Lightening Online

I can’t believe it’s already 2 weeks into this exclusion diet.  The 2nd week has certainly had it’s ups and downs.

Day 8

I was out all day today.  Finding that my energy levels seem to be a bit more even now.  There hasn’t been a big boost in energy but I’m not having the same dips in my energy.  Took Ryvita’s and cheese for my lunch.  That worked fine.  Even came home and cooked tea which is unheard of for me if I’ve been out all day (usually collapse in a heap).

Day 9

Feeling flat and sluggish with headaches.  Not a great day at all.  Really struggled my way through netball training.

Day 10

Feeling a lot better.  Had lunch out at the pub.  A nice big juicy steak.  Discovered the local pub’s chips have wheat in their coating (they’re SO yummy too!!!! ).  So they are “off the list”.  The steak was good though.

Day 11

Had my first attempt at cooking Quinoa which turned out really GREAT.  Had to do lots of cooking for the Youth Group Progressive Dinner.  We are hosting mains and I’m cooking mornays.  Realised that a lot of “buffet” style food has wheat in it.  Did make a fried rice which I could eat (and had some leftover for the freezer).  I now have 3 meals (2 fried rice and 1 quinoa) in the freezer for days when the family has something I can’t have or I need to take my own food somewhere.

Helped out with sheep work in the morning (lifted 180 odd lambs for tailing).  Was exhausted when we’d finished and not sure how I’d get the rest of my days tasks done.  Found that after a period of sitting down resting, I had enough energy to get going again.  In the past, once I get tired, I’m usually tired for the rest of the day.  My body doesn’t seem to regenerate very quickly so this is a good outcome.

Day 12

Another pooled lunch at church so took my own again.  I do feel like a bit of a freak bringing my own food.  Some friends seem to be more supportive than others of what I’m trying to do (some just think I’m a nut I think).  The hardest thing I find with bringing my own food is that it makes me look “different”.  I’m not comfortable drawing attention to myself in any way (says she who shares her life with 100s of strangers LOL).

Day 13

Had a session with my trainer at the gym.  My wrist is sore from lifting all the lambs but I was happy with what I was able to achieve regardless.  Have lost 2 kg since I started on the wheat free diet.  I’m not sure whether it’s anything to do with the wheat or that I’ve been forced to eat more healthily.  Still, I don’t mind what causes it.  Hope it continues!!!!  One thing I have noticed is I don’t seem to need as much food to be satisfied anymore.  I used to get this gnawing feeling that I thought was hunger but now I’m wondering if it was caused by a reaction to the wheat in my food.  I’m not getting it now.

Discovered that our local supermarket stocks quite a range of gluten free foods.  Even though I don’t have to stick to “gluten free” as such, gluten free foods are free of wheat which means I can eat them.  Bought a packet of gluten free pastry to try.

Day 14

Got more housework done today than I have in a long time.  The house is looking good again which helps me to feel good.  Decided to make pasties for tea using puff pastry for the family and making up the gluten free pastry mix for myself.

My gluten free pastry was a big FLOP!  It turned out hard and not very nice tasting at all.  :(  I was pretty disappointed.  Found out that larger supermarkets stock ready made gluten free puff pastry so I will try that when I get a chance to buy some.

Day 15

Another disappointing failure today when I went out to lunch with friends at one of my favourite cafes (in a regional centre about 2 hours from here).  I spoke to the staff about wheat free options which all seemed fine.  I was told to order whatever I liked and have the cashier mark it as wheat free and if I had ordered something with wheat in it, the kitchen staff would let me know and offer alternatives to make it wheat free.

I ended up ordering a fish dish with cous cous.  Not having had cous cous before, I had no idea it was made from wheat and the kitchen staff didn’t let me know so I ended up eating it.

Had a stomach ache within an hour.  Nothing too serious.  Just that gnawing, hungry type feeling and some sharper cramp type pains.  Had it on and off all day.  Noticed that when I ate, it abated for a while but would return a few hours later.  No wonder I was confusing it with hunger when eating makes it feel better.

On the plus side, I think we can conclude that the wheat free diet is having a positive effect.  And I found out that that particular cafe can make gluten free pizza bases if I call ahead to let them know I’m coming.  Have to decide whether I should ring and complain about the cous cous though.  Feel a bit stupid that I didn’t know it had wheat in it.

Had afternoon tea at a bakery and they had a couple of gluten free cake options.  I chose an apricot slice and it was DELICIOUS.  Gluten Free eating seems to be getting easier and easier these days so that’s another plus.

