Learning to Fly

Those of you know me, might know that I was a ballet dancer for 16 years, and was in a modern dance company for a year.  Since then the closest I've been to a dance class is Zumba for Xbox Kinect.

It's been a dream of mine for 15 years to learn the art of Aerial dance.  The first time I saw an aerial routine was in a performance of Cirque du Soliel.  I was mesmerized.  The flow of the silks, the execution of the moves, everything was perfection, and it spoke to the dancer in me.

I'm finally living my dream.  I took my first aerial class last night, and let me tell, it is nothing to scoff at.  On some level I knew that it would be a lot of work, and there would be intense training involved.  However, I think a part of me assumed that since I was a dancer, it wouldn't be as difficult.  Wrong!

One thing my first lesson taught me was how seriously out of shape I am.  o.O  I do realize that I'm using a completely different set of muscles than I am accustomed to using, but geez!  I'm sore from the waist up.

I'm aware that it will get easier eventually, but in the mean time I have the circuit training exercises to do every other day to build my upper body strength.

Wish me luck, kids.  It's going to be one hellaciously fun ride!

Some observations

I made a pact with myself that I would blog once a day during this whole I'm-going-to-revamp-my-life-for-the-thousandth-time...thing.  When you are going through a lifestyle change, journaling is supposed to help you stick with it.  I don't one top to blog at length about, so I thought I would blog about some observations I've made in the last couple of days.

1.)  Coconut milk and chia seeds make for a morning smoothie powerhouse!  This morning for breakfast, I had a fruit smoothie with coconut milk, pineapple, raspberries and wild blueberries.  I tossed in two teaspoons of chia seeds into the blender, and voila!  Tasty, filling breakfast.  It kept me going right up until lunch time.  In the past, smoothies haven't quite got me through to lunch, but this one certainly did.  I'm a little sad that The Plan says Greek yogurt can be highly reactive, but with the discovery of coconut milk, I think I'll be fine.

2.)  Ritz whole wheat crackers are the devil. I desperately wanted something to go with my turkey at lunch today, so I grabbed a handful of Ritz whole wheat crackers from the break room at work.  Such a bad plan!  I had turkey on its own yesterday and had no reaction. Today, I had five Ritz cracker with it and BAM!--heartburn.

3.)  Fast food pizza sucks.  Since I'm broke (But hey!  At least I'm paying off my debts!), I've been scraping together meals of frozen leftovers.  Last night was leftover pizza from a fast food chain.  Bleh.  It just wasn't good.  Not to mention the digestive issues it caused.  I'll be sticking with Andolini's and staying away from the other crap.

4.)  The Lyn-Genet crew is amazing!  They answer your questions in a timely and encouraging manner.  I know this because I asked via their Facebook page about hydration and why I am always thirsty.  My  question was answered in less than five minutes.  They suggested a humidifier.  I have my baby humidifier but they suggested getting a larger one for my room.  I'll be testing that theory, because I just feel so dry!  

Girl Talk...

***DISCLAIMER***  If you're a guy who's squeamy about anything that has to do with a woman's period, you probably want to turn back now.  This post is all about "girl time."

One of the biggest factors in deciding to try The Plan was the testimonials from women who had issues with their reproductive system.  Be it Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), infertility or Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD).

My thinking was if The Plan could help women with more serious conditions like PCOS, it might be able to help me with my problems.

After reading the small section on hypothyroidism in The Plan, I did some independent research.  Turns out women with hypothyroidism are like to irregular periods that can be frequent with a heavier that normal flow.

My period has never been an easy breezy 3-5 days like most woman.  (Lucky bitches!)  Instead, mine were more like 7-9 days with a heavy flow and painful cramps.  Unfortunately, the older I got, the worse it got.  My junior year of college found me bed ridden the first day of my period because walking hurt and movement of any kind made me nauseous.  The cramps were crippling and nothing made them better.  In the mornings, I would have to crawl to the dorm bathroom and dry heave into the toilet.  One day, I was looking at the selection of candy at the campus convenience store, and my vision bleached out.  I had to reach for the nearest stable surface to keep myself upright until my vision returned.  Yeah, it was that bad.

In my search for relief, everyone had the same answer:  Birth control!  If I had to be on birth control, by God I wanted to be on the one that limited your period to four times a year.  Sadly, that was not to be.  Apparently, I'm so small that the strength of that particular type of birth control could kill me.  So, I was placed on a low-dose pill.  It helped with the cramps and discomfort, but my periods were still 7 days or more.    

It wasn't until I graduated college and had a job with decent insurance that I discovered I am prone to ovarian cysts which were most likely the cause of my discomfort.  That was a horrifying experience that involved a ruptured cyst and more invasive BS than I ever wanted to experience.

A few years went by without any more cystic issues; it seems they were just lying in wait, however, as I ended up in the ER with appendicitis...we thought.  But oh, no!  It was those pesky ovarian cysts!  13 of them.  I was ordered to go back on the pill, because it would help with the cysts...while possibly causing a multitude of other health issues.  So, I took it for a while, decided it was a $10/month expense I could do without and stopped.  It still wasn't helping with the length of my cycle, so I really wasn't impressed.

