31 Reply by Ayahuasca (edited by Ayahuasca 2006-12-13 01:15:48)

  • From: Peru
  • Registered: 2004-08-06

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

Hey Lyra

Good on ya for the diet change! If you can manage about three weeks without sugar my bet is that your craving for it will completely vanish, maybe even much sooner.

I've mentioned this here once before but I did a 30 day detox back in year 2000 and before that I used to put a lot of sugar in tea and coffee and eat a lot of sugary foods. And when I started my detox the thing that I missed the most was sugar and I was really craving it at times but never succomed to it.

Anyway, after about 3 weeks my craving just vanished and then once my 30 day detox was over I never went back to eating sugary foods or putting my sugar in my tea. In fact I gave up coffee almost completely (have it once in awhile), and I rarely drink normal tea either. Just herbal mainly, particularly green tea which I absolutely love.

So yeah, I totally understand about you feeling irritable about it, I did too for a few weeks, but if you can completely resist it for about 2 or 3 weeks then I reckon you'll never go back to it, or miss it! It's a tough job but I'm sure you'll do it! Good luck! smile

Andy

Join me in Peru to celebrate December 21st 2012 - Visit: http://2012awakeningretreat.com/

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  • montalk
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Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

I just realized the benefits of putting stevia powder into tea and cereal as the primary sweetener. I found some in powdered leaf form... apparently that version is 10-15 times sweeter than sugar, no calories, all natural, and has natural antibacterial properties. The refined form is 100 times sweeter and dissolves fully in liquids, but I haven't tried that yet. It tastes great in the cereal I assembled from bulk rolled oats, rolled rye, and pumpkin seeds (and optionally raisins). Really helps to keep blood sugar stabilized, avoiding energy slumps through the day. Great stuff, I recommend stevia for anyone into cutting down their sugar intake without giving up the sweet cravings. Actually, stevia is known to curb those cravings.

Also gave sprouting a try. Tried wheat berries and lentils. Wheat was mediocre. But lentils came out zesty and crisp. Mung and adzuki beans are the most popular for sprouting. Sprouts are highly nutritious, full of life-force, and have their own active enzymes to assist digestion. They grow well indoors and are a source of live food during winter months. Maybe they are alkalizing too...  They go well into sandwiches, atop fried rice, on salads, into stir fry, or just with salad dressing. Probably one of the most efficient foods.

Acquiring fringe knowledge is like digging for diamonds in a mine field.

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33 Reply by GreenT (edited by GreenT 2006-12-13 05:13:07)

  • From: Wolves, England.
  • Registered: 2006-11-17

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

Yeah, Mung beans are good. I spent some time in Taiwan recently and I got my Mung baptism via my girlfriend's family who served them up in soups, salads, puddings and pretty much anything else they could manage. I prefer mine mixed with rice:P

'Tea is drunk to forget the din of the world' - T’ien Yiheng.

'You are here for no other purpose than to realise your inner divinity and manifest your innate enlightenment' - Morihei Ueshiba (Founder of Aikido).
  • lyra
  • lyra
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  • From: my own private idaho
  • Registered: 2004-03-25

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

Ayahuasca wrote:

Hey Lyra

Good on ya for the diet change! If you can manage about three weeks without sugar my bet is that your craving for it will completely vanish, maybe even much sooner.

I've mentioned this here once before but I did a 30 day detox back in year 2000 and before that I used to put a lot of sugar in tea and coffee and eat a lot of sugary foods. And when I started my detox the thing that I missed the most was sugar and I was really craving it at times but never succomed to it.

Anyway, after about 3 weeks my craving just vanished and then once my 30 day detox was over I never went back to eating sugary foods or putting my sugar in my tea. In fact I gave up coffee almost completely (have it once in awhile), and I rarely drink normal tea either. Just herbal mainly, particularly green tea which I absolutely love.