I was able to buy some gluten free flours, gluten free pasta and some more quinoa.  Going to try cooking the quinoa dish for the whole family this week and see how it goes down.  Most gluten free products are rather expensive though so I probably won’t introduce them to too much of my food.  I’m not sure if it’s more expensive to make or whether it’s just not made in big enough bulk to make it cheaper.  Once I get more settled with what products I do and don’t like, I’ll have to do some research and see if I can find cheaper sources for them.

Day 16

I haven’t lost any weight for a few days now so that side of things may have slowed down considerably.  I guess it could be down to the drastic change in diet that I lost the first 2 kg.  Then again, my weight can fluctuate quite a bit so we’ll only know over the long term what the weight loss effects of the diet are (and they’re a secondary thing - a bonus really).

I am a bit tired today and my body seems to be working hard to expel anything inside of me.  It may be the result of the wheat I ate yesterday or could just be my body (you can never really tell with my body).

As I type this, I have some gluten free chocolate brownies in the oven which smell magnificent.  I hope they taste just as good.  Will let you know how that goes.

For those not familiar with the word, it’s pronounced “Keen-Wa”  rather than “Kwinoa”.

I’ve known about it for a while but this wheat free diet has given me the motivation to actually get around to trying it.

Apparently, while often used instead of grains, Quinoa is actually a seed.

Do you know what?

Wheat is actually a seed too isn’t it?  LOL.  Wonder what the difference between a grain and a seed is?  Not that I really care enough to actually find out.  I’ll just believe them when they say one is a grain and one is a seed.  Whatever.

Anyway, plenty of people seem to be raving about it.  What makes it so good?  I did a little bit of research and this is what I’ve found:

1.  Quinoa is Gluten Free

There appears to be a growing demand for Gluten Free foods.  While I’m not actually on a “gluten free” diet it would seem that gluten free products are naturally “wheat free” so I’ve started following the “trend” in an attempt to find more variety in what I can actually eat.

2.  Quinoa is an Alkaline Food

I’ve only recently learnt about this but apparently an “acidic body” is actually on it’s way to becoming a corpse.  A lot of Western foods have an acidic affect on our bodies so most people are in need of more alkalising foods.  It’s not as simple as avoiding foods high in acid either.  From what I’ve been told, Lemons are actually an alkalising food.

3.  Quinoa is a Complete Protein

Quinoa has all the essential amino acids (9 in total) needed by the body to build muscles.  (Source)

From what I can understand, it’s quite rare to get a plant source with all 9 of these amino acids.

4.  Quinoa is high in fibre

I think we all know the benefits of increasing fibre in our diet.

5.  Quinoa has high amounts of Magnesium

Magnesium is a great muscle relaxant and increasing magnesium in your diet can help with migraines, muscle cramps and energy levels.

It also helps the body deal with insulin and blood sugars so can be beneficial to those with type 2 diabetes.

6.  Quinoa has higher levels of nutrients than many grains

Compared to other grains, quinoa is higher in calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, iron, copper, manganese, and zinc than wheat, barley, or corn. ^(source)

7.  Quinoa acts as a prebiotic

It helps feed the good bacteria in the intestine.

There are plenty of other “claims” when it comes to the benefits of Quinoa and diseases it can help prevent.  These are the ones that seemed most relevant to me.

Of course, it can have all the benefits in the world but if it isn’t tasty to eat, who’s going to eat it?

I have to admit I was a bit unsure when it came to trying it.

I’m not exactly what you’d call adventurous when it comes to trying new foods.

So I tried to stick with flavours I enjoy.

Basically chicken and broccoli.

It was DELICIOUS!!!!

CHICKEN & BROCCOLI QUINOA RECIPE

1 cup quinoa

2 cups water

1 chicken stock cube (check it’s wheat/gluten free if required - not all are).

1 chicken breast

2 cups of broccoli (or more if you like it - I added heaps!)

cream to taste (I used 3-4 heaped teaspoons)

Rinse quinoa well under running water (some websites suggest presoaking but my packet didn’t say anything about that so I just rinsed it thoroughly).  Add quinoa to water.  Crumble stock cube into water.  Bring to boil then allow to simmer until all water is absorbed.

Cook broccoli and chicken breast.  Chop into small pieces.

Fluff quinoa with a fork.  Add broccoli and chicken.

Stir through cream if desired (for a low fat option, leave cream out - but it does make it YUMMY!!!!).

***

This amount was enough for 3 serves for me.  You might want to adjust the quantities to suit your own family.

I did find it was much nicer fresh than reheated, even though I added a bit more cream when I reheated it (the quinoa absorbs the cream).

My next challenge  will be to make this for the whole family and see if they’ll eat it!!!! 

