Growing evidence of childhood fatty liver disease

I am seeing a number of studies and proof to support something I have known since 2008. Our kids are in serious trouble for their futures if they live on processed foods, soda pop and sauces coating anything natural. Finding those kids out there is a challenge. We have about 6 children in my fatty liver disease support group on Facebook ranging from age 2 – 18.  This is 2 girls and 4  boys which is not by any means a predictor.

Doctors DO NOT look for liver disease as a rule. They are NOT taught to look for the disease. They will blame the pancreas, gallbladder, IBS, Celiac Disease, Diabetes before they would even pay attention to elevated liver enzymes.  As a Parent you need to pay attention to your child’s symptoms and NOT be too quick to blindly trust the doctor.  Demand a blood test for your child. review the levels for AST and ALT and ask your doctor what the safe levels are for enzymes. As for an Ultrasound of the stomach.  If the liver has fatty deposits they will be shown in this test.  Ask for genetic testing they are now proving there are genetic links to fatty liver disease. I am not saying every child has a problem with their livers but I would bet my life at this point far more do then are being diagnosed. Studies say between 3 – 13% of kids have fatty liver disease. I suspect its closer to the 25-30% that is happening in adults.

These kids generally have homes where both parents are working. There are few home cooked meals because parents are stressed out and running between all the soccer, dance, skating, hockey, baseball games that kids are involved with. Or because they can’t get their kids away from the video games and their kids are picky eaters who will ONLY eat hamburgers, chicken nuggets , macaroni or other standard processed or junk foods.

The very sad reality is that these products are created by companies who know and love the fact that people get addicted to their products. If your kid eats it once and it has high fructose corn syrup in it there is no message to the brain to tell them that they are full. and there is no balancing of the sugars. This creates a fatty cell in the liver and your child becomes addicted to those products.

So when they are eventually diagnosed with Fatty Liver Disease or Diabetes or other metabolic disorders you will find you have a child who is trying to sneak foods, or find ways to drive you nuts until you give in. The problem is that they are actually ADDICTED to these products its like they are coming out of alcoholism or drug addiction. Everything in their body is telling them they NEED those foods.  You essentially need to accept that your child is in withdrawl

You have to be strong and fight for your child. This disease can and does lead to liver failure. Doctors and researchers have no understanding about this disease right now. They are all fighting to find the answers but we are dealing with it TODAY and don’t have time to wait for them. I am aware of 2 men in their 30′s who died of liver failure due to fatty liver disease. Neither of them were alcoholics or drug addicts. They were only in  their 30′s. I suspect you want your child to experience life longer than that!

This generation of children are the first generation which will live shorter lives. This is directly related to processed foods and additives and genetically modified foods. Our body’s DO not know how to process these chemicals. Our poor children do not stand a chance in this world of Monsanto versus humans.

If your child is dealing with chronic illness that doesn’t get better. Try getting rid of sugar! Getting rid of junk food, do they start to feel better? You will find after 3- 6 weeks of not eating those things or drinking sugary beverages they will feel healthier!

Parents please pay attention and do not go blindly into dealings with doctors. Get the right tests, keep all test results…you need to take this into your control for your kids sake!

