Hello World, I'm Dr. Chelsea Drda and I'm blessed to be a chiropractor along with two of my family members, Dr. Mark Frank and Dr. Celeste Holstein at the Frank Clinic of Chiropractic in Zephyrhills Florida. Today is Wellness Wednesday and I'm here to speak to you about my journey with weight loss and health transformation.
I'm sure some of you have read my
previous blog post about how I lost 60 pounds and 10 pant sizes the
healthy way. I come from a family that is very active and eats well,
but even still growing up I was always overweight for my age. Dr.
Frank first told my parents that I was likely allergic to dairy when
I was around 13. I stopped drinking milk, but I “couldn't” give
up cheese or ice cream, they were just such huge staples in my life.
So of course I had chronic sinus issues and asthma and was completely
miserable. It impacted my focus, limited my ability to participate in
athletics, and took away all of my motivation. It went on for so long
that I thought that's just what my life was supposed to be like, I
didn't know I could feel any better. Finally, after a series of
severe allergy attacks leading to weeks of recovery, I hit the
breaking point and decided to make a change, so my diet has been
dairy free for about 4 years now.
Once I cleared the dairy from my
system, I still had some issues with my stomach, and I decided to see
if eliminating gluten would help. Since I eliminated gluten from my
diet 18 months ago, I have been so much happier, healthier, and
energetic. I don't ever feel deprived, I always have something
delicious to eat that is excellent fuel for my body, and I am not
miserable after I eat.
The biggest thing I want to impress on
you is that what I have seen with myself, my family, and my patients
is that allergy testing does not always pick up on food
sensitivities. Allergy testing is most sensitive to anaphylaxis, the
throat closing, tongue swelling, inability to breathe reaction that
we see with peanut allergies, and isn't tuned to picking up
sensitivity reactions. The other issue with sensitivity reactions is
that they tend to vary from person to person, but the classic
indicators are weight gain or inability to gain weight, chronic sinus
issues, acid reflux, gas and bloating, irritable bowel syndrome,
nausea, stomach ulcers, fatigue, ear infections, tonsillitis, and
thyroid disease.
The good news is, eating a cleaner diet
without gluten or dairy is actually a lot easier than you think, and
it doesn't have any side effects! The biggest obstacle for most
people is cooking at home and I know that for busy families it can
seem like a daunting feat. If you need a structured plan, the easiest
format to follow is the Paleo diet program. You can buy a book if you
want to, but there is an abundant wealth of free information on the
internet. The basic premise of the Paleo diet is eliminating wheat,
dairy, processed foods, and refined sugar, instead increasing your
intake of well-sourced meats, fish, fruits and vegetables, nuts and
seeds, and healthy oils like olive, avocado, and coconut. I'll post
some resources for you to look into after this post.
Just remember that it doesn't have to
be fancy or complicated, eating well can be very simple! I'm not a
professional chef and I didn't spend much time in the kitchen growing
up, so most of what I do is self-taught. You have no idea what you
are capable of until you start doing it, and I was amazed what I can
create without taking a lot of time and will please everyone. I have
also found that cooking at home is cheaper for most families than
eating out every day. So over the next couple of months, we are going
to be talking a lot about different recipes, tips and tricks and
other things I have found helpful with implementing these kinds of
diet changes.
Your homework is to substitute one
paleo meal into your meal plan for this week. I want you to
try something simple and easy with a short list of ingredients. I
don't want you to get burned out cooking the fanciest existing paleo
recipe that is so nutrient packed and amazing that it takes you 6
hours to prepare and you quit after the first day. So keep it short
and simple and we will revisit this next week.
I hope you'll tune in and I'll be
seeing you next Wednesday, have a sparkling day everyone!
*Any
health topics that are covered should not be considered medical
advice. If you have specific questions please contact your doctor
or make
an appointment with
us. You should check with your doctor before making radical dietary
changes, particularly if you have heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or
are pregnant or nursing.*
http://paleoleap.com/paleo-101/
http://thepaleodiet.com/what-to-eat-on-the-paleo-diet/
http://robbwolf.com/what-is-the-paleo-diet/
https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2010/10/04/the-beginners-guide-to-the-paleo-diet/
http://www.webmd.com/diet/a-z/paleo-diet
