Mad at Menopause

Just thinking about the title is bringing on a hot flash. Well, I must admit to being mad at menopause. Turning 50 was an exciting time and I still enjoy being in the club. The hormonal changes my body is experiencing right now not so much. 

Brace yourself, I will be talking very candidly about my experience with hormone changes and my body. This is not meant to offend anyone. Going through the change is a subject many are afraid to discuss out of embarrassment, fear, or the belief it should be hush-hush. We have come too far to continue this way of thinking. Health involves discussing all things relating to the human body and aging. I for one am all about sharing, learning, and getting feedback from others on the subject.

LIFE SAVER

I have been frantically researching hormone imbalance for a few years now. I have tried supplementation, herbals, transdermal creams, and natural moisturizers attempting to restore balance in my body. 

I am very aware of foods that help with hormone balance and eat my share of raw pumpkin seeds and watermelon. I also exercise consistently which is another way to help with the stresses of hormone imbalance. Some women may sail right through without a hitch in the get along, but not this girl. Through research, I have discovered I'm not alone and there are plenty of women suffering from menopause symptoms. 

I began experiencing night sweats years ago, which I easily managed with a transdermal OTC progesterone cream. That seemed to be the biggest drag during my premenopausal time. However and for a few years, my periods took on a life of their own. Everything became unpredictable. I didn't know from one month to the next if I was in full menopause. 

According to my doctor, not having a cycle for one year would be the indicator of being in true menopause. I enjoy my gynecologist and have to say she is easy to talk to. I respect her opinion and am able to share my desire to go through this process as natural as possible. The thing about most western medicine doctors is non-support of bio-identical hormones. Also, they're generally not covered by insurance. So be prepared for such roadblocks. Don't be afraid to be yourself and cover every concern with your doctor.

Menopause has been a thief of my womanhood. It has plagued me with sleepless nights, hot flashes, frequent urinary tract infections (UTIs), and the worst part … a broken ya-ya. My frustration has become motivation to work very hard at making the best decisions for me and my body. 

I'm sure many women can relate to what I am sharing. Hopefully, this Blog will stimulate comments so we can all support and share what has worked or not worked. This can no longer be a hide behind the door subject. As women, it's important to be brave, embrace who we are, what we're going through, and create a voice for answers. I will get off my soap box now and dive right into my journey of being mad at menopause.

The dreaded hot flash comes at all hours of the day and night. For some reason, I'm bothered most at night. It's so frustrating not being able to get a full night sleep. This alone can really put me on edge. I have discovered the best remedy is sleeping under a light sheet with one leg covered and one leg exposed. I also keep the ceiling fan going which seems to help. 

Enjoying a glass of wine in the evening will trigger a hot flash. It will continue to haunt me during sleep time with a dreaded night sweat. I have found it's important to stay away from the triggers. 

What has seemed to help my menopause symptoms is Maca Root, recommended by my gynecologist. Maca is an herbal I mix in a green shake each day. Before using maca root, I put in the necessary research of pros and cons, and decided to give it a go. 

What I'm sharing has worked and not worked for me. It's important for each of us to be our own health care advocates. We should not try any supplement without reviewing clinical research and solid evidence to support health claims. Don't take my word as gospel. My body is different than yours and may respond differently to herbs like maca root. My share is to inform and motivate you to start your own journey of research.  

Moving on to other mad at menopause symptoms: decreased sexual sensitivity, increased bladder discomfort and UTIs, and the dreaded dry vagina or what I like to call the broken ya-ya.  Talk about the worst of the worst and are you kidding me?! This has got to be the most unfair situation ever as sex is a very important part of a healthy marital relationship. 

As women, it's important to feel confident about our bodies and our abilities. We shouldn't feel guarded about sex because our minds get so focused on things like: will I orgasm? am I too dry? will it hurt too much? what's he thinking? The list is really endless. How can we be in the moment when all that mental noise is going on? 

Personally, I refuse to be a woman on the edge with the inability to get over the fence and I'm referring to orgasm here. I enjoy this part of my married life and research focused in this area has been very thorough. I have discovered a new vaginal suppository containing coconut oil and vitamin E. This magic stuff works better than most of the OTC products out there. I use ½ suppository daily which keeps me naturally moisturized for the day and into the evening. 

My goal is to prevent vaginal atrophy and yes this is what occurs during menopause. In laymen terms, we women start drying up like a prune and develop a dry sandpaper interior. The do not disturb sign has clearly landed. I refuse to allow any such nonsense to happen, and am fighting for my sexual right as a woman and wife.

