As many of you know I got the chance to go meet with a nutritionist yesterday. So here is my full encounter of the event. 

I got there and was given the normal paperwork to fill out with family history. blah, blah, blah,  was weighed in (224.8) my height was taken, and I was asked the normal medical questions by the nurse like do I drink, any surgeries you know the drill. I did a body fat analysis with some fancy little machine, they measured my waist, took my blood pressure and other vitals. My blood was drawn for a full work up (I get the results back next week) The nurse left and in comes the Dr. 

The Dr. talks to me about my medical past and all the normal stuff. He has me lie on a table and feels my stomach, back, neck, and hips. I sit up and he listens to my heart and breaths. He tells me that I am in great health except my obvious weight and he pointed out my acne. He is a Dr. but in addition to regular medications he can give you herbal ideas of what to take called  D.O.. I am allergic to a bunch of antibiotics so when I get sick Dr's always have a hard time figuring out what to give me. A few years ago I decided to look at natural antibiotics and ways of healing illnesses without prescription meds. I am not an advocate for herbal meds but I know for me it's a better option than costly antibiotics and they seem to always work. 

So anyways, he explained to me that he thinks my digestive track is irritated and suggested that each day I drink saffron tea. It tastes like green tea of any other herbal tea but it heals the digestive track. He also suggested for my acne to get a neck massage and adjustment ,which I might do eventually but for not I am drinking something called slippery elm root once a day. It helps with healing acne from th inside and calms swelling and irritation. I will get my blood results back next week and see if there are any vitamins that I should be adding in. 

The doctor left and in comes the coolest lady named Beth. Beth is the nutritionist as well as a trainer. I talked with Beth for over an hour. Beth is a Christian and was very friendly. Beth went over all the suggested diet stuff that I included below. We went over all the good food choices and she all of her tips and stuff. Beth also shared a Bible verse with me (of course I can't remember it but it was the one about your body being a temple) she also suggest that I try breathing as my activity for the week. She said that before I eat something for no reason stop breath in through my nose and count to 5, exhale and count to 5. Do this through the day to de stress and center yourself. Beth also suggested that I don't go for high intensity workouts but simple low impact things like walking, bike riding, yoga etc. for 30 min 3 times a week. 

That was pretty much it. I committed to going to see them once a week for 12 weeks. I feel like if I commit than I have no way of backing out. I felt totally comfortable and was in a great mood when I left. I feel like this is something I can live on long term. SO for the next few days I am going to be getting all of this on order, doing a lot of new recipes, and basically rereading all the details a bunch. So here are all the details of hat I will be eating and doing. I am excited because it sounds super healthy and do able. 

have a great Tues. , Oh and I am sure I forgot some stuff below so if you have a question for me to ask them or any other comments I have fixed the comment section.
Ali 

The basics

- don’t count calories or fat

-Only make sure you are getting no more than 50 good carbs a day and no less than 25

- eat 5-6 meals every day. Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, and a before bed snack. The before bed snack to make your metabolism work through the night and make you not dying of hunger in the morning. Eating more often wakes up your metabolism.

-Drink plenty of water, caffine free tea

- Eat mostly protein, vegetables, and un-sweetened dairy products.

- eat small portions of good carbs. No more than 50 carbs a day but never under 25.

- Exercise 30 min of low intensity 3 times a week. Their suggestions were a good walk, ride a bike, yoga, pilates.

Good carbs

Do not use in every meal, but maybe once a day.

Brown rice, corn, peas, beans, lentils, Ezekiel bread or other sprouted bread products,  Whole wheat bread, cracked wheat, steel cut oats, fresh and dried fruit, sweet potatoes, cereal that is high in fiber/low in sugar/whole grain like Fiber one.

Cheat Meals

Have 1 serving per week and only 1 from the list.

Anything made with white flour, white bread, white rice, pasta (even whole wheat), pizza, crackers, chips, anything fried, sugar, alcohol, sweet drinks like soda and fruit juice.

Meal ideas

- Breakfast

-          Eggs, 1 piece of bacon, 1 slice of toasted ezekial bread,

-          Cottage cheese or plain yogurt with fresh fruit and raw nuts

-          Fruit smoothie

-          Steel cut oatmeal or fiber one cereal

-          Omelet with veggies and cheese

- Lunch

-          Huge salad with all your favorite veggies

-          With your salad have Chicken, fish, turkey, protein bar, beans, cheese, avocado.

-          Protein or whole wheat bun style chicken or burger

- Dinner

-          Sautéed veggies use butter or olive oil on your veggies in moderation

-          Tofu, chicken, fish, turkey, protein bar, beans, cheese, avocado

-          Add a small good carb to dinner

- Salad dressings

-          EVOO, Red wine or balsamic vinegar, sea salt, and lemon

-          Greek yogurt with herbs and spices like mustard, dill, Italian spices, and turmeric.

-          Yellow mustard, garlic powder, pinch salt, apple cider vinegar (Bragg’s is best brand from Henry’s) and EVOO and parm. Cheese (if you want).

- Snack ideas

-          Fruit smoothie

-          Natural peanut butter or almond butter with celery

-          Avocado with lemon and pepper

-          Any raw veggies

-          Fruit (mostly berries, melon, papayas, citrus) try to avoid bananas and apples because they are higher in sugar and stuff.

-          Raw nuts (they have to be raw)

-          Yogurt (Greek, plain, or carb smart with no sugar)

NUMBER ONE TRICK

Mix 2 oz. of Welch’s purple grape juice with 1 oz of water. Drink this 30 min. before each of your main meals and once before bed. Grape juice is a natural appetite suppressant.

·         The types of sugar in grape juice help stabilize the sugar levels in your blood. This helps curb your appetite. The purple also has antioxidants, flavonoids, and other healthy stuff.

·         The doctor told me to do this before bed… add ½ teaspoon of EVOO to the dose before bed. This helps detoxify the liver, gallbladder, and nourishes the intestinal wall.

Ali’s added details

-          Use Stevia or honey as your number one sugar replacement. I was really worried about this one since I love my morning coffee.

-          In your coffee use half and half. Do NOT use low fat stuff because most of the time they add all kinds of sugar to it.

-          Edimame is a protein so you can eat it like a meat.

-          You can eat dairy!!!! I have seen so many diets suggest no dairy and with this you can have it and the “real” stuff not the fat free stuff.

-          They really want you to be able to live on this program. They don’t call it a diet but a way of learning to eat what is best for your body.