After all this, you can imagine that I was more than willing to jump on any opportunity to "fix" my batshit crazy reproductive system without chemical assistance.  So, I got the thyroid supplements, cut out diet sodas (which can adversely affect your hormones), and was actually surprised my period.

I can usually tell when my cycle is coming, because I'm a wretched beast for about a week.  I'm a hormonal mess who could cry at you or bite your head off at any time.  Or perhaps both.  Within the same five minute conversation.  This time, however, I wasn't in a wretched mood!  I haven't had cramps or heartburn or any bizarre cravings.  It's been as normal as my period has ever been.  I'm hoping this becomes a growing trend and that the other irregularities in my cycle will fade away.  I'm crossing my fingers...        

http://thyroid.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=thyroid&cdn=health&tm=41&f=10&tt=2&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.thyroid-info.com/articles/menstruation.htm
http://www.uptodate.com/contents/hypothyroidism-underactive-thyroid-beyond-the-basics
http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder
http://women.webmd.com/tc/polycystic-ovary-syndrome-pcos-topic-overview

A pleasant surprise...

I am aiming for beginning The Plan next Monday, but I've already lost 10 of the 20 pounds I'd packed on.  I haven't even really changed any of my eating habits. I haven't eliminated any of the foods I usually eat; nor have I limited the amount of food I am taking in.  

So far I've done three things: I picked up the supplements to stimulate my thyroid, cut out soda and started drinking more water and BAM!  A week later, I'm 10 pounds lighter and a great deal less miserable.

Going into this, weight loss was not a huge concern for me.  I did want to get rid of the 20 pounds I had gained, but I just assumed getting my thyroid and hormones under control would result in losing that weight.  Eventually.  I had no idea it would happen this fast.  It makes me even more interested to see how my body is going to respond to The Plan.

    

Experimentation is fun!

I think the reason The Plan is so attractive to me is that it's like a science experiment.  Once you've done what Lyn-Genera calls The Cleanse (which really isn't like a cleanse at all, because you're eating food instead of fading on water or juice), you're body is in its "control" state.  From there, you begin your experimentation by adding in more reactive foods gradually, weeding out (or not) the ones that aren't working for you.

I haven't  begun the cleanse yes, but I've purchased some of the foods from the cleanse portion of the plan to see if they are palatable for me. 

One of these foods is coconut milk.  I'm not terribly fond of coconut, but I've found I enjoy the consistency of coconut milk more than I do cow's milk.  That's something I never in a million years thought I would say. 

I'm really looking forward to The Plan, because it allows you to discover new foods and encourages you to eat until you are full.  None of that counting calories and eating like a bird crap.  For a person who genuinely loves food and enjoys eating, that's the best thing you can say!

Kicking the habit...

I'm a Diet Dr. Pepper junkie.  I love the stuff.  However, I'm reading everywhere that says the sweeteners in my favorite diet soda could be making my hormones wonky.  It could also be mutating my DNA and raising my insulin levels just as much as regular Dr. Pepper would.  The artificial sweeteners could also be contributing to the massive migraines I've been experience on a regular basis.

The Plan discourages drinking any soda, because you're pumping chemicals into your body.  So, I've made a conscious effort not to drink my beloved DDP this week.  I've cut soda out of my life before, so I was fully expecting the misery of a pounding headache.  However, I have been pleasantly surprised.  The few headaches I've had have been manageable.

I also feel more clearheaded than I have in a while.  In addition, the desire to crawl into bed and hide from the world in less prevalent.  I've even been in a decent mood the last couple of days.  In fact, yesterday I was laughing and joking and being silly.  I can't remember the last time that happened without some sort of bite or sarcasm behind it.

It's not going to be easy, and I will probably cave a couple of times, but I'm hoping the radical difference in mood and disposition will be enough to motivate me to stick to my guns about this.  Wish me luck.

http://arizonaadvancedmedicine.com/articles/diet_soda.html

Dandelion Tea

As I'm gearing up for The Plan, I'm stocking up and beginning to take the supplements Lyn-Genet recommends to help stimulate the thyroid.

She also recommends a liver cleanse or drinking dandelion tea because they flush the liver of toxins.  I'm not going to take a cleanse pill for any reason.  I'm taking enough supplements to get my thyroid in check.  So, I started looking into dandelion tea instead.

In researching dandelion tea, I'm finding benefits that make me want to give it a shot.  Apparently, women have used it for centuries to stave off cramps.  Why am I just learning about this now?!  Why couldn't someone have told me this decades ago?!

Did you know your liver performs over 500 functions, including hormone control?  I didn't know that!  I also didn't know that the health of your liver has an effect on your allergies.

After my research, I had my first cup of dandelion tea.  I'm not gonna lie.  The smell is kinda awful; but once you get over the initial impact of the smell, there is a subtle, nutty smell.  To me, dandelion tea smells and tasted a bit like roasted peanuts.  I had to force myself to finish the first cup, but I think it's something I can get used to.

I'm willing to try most things that will help me get my hormones and thyroid under control.  If I can do it without poisoning myself with chemicals and pills, so be it.

http://www.healthhomehappy.com/2010/10/natural-remedy-dandelion-root-for-liver-health-and-fat-digestion.htm
http://www.amazing-green-tea.com/dandelion-tea.html
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/dandelion-root-tea.html