So yeah, I totally understand about you feeling irritable about it, I did too for a few weeks, but if you can completely resist it for about 2 or 3 weeks then I reckon you'll never go back to it, or miss it! It's a tough job but I'm sure you'll do it! Good luck! smile

Andy

Thanks Andy.....I definitely do remember your story, and actually, I've been keeping that in mind as I do this.    Specifically I had been thinking about how you mentioned that the sugar cravings do go away after a month.  Also, how you were big time into sweets and coffee, (think you had mentioned eating a chocolate bar every day?) and drinking coffee every day, etc.   So I was thinking Hey, if Andy could do it, I can do it.  wink 

The cravings havn't been as bad as it's been in the past.....but it has its moments of creeping in.  Like, we were at Whole Foods last night, and as I'm passing by sweet treats, shelves of wine, etc. and so on I felt a craving for sugar welling up inside.  "Do it!  Do it!  Buy it!  Buy it!"   Plus, I'm getting natural sugar in the way of bananas, apples, the raisins in my muesli cereal, and so on.  That probably helps.   

It's not a full on detox like what you probably did, (not sure to what level you took yours....if you eliminated even natural sugar for a period of time) and I'm still getting a bit of dairy as I finish up a box of mashed potatoes that requires me to use the half and half and butter I still had on hand.  But once that's used up the potatoes will be replaced with brown rice.   Then it's down to no milk sugar either.   dunn dunnnnnn DUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNNNNN!   haha   

____

The first week grumpies thing also only seems to apply at work.  Not at home.   Imagine that.  wink  Work, making people grumpy when they don't have their caffeine to boost them along and sugar/seratonin connection??   Noooo!    haha   Every phone call irks me.   It's all I can do to not let out a huge "SIGH!" every time it rings.   Now I think I understand why I was chugging so much caffeine and sugar while working before.  wink

"Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out, shouting "Holy shit ... what a ride!"  - Anonymous
-----
"I get by with a little help from my (higher density) friends."
-----

lyra's Website

  • Registered: 2006-03-10

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

lyra wrote:

It's funny, but I was thinking about how the whole "going to get a cup of coffee or tea" (and snack) in the kitchen at work is a nice time filler sort of thing for a lot of people....it's "something to do."  And a the sugar itself creates that pleasant feeling that everything's okay.  Take that away and all of a sudden you've got somebody with nothing left to do and who knows that things AREN'T okay, and starts feeling really really grumpy!  haha

Congrats on your sugar-free week, Lyra, it is not easy! We are still pretty hooked on "desserts" but we like to use alternative sweeteners instead of white or brown sugar. Our favorite is Lundberg brown rice syrup, it is like a cross between honey and a thick caramel, and much less sweet than regular sugar... it is a different kind of sugar, like maltose instead of sucrose... I can't remember specifically, but it is significantly healthier and we do not get bloodsugar crashes from it. Here is a list of alternative sweeteners:

http://www.truestarhealth.com/Notes/1841005.html

If you ever encounter Amazake at a health food store, try it out, it is amazing (but pricey).. creamy and sweet like a delicious smoothy, but no sugar, all the sweetness comes from the rice.

I second Montalk's suggestion for Stevia, we bought a small dropper-bottle of liquid Stevia probably at least six months ago and we are only half through it. Just two or three drops in a cup of coffee/tea makes it very pleasantly sweet. A little too much tastes a bit like a strong vanilla extract flavor.

I had to kick coffee because it got to the point where if I drank a cup I would have a headache within an hour, no exception. But now we use two coffee alternatives: Caffix and Roma. They are made from malted barley and chicory and some other things. We add a little scoop of raw carob powder for a hot chocolate-y drink (but not chocolate, total headache food for me as well). A little shot of rice milk and I feel like I'm back at Starbucks. :) So maybe if you substitute a different hot drink for your ritual coffee time, you can fulfill the same need for hot dark sweet beverage but stay caffeine free. And, if I recall correctly, malted barley et al have an alkalizing effect on the body! You can't lose!

Here's a good list of coffee alternatives:
http://www.pkdiet.com/coffeealternatives.htm
(ooh, Teeccino is GREAT but I haven't seen it in the shops up here since we moved, great flavors like mint coffee!)

Tim

  • From: The one whirl
  • Registered: 2005-12-15

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

montalk wrote:

Also gave sprouting a try. Tried wheat berries and lentils. Wheat was mediocre. But lentils came out zesty and crisp. Mung and adzuki beans are the most popular for sprouting. Sprouts are highly nutritious, full of life-force, and have their own active enzymes to assist digestion. They grow well indoors and are a source of live food during winter months. Maybe they are alkalizing too...  They go well into sandwiches, atop fried rice, on salads, into stir fry, or just with salad dressing. Probably one of the most efficient foods.