The Problem with Paleo – Guest Blogger Tommy Caldwell

If you have any interest, participation, or aspirations in the world of health, you have no doubt heard about the Paleo Diet. In fact, if you even subscribe to any social networking avenue you have surely been exposed to the current trend. The Paleo Diet is a hit. In fact, it is a booming hit that hasn’t been seen in the wellness world since the South Beach Diet or the Original Weight Watcher’s program. But as with most ever-popular trends, the Paleo Diet has spread faster than the general public’s ability to comprehend what is good and bad about it. In this article I will highlight the great aspects of a typical Paleo routine, but I will also touch on the aspects that you may need to put a little more logical thought into before you blindly subscribe to the diet as a ‘whole’. The Paleo Concept For those who perhaps don’t know exactly what the Paleo Diet is, here is a brief description. The Paleo diet is a theoretical and research based diet that follows the consumption of foods that were most likely consumed by our longest living genetically indentical relatives. Basically- the foods that the human race has been exposed (and therefore adapted to) for the longest period of time over human history are the foods that our bodies are most likely to ‘handle’ in a favorable manner. Adversely, the foods that the human race has been exposed (and there for adapted to) for the shortest period of time over human history are the foods that are bodies are most likely to ‘handle’ in an unfavorable manner. An example of this would be vegetables and wheat. Vegetables have been available for human consumption since the beginning of man- therefore man has had apt time to regulate the digestion of the food. On the other hand products like wheat have only been manufactured for human consumption for the last 10,000 or so years- making them fairly new to the human diet- therefore man hasn’t necessarily had apt time to regulate their consumption… get it? It is a very logical and theoretically sound basis for what you put in your body- but that doesn’t make it a flawless system. The Good I view the Paleo trend the same way as I view the Crossfit trend: Considering that it is indeed considered a trend (or ‘fad’ or what have you) it is far superior and a ‘breath of fresh air’ when compared to what else you will find in the same category (think Jenny Craig, WeightWatchers, Slimfast, and all the other terrible diets that are far from health based). But, that doesn’t mean it is ideal for any one person or that it is an optimal way of viewing your health approach. With that in mind, there are far more positive aspects than there are negative- and that is why I feel it is important to highlight them first. Real Food First- The Paleo diet focuses on real food that grows from the ground and roams the earth. It doesn’t promote eating things from a box, magic potions or snake oils. It is just a system of real food consumption. It’s Based on Logic- Even though much of the logic is theoretical; it still has a very ‘human’ and plausible basis. It isn’t a total ‘blind faith’ approach like what you would get in a 90’s weight loss shake craze. It is built upon a foundation you can wrap your brain around. It Promotes Overall Lifestyle- Paleo dieting discusses food first, but it also discusses all aspects of self improvement as well. It covers how you move (exercise) as well as how you live day to day (lifestyle) which is a very important approach to health success. It isn’t really selling a ‘product’- Paleo isn’t a service. It isn’t a product or a subscription. It is merely information that you can either choose to implement into your life or not- for free It will give you weight loss/body composition results- Any time you cut grains, sugars, and junk from your diet it will give you a positive result. If you are an average person who sticks to the Paleo Diet, you will gain positive results from it. The Bad I’m hesitant to call this section ‘the bad’, because all things considered it is hard to put the Paleo Diet into the ‘bad’ category. Especially when you see what it is up against in the health world- you can’t argue its dominance in effectiveness, health basis, and plausibility. That said there are still some components that need to be investigated and challenged a little more openly. We Are Not Our Ancestors- The Paleo diet is affectionately known as the ‘caveman diet’, and this stems from the diet being generally identical to what we assume our cave people ancestors would eat like. The issue with that is we are not cave people. Human beings have survived as long as we have and become the dominant species on the planet (from an evolutionary perspective) because of our ability to change, adapt, and grow. If we did everything now like our caveman ancestors did in their time we would still be cave people. Why This Matters When It Comes to Food- If the human race has flourished on change and adaption, we can’t start eliminating foods outright because they may not have been eaten by cavemen. It’s really quite stupid when you think about it. This isn’t to say that the foods that are available now are as good, better, or even worth eating when compared to what composed our original long-standing diet- but you’ll have to come up with better logic than “if cave people didn’t eat it, we shouldn’t”. If that’s how you feel life should be lived than go back in your cave and unlearn the English language- see what that does for your future. Meat Meat and More Meat!!!!- Along with the Paleo diet comes a huge love for meat. Most Paleo ‘Guru’s’ will even tell you that meat should be eaten with every meal or ‘in abundance’ or ‘with abandon’. What these people fail to recognize is that meat was the most difficult and dangerous form of consumption for our distant relatives. Killing an animal for food meant the need for tools (labor), the need for a hunt (spent energy), and an inevitable fight (danger). I wasn’t around back then, but I can guarantee that our ancestors weren’t eating various sources of meat 3-5 times per day with every meal… in fact; I doubt they even ate meat on a daily basis. Considering that plants have always been the most abundant source of nutrients on this earth for all herbivores and omnivores, it is safe to say that our ancestors likely at plants in abundance, and meat when they could. If Paleo people promote eating as close to your ancestral code as possible- how do they get to the conclusion that people should be consuming steaks 5 times per day without thinking twice? Why This Matters When It Comes to Food- Our modern cravings are based directly upon what was rare for us to come across in the wild. This is what kept us driven to