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7 Steps to Reduce Sugar from Your Diet

3/27/2017

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CLICK HERE FOR HAPPY, HEALTHY YOU!
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​From my own journey to wellness and from my years as a wellness and life coach, I am passionate about grain free, sugar free living. All plant matter converts into glucose sugar in the blood stream. In fact, if we eat too much protein at a meal, the body can even turn the protein into glucose, called gluconeogenesis. We do not have shortage of sugar in our world, in any form. Here are some steps to reduce sugar from your diet.


1.) Why is sugar such an important thing to cut out of or reduce from our diet?
         
The connection between sweets and the pleasure response begins with the newborn’s natural reaction to mother’s milk, which is extremely sweet. It is part of our human survival techniques. The packaged food industry is well aware of this. Processed foods are specifically engineered to keep us malnourished, so that we are not nutritionally satisfied. We then crave more, buy more, and eat more. The body does not know what to do with all of the sugar coming in, especially with the fake sugars, not found in nature, and with the amounts that are not found in nature. This is very hard work for the liver. If we aren't using the energy immediately through vigorous exercise, the liver has no choice but to convert the sugar into fat. Even fruits have been hybridized and refined by the agriculture industry over the years to be seven times larger and seven times sweeter than 150 years ago. Furthermore, sugary and refined foods have been linked to feeding cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. No wonder we see an epidemic of obesity and chronic conditions related to obesity at an alarming rate and growing all over the world, but especially in the USA. 

2.)Where are 3-4 places that sugar shows up unexpectedly in the diet?

Sugar is found in most packaged, processed foods. All refined grains and treats such as cookies, pies, candies, cakes, muffins, breads, crackers, flat breads, bread crumbs, croutons, pre-packaged full meals, frozen meals, pasta, couscous, salad dressings, and sauces have a form of sugar in them. Surprisingly, there is sugar and high fructose corn syrup added to canned vegetables, hot dogs, cured meats, deli meats, and more. Read the food ingredient labels and educate yourself. There are secret names for sugar in food ingredient lists. Here are some common names for sugar that will increase your blood sugar level (glucose):


  • AGAVE
  • BARLEY MALT
  • BEET SUGAR
  • CANE JUICE
  • EVAPORATED CANE SYRUP
  • HONEY
  • DATE SUGAR
  • FRUCTOSE
  • LACTOSE
  • MALTOSE
  • RICE SYRUP
  • TURBINADO SUGAR
  • HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP​

3.) What is the first place people can completely cut sugar out of their diet without suffering withdrawals?

The first step to reducing or eliminating sugar from one's diet is to increase water consumption. When increasing water, I add lemon or cucumber to the jug. This allows me to have a clean palate all of the time. It allows me to realize if I am truly hungry, or just giving in to the sugar cravings, the emotional triggers, or the social cues to grab a sugary treat. I also think an easy transition for sugar reduction is to only eat meats, deli meats, cured meats, fish and seafood without sugar or corn syrup added. The next easy step will be to reduce fruit to one to two times a day, and choose sour or bitter fruits, like a grapefruit, a green apple, or a lemon. When we eat fruit less often, we reduce the sugar cravings for other sweet things.

4.)What are a few healthier substitutes you can use for sugar and where do you use them?

I encourage my clients to buy Lakanto or XYLA on line or at health food stores. Lakanto is Chinese monk fruit dried and crystallized. It is used in Asia for lung issues, liver ailments, circulation, sore throats, and preventing a host of other illnesses. I like the golden brown variety of Lakanto. I buy Lakanto on the internet. Xyla is a natural white sugar alternative from the bark of the birch tree. I buy Xyla from a health food store. I use these natural sugar substitutes in beverages, marinades, dressings, sauces, and for baking.

5.) What sugar substitutes should people be wary of? Why?

Artificial sweeteners are chemicals. They are not the same thing as plant based, zero calorie sweeteners. There are many of both kinds of sugar substitutes out there. Here is a quick overview of the more popular ones:
 
SACCHARIN is an artificial sweetener with a sulfa base. It has a slight metallic aftertaste. Saccharin may cause nausea, diarrhea, skin problems, or other common allergic symptoms. It has even been linked to bladder cancer. My body reacts to saccharin as if I have had soda. I use the restroom repeatedly every hour. It makes me more thirsty afterwards, and then I tend to crave salty things.
 