Ditto on the sprouting tip.

Try almond sprouts/soaks if you haven't.  I've found those to be amazingly yummy!  Boiling them for 30s and then rinsing them in cold water helps to get the skins off, but may destroy beneficial enzymes.  That's the only tradeoff I see.  They also make a good milk substitute when blended with water.  I remember there used to be a recipes thread on here somewhere.  I'll add the almond milk recipe if I get the time. 

mmmm... almond milk smoothie... smile

Doc: Marty, you're not thinking fourth dimensionally!
Marty McFly: Yeah, I know, I got a real problem with that.

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37 Reply by SiriArc (edited by SiriArc 2006-12-14 00:28:55)

  • From: Denver
  • Registered: 2005-08-02

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

Vitamin, Mineral, Herb and etc:

Research and Self Testing for quite a few years with generally noticeable and positive results.

Foods and amount consumed had been gently shifting over time.......

‘97:

Heard about MSM in Combination with Vitamin C:

1 to 1 ratio

And about 8 Grams each per day

Split into 4 morning, 4 afternoonish.......

(Grams sounds like a lot but reflect on Linus Pauling’s Mega C research.......).

Judas Priest !!!

Literally overnight, cravings vanished.

[Had been eating ‘healthy’ for a number of years with a daily regime of Vitamins, etc. (as noted)].

Before, there were typically cookies or the like around.......

After beginning the MSM gig, Ya just plain didn’t want the stuff anymore - No ‘will power’ involved.

Also, where face packing had been potential, now eating remained enjoyable but at a genuine sated point, consumption would just stop.

After a few months, the 8 daily was reduced to 4 daily, mostly on General Principles.

This use and the results have remained constant to date.

Vitamin Cottage here in Colorado carries both C and MSM in bulk powdered form so it’s very inexpensive.


* Note: Individual Results Will Vary - Check Internal Results For Details.

11   23   11
  • From: England
  • Registered: 2005-04-20

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

The spittle test is a good way to see if your change of diet is getting  rid of Candida/yeast infections which almost all westerners who consume too much sugar and refined carbs have.

First thing in the morning spit into a glass of water, if after several hours the spittle remains in a blob floating on top then you almost certainly  yeast/candida free, if it produces long tendrils this indicates  yeast/candida infections.

Its not like we are fractions of the whole but rather versions of the whole.
  • lyra
  • lyra
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  • Registered: 2004-03-25

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

Eating a huge salad every night has made a noticable difference in my energy levels.  Who knew vegetables could be so energizing!  big_smile  I highly recommend it.  When I eat my big super salad at dinner, I find that the following morning I typically awaken before my alarm and don't have heavy headed grogginess.  For my salad dressing, I mix together Bragg brand apple cider vinegar (tastiest stuff EVER! http://www.bragg.com/ ) with olive oil, crushed garlic, lime juice and cayenne pepper.   Yum!  Best salad dressing I've ever had in my life, on top of spinach greens, green leaf lettuce, shredded carrot, cucumber, celery and green onions, sometimes sprouts, since Tom's taken to sprouting.   Last week I went two days without the super salad, and there was a difference the following morning.  So if you aren't already eating a big bowl of raw veggies every night with some tasty homemade dressing, it's highly recommended!   You'll be sure to notice a difference of some sort, even if you're not cutting out other junk.  Although cutting out junk certainly helps too!  haha

"Life's journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn out, shouting "Holy shit ... what a ride!"  - Anonymous
-----
"I get by with a little help from my (higher density) friends."
-----

lyra's Website

  • Registered: 2005-10-16

Re: So, how much do you actually know about how your body works?

Just tried Lyra's Killer Salad Dressing... on top of spinach salad, since I had all the ingredients in-house.  Was great! (and can now remove the paint off my walls by breathing on them, lol... maybe 5 cloves was too much.  lol)

"The unknown does not incite fear, but dependence on the known does." - J. Krishnamurti

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