hunt and gather (much like how sex drive ensures human procreation)- therefore tastes like sweet (high up and far between fruit plants) and salt/fat (animal meat) weren’t sources we came across or consumed regularly- if they were abundant to us back then, we wouldn’t require a crave mechanism to locate them. This is also why humans don’t crave vegetables- they were so abundant to us and easily accessed in the wild that we didn’t require extra motivation or drive to find them. They were always available and always our main source of nutrients. Don’t get me wrong- I love meat, and I think it is an essential part of our diets- but if you subscribe to the thinking that you should be eating in line with an ancestral code, eating meat with every meal does not add up. Contradictions in Adaption- One of the biggest rules in Paleo eating is to not eat grains (which for the most part I am 100% on board with). The reasoning behind this is that the agricultural age came so late in our history that our bodies are not properly adapted to consume grains. I understand and agree with most of this logic, but I also don’t consider myself a pure Paleo eater- so I can disagree without conflict. What Paleo advocates fail to mention is that human beings were most likely originally vegetarians whom learned to cook and consume meat (as well as cook all foods)- thus leading to a huge jump in evolutionary progress, particularly in brain size/function. Now, if the one piece of food that Paleo’s hold in such high regard (meat) was once a new introduction to the human diet (un-adapted) that allowed us to better ourselves as a species- where do they get off saying that people shouldn’t eat grains because they aren’t yet adapted to it? It is quite contradictory and a bit senseless. Don’t take this as me being an advocate for grains, because I am not. For the most part I loathe grains and feel as though a very small percentage of the population should consume them- but- my reasoning has nothing to do with adaption and more to do with grains not being the most optimal food that can be put in the body. They can be easily replaced by more nutrient dense and less problematic foods that will give you more bang for your buck. It’s like the old race car analogy- your body could run off grains and get from point A to point B, but you wouldn’t be breaking any records getting there. Bottom Line- you can’t outright condemn a food source (Grains) because we haven’t been exposed to it for a million years, yet turn around and push another food (meat) when at one point it was brand new to the human race and was partially responsible for the brain power we have today. Why This Matters When It Comes to Food- Some foods are good for everyone, some foods are bad for everyone, and then there are some foods that are good and bad on an individual basis. If you follow some preconceived notion that you shouldn’t consume something solely because it wasn’t available to you 100,000 years ago you may be missing the boat on human progression and adaption. Especially when the people telling you this information are being slightly hypocritical (remember the meat history). Take supplements for example- they aren’t the majority basis of a healthy diet, but even a Paleo eater will take Vitamin D, Fish Oil, Multi-Vitamins and Whey Protein. I’m aware that all of the bases of these products come from ‘Paleolithic’ sources- but they are definitely processed and digested in ways that our bodies haven’t been adapted to for the majority of human existence. I guess my question is how much do you bend until you break and contradict your own principles? Our Lifestyles/Demands/Activities are not Paleolithic- The modern day human being (particularly the athlete) does not participate in the lifestyle that our ancestors would have. Our ancestors (like all animals) would conserve energy whenever they could and use it only when necessary. Modern day athletes on the other hand search to put vigorous demands on their bodies multiple times per day in order to create resistance and adaption that makes them stronger, faster and fitter. Rice, potatoes, and other starches are a great way for an athlete to up their recovery time and energy reserves. This as well as higher doses of fruit for glycogen replacement (the energy source that our muscles need to recover and perform). These foods may not have served a great purpose in Paleolithic times as they do now for modern day athletes, but that doesn’t mean that an athlete should avoid certain foods because cavemen didn’t eat them or consume them in that volume/frequency. I wouldn’t recommend rice, potatoes, heavy starches or lots of fruit to an average person, and definitely not to an overweight individual- but to those with extremely high energy demands and the need to perform at high levels day in and day out- I would absolutely recommend adding grains (but not gluten) to your diet on a fairly regular basis. Why This Matters When It Comes to Food- Lots of us have much different energy demands and lifestyles than our ancestors did. The very act of searching out repetitive strenuous activity day in and day out that doesn’t result in direct food consumption or protection goes against our very human nature. Therefore when you can make certain foods work for you and serve a direct purpose that others may not need to worry about- you should do it. White Jasmine Rice is blasphemy in the Paleo world, but in the world of a high caliber athlete it can be the difference between 1st and 2nd The key here is understanding history, contradictive statements, and most importantly-yourself. None of us come from the same place, live the same lives, or have the same goals- so what makes us think that we should all be subscribing to the exact same food habits? The key to a good diet is understanding what is good for YOU and eating those things purposefully. If you can justify each piece of food you put in your mouth by having a realistic and effective purpose for how it will serve to better your particular life- you are on the right path. And don’t get me wrong- the Paleo diet is a great start towards a healthy life, especially if you are an average person who is new to life change. But it isn’t the optimal solution for food supremacy and it never will be unless you understand exactly why it is perfect for your lifestyle and fulfilling those specific demands. As far as general diets go- Paleo is the best out there, but, it still has a lot of obvious cracks, contradictions, and missing information. So like most things in this world you should be ‘combing’ through the info and throwing away what personally doesn’t make sense to you- otherwise you are generalizing what should always be a specific approach to health.

