My Digestive Journey

March 11, 2013 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

When I decided to change my diet a little over a year ago, my main goal was just to have better health. As far as I knew I had no major illnesses, I wasn’t overweight, and I had no big complaints. I felt that I ate fairly well, but when I read about eating clean I realized that there was a lot more I could be doing for my health I had no idea how big of an impact this switch would have on my life.

Once I cut out all processed food and focused on eating real, whole foods, I saw a lot of positive changes. I had way more energy, my acne started clearing up, my periods were less painful (sorry men, us girls have uterus’, deal with it), my body started to become more toned, and I never felt that gross nasty “food-baby” after eating a meal. I was ecstatic. For the first time I felt like I had found a lifestyle that I could follow forever. Sure, there were rough moments of temptation, and the longing for the ease of just going to a restaurant and ordering whatever. But the positives outweighed the negatives ten-fold.

Then things changed. After about three months of eating a whole foods diet, I started to get acne again, I was rarely pooping (yup, still like to talk about poop), and occasionally I would have horrible stomachaches after a meal. Katie before would have ignored these problems, but new Katie refused to feel anything but her best and healthiest.

Into research mode I went. I looked at my diet and tried to determine what could be causing my problems. After some trial and error (and a very long and terrible night spent in the bathroom following a homemade pizza) I decided to eliminate dairy for awhile.

Within a few weeks I was back to feeling like my old/new self. Why did I choose dairy first? Well, like I said I did a lot of reading/research and felt that for me this was a logical first elimination. I didn’t consume much dairy to begin with and realized a lot of my symptoms occurred after eating some form of dairy. So out went dairy, and to be honest, I didn’t miss it as much as I thought I would. For me, I got more satisfaction feeling amazing and healthy than I did from devouring a grilled cheese sandwich.

What does this story have to do with you? Eliminating certain things from your diet can be one of the first steps to healing and strengthening your digestive system. Does this mean you have to stop eating dairy to have a healthy gut? Not necessarily. Remember, we all have different flora/microbes in our guts, meaning we will have different nutritional needs. For me eliminating dairy, as well as gluten, had helped put me on the path to better digestive health.

Take a look at your life and see what complaints you have about your health, whether it’s acne, achy joints, bloating or low energy. Then start to take notice when those complaints flare up and what you have eaten prior to that. Eliminate what may be your “trigger” food and give yourself a few weeks to test and see if your symptoms get better. I may just be a big nerd (ok, I am TOTALLY a big nerd), but it’s fun for me to be a food detective and figure out what might be doing me more harm than good. Don’t get frustrated if it takes awhile to pin point your problems. Just remember you’re doing this all for a healthier you!

Next week I’m going to talk about another step I’ve taken to heal my gut. I recently bought a kombucha tea starter and am in the process of growing (or fermenting) my own kombucha. I’ll share how that works and all the benefits I’m reaping from that! Until then, have a great week and see you next Monday!

Copy, Paste… Healthy?

March 4, 2013 / ktbuchs87

My past few posts have been about your digestive health. Your nutrition and health have SO much to do with the particular microbes you have in your digestive system as well as how healthy those particular microbes are. Many problems that people experience these days have to do with their digestive system not being in top performing mode. The obvious solution is to take steps to fix or heal your gut, right? The best way to do that is to follow a gut-healing diet, right? You can just find one on the internet or follow what your friend is doing, right?

WRONG! Just like your fingerprint, your digestive system is unique to you. No one else has one that functions in the exact same way that yours does, therefore you can’t just follow a “cure-all” or “blanket” diet. Sure, there are certain things that you can try that might be similar to someone else’s journey, like perhaps take probiotics. But the type of probiotics your body will need will be totally different than what your neighbor’s body needs. To really fix your gut, you are going to need to be a dedicated sleuth to your body’s functioning. This is tough! Who has time to constantly be monitoring how your stomach reacts to every single piece of food that they ingest? Who wants to deal with eliminating foods (maybe foods that you REALLY like) and having a “boring” diet? And who wants to slog through a bunch of boring research to find advice about where they should start their healing process?

I didn’t. It was so much easier to ignore my problems or tell myself that it wasn’t such a big deal. I wasn’t dying of a terminal illness, I could function fairly well and I was intimidated by trying to “heal” myself. Especially since there was no way to copy someone else who had done all the work already (admit it, we’re all a little lazy). But the more and more I read, and dealt with my not-that-bad issues, the more I realized I needed to practice what I preach. I needed to put in the effort and work towards getting my best health. How can I keep telling you to to step it up if I won’t step it up? Hypocrite much? So I’ve started the task of healing myself and I want to be able to help you start yours. While I won’t be able to tell you exactly what to do, I can offer help and suggestions.

A few things I CAN tell you are a few what not to do’s. These were some of the pitfalls that I fell into and to be honest they are pretty easy to avoid.

