Why Am I Hungry?

Yet another epiphany on the body reconnection journey.

The course that I am taking focuses on Holistic Health. Nutrition is the foundation with additional attention paid to lifestyle in general. I thought of myself as a health food officianado. I was a Vegan from '84-'94 (sorta), a concious omnivore from '94-'99 and then, a food obsessed unconcious omivore pretending to be a concious one ('99 to present). I learned a lot and had no problem educating others on the finer points of avoiding whole categories of food. The funny thing is, I've managed to stay fat and sick the whole time!

So now, here I am doing my first assignment and the teacher says "IF YOU'RE HUNGRY ALL THE TIME YOU MUST BE UNDERNOURISHED." No freakin' way! But, dear readers it is true. Here is how I tested it. They asked me to add whole grains and more leafy greens to my daily diet. It stopped my cravings significantly and gave me energy to boot. I immediately wanted less animal protein and less carbs. Next, I added fresh fruit and more water. I was pretty full and although I didn't like having to run to the bathroom all the time, I can honestly say that I felt a whole lot better than I had in a while. I went from coffee to maybe one cup of tea from time to time. This was all a marked improvement.

The next step is to work on sustaining the lifestyle and to see how long the energy hangs on. For now, I'll take it a day at a time. I'm just happy to get through the day without being exhausted or caffeinated for most of it.

Peace,
Verlette

Loving That Morning Stretch

The saga continues...
I can feel the changes but they are slow in coming.
This morning I woke up stiff and sore from the previous days' exercise and evening wine binge.
I don't usually drink but my boyfriend and I decided to buy some wine and watch a movie about 80 year olds singing rock music. We thought it would be hilariously funny but it turned out to be very touching and poignant (sniff).

Oddly, I was not hungover and had a good amount of energy and felt pretty good in my body.
I'd walked a mile in the woods and worked on my core strengthening the day before.
I decided to do some yoga postures and some stretching for about half and hour.
My body responded well. I was loose and noticeably energized. Freakin' fantastic!

I'm going to share a little secret with you...
Call me crazy but I'm still eating some things that make my joints stiff. Inflamation is one of the symptoms I'm dealing with and I need to change my ways. I'll keep you posted because I still long for the occasional wrap, a little cheese, a little dairy etc.

So the question becomes: "Do you want to eat grilled cheese or have mobility?" I'll get back to you on that. I'm thinking.

Another secret...My dream is to be able to run and or race walk.
Tired now. Feeling peaceful and tuckered out. Gonna go to sleep.

'Til then,
V

Stiffy

Ok, so it's official. When I'm on my feet for a while my lower back stiffens up like a mummy.
The answer? Core strengthening. Today, I watched TV and did my core strengthening exercises.
These seem to work fantastically but if I stop for a few days my back stiffens again.
Onward.

Yoga, Shopping, and Cooking Class Assistant

Hey, if you've landed here I'm hoping that you'll continue with me on this journey of discovery. My intention is to reconnect to my body through a variety of activities after many years of struggling with weight, and a health crisis. My goal is to inspire others and to have a place to chronicle the struggles and triumphs of becoming a physically fit, healthy person. Right now I am overweight and not very healthy.

I recently enrolled in the class of 2010 for the Institute For Integrative Nutrition. I'm becoming liscenced to become a Holistic Health Counselor and despite knowing bookloads of stuff about how to get and stay and eat healthy, I could use some sprucing up in the looks category.

It's Tuesday not my favorite day of the week but I'm glad to have another day to work on my health. I feel needed today, friends are calling, I moved my roommate's car because she is in Italy, and my boyfriend has a sprained foot so I had to make our breakfast. This is all good because I've been sick for 5 days, two of which were spent sleeping and watching a marathon of America's Next Top Model. I'm ready to move on from this space and reconnect to my body and to moving around but need to take it slow.

For today, reconnecting to my body means lots of water and vitamin C, another stab at the cable yoga class that I can't make it through. I can only do 15 minutes of this advanced class so far. I'm also going to stay active by going to the grocery store to buy Thanksgiving dinner and later I have the priviledge of working with Carla Hall from Top Chef in one of her cooking demos. I'll be there to learn how to give my own demos.

Wish me luck, I'm already tired and the day has just begun.