We are being killed by sodium!

I am in shock! Truly shocked. My 14 year old daughter has been tracking the foods we eat in http://caloriecount.about.com/ and she is noticing the outrageous numbers in the sodium counts of any processed or prepared meals we purchase.

We all naturally and correctly think that going to the drive thru at mcdonalds is a bad choice for our health. Do you think the same thing when you are eating the garden salad at East Side Mario’s? Of course not, its a Salad with a oil and vinegar type dressing. Of course its healthy. What about a family restaurant chain like Kelseys in Canada?

Well here is your reality lets compare 3 meals

Mcdonalds drive thru:

Big Mac, medium fries and bottle of water – 900 calories, 46 grams of fat, 1290 grams of sodium

East Side Marios:

Garden salad, Kids cheese pizza  water – 830 calories, 62 grams of fat, 2120 grams of sodium.

Kelseys

2 pieces balsamic chicken, Yukon Gold Mashed potatoes ,green and yellow beans – 790 calories, 35 grams of fat and 2015 grams of sodium.

Kelseys wins for Calories but look at that sodium number. you are supposed to have between 1000 – 1500 grams of sodium per day. If you have liver damage it should be at the lower end. Once your liver is damaged it cannot handle sodium correctly anymore. This is also very dangerous for your blood pressure, kidney and heart health!

If you have too much salt in your diet, that excess sodium won’t cause liver damage, according to the National Library of Medicine. But if you have liver damage due to another reason–perhaps a virus such as hepatitis or damage due to excessive alcohol consumption–your doctor may ask you to limit your sodium intake in an effort to reduce stress on your liver.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/278961-sodium-and-liver-damage/#ixzz1NqaxGkIV

You need to be drinking tons of water if you are going over that number, and for your livers sake add some lemon or lime to help detox it.

East Side Marios wins the worst meal award in all areas! Calories ok we can excuse the 830 calories but if you are getting 62 grams of fat and 2120 grams of sodium there is no way you can consider this a healthy meal

Then Mcdonalds our villain! 900 Calories at the highest in our group. 46 grams of fat and yes more of these fat grams will be unhealthy fats! but only 1020 grams of sodium so they get the Sodium award!!

Read the labels low fat products! You will be very sad to see that they have added more salt and or more sugar to make up for that! I have a friend with fatty liver that was proud that she was using 98% fat free Campbells soup as her base for soup recipes during week and its great on calories at only 70 for 1/2 cup, and fat at 2.5 grams, but watch out for the sodium at 790 grams for 1/2 cup.!!

It goes on and on and on. You start reading the labels and you will see why you need to stick to the outside aisles in your grocery store, the fruits,veggies, the lean proteins, even the dairy can be dangerous….but read your labels pay attention to the sugars, calories, fats, fibre and salt and you will find your health will improve!