Decreased sensitivity during sex can also occur as the body no longer carries adequate blood supply to the vaginal tissue and clitoris. Research sent me to L-arginine supplementation which is an amino acid naturally occurring in our body. Studies have shown L-arginine to help with blood supply and flow to the sex organs. Well, this turned out to be a huge waist of my time. I can be prone to cold sores and updated research lead me to discover L-arginine stimulates the virus causing cold sores. I tossed the bottle in the trash and never looked back. Thank goodness I also keep a supply of Lysine, an immunity boosting amino acid which works to prevent cold sores. I increased the dose to counter act the negative side effects of the L-arginine.   

Another unfortunate menopause related problem that occurs with me has been severe bouts of urinary tract infection (UTI) symptoms. The discomfort can wake me in the middle of the night and cause me to curl up in a fetal position. I have a low-dose antibiotic on standby when these events occur, OTC Cystex, and cranberry supplements. I found a heating pad also helps along with OTC pain reliever like Aleve. I also begin a protocol of increased water and additional 100% cranberry juice to flush out my system. 

I'm very in tune with my body and can feel a UTI early onset. So, typically I do catch it early and am able to not lose too much time or days off work. The night may suck getting the symptoms calmed down, but once manageable, I can function pretty well at work and in general. 

I have also looked into HRT (hormone replacement therapy), and currently researching bio-identical hormones. Bio-identicals are hormone closely related to our own body production and administered transdermally. 

I have decided not to take any systemic estrogen by mouth in order to minimize cancer risk. I don't want the hormone to metabolize directly through my liver and into my bloodstream. The incidence of cancer is greater with such therapy so this door is forever closed for me. 

I am trying a vaginal insert pill of very low dose estrogen. This is localized to the vaginal tissues and helps plump up and restore natural vaginal lubrication and reduction of UTI issues. I even had doubts and fears regarding cancer with the vaginal insert. After discussion with both western medicine and natural path doctors, they were in agreement with initial treatment of vaginal cream, pill, or ring. I went with the most convenient and less messy pill insert. 

Online research also reduced my fears, and I am willing to give it a try for a few months. I'm hoping for a positive outcome.  I will need to report back with my personal findings. I do welcome feedback from women, or husbands whose wives are currently using vaginal insert low estrogen and how it has been helpful or not. 

I have had many discussions with women going through menopause which is helpful and supportive. It can feel like such a desperate and frustrating time not knowing the best course of action to take. It feels scary to possibly subject ourselves to cancer or other disease in the process of discovery. 

It can seem unfair very little clinical studies on menopause and women’s dysfunction have been conducted. Further research would provide more options, and allow us to feel more confident in decision making. If anything, I hope my personal share on the subject has been helpful. We are not alone in our struggle and frustration. Keep up the research and find what works best for you and your body. We are all on this journey of life and the transitions along the way. We can only do our best on finding what works best. 

I dedicate this Blog to my fabulous husband who is always supportive and understanding. I thank you for encouraging my writing, especially on such personal topics. 

You're amazing!  

Enjoy my new recipe index page . Recipes are now by category, have their own link, are printable, and comment receivable. 

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Take Fitness on Vacation

Just because we go on vacation doesn't mean we should toss fitness out the window. It's important to keep up some physical activity and healthy eating during vacay. What if we're enjoying an extended month vacation? Eating completely off track and halting our workouts would result in fat gain, some muscle atrophy and feeling like crap.


We would not be happy with ourselves especially if fitness is our lifestyle. Besides, we're not taking a vacation from our health and fitness. Time off means stepping away from our daily work routine. It's a time to relax, forget about time clocks, and breathe in some freedom from everyday stress.

Vacations are not for the purpose of binge eating and moving like a sloth. When did this thought process start happening? It appears vacay has become an unhealthy food planning extravaganza.

I'm not saying to snub indulgences. That's unrealistic and by all means, we should all enjoy our choice favorites. What shouldn't happen is a complete drop the ball on healthy food intake.

My push-ups split with swim interval

The same goes for exercise, especially on extended vacations. If time away is only for the weekend, skipping the workouts would not be such a big deal. However, ten days or longer should include some fun physical activity.

I recently returned from a boating vacation and was able to balance indulgence, workouts, and healthy food intake. I made sure to swim a lot and use the boat creatively for exercise. I also planned healthy meals grilled on the boat.

Cheers!

My indulgences included bloody marys, brownies, and barbecued chips. Since I was active, on vacation and eating in proper portion sizes, I didn't even give a thought to eating off track. This is what I'm talking about with balance, fitness, and vacation.

