But I have continued to gain a large amount of weight, regardless of anything I tried. I know a lot about nutrition. I am continually trying to inform myself, make better choices and get healthy.
A year ago, I looked like this:
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| Not perfect or anything, but I was toned. I had muscle and not a ton of fat. |
Now? I'm too embarrassed to have my photo taken. I can barely handle going out in public. I can't shop for clothes without crying. I cringe and try to hide whenever I see someone with a camera. I have gained enough weight that I now am more than 20 pounds heavier than I ever was... even 9 months pregnant with my fifth child.
I was a fitness instructor until recently. Since last May, I have gained a LOT of weight (as in over 60 pounds in a year). It wasn't long before the weight was making my knees hurt. A lot. I taught 4-5 fitness classes a week. I would come home and my joints hurt SO badly that I could barely walk into my house. I was stiff, sore and aching. I pushed myself to keep working out because I kept gaining weight, even when there was no change in my eating habits or even when I made even more, healthier, change.
Finally I had to take time off of work. The pain in my joints was SO bad. I thought I just needed to rest them. After 5 weeks, they felt no better. I was so upset... and the weight still piled on. Then the rest of my symptoms of dry skin, exhaustion and even more severe insomnia than I had already suffered from got worse and worse to the point where I couldn't stand it anymore.
Googling symptoms one day, I found that I matched so many of the symtoms of adrenal fatigue and hypothyroid. I started researching natural supplements that would help.
After 10 months, I finally caved and went to a clinic. The doctor, for whatever reason, refused to do a thyroid panel, even though I would have been paying for it out of pocket (we don't have health insurance currently). I finally found a doctor who ordered the thyroid panel and I had all the test results from the first doctor to show that it wasn't anything blood, liver, etc. related.
My results came back "normal" they were borderline "off" but not enough to get any help.
I found an online place to order thyroid supplements and began taking them. I need something to change, like right now. Everything in my life is going fine except for this... and this is a BIG deal to me. HUGE. Ha, no pun intended.
ANYWAY, in researching even MORE... I found these, and it intrigues me, because the symptoms of being grain sensitive fit my symptoms just as much, if not more than the hypothyroid. Huh. I had planned on doing a blog series of "30 Days of Raw", but now I'm thinking I may do "30 Days of Grain Free" (obviously a lot of these will overlap... but still...)
If you're interested in learning more about going grain free, why/if you should (its not for everybody), etc. you can check out these links that I've been reading tonight!
Difference between Atkins Diet and grain free diet (The Atkins diet always worked wonders for me in the past)
