The Nutrition Test for My Squirrel-like Brain

I've made 4 specific nutrition changes that I’ve really focused on 100% for the last couple months.

Sugar

Processed foods

Wheat - Gluten

Dairy  

You might be wondering why I’m sharing all of this.   

Here’s a little background as to why I’ve been all-in with eliminating these certain foods.  

Almost 4 years ago, I had decided to cut most - about 95% - of sugar, processed foods, wheat & grain and dairy just because they bothered my stomach, weren't good for my waistline, contributed to cravings, caused my skin to breakout and so much more.  

Then, a few months ago, through genetic testing, I learned that I carry one Celiac gene, meaning that I’m at a much greater risk of developing Celiac disease.  And with my family history of autoimmune disorders, the decision to eliminate wheat and gluten was very simple for me since I already know I’m sensitive to gluten.  I made that decision over a month ago.

I also learned through testing that my gut health was not good.  One of the first steps to healing our gut is to eliminate foods that cause inflammation.  All of these foods, sugar, processed foods, wheat, grain and dairy have been proven to cause inflammation. 

Things were going well.  After these changes I’ve been feeling better than I’ve felt in a LONG time.  My energy is back, my brain fog is gone, my brain feels less squirrel-like, my anxious feeling have disappeared and I feel more relaxed and calm.  All of these improvements are so exciting to me – I’m feeling like my old self again.

So, I decided to do a test on myself.  I needed to prove to myself that all of my efforts to strategically limit certain foods were worth it.  

Tuesday night I had cake, a good piece of cake and cupcakes.  Loaded with sugar, flour, milk, processed ingredients and everything else.  And I’ll be honest, I love sweets – they taste good.  Sweets have always been my struggle.

Yesterday morning, I woke up feeling horrible.  Worse than I had felt in over a month.  I felt anxious, nervous and my brain felt super squirrel-like. I felt like I’d been up all night even though I slept a full 8 hours.  My brain fog was back. 

ALL of this just from a little bit of sugar, wheat, gluten and dairy.

ALL of the symptoms that I’d worked so hard to resolve were back – with just 1 piece of cake and a cupcake.

It was BAD – the whole day yesterday was bad.  And this morning, I’m still not feeling good.

This test worked – it proved to me that I’ve been making the RIGHT changes to begin feeling like my best self.  I just needed to prove it to myself to make this journey and mission a little easier.  

Nutrition can FUEL us or it can STALL us out.

The type of fuel we put into OUR tank determines our performance.

Better fuel equals better performance.

FOOD is FUEL.

I realized a couple shifts that I’ve made with my nutrition while putting together the content for Your BestSelf Challenge.  

Over the last couple months, I’ve strengthened my commitment to eating healthier foods that fuel my body with more nutrients.  This renewed commitment started out of necessity, but has become one of the most important factors in changing how healthy I feel.     

I still follow the 90/10 guidelines for eating but the type of treats that I have for my 10% has changed drastically.

These 4 changes have helped increase my ENERGY, change my MOOD, decrease my feelings of STRESS and help me feel more RELAXED.

During YOUR BEST SELF 5 Day FREE Challenge, I’m sharing the science behind how FOOD impacts our mood and stress levels. 

Click HERE to join the challenge.

We begin Monday September 4th.