Enjoy your time, but maintain your healthy lifestyle. Drop to the 80/20 rule to allow for indulgences. Refuse to give into mindless food frenzies. It does take a choice and looking at vacay with a fresh healthy mindset. Going on a trip? Remember to take your fitness on vacation.



A few more exercise and healthy foods typical of our boat vacations:

Pull-ups/swim interval

Core work/swim interval

Grilled Salmon

Filet Mignon

                                                                                                                  

                                      
Can a hair test determine our fitness along with foods and supplements best for our body? Read my recent article on this popular subject.

What Does a Hair Sample Say About My Fitness

Are you living well or Very well? Check out my Sports Nutrition page on the network and start implementing a healthy lifestyle!

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Nothing Better than Morning Coffee on the Boat

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Gluten Free Pasta Salad (Dairy and Gluten Free)

Here is a simple pasta salad that uses gluten free noodles.  There is definitely a difference between gluten free noodle brands.  I find the that the GoGo Quinoa Noodles work very well.  They stay soft even for next days leftovers.  This salad is dairy free however the addition of feta cheese would work very well ;) 

Ingredients

• 4 cups small uncooked gluten free pasta (I find this one works the best)
• 1/2 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
• 1/2 cup chopped sweet pepper
• 1/3 cup black olives
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• chopped chives to taste (I used about a tablespoon)
• 2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Directions

1. Cook pasta until al dente, drain and run under cold water to cool. 
2. Put the pasta into a bowl. Add the tomatoes, olives, chives, basil, peppers, parsley, and cucumber into the bowl. 
3. Add the vinegar, oil and seasoning. 
4. Stir to fully coat pasta and vegetables with dressing.
5. Let sit in fridge for 1 hour to absorb flavour.

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How to Lose 12lbs in 6 Weeks

Losing 12 pounds is not only a realistic goal, but can be done in a short amount of time. I'm not talking about a fad diet or weight loss gimmick. I'm referring to healthy weight loss accomplished with appropriate methods. Being more specific: consistent healthy eating, exercise, increased water intake, limited alcohol intake, and plenty of rest.  

Application of a healthy lifestyle in all areas will allow for approximately 1 ½ pounds on the lower end and up to 3 pounds on the higher end of weight loss per week. Working successfully with clients who use my healthy eating guidelines supplied with their workout routines are losing in the middle range of 2 pounds per week. 

Think about what this means in terms of time. Realize this is only six weeks of sticking to a consistent fitness program. There is no diet but eating lots of amazing healthy food and exercising at least four to five times per week for a minimum of thirty minutes. Sodas are eliminated and alcohol is limited to not more than two nights per week and two drinks maximum. Water intake is increased to drinking 1/2 your body weight in ounces daily to start.

Sometimes it just takes someone to motivate you to start. Well, here you go! A consistent program will guarantee fat loss, lean mass gain and the beginning of a lifestyle of excellent health. 

Doesn't this sound reasonable, exciting, and realistic? Getting fit the healthy way provides knowledge of what and how to eat, how to exercise, and how to live this lifestyle happily for life. It becomes your enjoyable habit and maintains all the positive results gained within the six weeks of consistent application. 

It's time we stop over-complicating weight loss and start implementing the simplicity of eating healthy and exercise. We make things harder than they really are. We want all the results but don't want to give up a current unhealthy lifestyle. If we want to see changes, we need to be willing to make the necessary changes. Giving something 100% effort for at least six weeks should provide the personal feedback needed to continue to make the right decisions.

Below is a sample meal plan and what a typical day looks like for me: 

1 cup coffee with natural vanilla creamer

Meal 1: Organic morning round with 1tbsp natural organic peanut butter

Meal 2: Green shake: 1 cutie, ½-cup chopped pineapple 2 large handfuls power greens, water and blend until combined. 1 slice organic seeded toast topped with soft cooked organic egg to accompany my green shake. 

Meal 3: ¼ cup fresh blueberries, ½ cup Fage yogurt, ¼ cup organic ground flax meal, handful raw mixed nuts (stir it up and eat)

Meal 4: 4 oz grilled salmon or chicken with large side roasted vegetables like Brussel sprouts and cauliflower (drizzle olive oil on veggies, and large tbsp. basil pesto, mix well, roast)

Meal 5: 1oz square of dark chocolate with 1tbsp peanut butter, or 1/2 glass organic low-fat chocolate milk 

I exercise five times per week and for 30 to 60 minutes total.  I'm a believer of being focused and getting my workout done in a short amount of time. I also listen to my body. If I require more rest, I may only exercise in a structured fashion four times in that week. I enjoy active rest days being outdoors with hubby, playing with our dog, going on long walks, hikes or swimming. 