* Disclaimer: I’m no expert and this is just what I’ve found in my research.  I can’t guarantee the accuracy of anything written here.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Quinoa: versatile superfood (nationalpost.com)
• What is Quinoa? (dietriffic.com)
• How to Cook Quinoa (brighthub.com)
• Quinoa: versatile superfood (canada.com)

I have been contemplating trying diet changes to try and improve my health for some time now.

The problem is, where do you start?

Different people are affected in different ways by foods so it’s really trial and error what may or may not make a difference.

I tried researching the internet but everyone has different ideas on what is and isn’t good for you.

It’s enough to drive a girl crazy!!!!

After listening to a couple of seminars by a travelling Naturopath who visits the area, I started to wonder if my body was even absorbing nutrients properly.

He put me on dozens of “pills” which seemed to be having little to no effect (hundreds of dollars later I might add).

So either he has no idea what he is doing or there’s a deeper problem here that needs to be addressed.

One of my netball team mates is a Community Health Nurse and is also studying Naturopathy so I talked to her about it.

She suggested that I try a wheat free diet.

Apparently the most likely irritants are wheat or dairy and the only way I can find out is by going off one or the other and seeing if it helps.

So I am now on day 7 of my wheat free diet.

It hasn’t been easy.

You don’t even realise how much wheat is in your diet until you try and eliminate it.

It’s been good though because it’s helping me break the toast, toast and more toast diet I seemed to have lapsed into (there’s nothing like hot toast with butter and jam on a cold day!).

I did some research into “wheat free diets” to try and get some ideas and discovered that some of the common problems in those with a wheat intolerance are low energy levels, depression and irritable bowel.  The very 3 things I’m trying to find a solution to.  So, fingers crossed this works.

Not that my wheat growing husband is all that impressed about me going off of wheat.  He thinks if everyone stops eating wheat we’ll go broke.  I think if everyone goes off wheat we’ll just find something else to grow.

So, how is it going so far?

Days 1 & 2 I nearly starved because I couldn’t work out what to eat (very thankful to facebook friends for their suggestions).

Days 3 & 4 I didn’t feel so crash hot.

Days 5 & 6 I felt pretty good but that could be as much to do with better eating patterns than specifically wheat free.  Either way that’s a good outcome.

Day 7 (today)  I’m feeling a bit tired again today but yesterday I did 2 lots of full on exercise (totalling  2 and a half hours) so that might be playing a part in how tired I am.

I’m not sure how long I need to try it to really know if it’s helping.

Probably quite some time given the real improvement should come as my body heals and starts to absorb nutrients from food more efficiently.

And then if it’s not wheat that’s causing the problem….

Hmmm.

Anyway, what I would like from anyone out there is suggestions for wheat free eating.  No doubt there are at least some of you that are wheat free or have tried wheat free.

And does anyone know of any good Australian websites I can source products from?

Our little town is a bit limited in variety.

It’s 1am and I’m awake.

*sigh*

I’ve been doing so well with my sleeping patterns too.

*sigh*

Not sure if it’s because I went out to a meeting tonight (which I enjoyed but stimulated my brain PLUS being around people always mucks up my serotonin levels which are related to melatonin levels - even when I enjoy myself!  Go figure!).

Or, if it’s because I forgot my meds today and have taken them tonight (and they stimulate me a little too).

I’ve tried milk.

I’ve tried melatonin.

Now I’m just passing the time on the computer (exactly what they tell you NOT to do for insomnia).

So, what do you do when you just can’t sleep?

I’m feeling really flat at the moment.

I’m not exactly sure why.

Maybe the weather?

Maybe hormones?

Maybe another tragic death on our roads this week?

Maybe a little of all of the above.

I just feel really “stuck in a rut”.

Feeling like life is just “same old, same old…”

Which surprises me really as I’ve been doing some time on the tractor so it’s anything but “same old” at the moment.

The tractor driving has certainly been a welcome relief from staying at home doing the “same old, same old” though.

I don’t want to be at home but I don’t really want to be out either.

I’m thinking maybe I need to do a revamp at home.

Shift some furniture.

Get onto the painting I’ve been planning on doing for several years now (which is planned for after seeding but seeding is dragging out a bit this year).

Maybe that will help get me out of  my rut.

Or maybe not.

Wish there was a magic wand that could fix times like this.

Anyone have any solutions for getting out of a rut?

When I blog about something that helps promote a company, I prefer for it to have some benefit to ME and, where possible, to YOU, my readers.

However, when I heard about this particular promotion, I really wanted to be a part of spreading the news.

Why?

There’s something in it for YOU (the readers) AND something in it for struggling Australian families.  That’s not too bad a trade off.

