The idea behind this blog is to share information that I find valuable for health and wellness. I use tools like massage therapy, exercise, sleep and varied and balanced diet to help me stay, well...balanced. However, none of use are perfect and "falling off the wagon" is inevitable. Old habits die hard and they love to creep back up when we lose our focus! One of my biggest vices is SUGAR! Boy do I love sweets! It was not too long ago that I decided I needed to get a better handle on this delectable vice. I started to notice that despite getting enough sleep, drinking enough water, exercising daily and eating lots of plant based foods, I was lethargic. The culprit? Sugar.
When I finally admitted to myself that I ate to much sugar I was able to start making changes. I stepped back and had an honest conversation with myself about how much sugar I put in my coffee, how many times I dip into the chocolate covered peanut butter pretzels, in the bulk food section at the grocery store, what my ice cream portions really looked like (enough for 2, easy : ~ ), etc... I was forced to realize that my sugar consumption was entirely too high for what my body was able to process. As a result, I was crashing all day long...I felt tired, looked tired and had a dull headache frequently. My sleep was suffering too. I had trouble staying asleep and had to drag myself out of bed in the morning...
I decided to make some changes! I stopped visiting the bulk food isle, switched to agave syrup, and cracked down on processed foods (even cereal, which I love)! In under a week I felt my energy level rise, my sleep improved and my headache disappeared. Joy!
Recently, I have let some bad habits creep back in. Yes, I have had a few too many chocolate covered peanut butter pretzels, indulged in lots of bread (which had loads of sugar) as well as packing my coffee full of straight up sugar... and what d'ya know...all of the old symptoms are back.
So, I have decided to get back on track and give myself a food challenge! I really want to clear my system and I think the best way to do this is to limit my sugar consumption and eat clean. One of my favorite websites is: http://www.yumuniverse.com. YumUniverse (YU) is great resource for a plant-based, vegan, raw, gluten free and dairy free diet. Perfect. That is just what I am looking for to eat clean for my food challenge. I thought i would call it YU+ ME = Clean! The really cool thing is that this will be fun and delicious. I have already enjoyed many recipes from YU and am psyched to experience more with this challenge!
I'll be blogging daily about the YU+ME = Clean so be sure to check in!
Beth McVay, CMT
Member AMTA
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