Studies indicate losing one to three pounds per week provides healthy, long-term sustainable weight loss. Unlike fad diets that may shed weight quickly but is regained plus more once the program is over. 

Now is always the right time get fit. Start by implementing a six-week fitness challenge makeover. This is a great beginning and short-term goal of shedding 12 pounds. It will be helpful to keep a fitness journal and track your food intake and exercise. Do your best, and have fun with the journey. 

I would love to hear from you. Sharing success stories, asking questions or sharing concerns is a great way to encourage and support each other along the way.  

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Stay Healthy

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Black Bean Burgers (Gluten Free with Vegan Option)

At least twice a week we stick to a vegetarian meal.  This is definitely a popular one in our home.  I always have a stock of cooked beans in our freezer so it is also a quick easy one to make.

• 2 cups cooked black beans (separated)
• 1 cup cooked quinoa

• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1/2 chopped onion

• 2 teaspoons chili powder

• 1/2 teaspoon ground paprika

• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 egg or 1 flax egg
• 3-4 chopped mushrooms of choice (optional)
• oil for frying 

Directions (makes 5-6 medium size patties)

1. In a blender add 1 1/2 cups black beans, garlic, and onion.  Pulse until finely chopped.  Place in a bowl.
2. Add the 1/2 cup reserved black beans and all remaining ingredients except the oil.
3. Form into desired size patties.
4. Heat oil in frying pan.
5. Fry 3-5 minutes on each size or until browned and starting to crisp.  Do not over cook or they tend to get too soft and fall apart ;)
6. I like to serve mine with a side of my nacho cheese dip.

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Don't Believe Everything You Think

Self-bashing, doubts, and negative thoughts can derail our fitness. We tend to be harsh with how we think about our bodies and self. This kind of thinking puts a nail in our fitness coffin before we even start.

We spend too much time caring what people think, comparing ourselves to others and unrealistic photo-shopped images. Instead of being positive about fitness, we become intimidated. Possibly even resentful and angry. We give into self-sabotage and what's the use attitudes.

We strive to live up to someone else's standards and fitness results. Our drive to accomplish the grass is greener on the other side has clouded our thoughts. We are so focused on how we don't measure up, we are failing to see how fabulous we really are.

Each day is an opportunity to be proud of our efforts. Instead of being upset about losing only one pound, be happy to have lost one pound. Did you notice how that got switched around? We have to stop believing everything we think about ourselves. This has become a big problem getting in the way of our health and fitness goals.


What we believe determines our life, health, and happiness. Negative thoughts will take us down while positive feelings uplift and carry us to great places. Getting fit takes acceptance of being a beginner and progressing each day. Did you workout? Eat healthier? Awesome and be happy to have achieved a daily goal.

Fitness is really a simple process we often complicate with negative stuff. Time to toss out the negative committee living in our heads. We are stronger than all that useless noise between our ears.

Work on your mental game. If it helps, write positive affirmations on post-it notes and stick on your bathroom mirror or computer. It's not only important to read what they say, but also to believe the words.  Real talk all in fitness love. Be well and Stay Healthy!

Read my articles on the Verywell health network. Time to take charge of your health and fitness. Start with this article on "Eat Right to Lose Weight" and get on track to a fit and healthy body!

Eat Right to Lose Weight

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Happy 25th Birthday to my beautiful Daughter
Love you always and proud to be your Mama

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Find Your Motivation Mojo

Have you found Motivation Mojo when it comes to improving your health? Finding our motivation is an important step when it comes to fitness so we enjoy the journey. 

Let me ask what motivates you in the image below: the left image, center image, the right image, neither images and why?

I'm not going to wow you with a huge before and after weight loss story, or a long list of bikini titles. I will share my journey to health involves one of great physical and emotional adversity. Also, taking care of my health and being a woman of faith has been a huge factor in the woman you see in the above images. 

Some may not be motivated by visual images and respond more to the written word: YOU CAN DO IT, FIND YOUR STRONG, or BE YOUR BEST HEALTHY YOU for example. Regardless of what suits your motivational fancy when it comes to fitness, the important thing is to just get yourself going.  

I will not tell you it will be easy because there are days when it will be straight up hard. I'm speaking from personal experience. We all struggle with tough days of keeping it healthy.  I'm relating to you on a very personal level. At the same time, I want to stress the importance of living the healthiest life you can. We only have one life with no playbacks. 