Not that there’s much Curves could offer me anyway.  Unless they’d like to open up a branch a bit closer to me (hint!  hint!).

I like what they do.  I like the way they try to help busy women fit in some health and fitness with their 30 minute workouts.  And I’ve heard of people getting good results from their program.

Anyway, what this post is actually about is to let you know Curves have a promotion on at the moment where they’ll waive their initial service fee if you bring in a bag of groceries to be donated to a local charity.

Here’s what you have to gain by joining now:

YOU get healthier and fitter

YOU get to save yourself some money

YOU get good Karma^ by helping out someone in need (plus of course the wonderful feeling of knowing you’ve done something to help someone else in need)

So, what are you waiting for?

Go check out their Curves Food Drive for Charity and give it a go.  I know I would (if I could).

^ Thought I should point out I don’t actually believe in “Karma” per se BUT I do believe that “what comes around goes around” which is kind of the same thing without the name.

New Year’s Day is a day often filled with hope (and hangovers).  A New Year, a fresh start.  A reason to celebrate the opportunity that is offered by the beginning of a New Year.

What colours will be painted on the canvas of 2010?  Joy.  Love.  Pain.  Sadness.  The emotions both positive and negative are what makes up the brilliant colours painted on the canvas of life.

Whether we like it or not, difficult times are character building and make up an important part of our life painting.  Yes, at the time we’d rather be anywhere but there.  But on reflection, those difficulties can be character and strength building if we will allow them to.

Am I setting myself up for a difficult year?  I hope not.  But I will admit that it’s concerned me how many people have been eager to see 2009 disappear and embrace the hope of 2010.  People who really feel 2009 was the worst year ever.  At times we really do have years that are more difficult than others.  Sometimes though, I think it is what we focus on that affects our perception of how bad things really have been.  I can’t help but wonder how many of those will say the same thing at the end of 2010?

Of course, that’s easy for me to say.  2009 was a particularly wonderful year for us.  How could it not be when we spent a quarter of it on our big trip? 

Still, I have hope that 2010 will be just as wonderful, in a different way.

I’m generally not one to make New Years Resolutions.  However, I do like to take a moment to consider what my goals and dreams are for the New Year.

2010 Goals and Dreams

House

1.  Continue to declutter (I think that’s a never ending job!)

2.  Paint all of the inside walls (with the exception of the 1 room I actually managed to get done in 2009)

3.  Finish our back decking (it’s not far off now)

Garden

1.  Build our permaculture style vegie garden

2.  Plant 2 or 3 more fruit trees

3.  Buy 2 large pots for dwarf lemon and dwarf mandarin trees

Health

1.  Continue to exercise.  Aim for 6 sessions per week of 30-60 minutes duration

2.  Focus on healthy eating

3.  Try to shed 10kg slowly

Kids

1.  Continue involvement with P&F at school

2.  Holiday swimming lessons during the year (given we’re missing the January ones)

3. Continue to develop Lleyton’s passion and ability with tennis (have finally got him into a week long clinic in Adelaide to help develop and refine his skills)

4.  Go away in the caravan at least twice during the year

Finances

1.  Work on gradually curbing our current spending spree

2.  Save $2000 toward our planned 15th Anniversary cruise

3.  Continue to save toward a new laptop for myself

4.  Increase our acreage to earn money for our house renovation projects (means I’ll be doing a lot more hours this year - effectively making me a working mother)

That’s about all I can think of for now.  No doubt 2010 will be filled with unexpected surprises and challenges.  All I can say is “bring it one”. 

Happy New Year everyone.  Hope 2010 is everything you  hope for and more!

P.S.  I actually wrote this on New Years Day but forgot to hit publish.  DOH!!!

Image via Wikipedia

That is me at the moment.

Bone tired.

And tired of feeling tired. 

I’ve tried resting.

I’ve tried exercise (yeah, exercise is “supposed” to give you more energy - doesn’t work for me).

I’ve tried natural stuff (nothing like getting a HUGE credit card bill for stuff you don’t feel is helping you at all ).

I’ve tried eating chocolate.

I’ve tried not eating chocolate (okay, I haven’t really tried not eating chocolate - not for anything that’s last more than a couple of days).

I’ve tried sitting around feeling sorry for myself.

I’ve tried sucking it up and doing some stuff.

NONE of seems to help.

So now I’m just having a whinge to you.  Cos I can.

I will admit I’m kinda grumpy today.

I think it’s a premenstrual thing although I’ve been blaming my grumpiness for the past week on the same thing.

So, what do you do when you’re tired all the time?  Besides eating chocolate I mean?  I seriously need some help here!