Be gentle to your liver!

Michelle

Megan taking control and leading us to healthier lifestyle!

I am so very proud of my 14 year old daughter Megan. In the last week she has lost 6 lbs. She has set herself a goal of losing 20 lbs to get herself a product at Bath and Bodyworks as a reward for her hardwork. She is checking the scale everyday which is not the best idea but other than that I could not be more impressed by this.

She is entering every food into an internet program which breaks down all the nutrients and grades foods as A – D’s. She takes every container we use and she painstakingly adds them to the database. She is averaging A days and making sure I do as well. She is noticing how much salt and sugar manufacturers are using with the labels screaming lowfat! She is not letting us buy yogurts with too much sugar, We are checking every label for Salt , fats, sugars and fibre to make sure we eat balanced.

We are spending 90% of our time in the fruit and veggie aisle and we are back to cutting up all the fruit and veggies on Sunday to make the rest of the week easy.

We found a quickprep oatmeal that is for weight control by quakers that was surprisingly a Grade A product and not too high in sugar or salts.

We found that basic Cheerios are also a better choice than the multigrain Cheerios which has a lot more sugar.

She is running everyday not for long periods of time but she enters the time she runs into the program and it gets her a few more calories to spend on foods.

She is setting a NON FOOD related reward for her mini goals! This is perfect and the right way to do it!

We made guacamole last night for her to dip her new favorite veggie Celery into.. Celery being less than zero calories!

We have a meal plan for the week and she is excited about this change!

This came out of Megan totally and completely. I was working us toward healthier eating, but she has taken the bull by the horns! She is getting me excited with her enthusiasm and I will be getting healthier alongside her.

Megan will not be a teen that turns to silly diet plans, she is learning the right things to look for, she is insisting we target grade A meals everyday.

Her liver will thank her, her body will thank her, her self esteem will thank her. and so will I.

Thank you Megan I love you.

A February New Years Resolution

This year my daughter and I both really want to focus on getting healthy and leaner. We could have started this as a January resolution like the rest of the world, but we chose to forgo that tradition.

My daughter was experiencing her very first exams and also provincial testing at school in January. This was extremely stressful for her and food does provide comfort for her in stressful moments. YES we know that eating food to resolve stress in turn creates its own stress and guilt as we try to squeeze into clothes that are too tight and think ahead to summer and bathing suits!

You can’t discount the pressure of wanting to be able to wear fashionable clothes and look great on a teenage girl! For her this is the key motivation. She wants to feel pretty and she has every right to feel that special after 2 years of nasty illness stole her social life.

For me the motivations are all health related. I am very comfie with my curves and do feel pretty! However, climbing the stairs to work everyday makes my chest tighten, a night of dancing makes my body ache. I want to fully enjoy life and all it has to offer.

I do not want to feel too big to go into a regular bathroom stall, sit in an airplane seat, go on a rollercoaster, or hundreds of other examples. I don’t want to be that person that is walking down the aisle on the bus or plane that makes people cringe and pray I don’t sit beside them and take some of their personal space in the process.

I am at a good spot in my life to make these changes. I love my new job, my kids are healthy and successful, I have a new sweetheart , and I have lots of people that will love me and cheer me on.

WII Fit will be our choice of exercise for now and it will monitor our progress. Making a list, checking out recipes and then grocery shopping tonight to arm us with lots of healthy snacks and make them fun.

February will be our starting point, just as others are giving up on their resolutions we will be charging up ours!

Wish us luck and deterimination!

Cry me a river

I have been waiting for 3 months to have a good cry. So much has happened that has brought sadness. Deaths, illness, job loss, money issues. I do so much better when I can stand on my own 2 feet and am not reliant on the government and family for my survival. The final trigger was last week on Thursday when I found out that the company I was so excited about joining went with an internal candidate. I totally appreciate that those candidates bring company knowledge and product experience that I can not compete with…but it doesn’t change the fact it made me sad.

My good friend Donna posted a status last Friday that read

Grief that finds no vent in tears makes other organs weep.

