Day 8 Food Reboot

Until recently, I had no idea broccoli looked liked this in it’s natural form.  For those who don’t know, this is broccoli picked the same day from the farm.  I picked this one up today at Food & Thought in Naples.

Waking Up:  Went to bed at 11:30pm & got up at 6:20am with the right leg / buttock area of inflammation with shooting pains – it seems to have gotten worse.  Although the Metamucil has helped with the gas/bloating, I found out that it contains nasty ingredients like natural & artificial flavors, yellow 6 & aspartame (yikes!).  Switched to another fiber supplement today – Organic India’s Fiber Harmony Orange Flavor.  It contains psyllium, aloe vera, inulin, and organic orange flavor.  There are no sugars, artificial sweeteners (I think those flare me up but can’t prove it yet), colors or flavors.

Chiropractor: Head alignment machine, Pettibon / Wobble Chair, neck & lower back / spine adjusted, neck alignment for 12 minutes, Head weights 2X per day (10 min. morning & evening) + Denny roll 1X in evening (20 min.)

Morning Physical Symptom Check:  My normal stiff lower & less mid-back (less than moderate stiffness), turning my head all the way to the left I feel a tiny bit sore.  I did get shooting pains from my right hip as I got out of bed.  But it subsided as I walked about a minuted. I took my Enbrel shot this morning (normally take 2X per week) & can feel congestion in my nose after I took it (quite mild, but noticeable).

Smoothie Recipe (Banana Smoothie Recipe)

•1 banana, peeled
•1 cup papaya, cubed (substituted Apple)
•1 mango, peeled and pitted
•1 tablespoon cacao powder
•3 cups Swiss chard, chopped (subbed 2 Cups Kale, 1 Cup spinach)
•1-2 small vine tomatoes
• Strawberries (handful)
•1 small to medium-sized carrot
•3 to 4 ounces of filtered water
• Bee Pollen (1 Tablespoon)

Synopsis of Smoothie:  While it tasted good, it makes 3 glassfuls!  Try removing the mango, apple, & strawberries.  Keep the veggies as-is.

Good Belly Crisis:  I’m currently out of the Good Belly Big Shot because the local distributor is out.  I went to 4 natural food stores and none of them had it.  I ended up finding the fruit-based Good Belly that contains 20 Billion Probiotics per serving.  I’ll use that as a backup as I’m now on the hunt for the Big Shot.

Lunch Menu:  Collard Green Lettuce Wraps & Fruit
image
  • Tomato Sauce Leftovers of Cheezy Cannellonis (Refer Back to Day 5)
  • Collard Green Wraps (4) – Makes a “Sandwich” Effect
  • Garlic, Rosemary, Lime & Pepper
  • Sweet Pepper (2)
  • Sunflower Sprouts
  • Carrot (1)
  • Pineapple Slice
  • Black Sapote (dark brown fruit)
  • Dried Fruit (Few Pieces)
  • Walnuts (Handful)
  • Almonds (Handful)

Dinner Menu: Berries & Spinach Salad (Fresh Market)

  • Spinach (90% of the meal)
  • Blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries
  • Feta cheese (takes up 1% of the total meal + adds a savory flavor)
  • Walnuts
  • No dressing was added, but balsamic or lime w/ salt/pepper might be good

Gas & Bloating Issue 3rd Day Test:  I’ve had a few bloating issues today & the evening.

Evening inflammation check:  Right thigh & right buttocks area with shooting pains when I twist. Yesterday was around a 4 or 5 out of 10 pain scale.  It’s now up to 6-7 (especially when I’m on the Denny roll and get out of bed). Mild stiffness in lower back.
Digestion:  Some bloating & gas, but manageable.
Neck Issue Check (Evening):  Done.  Yes!

 

Day 7 Food Reboot

Waking Up:  Went to bed at 11:30pm & got up at 6:00am with the right leg / buttock area of inflammation. Gas issues have subsided, but there was a bathroom incident this morning.  I’m hoping that will be the last one.

Chiropractor: Head weights 2X per day (10 min. each) + Denny roll 2X (20 min. each) – morning & evening.

Morning Physical Symptom Check:  My normal stiff lower & less mid-back (less than moderate stiffness), turning my head all the way to the left I feel a tiny bit sore.  I did get shooting pains from my right hip as I got out of bed.  But it subsided as I walked about a minuted. I took my Enbrel shot this morning (normally take 2X per week) & can feel congestion in my nose after I took it (quite mild, but noticeable).

Smoothie Recipe (Blueberry-Banana Smoothie Recipe)

•2 cups frozen blueberries – subbed 1/2 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup strawberries, & the rest in frozen blackberries & raspberries
•3 large bananas, peeled (I use 2)
•4 cups spinach, chopped
• Almond Butter (1 Tbsp) – I added to recipe
• Cinnamon (1 Teaspoon) – I added to recipe
•4 to 6 ounces of filtered water
• Bee Pollen (1 Tablespoon)

Synopsis of Smoothie:  Now that’s the stuff!  Hands down the BEST smoothie of the bunch.  Next time, try with 1 banana as it’s too sweet.  Makes 2 1/2 Glass-fulls.  After doing this for 7 days, I’ve noticed that my body only really wants around 1 1/2 Glass-fulls.  Maybe I’m drinking too fast or maybe I should just drink 1 1/2 Glass-fulls?

