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Aging throws many curve balls.

During the past year, I never worked harder. Keeping up with doubled online baking orders, last September my body baulked. My hip sockets froze. Some days I could hardly walk! For a very active senior, gardener AND baker, this was not the scenario I planned.

Last November, I began my fact-finding journey by seeing spine and hip specialists, had injections, x-rays, ablations, months of deep tissue massage, tried topicals, CBD, and of late, an MRI, yet to date no medical intervention helped. Nada!!!
Living with chronic pain is exhausting and frustrating, especially when the medical profession is of no help…”all the King’s horses…” Pain Management prescribed a muscle relaxer RX that rendered me stupid. Acupuncture was short lived, as Medicare does not cover such treatments. I felt like I had run out of options!

Still the gardens required weeding, weekly mowing, and with a summer drought/heat/humidity from hell, dragging the hose around to new plant material was frequently required.

As a frequent YouTube follower, I discovered only last week, a crazy/passionate guy named Wim Hof. Since traditional docs kept mentioning inflammation, I did further research on Hof. I took his free mini course and began daily deep breathing exercises when I woke, braved the cold shower. YES, A COLD SHOWER!!!!

See his link here: https://www.wimhofmethod.com/free-mini-class

I admit I found the deep breathing a snap, but the thought of the cold shower was daunting. As Nike says, “just to it.” After merely three days, I no longer take hot showers! Only two minutes in the cold, while lathering up, I find my body warming up! And when I step out of the shower, NO pain! Yes, crazy Hof may have ended my suffering.

As I continue my research on pain management, I found yet another topic on YouTube describing leaky gut. At my ripe old age, I presume that I have it. Stubborn belly fat and weight gain convince me, despite an active lifestyle.
I checked out three library books on the topic, and began a new way of eating. I printed out the free list of lectin free foods (https://gundrymd.com/wp-content/pdf/Plant-Paradox-Shopping-LIst.pdf), gave away all gluten/lectin containing foods, and will let you know what happens. I also began intermittent fasting three months ago and eat at 8 AM and 2 PM. I dont miss the snacks or three meals. Of course the new diet permits chocolate…72%, and Trader Joe’s has the perfect bar…organic, Fair Trade, and 72%.
SIDEBAR: I find Gundry’s podcasts oh-so-slow and too much like an infomercial. His books cause me to glaze over, so skimming is the way to glean the info I am seeking. I will continue to look for lectin-free recipes online. OR I will post my creations here on this blog.

The following photos show a few of my new food finds at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and Kroger. Quorn Meatless Grounds are also sold at Kroger. * See note below.

Quorn…who would have guessed? From the UK, found at WF and Kroger, and a great substitute for meat made from mushrooms and egg whites. BEWARE: not all the Quorn products are clean… all others I checked contain SUGAR and other non-desirable additives. Always READ LABELS! I also found decent almond tortillas at Trader Joe’s. Just blister them in a carbon steel pan on low heat. Great substitute for traditional “toast.”
Organic hemp seeds from Trader Joe’s…lightly toasted, yummy on just about anything, but made me queasy. The new coconut aminos in BBQ flavor add good flavor to some bland foods.
Lazy moi, WF sells organic coleslaw, raw or steamed…good fast gut food.
Modest first gut healthy meal…sliced green banana, organic radish, almond tortilla, Quorn Meatless Grounds sauteed with good quality, organic olive oil, a splash of Imagine organic veggie broth, and WF slaw is a one pan meal (cover the pan for three minutes and slaw will steam, and grated fresh ginger… topped with goat cheese, coconut aminos, another splash of olive oil, and toasted hemp seed. Voila!

So readers, let me know what you think of my food revelation?
I will keep you updated on my progress. Please share in the comments section and kindly share any links.

Please stay safe, get vaccinated, and wear a mask.

PS: as always, I am never compensated for mentioning items or links. Just want to share knowledge.

Copyright 2021 by Diane LaSauce All Rights Reserved