You're so skinny - I hate you!

If I had a dollar for every time I had heard this from people who are actually friends, I would be...well, richer than I am. :) I think the most frustrating thing about people saying that, is they assume it's not a struggle for me and I wouldn't understand. Well, it's not a struggle, but that's not an accident.

They say if you want to be rich, hang out with rich people and figure out what they do differently. If you want to be skinny, figure out what skinny people do. Here's the thing: I understand how our bodies work. I gained 35-40 pounds with both pregnancies, eating everything I wanted - everything in sight! :) It literally fell off afterward. Today, I am 25 pounds thinner than I was at 18 years old. I even weigh 15 pounds less than I did when I got married 4 years ago, and I've had 2 babies since then.

A friend of mine is embarking on a "journey to a healthier" her. I'm so excited for her. I hope you all won't find it arrogant that I want to share what I know about being thin. I understand how painful it must be to struggle with weight you cannot lose, and I genuinely want to help in any way I can. Losing weight is not the mystery many have made it out to be. It doesn't even require daily strenuous exercise. If you want to be toned, you must work out. I confess that is the part I'm not so good at. But you need not carry around extra weight, if you just eat correctly.

Dr P is famous on my blog. He is my naturopathic doctor/chiropractor/nutritionist. I originally saw him when I was 17, to help treat my seizure disorder. That's a story for another day. But I've been following his advice for 11 years now, and seen amazing differences in my body and in the bodies of other people who took his advice. A good friend lost 70 pounds in about 6 months with almost no exercise. Nick lost 30 pounds in 3 months. It just works. So, with that background, here's some tips:

1. DON'T drink diet anything. I can give you a BAZILLION reasons. It will actually make it harder to lose weight. Seriously. People who are regular diet drinkers often lose 15 pounds when they switch to regular! Drink regular if you have to, and just limit yourself to one can a day, or something like that. If you need/want the reasons I'll give them to you. It's a whole blog post. The stuff is poisonous. I'm not even exaggurating. If regular is bad (and it is), diet is 10 times worse. Switch to tea or coffee. You'll look more cultured anyway. ;)

2. Eat protein and a whole-grain carb for breakfast every day. This is important.

3. Eat small amounts (preferably protein AND carbs) every 3 hours. This kick-starts your metabolism. Seriously. People who cannot get the weight off generally do not eat more than once or twice a day. Our bodies don't work that way.

4. Drink as much water as you can stand. Keep some in the fridge if you like it cold. Buy lemon to put in it if that helps. There's no substitute for water, and it flushes toxins from your body and helps you lose weight faster.

5. Try to eat your 5 fruit and veggie servings per day. It's insane, and I usually don't get there. But you need the fiber and vitamins. The closer you get, the better.

6. Work toward getting rid of the white stuff - white flour, white sugar, white carbs (like potatoes). Everything should be whole grain and unrefined. The fiber and vitamins are intact then.

7. Eat raw stuff that grows (fruits and veggies, nuts, seeds, etc.) whenever you have a chance. They contain enzymes that help your body break down food. Cleans out your digestive system, and gets rid of waste sitting in your gut. Yes, it's gross. It's also true.

8. Stop buying the junk you don't want to eat - don't even have it in the house. If it's there, you will eat it.

Start there. These things all affect each other, so they are all important. If you're doing this and it doesn't work, there are other things that may be affecting it:

-Food allergies. Most people have some. Do you have frequent headaches, stomachaches/digestion issues, achiness, acne, mood issues, etc.? It's very possible they would go away if you found out what your body just doesn't like and quit eating it. This is simple and profoundly hard at the same time. How badly do you want to be healthy? To figure this out, do an elimination diet. I can tell you how to do it if you're interested.

-Get as much sleep as you're able. Lack of sleep causes your body to produce cortisol, a stress hormone. Stress hormones keep weight on your body. Do what you can to lower your overall stress. If you're often stressed, sit down and think about what's causing it and see if there's some way to fix it. This kind of emotional maintenance is so important to our overall health.

-Food additives. There are so many chemicals in prepared foods. I know how much you coffee drinkers love your flavored creamer, but that stuff actually has aluminum in it, which has been directly linked to alzheimer's and other issues. It's super scary, actually. I don't understand why the FDA allows manufacturers to put that in foods. Food coloring, preservatives, and other chemicals are bad news. If you can't pronounce it or it has a number attached to it (Red #5, for example), don't eat it.

Food is a very private thing to many people. From the age of 14, I have had to share every detail of what I eat and how it affects me with a whole group of people. I have no sense of privacy about this subject left. :) I would be overjoyed to help anyone who wants help, to figure out what they can do to be healthier, even if it means discussing delicate details. :) If you don't want to talk to me about it, go see Dr P in Denver. I'll give you the number. It's not cheap, but if you do it, it will work. I promise.

Please take this post in the spirit it was intended. If we all share what we know about, we will all be better off. This is something you really can do - and your life will never be the same!