There has been so much controversy over the image of health. This is why I opened with an interactive exercise of wanting to know your mental game when it comes to visual motivation. I didn't add the famous “what’s your excuse” tag, although I am a no excuses trainer and coach. I don't accept that anyone is too busy to take care of their health, and that includes me. 

Being a very busy woman and if the day only allows a 20-minute workout then I do that. Exercise doesn't have to be some long duration program lasting over an hour. In fact, studies have shown the greatest benefit of exercise is achieved within the first 30-minutes. Also, 45-minutes of focused exercise is sufficient to maintain a healthy body. I adhere to this philosophy and keep my exercise sessions limited to 45-minutes and no more than 5 times per week. 

How do you find your Motivation Mojo?  Get out a piece of paper and write down your active passions … fun things you like to do. It's time to get off the couch, dance your pants off in the living room, go hiking, play games with the kiddos and dogs. What is it that makes you happy and will ensure you keep coming back for more?  No more exercise is a burden stuff. Let’s turn that around and create a plan you can maintain for a lifetime.  Share your Mojo in the comment section and I look forward to reading and responding to all of your shares. 

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Be well and Stay Healthy

                                                                          

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Eat Like a Baby to Lose Weight and Get Healthy

Babies use nutrients to build and develop a healthy body. They have a built in alarm clock every two to three hours that cries out to be fed. They will also stop eating when they feel full eliminating the need to count calories. Babies eat to live naturally.

As adults, we can learn much from our precious infants. The nutrients they consume are usually quality coming straight from Mom’s milk, or formulas containing everything a growing body needs to be healthy. If we could only implement this nutritional strategy, we would be on our way to adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Sadly, the majority of eating is no longer about growing a strong healthy body. Quality nutrients have been replaced with processed fake food linked to obesity and disease.

We don't pay attention to our full barometer and consume too large of portions. We also fill our stomachs with foods that lack in nutritional value. Eating processed foods lacking in nutrients promotes inflammation in our blood stream, the root cause of most disease of the human body. We are eating way too much and making ourselves sick in the process.

Food is not only our fuel but also our medicine. Eating right can truly keep our body feeling top notch and healthy. Quality real foods can reduce our visits to the doctor and enable us to function at our best.

We have come full circle into a fight against healthy food. The majority of people are really pissed off about foods they shouldn't eat to stay healthy. The reason for this unfortunate issue comes straight from what sits on our grocery shelves. Marketing has a great way of presenting foods advertised as healthy but really are quite the opposite. Studies have shown major food producers are making us fat. This is a scary thought.

We can't fault the food companies entirely because we can choose to say no to processed, GMO (genetically modified organisms) products, and non-organic pseudo-foods. These types of food-like items do nothing but provide a momentary good flavor and add fat stores to our bodies.

Anything in a box, bag, or wrapper with ingredients unable to be understood is processed. If the item is marketed as low-fat, low-sugar or low-calorie consider it nothing but a chemical shit storm in a package.

There are some food items packaged and part of the organic and non-GMO certified programs. These food producers are getting it right and understand the importance of supplying this information to consumers. Just a little food education detour, now back to the Blog topic. 

Mastering our daily nutrition for fitness success will mean eating like a baby. Getting back to the basics with our healthy food, keeping it simple, and stress-free is important. It's time to stop over-complicating and just make the focus about eating healthy.

Forget about the chemical shit storms and reach for real organic foods: lean proteins, fresh vegetables and fruits, raw nuts and nut butter, plain Greek yogurts, and healthy fats are just a few of the healthy foods waiting for our purchase and consumption. Change out drinking soda for water and start getting excited about the vast amount of healthy food to choose from.

Personally, my hunger alarm goes off just the same as a baby close to the three-hour mark. I grab something healthy and satisfy that natural feeling. I don't count calories or even worry about doing so. What's important is feeding my body quality healthy food and eating just until I feel satisfied, never to the point of overfull. My body knows how much it needs because I listen to when I should stop eating.

Life was simpler when we were babies and the decisions made for us as we naturally cried out when we felt hungry. We were satisfied within 20 minutes with a boob or bottle full of nutrients. As adults, we can create a similar life by having healthy foods in our homes and eating when we feel hungry. Unfortunately and often we eat out of boredom or to fill an emotional void through unhealthy processed stuff. Our mental game around food definitely needs improvement.  Wouldn't you agree? 

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Be well and Stay Healthy

             

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