Ignore. This is pretty self-explanitory, and I mentioned it earlier, but please do not just ignore what can become a serious problem. Whether it be because you don’t want to deal with it or don’t know how to deal with it, neither are a good enough excuse for turning a blind eye to your health. If you feel crummy, you need to FIX IT! If only someone had shouted that at me years ago, I would have had a much easier go at this!

Be a lemming. You can not just follow the crowd on this one. There is no band-aid that is going to fix your problem just like everyone else. Fad diets or pills or drinks or magic potions or whatever are not going to make you better. They might just do the opposite and wreck your digestive system even more and that is so not cool. You obviously have to start somewhere and it is ok to see where others have started. But remember, just because they eliminated dairy from their life and are tons better doesn’t mean that it will cure you as well.

Obsess/Worry/Stress. Yes, this can be a daunting task. Some of you are probably saying, “I’m not a nutritionist! I have no clue what’s going on inside me or how to fix it!” I felt the same way too. Take a deep breathe and focus on little changes you can make. Don’t try to completely overhaul your diet/lifestyle overnight. That will just cause you to freak out and that doesn’t help your problem at all. The more calm and stress free you remain, the easier it will be to stay in tune with your body and figure out what direction to take. Take it from someone who stresses over LOTS of things, it is much easier to take it slow and save yourself the headache.

My next few posts will be about steps that I have taken to make my digestive system healthier I think it helps to read through someone else’s journey and know that while it is different for each individual, in the end it is just about trying to get healthy so you can enjoy life to it’s fullest. If you would like to read more about gut health and the research that is behind it I would suggest reading this article from Mark Hyman, MD, as well as this article by Dr. Elizer Ben-Joseph. Both are really great scientific articles that can help you understand a little more about what’s going on inside your body. I also encourage you to head over to the purely twins blog. This is a blog written by twin sisters (go figure) and they have been writing about their day to day experiences with healing their guts. I have been following them since day one and it has been really helpful in my own journey.

Next week I will have more about my personal experience as well as some things I have done (look for a post about kombucha tea coming soon!). Remember, this is going to be a very individual experience. But that doesn’t mean you can’t gain strength and insight from others! I hope you have a great week and I’ll see you soon!

food for thought!

Someone’s in the Kitchen with Dinah….

February 11, 2013 / ktbuchs87

It’s probably no shock that I love to be in the kitchen, cooking and creating delicious (and healthy!) meals. For me, there is something therapeutic and fulfilling about the whole process of putting a meal on the table. I love searching through recipes, gathering the ingredients, tying my apron around my waist and getting down to business. I’ll be the first to tell you that I am not a gourmet chef by any means. I wouldn’t even claim to be an amateur chef. Just a gal who likes to cook and serve meals.

I’ve heard many times that people would love to be able to cook all their meals, but they aren’t good cooks or don’t have time, or (gasp!) hate to be in the kitchen. All of these (except for that last one!), are legitimate problems when it comes to eating healthier. One of the best ways to make sure you are getting proper nutrition, is to be the one in charge of all the food that goes into your body. Easier said than done right? I understand that not everyone will share my love of all things kitchen/cooking. I do however have a few tips that can help you navigate your way through the kitchen maze and start to take your health into your own very capable hands!

Have some confidence! My mom always told me that if you could read you could cook. At it’s very minimum, cooking is being able to read a recipe and follow the instructions. Of course there are some exceptions to this and cooking does have a lot more involved, but don’t second guess yourself. You are at the top of the food chain! You are an intelligent being (I assume!). You are more than capable of tackling that chicken noodle soup recipe!

Keep it simple. Going along with the first point, keep your cooking simple. Don’t make your kitchen debut with a fancy schmancy recipe that has hard-to-find ingredients and will chain you to the oven all day using crazy techniques like braising or caramelizing. Find simple, short recipes that have a few steps and common ingredients. You will feel so much more calm and proud of yourself when you can place a complete meal on the table as opposed to a failure when your souffle deflates half way through cooking! As you cook more and more you will get better and be able to “graduate” to more complicated meals.

Read the whole recipe BEFORE you start. It’s a rookie mistake (one that I have made at least once…) to not read through the whole recipe before you dive right in. There is nothing worse than being halfway through your cooking and realizing you need fresh basil and there is none to be found in your kitchen. By making sure you read through all the ingredients and all the steps, you will be able to make sure you have everything and save yourself a big headache later on.

Schedule out your meal. What I mean by this it make sure you time out your cooking. If you are preparing a whole meal (entree and side dishes), you’ll want to make sure everything will finish generally around the same time. I still struggle with this sometimes, and estimated cooking times aren’t always right. Create a rough time table of when you need to start preparing the food, then when you need to start cooking. I find it’s easiest to decide when you want to eat and work backwards from there.