This gave me my answer, I have been experiencing a lot of neck and shoulder pain for the last month, this is a clear reaction to stress and sadness that I am carrying in my body and my body needs me to release that stress.

historically I would wait for time alone to have a good crying episode, but life has not given me that option at home in a long time. So I got my mind wrapped around the movies I would watch to trigger the tears…my sisters keeper , notebook , and bridges of madison county were my choices. The funny thing about all this plannin is that it triggered the tears on its own lol!

So Saturday night while many of you were out dancing and having fun…I found my eyes had sprung a leak! Sunday night it happened again…By Monday morning I could feel the difference in my back and neck…I could feel hope and planning in my mind again…I could feel relief….

While these months have had lots of negatives , there have been bright lights keeping me from falling too far off the edges. Brandon, Kirsten, Megan, Alex Louis, Stan, Bonnie, Shannon, Victoria, Janet….and the list continues…its time to appreciate them and start paying attention to the positives and not let the negatives keep pulling me down.

Onward and upward I go….

Michelle Clermont

CHFI Blogger

Moving on beyond Anxiety!

The sense of Everything Happens for a Reason is a great thing to hold in your head when bad things happen to good people. However, after 7 days of dealing with the bad things I have to report that I have not stayed as positive as I wanted to be.

Reporting the news to the my stepdad the person I admire and respect and love the most was painful. He was not angry with me, but disappointed. He was not judging, but worried for me. He worries for himself too,  since he has been my financial crutch through the last 5 years of my rebuilding.  Thankfully there are lots of jobs available today which does give me hope that I will have the job I need in April and not have to rely on him too long.

This takes a heavy toll in my heart, in my head. Its pride , its shame, its a desperate need to not have to lean on him again.

A friend contacted me on the weekend too, she needed to vent out some concerns she had about the investment she made in me to start me in Usana. I have had so much on my plate and I know that once people start seeing the results for me , they will naturally want to try Usana products too.  My friend loves me, she is scared too and wants success for me.

This added to the guilt, shame , pride issues that were already plaguing my subconscious thoughts.

The result of those two events created a zombie in me. I have been working hard on getting through the steps Brandon set out for me, but I knew I was not really feeling it. My nights were full of nightmares, bad dreams, cramps in my legs, barely sleeping at all. My days were dotted with naps lots of naps! Staying up too late, eating less, and then also allowing myself to comfort myself with a large plate of fries.

Somehow I lost myself over the last 5 days. I went to see Brandon last night and admitted my lack of focus, I am scattered at best.

He knows I am overwhelmed and I have been full of anxiety to get everything done quickly. This is manifesting itself in me physically. It was very interesting to see that I could not balance on one foot, because my core balance is off while I am in this state of anxiety!

So back to basics for me, I now have a journal beside my bed to write down my dreams, and anything that interrupts my sleep at night.

I need to cut 2 hours a day out of my life to focus on Networking and job search steps.

I need to get outside and go walking in a park for 20 minutes a day to refresh my soul.

I need to plan FUN days in order to balance out the stress I am dealing with!

Last night I used 2 Usana Pure Rest tablets before I went to be at 11. I actually slept through the night with the assistance of the melatonin!

Today my goal is no NAPS before 4 pm. I can’t let bad habits take over and gain control of me.

I am not perfect and I will not hide that from you my readers! But I will not let life take me out and you will see me get back up and keep fighting!

Brandon has a new website you should check out. http://www.knssconsulting.com/

Good luck this week everyone! Measurements and current weight to be taken Saturday, will post again after that.

Michelle

A Day of Fun Food and Lessons Learned

My daughter and I made a deal, if she got through 6 weeks of healthy eating she could have one day to eat whatever she wanted. She was anticipating this day, counting down to it.

Yesterday was the day! She started off by buying candy Friday night for yesterday Skittles and reeses pieces were going to be her sweets!

We got up and headed out for breakfast, I was telling myself not to react to the choices , to just have fun with the day and join in and eat what I want too. She surprised me by eating pretty healthy at Cora”s with a ham crepe and fruit cup.

On the way to lunch she was snacking on Skittles.

