throat constantly - not pleasant!  And I also want to be able to steer my clients to the right cleanse/detox for them - so I am also cleanse-shopping.

I was feeling a little nervous about starting this cleanse, but less than I would have been if I had not done the 21 day Detox in November.  But I have to avoid a lot more food on this one, and only have one solid meal a day.  Luckily I love smoothies and am so excited to have a Breville juicer (just like Joe had in in Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead!) to get all those fabulous enzymes and phytonutrients by the mason jar-full!

So far - I feel great.  I did cheat and have a cup of green tea yesterday, after a bumpy night of kids waking up (falling asleep while driving carpool is not advised!)  but otherwise just had my two liquid meals and chicken salad for lunch.  I had plenty of energy, and although I felt a bit hungry, it was in a curious - oh, this is hunger - kind of way;  Not in a - must grab a snack my blood sugar is crashing - kind of way.  And my blood sugar usually does crash...but apparently NOT from lack of food.  From caffeine?  From consuming too many carbs?  Hmmmm.....

Chicken Salad for Lunch

Today I actually feel a bit giddy - hey, that might be the detox talking! - or maybe the typo in the smoothie recipe this morning (I think it meant 1 1/2 cups of coconut milk...not 1 1/2 cups of shredded coconut...ick)

Blueberry Coconut Sludge

 Looking forward to curried butternut squash soup for dinner!

White Food Only, Please

 oatmeal, apples, yogurt

rice pudding

I feel it necessary to come out of the closet about something...I am a holistic health coach, a long-time health food nut (not that junk food never crosses my lips,) a devoted kale (and all things green) fan...and I have a child who eats almost exclusively WHITE food!  I realize that children go through phases, and kids can be picky eaters - but honestly - why MY kid?  I ate great food while pregnant, breast fed her for two years (while eating kale, spinach, chard, beets and all manner of colorful foods) and she literally will eat it if it is white and almost certainly not if it has any color (well, maybe I should say beige food - white is pretty extreme.)  I am trying to be laid back and cool about this - realizing that drawing too much attention to it will only make it more entrenched - but the problem is - I am not really a very laid back sort of person.  And I get a little crazy when it comes to my kids and eating good food.  I believe passionately in the connection between good whole food (yes Michael - eat [real] food, not too much, mostly plants - well said) and good health.  I am considering taking dairy products out of her diet - in case a food sensitivity is causing an addiction-like response...but since that makes up about 60% of her diet - I keep putting off the day we start that test.  So for now, I hope that coming out about my beige-food loving child and airing my frustration will buy me a little more patience.  And perhaps courage to try at least a mini dairy-free trial.  Hopefully I'll have good news one way or another (dairy-free or time & patience) to share in later posts.

Truly a New Year

2012.  A New Year.  Often, in years past, this has meant simply a new calendar, remembering to put a new date on checks and also a hopeful feeling of changes ahead.  More light.  More warmth.  Perhaps more exercise and better eating habits.  But this year, I am kicking off the new year with several big changes.  I am officially "open for business" as a holistic health coach.  I have a new newsletter.  I am starting this blog.  I am mulling over other, related projects.  I am feeling excited, nervous, hopeful, determined.

Thanks for being a part, however large or small, of my new endeavors!

Happy New Year!

Gratitude

"Keeping your body healthy is an expression of gratitude to the whole cosmos - the trees, the clouds, everything."
-Thich Nhat Hanh