Have fun! Yes. I know this is a cliche piece of advice. But in all seriousness, you will enjoy your time in the kitchen a lot more if you have fun. Don’t stress if something doesn’t turn out perfectly the first time you make it. You’ll have to eat again in the very near future and have your second chance at getting it right! Pick recipes with foods and ingredients you know you will like, involve your family or friends in the prep work, have music playing in the background, dance! The more fun you have while in the kitchen the more motivated you will be to keep practicing and the better you will get!

I know this is just a short list and that it probably won’t be enough to convince some of you that cooking can be simple and fun. Humor me though and give one meal a shot. This would be a great way for those of you who made the resolution to eat better to take charge of your nutrition! Trust me, I know you will feel super proud of yourself when put that plate of yummy food down on the table with the knowledge that YOU put in all the work and love it to took to create that dish. So throw on your aprons, fire of the stove, and get cookin’!

If you need some ideas for quick and healthy recipes, follow me over on Pinterest! I pin recipes pretty much everyday and they are all fairly easy to follow! Katie Buchanan http://pinterest.com/ktbuchs87/

There might be a line crossed about how much fun I have in the kitchen…. Oh well!

Baking + smiling = winning combo!

And of course the best part about cooking… EATING!!

Rules, Rules, Rules

February 4, 2013 / ktbuchs87

Don’t eat after 7 pm, space out your eating with 5 or 6 meals through out the day, don’t skip breakfast, wait maybe skip breakfast, eat egg yolks, nope don’t eat egg yolks, wait, take that back, you can eat the egg yolks.

Does it ever seem like there is a never ending list of rules and studies when it comes to eating? That’s because there is a never ending list of rules and studies all about eating. All of the information that is out there is overwhelming and often times contradicting. This confusion can really put a damper on your good effort to eat the best way possible. First, you’re presented with all of these diets from low-carb to no-fat to all-fat to everything in between. How do you know which one to choose? Then, there are what seems like daily nutritional studies released telling you the rules on how to eat. It’s enough to make your head spin and give up all of your good intentions about eating better.

How are you supposed to navigate through the plethora of information out there? You won’t like my answer because it isn’t an easy solution. You’ve heard me say it before, but you will have to spend time learning how different foods and eating techniques (not the fine art of chewing. Think more along the lines of what time of day to eat). Because I can’t tell you exactly what you need to do for your body, I’ll give you a general outline of how to figure out what you need.

Define your nutritional goals. Decide what it is exactly that you want to fix/work on. Make it a very clear goal such as: “I want to lose weight,” or “I want to have more energy.” If you know exactly what you want from your daily diet, you can eliminate anything that does not pertain to your specific goal

Research what diets that will help accomplish your goal. There are so many resources out today that can really help you find exactly what you need for better nutrition. Books, blogs, articles, doctors, dieticians. The list goes on and on. Even starting with a quick google search can get you started. Just make sure you are only looking at things that will help you further your goal. If you want to have more energy, but are researching the diets of super bodybuilders, you will probably NOT meet your goal and get really discouraged or confused.

Dive in and experiment. Once you find one or two methods that will help you meet your goals and are realistic (and not dangerous, like eating only through a feeding tube once a day), start experimenting and see how your body reacts. Do certain foods effect you negatively? Or do they give you the exact result you want? Does eating at a certain time in the day or in a specific way hurt or help your goal? As you go along you will be able to really fine tune what and the way you eat to maximize your personal goal.

Don’t get worried or sidetracked by new studies. When a new study comes out that says it has been shown that you will lose more weight if you eat while walking in concentric circles, don’t get flustered because you have been eating while walking in an oval. If what you are doing is working for you, i.e. you are achieving your goal, then don’t worry so much about every single little study that is released. I’m not bashing the scientific process here, I know that research studies are an important part of life and they do help us discover new and better things. BUT, you will drive yourself crazy if you try to adhere to every single “rule” or diet that comes out, and stress isn’t good for anyone.

All in all, the most important thing is that you do what is best for YOU. There is no one perfect way to eat for every human being. Some people will have different dietary needs than others and that is OK! We are all unique and we shouldn’t expect one quick fix for every person. I used to think that I had to follow every single piece of diet advice out there or that if I wasn’t following the newest diet people were judging me. Now that I have grown up and matured a little (not much, but a little), I have stopped worrying so much about following the crowds and care more about what works best for me. I’m the one who has to live with this body, and I should treat it the way it needs to be treated! With all the love and care I can!

Hopefully I was able to sort a few things out for you and give you some helpful tips on how to navigate through the nutrition jungle! I hope that you all have the best week and if you’re here in the Midwest, I hope you stay warm!

