Optimal Health and Wellness - Mon., May 23

Two months ago, we opted to go to a chiropractor at Optimal Health and Wellness Center. They have a "cleanse" program we follow to clear toxins out of our bodies.

As of today, I have lost 20 lbs and feel great. Bob has lost 22 lbs. We have cut out almost all flour, sugar, and dairy products and have learned quite a bit about nutrition and exercise. Did you know that nutrition is way more important than exercise?

Every week, I go to Meditation Monday at the Optimal Health and Wellness Center. We don't just meditate. When we arrive, all of us introduce ourselves, state what our goals are for the week, we listen to a motivational or nutritional tape, do some light stretching, then have our meditation. I have learned so much from the speakers on those tapes and thought I'd share two of them with you (from YouTube):

1. 12 Bad Foods, by Peter Glidden, N.D. (Naturopathic Doctor)
2. Diabetes by Dr. Wallach

Lifestyle changes I am making because of the wellness center and our Meditation Mondays are:

• Drink more water
• Eat 15 servings of vegetables per day, especially greens (serving size = 1/2 cup)
• Breathe deeply
• Get more sleep
• Eat as little processed sugar as possble
• Cut out most flour/bread
• Exercise at least three times per week
• Stretch every day for at least one-half hour
• Drink more water (yes, I meant to repeat that one)

So far I have gone down two sizes and will shortly be going down another size. I have given away seven pairs of shorts/pants (most of them were pretty new). Looks like I'll be getting a new wardrobe.

The other benefit is I feel great. (But it took me a couple of weeks to feel that way. Letting go of flour and sugar caused severe grumpiness and physically manifested as cloudy thinking -- best way I can describe it -- and some depression.) I have more energy too.

In place of bread, we have been using Romaine lettuce and making lettuce wraps. Our favorite lettuce wrap recipe is:

Cod Lettuce Wraps

2 cod filets

Ground cumin seed

Garlic salt

Coconut oil spray

Spray pan with coconut oil spray, place over medium heat. Add the two cod filets to the pan, sprinkle lightly with ground cumin and garlic salt. Cover pan. Cook cod on medium/low for four minutes. Flip cod and sprinkle with ground cumin seed and garlic salt. Cook on low another three to four minutes until flaky. Flake cod.

While fish is cooking, wash Romaine lettuce and dry. You can add your favorite foods to the lettuce wrap. We coat the lettuce with guacamole, put in the flaked cod, and top with tomatoes or salsa. Then eat it like a lettuce taco.

We also make tuna lettuce wraps, and egg salad lettuce wraps. Leftover turkey or chicken? Make lettuce wraps with the chopped up meats. Add celery, pickles, onions, red peppers, asparagus...whatever veggies you like.

I eat way less and don't feel hungry. Bob is still having a problem with sugar cravings and feeling hungry. Many days, I will have one main meal, usually lunch, and have a protein smoothie for breakfast and dinner. We are still learning.

Travel Bug out.

Yummy Dinner Tonight! - Mon., Aug. 26

Here's our first meal from The Engine 2 Diet book by Rip Esselstyn. Boy is it good!

E2 Black Beans and Rice

2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 to 1-1/2 cups water or vegetable broth
1 Tbsp. Bragg Liquid Aminos
1 tsp. chili powder
2 to 3 tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 can sliced water chestnuts,drained
1 cup corn: fresh, frozen or canned
2 red, yellow, orange or green bell peppers, seeded and chopped
1 bunch cilantro, rinsed and chopped
1 avocado, peeled and cubed
3 cups brown rice, cooked in water or vegetable broth
Salsa or tamari to taste

While you are cooking the brown rice, you can do all the other preparation.

Heat the beans with water or broth, Bragg's Liquid Aminos, and chili powder. Place the chopped vegetables and cilantro in individual bowls, e.g., tomatoes in one bowl, corn in a bowl, peppers in another bowl, cilantro in another bowl, etc.

To serve, place several big spoonfuls of brown rice onto large plates and ladle beans on top. Add generous handfuls of chopped vegetables, cilantro and avocado on top of the beans. Add salsa or tamari to taste.

Serve with healthy chips (we like Food Should Taste Good's Multigrain chips) or warm corn tortillas.

* * * * * * * *

This afternoon Snelling called. The insurance office I temp'd for last week requested me for Tuesday and Wednesday this week. I'll be there all day Tuesday and three hours on Wednesday. The owner wasn't kidding when she said if she needs a temp she's going to ask for me. I enjoy working with them.

* * * * * * * *

We hung up some sunflower seeds on our bird feeder and now have cardinals and white-winged doves providing entertainment right outside the window for the cats and I. Yesterday a squirrel tried to climb the metal pole to get up to the sunflower seeds. It was pretty hilarious because she would jump as high as possible, grab onto the pole and slide down like a firefighter in an old fire station (with the pole from the second story). Hah, wouldn't you know, we have a squirrel pole dancer. LOL.

Today a different squirrel (I think!) ran up to the pole and climbed it from the ground just using its claws. I chased it away twice. All we need is a parade of squirrels running up the bird feeder to get to the seeds. NOT!

Have a good Tuesday.

Travel Bug out.

Wake Up Call and Dietary Changes - Sun., Aug. 25

The good news is, Bob's plantar fasciitis is under control. Our Volksmarch on Sunday was back to our normal 10K and our usual pace.

On the other hand, Bob's "routine and preventative" physical exam last week was anything but. He had routine lab work done a few days prior to his family practice doctor visit. When he saw the doctor, his "one to 1-1/2 hour appointment" turned into three hours. Additional blood tests were drawn, he had to have a urinalysis, an EKG, and a sonogram.

The doctor was very worried about Bob and wanted to admit him to the hospital on the spot. Bob's diagnosis is atrial fibrillation in which one valve of the heart doesn't pump properly causing blood to pool. This condition can lead to a stroke. He also has diabetes, and edema in his ankles. The doctor told Bob to lose 80 lbs. ... Bob hasn't been at that low a weight since college. A cardiologist appointment was set up for the next day. Needless to say, Bob and I were completely shook up by this.

Bob loves his cardiologist, who is also a runner, is the same age as Bob, and recently lost 80 lbs. The cardiologist told Bob to take his medications and he can keep running marathons.

What this means is, we are changing our diet. We plan to avoid wheat breads, pasta, and sugar, and eat highly sweet, starchy vegetables (white potatoes, carrots, yams, corn, peas, etc.) in moderation. No more soda for Bob (my soda intake has been almost nil for a couple of years) and cookies, cake, pie, candy will be only for very special occasions. Thankfully, we have limited drinking beer and wine (not into heavier alcohol) to once in a great while. This will not be easy because most of our eating habits have been ingrained over many years.

My "routine and preventative" physical exam is Tuesday. I wonder what they'll find. My guess is he'll tell me to lose 30-40 lbs.

In a serendipitous turn of events, while I was working in the RV park office one of the long-time residents brought in some books for the park library. Brenda (my boss) and I looked over what he was dropping off. In the stack were many cookbooks and books about health. I snagged some low-fat, low-cholesterol cookbooks and a book called, "The Engine 2 Diet," by Rip Esselstyn. Interestingly enough, we already have a book called "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease" by his father, Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., M.D.

So, a new diet will be a challenge and will require cleaning out our cupboards, learning new recipes, and making a shopping list of what we'll need. I love to cook so this will be a fun, interesting process. Eating out will mean closely studying menus and opting for healthier choices.

All this makes the plantar fasciitis seem tame.

We choose to be healthy. We'll keep you posted on updates.

Travel Bug out.