Lunch was an old favorite burger place I indulged in a cheeseburger, fries with gravy and a chocolate shake, Megan did the same with vanilla shake.

We ate in the car. All of a sudden Megan was feeling terrible, overheating, light headed, She did eat her burger but did not eat her fries even tho she had been looking forward to them.

She did not want anything else in her tummy and she glared at me for the first time that day and said FINE you are RIGHT about the food!

I had a lot of my own stomach complaints  too!

We got home and I napped. Megan feeling better started eating the rest of her skittles.

I got up and then Megan needed to nap….she slept for 2 hours and if I did not wake her up i knew she would sleep through the night. But she had really wanted to go to Mandarin chinese buffet for her dinner and I woke her up to head over there.

We started with salad, with unhealthy salad dressings! then the hot buffet and megan got lots of chicken balls and onion rings, and fried rice which she quipped “finally good rice” (not enjoying the basmati rice at home)  After she ate that plate she started doubting her choices, she talked about how she now knows that this food really hurts her,she did not get dessert , and was very tired and just wanted to go home.

We got home and Megan was running to the bathroom, she almost passed out with the level of pain in her stomach. She was laying on the couch begging me to make the pain stop. I knew there was no way other than getting that food out of her system and she spent another hour clasping at her gut ,praying for death!

So Megan has learned a very valuable lesson. There was no doubt in her mind of the connection of the unhealthy food choices and how she was feeling yesterday.

I expect today will be quiet for her and that she will want nothing but healthy foods in her body from now on.

Lesson learned

Under 250lbs first time in 5 years!

Wow on January 18 ,2010 I weighed 264lbs. This is the weight I have hovered around for at least 3 years and I suspect 5 years. My life has been full of stress, A divorce, losing my 13 year career, losing family members to death, losing family members due to mental illness stealing their abilities to be healthy influences in my life. Being unemployed for 9 months in 2009 and dealing with a child with a mystery illness that has essentially stolen her social life from her. My personal relationships have had major heart aches, sad decisions to end a friendship that I cherish due to her bad choices and essentially turmoil.

But through this I have stood strong and moved forward, focussed on them for too long and not focussed on myself. This is the first time in years that I have done something to truly improve my health. It always seemed to be on the back burner. When my fighting to get my daughter into the best childrens hospital in Ontario resulted in shrugged shoulders and no direction I knew I had to refocus my energies.

In order for me to be able to cope with her illness, be strong for everyone who needs me, to be around for grandchildren and maybe great grandchildren I have to be healthy.

I can feel it in my soul, I am doing it this time, nothing will derail me no matter what attempts my life throws my way.

Its Feb 16, 2010 and I weighed in at 249 lbs this morning.  15 lbs gone in one month, I looked back at a weight watcher journal i started in Nov 2007. I started at 266 lbs and 6 weeks later the only thing i had acomplished was 264 lbs.

I know my heart was not in it, I know unless you are truly prepared to live a new lifestyle and stop relying on the crutches of convenience foods, drive thru’s and junk food you will never truly beat this animal. The addictive nature of these foods is too strong and we indulge and then hate ourselves for being weak, eventually accepting that we are a failure and walk away! No more for me, yes of course I will occasionally indulge in wings at the bar with friends, nachos with my kids…but it will not be a regular choice. I will choose healthy to put my body first over the temptations as a rule!

I went shopping on Saturday at plus size consignment store and bought 5 items in size 22, they are a little snug, but not for long and I will be able to bring these clothes back when I drop to Size 20 to resell to other ladies! Its the perfect solution and no more droopy pants at work for me!

I ate out 4 times this week,

once a steak salad with dressing on the side and did not indulge in the bread basket

once  a healthy stir fry with basmati rice and small bowl of mango sherbert

once a Roast beef club sandwich on whole grain bread with salad. I ate half the sandwich and then removed the bread of the other half and ate the inner items that were the proteins and fats that i needed.

We also ordered pizza. My daughter really struggles with Pizza lunch at school making the temptations very difficult for her to deal with. I order a thin crust, with no cheese and used ham, pineapple, onions and peppers.