Lunch Menu:  Cooked + Raw Tomato & Balsamic Salad
  • Tomato Sauce Leftovers of Cheezy Cannellonis (Refer Back to Day 5)
  • Pineapple Slice
  • Cherry Tomatoes (2 handfuls)
  • Broccolli, Sweet Pepper & Tomato Sauce (look at 1st bullet point) cooked
  • Carrot (1)
  • Celery Stalk (2)
  • Kale (3 Leaves)
  • Swiss Chard (1 Leaf)
  • Sunflower Sprouts
  • Aged Balsamic Vinagrette
  • Dried Figs (2)
  • Walnuts (Handful)
  • Almonds (Handful)

Dinner Menu: Salmon with Broccoli & Asparagus (Watermark Grill)

  • Salmon Grilled
  • Asparagus (steamed)
  • Broccoli (steamed)
NOTE:  I forgot to take my digestive enzyme & HCL.  This is the 1st time I’ve missed that.

Gas & Bloating Issue 2nd Day Test

I now take Metamucil (instead of Konsyl) 1st thing in the morning & 1 hour before dinner.  If bloating continues at mid-day and/or when bloating / gas is bad, I will take another dosage.  However, it wasn’t bad today except for a few brief times.

Evening inflammation check:  Right thigh & right buttocks area with shooting pains when I twist to the left. Stiffness in lower back.
Digestion:  Much better than previous days.
Neck Issue Check (Evening):  Dull pain in the right area, but I’m able to fully function as normal.

At the end of the night I had to teach WordPress to a new client /  organization (WNOCC) at Whole Foods.  I wanted to pick up the Good Belly Big Shot but the distributor is all out.  I hope to find some tomorrow as I don’t want to skip any days on with my probiotics.

Day 6 Food Reboot

Waking Up:  Went to bed at 11:00pm & got up at 5:30 due to gas (had to go #1 & #2) & right leg / buttock area of inflammation. Continuing to get gas & leakage throughout the morning.

Chiropractor: Arriving at 8:30am, I was able to do my full routine as usual.  The only hindrance was the bloating & right hip inflammation. Head alignment machine, Pettibon / Wobble Chair, neck & lower back / spine adjusted, neck alignment for 12 minutes, Head weights 2X per day (10 min. morning & evening) + Denny roll 1X in evening (20 min.)

Morning Physical Symptom Check:  My normal stiff lower & less mid-back (moderate stiffness), turning my head all the way to the left I feel it a bit sore.   Some inflammation on the left hip (I have to rotate it to feel it).  My right hip is getting worse and is now at a 5 on a scale of 1-10 (10 worst).  I have to get out of bed carefully or I will get a shooting pain.  It’ll be two weeks tomorrow since my last Enbrel shot (normally take 2X per week).  I’ll be taking it tomorrow.

Smoothie Recipe (Mango Goji Berry-Chocolate Green Smoothie Recipe)

•1 mango, peeled and pitted
•1 banana, peeled
•1 tablespoon of cacao powder
•¼ cup goji berries
•3 large Swiss chard leaves, chopped
•4 to 6 ounces of filtered water
• Bee Pollen (1 Tablespoon)

NOTE:  Cocoa powder has starch (11.5) in it.   Cacao powder is basically the same except it may be healthier as explained in this article.  However, the amount of powder is not much.  I’m not sure if the goji berries have starch.

Synopsis of Smoothie:  Good to start, but gets old quickly.  Add another 2oz of water to help out.  Makes 2 Glass-fulls.
Lunch Menu:  Leftovers of Cheezy Cannellonis (Refer Back to Day 5) + Cooked Spinach 
Cooked Spinach
  • Spinach (3 handfuls)
  • Sweet Onion (1/5)
  • Pepper, Spike Veggie (Salt Substitution), and Himalayan Salt

Dinner Menu: Eggs & Cooked Salad w/ Fruit

image

  • Fried Eggs (2)
  • Strawberries (4)
  • Blueberries (Handful)
  • Steamed Broccoli
  • Sunflower Sprouts (Handful)
  • Sweet Peppers (3)
  • Cooked Cherry Tomatoes (5)
  • Handful of Walnuts & Dried Cherries

Gas & Bloating Issue Temporary Solution

Today I did some research on gas & bloating.  I’ve decided to take my Konsyl morning & I will take Metamucil in the evening + mid-day and/or when bloating / gas is bad.  Although it seems to have done the trick, I still need to be careful & have my body adjust to all of this fiber.  I’ve been told that I’m not getting 3X the amount I normally did.  All this takes time and adjustment.

Right now with Konsyl I’m taking 12g (6g 2X/day) + Muccilloid  12g (6g 2X/day – acts as a laxative) per day.  According to the article at  http://www.livestrong.com/article/542064-how-much-psyllium-husk-a-day/,  University of Michigan Health System reports says that a person with diarrhea needs 9 g to 30 g per day.   Although I don’t have full-blown diarrhea, I’m getting close to that.  So I need to take 1.5 – 2X the psyllium I normally take to compensate all the fiber.  Eventually I can see myself weening this down to typical levels.
The next issue is organic.  According to Dr. Mercola ( http://organicindia.mercola.com/psyllium.aspx), psyllium contains one of the highest pesticide levels.  Organic India is USDA organic ( http://organicindiausa.com/_catalog_5841/Psyllium ).  This is not as crucial due to the processing, carriage, storage, soil/water used, etc. for the psyllium.

 

Evening inflammation check:  Right thigh & right buttocks area with shooting pains when I twist to the left. Stiffness is mild in lower back.
Digestion:  Flatulence was was in full-effect all the way until I took the Metamucil in the afternoon.  The evening has been quieter & flared up only a few times.
Neck Issue Check (Evening):  Dull pain in the right area, but I’m able to fully function as normal.