day 14 - food journal

tonights dinner (taken with my iphone)

a cup of hot water and lemon before anything

breakfast – banana, 1 boiled egg

lunch – 1 whole red capsicum

snacks – nuts and two nectarine’s

dinner – fresh prawns, oysters, snapper, yellow fin tuna (seared) and salad

exercise – rode to and from work today, that burnt a little over 1000 calories.

feeling great today.  we had a really nice dinner tonight, really fresh seafood.  extremely full!

we are having a morning tea at work tomorrow, lots of christmas goodies will be available for the taking, so i’m going to prepare myself and make sure that i have some fresh fruit with me, and will have a handful of nuts.

hope everyone is having a great lead up to christmas.

nk x

25 reasons not to eat sugar

i don't think there is any controversy about the fact that sugar is not good for you. but do you know why sugar is bad for you?

you do not have to turn to artificial sweeteners for sweet tastes. not only do artificial sweeteners harm your health, they also have adverse effects your efforts at staying slim.

sugar basics

most of us have seen white granulated sugar all of our lives, but what makes it bad for us? made up of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, sugar (or sucrose) is a carbohydrate. sucrose is made up of two simpler sugars, fructose and glucose.  sucrose is also naturally in plants, including fruit.

there is a difference between naturally occurring sucrose in plants and the sucrose found in granulated sugar or the high fructose corn syrup often used to sweeten processed foods.

both granulated sugar and high fructose corn syrup go through a refining process...they are called "empty calories" because they offer no nutritional value. in addition, they are addictive and rob your body of energy and health.

25 reasons to avoid sugar

sure sugar tastes good, when you are used to eating the standard australian diet, high in processed foods. but once you start eating natural, un-processed foods, you lose your cravings for sugar...and you are on your way to natural energy and greater health!

here some of the dangers of consuming sugar:

1.            feeds candida

2.            promotes wrinkling and aging skin

3.            makes your blood acidic

4.            can lead to osteoporosis

5.            rots your teeth

6.            raises your blood sugar level

7.            contributes to obesity

8.            is addictive (almost as much as drugs)

9.            can create the urge to binge

10.          provides 'empty calories' with no nutritional value

11.          contributes to diabetes

12.          robs your body of minerals

13.          robs you of energy

14.          contributes to heart problems

15.          can cause cancer

16.          contributes to ulcers

17.          can cause gallstones

18.          contributes to adrenal fatigue

19.          can suppress your immune system

20.          raises the level of neurotransmitters called serotonin

21.          weakens eyesight

22.          sugar can cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar levels)

23.          can cause aging

24.          can contribute to eczema

25.          can cause arthritis

you can improve you quality of life by choosing your foods carefully.  not all products containing sugar are sweet so you can’t tell by the taste, so you should always read the ingredients list before you buy.  if sugar is listed as the first ingredient, than that means that sugar is generally the main ingredient.

next time your about to buy a chocolate bar, think about the effects that its having on your body.

nk x

Sources:  http://bodyecology.com/articles/25_reasons_to_avoid_sugar.php

day 13 - food journal

a cup of hot water and lemon before anything

breakfast – 2 handfuls of cherries

lunch – salmon and tuna sashimi.

snacks – nuts and two nectarine’s

dinner – steak, steamed brocolinni, snow peas and mushrooms

i used to suffer from hay fever, and i say “used to” as in up until 13 days ago i had been taking anti histamines everyday to stop my hay fever.  i haven’t had an anti histamine since i stopped eating processed foods, until today.  i had some desert yesterday, and i had terrible hay fever again this morning.

i’m not sure if the two are related, but it is seems to make sense to me.

i’ve found some information on the negative effects that sugar has on your body.

hope you’r having a great week.  and if your following the 4 elements diet, let me know how your going with it.

nk x

daily affirmation

i can heal anything by healing my beliefs first
- wayne w. dyer




i believe in myself and my abilities.  i have unlimited potential when i trust in the universe and believe in me.


NK x

day 11 & 12 - food journal

day 11 (saturday)

a cup of hot water and lemon before anything

breakfast – 2 poached eggs and a slice of raw salmon

snacks – prawns

lunch – salad including, capsicum, mushroom, cucumber, lettuce and tomato.  piece of snapper, cooked in lemon and alfoil on the bbq

i didn’t have much to eat today as we were at a friend’s place for a christmas party.  they did have nibbles there; however i chose to stay away from the chips, crackers and dips.  i did have some organic wine though.  i drank 1 bottle of the organic ‘angove’ chardonnay, and made sure that i drank plenty of water throughout the evening.  i felt pretty good and still had a great time with everyone!

day 12 (sunday)

ok, before i write today’s food diary, i will let you know that i was having christmas lunch with my family today as my partner will be away working for the actual christmas day next week.  i have made a decision that today and next saturday (christmas day) i will be a little lenient with my diet. 

my mother has gone to a lot of effort to prepare all the food that we were eating and i didn’t want to be the only one just eating salad.  i made a conscious decision to make sure that i chose the healthiest options possible.  i also found that at lunch today, i couldn’t even get through everything on my plate.  so as a learning curve for next saturday’s lunch, i won’t be putting as much on my plate as possible. i did also have a little dessert; again i had a couple of spoonfuls and couldn’t get through the rest.

a cup of hot water and lemon before anything

breakfast – fresh fruit salad including: water melon, rock melon, kiwi fruit, blue berries and strawberries

lunch – some leg ham off the bone; tomato basil and boccioni with balsamic vinegar; potato salad; lettuce and avocado and tomato.

dessert  - a little pavlova and a little mud cake (i didn’t feel great when i ate it and the drop in my energy levels since i ate it probably wasn’t worth it.  i really reminded me why im doing this)

dinner – fresh prawns and oysters

looking forward to christmas, and staying completely focused until christmas day. 6 more sleeps J

NK x

day 10 - food journal and the benefits of pomegranate seeds

a cup of hot water and lemon before anything

breakfast – 2 oranges, pomegranate seeds and a banana

snacks – nuts

lunch – salmon sashimi

dinner – steamed chicken, asparagus, snow peas, mushrooms

exercise – rode to work today,30 mins of exercise

i’ve been eating pomegranate seeds, but i didn’t really know too much about them so i’ve done a little research on the benefits of pomegranate seeds, also known as arils. 

 

as with many fruits, pomegranate seeds are low in calories and rich in fiber, providing only 83 calories and 4g of dietary fiber per 100g serving.  they are also a good source of two essential vitamins, c and k.  vitamin c aids in immune system function, wound healing, promotion of healthy gums and the manufacture of collagen and elastin. vitamin c also enhances iron absorption. vitamin k is important for maintaining strong, healthy bones as well as proper blood clotting.

they taste slightly like a grape when you bite into them, and the seed inside the fruit you can eat, however have to many of them they start to taste a little funny.  i really like to have a spoonful of them and suck the juice out of them and then dispose of the seeds.

looking forward to the weekend, day 10 down 354 to go :)

NKx

daily wisdom

kites rise highest against the wind, not with it

–winston churchill

have you ever purposely chosen to do something you felt resistant to doing?

by me taking on this challenge i have already under estimated myself and my strength.  life presents us with countless mini tests if we’re willing to take them. each one is an opportunity to let go of the way we usually react and embrace a new way of being.

i challenge my instinct to be reckless and uncaring of myself. what test will you accept today?

NK x