A Discussion about SAD

January 28, 2013 / ktbuchs87

I want to preface this post by saying that I am NOT a licensed professional and am NOT trying to diagnose or treat SAD. These are just my thoughts, opinions and observations about this. Furthermore, I have not been clinically diagnosed with SAD, these are just my observations on my own feelings.

Cold, grey, dreary. Yes, those words can be used to describe the winter weather here in the midwest. But it’s also how I sometimes feel during the winter, and who wants to feel like that for at least 3 (most likely more) months out of the year?

When I first heard about SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder in my freshman Psychology class, I didn’t really think that much about it. Sure, most people get the winter blues, but it isn’t anything too serious. I quickly put it out of my mind and moved on. Fast forward about five years to this winter. I could just NOT shake my case of the “winter blues” as I called them. I was tired all the time even though I got ample amounts of sleep. I was short and cranky with the people around me, i.e. Adam (sorry dear!). I felt cold and isolated in my own little wintry world and it wasn’t very fun. I thought I was just being dramatic and tried to put it out of my mind and force myself into a happy mood. Then I started seeing a few articles about SAD and I remembered back to my psych class. Could I be experiencing my own case of Seasonal Affective Disorder? Right about this time, Adam and I left for our honeymoon to Jamaica. I was really hoping that my grumpy mood wouldn’t ruin our trip. Now, there probably was a combination of things that went into lifting my mood immensely while we were in Jamaica. One: we were on our honeymoon, who could be grumpy then? Two: we didn’t have to go to work or deal with reality, we were in Jamaica! But I must say I felt amazing on our honeymoon, no sight of the “winter blues” any where.

The transformation my mood took while on my honeymoon made me really look into SAD when I returned back home. What was it that made me feel so much better in beautiful Jamaica and how could I recreate that here at home where winter was barreling down on us? Is there any possible way that nutrition could play a part in this?

For those of you who don’t know or are not very familiar with SAD here is a very simple break down. As no one really knows what causes SAD, there isn’t just one treatment. So, for my purposes I tried a few non-medicinal “cures” on my own to see what would happen. Now, like I said at the beginning of this post, I am NOT saying that these will work for everyone nor are they proven cures. These are just the few things that I tried that appeared to work.

Sunlight. Some doctors believe that SAD is caused due to the lack of sun during the winter months. The days are shorter and it’s cold so even when the sun is out not many people want to venture outside. During my time in Jamaica there was an abundance of sun and I spent a lot of time outside enjoying the rays (with my SPF 100. I’m quite pasty). Plus, during the summer I am out in the sun a lot as well and never experience any depression like symptoms. So each day (when the weather allows it) I try to get just a little sunshine. 15 minutes is really all you need. You don’t even have to venture out into the tundra, you can stand in a nice sunny window for a few minutes each day!

Increase in Calcium and fresh fruits and veggies. This goes along with the sunlight. We get our best source of Vitamin D from the sun (and a lot of our foods, like milk, are fortified with Vitamin D). We absorb Vitamin D optimally when it is combined with Calcium. So along with getting my few minutes of sunshine each day, I decided to up my intake of Calcium. I started drinking Silk brand Almondmilk (the unsweetened variety) which has 45% Calcium as well as 25% Vitamin D2. I also made sure I was getting a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables that were also high in Calcium like broccoli and oranges. Not only are fruits and vegetables healthy, they are great at helping to boost energy!

Talk (or write) it out. I mentioned earlier that I was cranky and short a lot with Adam. He would pretty much say something and because I was already in a bad mood I would just lash out or shut down completely. He had no idea that I had been feeling grumpy all day, so he was totally blindsided. I kept all my feelings to myself and that in turn made me feel even grumpier. So when I finally shared with him how I had been feeling down lately, it was a huge relief to both of us. I felt better for getting some things off my chest and sharing with someone and he felt better because he realized his wife was not some angry weirdo. I understand that everyone might not have someone with whom they can talk to on a regular basis. In that case I suggest starting a journal. I tried this out and have been writing a little each day. It has really helped to get things out, even if it’s just a few sentences in a notebook.

These three tactics have been working well for me over the past few weeks. Again, I was not diagnosed with SAD and I never sought professional medical attention. These were just my observations and feelings. I tried to tune into what my body needed for me to feel my best. There are many other ways that you can try such as light therapy, counseling, or prescription medication. It all depends on how YOUR body functions and what it needs to feel its best. If you think that you might have SAD or just want to learn more about it, I encourage you to visit your doctor or the Seasonal Affective Disorder Association’s (SADA) website.

I know this topic did not have much to do with nutrition, but I felt it was an important thing to address. I’m interested in total health, and while I really do enjoy the nutrition side to health, it is not the only aspect of a happy, healthy body. I hope this post was able to help a few of you out there, or, at the very least, served as a good learning experience!

I’m not sure what next weeks post will be about, but I promise it will be something good! Have an amazing week and I’ll see you soon!