I grew up thinking water was “free”. Or at least pretty close to “free”. I remember seeing bottled water in the stores and wondering who in their right mind would actually PAY for water???

A can or bottle full of bubbles, colour, sugar and some artificial flavouring seemed great value in comparison to buying plain water!!!

How times have changed.

I like to rate my purchases in terms of nutritional return on investment. If I apply that formula to the purchase of water vs soft drink, water comes out way in front.

I have to admit that I’m still reluctant to buy it unless I have to.

But like it or not, decent water is essential to our health and is getting harder and harder to come by “free”.

We’re very fortunate here where we live. Our rainwater tanks are new and clean as is our air most of the time (particularly in comparison to cities). We can harvest our own water. Of course, there is a still a COST in doing so (the cost of our rainwater tanks).

When we travel, we always BUY bottled water. Why? We’ve found whenever we’re in another area we get stomach upsets - which we attribute to varying bugs in the water. Bugs our body are not used to. So we prefer to purchase water rather than risk being ill while we’re away from home.

When Noble Beverages asked me if I would be interested in trying their Pureau Pure Water, I agreed. Because I wanted some free water? No. Because I’m actually really FUSSY when it comes to water. Which is actually a source of frustration for us when we travel.

I like my water to taste like…. water.

Not plastic or minerals or whatever else is in many bottled water products that make me shudder when I try to drink it.

We’ve already decided that when we do our trip, we’ll allocate funds to purchase water as we go rather than take a risk with various “free” water sources on offer.

Finding something that doesn’t make me “shudder” to drink is kind of high on our priority list.

THE VERDICT?

Pureau Pure Water tastes like WATER!!!

I kid you not. I have not ever tasted prepackaged water that tastes so close to rainwater before.

It got the thumbs up from the whole family.

And the cask made it very easy for the kids to access the water themselves.

A FEW FACTS FROM THE COMPANY:

Noble’s Pureau is the only Australian water that is 100% guaranteed to be completely free of all impurities including chlorine, bacteria, sodium (salt), fluoride, nitrates and other inorganic minerals.

Noble Beverages uses a proprietary three-stage filtration method for its water called the “Pureau Process”. Absolutely no treatment chemicals are used during the process, nor is ozonation, chlorine or UV. It’s also important to note that Pureau is not distilled water – distillation is not part of the Pureau Process.

Pureau is owned by Noble Beverages, an Australian company based in St Marys, Sydney.

Choosing Noble’s Pureau’s 5 and 10 litre casks is a great way to cut-down the consumption of disposable PET and HDPE water bottles, which can help reduce your carbon footprint.

Final Thoughts

Pureau gets the “Lightening Tick of Approval” for:

• Taste
• Aussie Company
• Not using chemicals in the process
• Ease of access for all ages (cask)
• Consideration of Environmental Factors

Over To You

What are your thoughts on buying water for consumption? Do you do it? Do you have a favoured brand? Do you buy based on cost, taste or some other factor?

No money has changed hands for this review. Editorial rights have remained exclusively with the blog author (and always will for reviews - it is a condition of me agreeing to review a product). If you are interested in having a product reviewed, please see my advertise/review page for more information.

Was last week.

I missed it. Did you?

Well it was here in SA anyway. I can’t answer for anywhere else.

A couple of weeks ago our local surgery advertised for people to book in with our visiting female doctor to have a pap smear. Given it’s only been, oh, 4 or so years since my last one, I thought it was about time to stop putting it off and book in.

There’s always a good reason not to go. At first it was because of my breakdown - it was just too hard. Then when my doctor left he reminded me and suggested I see the visiting female doctor to have it done.

Then I was always forgetting when she was coming (I think she only comes once a month). Or finding out and forgetting to book in.

Hey, I’m the Queen of Procrastination. I can come up with plenty of reasons why I haven’t been. I’m also the Queen of Excuses.

So I rang before I even finished reading the paper and got the appointment booked. I even remembered to write it on the calendar. AND I remembered to GO!!!!

It’s funny how it’s not really all that bad when you actually get there. I’m sure the thought and the build up is much WORSE than the actual event.

So if you’re like me and rather (ahem) overdue for a smear, just GO. DO. IT.

Then you don’t have to think about it for another 2 years!!!!

From the Cancer Council SA website:

Around 1,200 women are saved from a developing cervical cancer in Australia each year through cervical screening.

As I was sitting in the doctor’s surgery waiting room, it occurred to me that dealing with cancer is a LOT more invasive than a simple pap smear.

Ooh!!!! And I got pressies too! A little notepad and pen AND a voucher for FREE coffee and cake at our local bakery. BONUS!!!!