I am going to be able to deal with the real world and will not live in a bubble. You just have to chose differently! 

I am adding a holistic coach from Mississauga into my mix , he will be refining my nutrition choices, designing my exercise routine, reviewing my overall health, posture and metabolic information to fine tune my approach and keep me successful moving forward. I will keep using USANA supplements and I hope all of you take the time to find vitamins that work for you and are pure and manufactured consistently! Please see my blog for more details on that, plus all the other challenges I dealt with last week! http://gettinghealthywithmichelle.wordpress.com

Hugs

Michelle

My sponsors will be getting an email with my complete measurements and instructions on how to fulfill the first month of sponsorship!

Do you think you couldn’t eat like me?

I want to share a bit of my weight loss history and how I was eating up until a month ago.. I hope lots of you can relate and then can see that this is not an impossible change just one that is a different lifestyle choice!

I first knew i was heavy in about grade 8, I started getting teased for that, I remember at age 15 being told by a boy that i was pleasantly plump! I broke up with him and started losing weight for the first time. I stayed slim from 15 – 19 years of age, I was very popular with the boys and I loved the attention I got!

 At the age of 19 I met the man I would marry and started gaining the comfortable in a relationship weight. Got married at 22 and before I walked down the aisle I lost about 20 lbs on a 800 calorie diet…after the pressure of being perfect for my wedding was done, I gained that 20 back very easily…10 of it on honeymoon! I got pregnant at age 25 and I was about 185 lbs.  With the pregnancy I gained about 35 lbs . After my first baby I lost about 10 lbs after the baby and then stayed at around 200 lbs… At age 27 had my daughter and gained about 30 lbs with her…that time i lost another 10 lbs. 

I was working full time in a great career and I had the perfect house, seemed like the perfect marriage, the perfect career. I realized I was unhappy and I decided I had to lose weight to be happy…So I joined Weight Watchers at a starting weight of 225 lbs. In 6 months I lost 30 lbs by eating well and exercising. I was on the treadmill every morning and focussed!  About a year later I was starting to gain it back and I was still unhappy. I realized it was my marriage but with 2 young kids I didn’t know what to do about it…so I ATE!  At age 35 my marriage was over and I was 225lbs. 

I faced the dating world at age 36…was so terrified that men would not be attracted to me! I decided I would take my  chances and face online dating at my current weight…if a man could not love me at my worst he did not deserve me at my best!

Very interesting fact about men, a large number of them are attracted and prefer bigger girls! They may not want to tell their friends about that, but online I was always chased!!

I hit a bout of depression at 37 that totally threw me off track…I had to be put on anti depressant and I gained another 25 lbs during that time.

I stayed at around 250 lbs for and tried weight watchers a number of times, i just couldn’t get my motivation together.

I was a single mom with a sick kid and working full time. So exhausted every day, my blood pressure went high and I was put on drugs to cope with that!  I was always good with eating breakfast and i did that every day….of course sometimes that was a tim hortons muffin , egg mcmuffin from mcdonalds , or donuts but generally cereal…. I would usually have fruit in the morning and a lunch…sometimes packed and brought in and sometimes fast food! Dinner by the time i got home usually too tired to do any real cooking so liptons noodles and sauce, uncle bens fast and ready rice packs, frozen veggies and shake n bake chicken or pork or spaghetti loaded up with a ton of pasta and a little sauce, friday nights were pizza night and weekends usually tried to get out for a dinner with my kids in a restaurant and wings were always a favorite. Dessert often icecream and chips for snacks at night.

My son, my doctor , my stepdad all told me they were worried about my weight and that I had to try to focus on it. With a daughter who has been so sick for 2 years i just kept putting it off until my life was under more control!

In January 2010 , my life is still crazy, my daughter is still sick, finances are still difficult and dating world is still a challenge!  BUT I now know that unless I get healthy I will not be here for my kids and grandkids, they NEED me. I need to enjoy life more! 

I have done the yoyo dieting, I have lived through more than I will share on here, I know it seems impossible to throw out all your habits and start over! But I have done it and its forever! If I can do it SO CAN YOU!!!!

Hugs 

Michelle