ASPARTAME is made from Phenylalanine, aspartic acid, and methanol gas. It also has a slightly bitter or metallic aftertaste. Side effects may include headaches, memory loss, anxiety, heart palpitations, and weight gain! What? Weight gain? Yes, the body thinks it is enjoying sugar, and may spike the insulin as if you had sugar anyway.
 
SUCRALOSE is a substance made by chlorinating sugar. The chemical structure of the type of chlorine in the table top sucralose is the type of chlorine that is banned in the pesticide named DDT! People who use sucralose have reported headaches, muscle aches, cramps, diarrhea, dizziness, and inflammation. Sucralose can impact the immune system, the liver, and the kidneys.

6.) Can you offer other general advice on how to keep cutting out sugar from your diet?

Remember, the journey towards a superior self is not to add more pressure or another item on your already full to-do list. The path towards optimum health is full of bumps and pot holes, but with baby steps forward, loving oneself, and surrounding yourself with like-minded people, you will end up a Happy, Healthy YOU!

7.) Recipe

Chocolate Bark, Fondue, and Truffle Base

Ingredients:


  • 6 Tablespoons salted butter
  • 1/4 cup Xyla or Lakanto (natural sweeteners)
  • 2 Tablespoons coconut milk
  • 1 4-ounce bar of 100% chocolate, broken into pieces

Directions:
  1. Put a small pan or small soup pot on medium heat.
  2. Add the butter and sweetener to pot. 
  3. Stir until sweetener completely dissolves.
  4. Add coconut milk and stir vigorously
  5. Add chocolate pieces.
  6. As the chocolate begins to melt, lower to low heat and continue stirring until smooth. Sometimes the chocolate is completely melted and mixed in, but has a grainy look within the smoothness, but that is fine. It depends on the country of the chocolate's origin. Once everything is done melting, you are ready to enjoy!

For fondue, leave the pot on the lowest fire setting or on the table if the room is warm. Begin dipping your fruit or vegetables into the chocolaty goodness! For adventurous types, try dipping broccoli or carrots in the fondue!
For truffles, use a teaspoon and drop a teaspoon or more of the chocolate into mini candy molds or mini cupcake liners. Press shredded coconut, nuts, or dried fruits on top. Place in freezer at least one hour. Makes 18 truffles.
For bark, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place nuts, seeds, or dried fruits on paper, then pour chocolate on top evenly covering the goodies. Freeze at least an hour. Enjoy!



Please let me know if I may be of further assistance.

KJ Landis

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A Happy, Healthy Day Starts With...

3/20/2017

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CLICK HERE FOR A HAPPY, HEALTHY YOU!
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I build my happy, healthy day from the ground up. Personally, I wake up each day, stretch, make my coffee, drink water, take my vitamins, and play peaceful piano music on the stereo. I pray a silent gratitude prayer, and smile at myself as I brush my teeth. Good morning world! If I set my day up with a positive vibe, a foundation of yes, I'm pretty certain the rest of my day will follow suit.

Every morning as the kids get dressed for school I write 3 positive sentences down that I want to happen in my life as if they are happening now in a tiny notebook. "I am..." I repeat these three things over and over again throughout the day and I keep the little notebook with me everywhere I go. I write these down every morning, the same three lines. I call it living in the future-present. When I actualize one of the sentences and it becomes my reality, I drop that one sentence and I add a new one.

I drink a shot of raw apple cider vinegar mixed into my water and always add lemons or cucumbers to my water for an extra sensory excitement. I light candles, use essential oil diffusers, or incense as I get the kids ready for school. It makes the home environs happier and healthier as we rush around preparing for the day.

When I prepare coffee I add 2 tablespoons of raw, unpasteurized extra heavy whipping cream. The healthy dietary fat in the cream helps me to stay full and focused for hours. I usually follow the early morning rush with hot yoga and then I coach clients. I coach clients to create their own positive affirmations and morning habits that make their day happy from the ground up.

That is the beginning routine for me. What about you? I want to hear from you!
Blessings,
​KJ Landis




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Balancing versus Blending

3/13/2017

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When I hear the word balancing, in term of balancing our lives, it feels like there is pressure. It feels to me like yet another thing to add to my to-do list. I must balance my life, walking the high line, the tight lined rope above the circus floor: kids, cooking, cleaning, work, the car, the breaking down of things around the house, the workouts, the self-care, and then, of course people calling me for my counseling services and my fitness services, my self-help services, plus my community volunteering services and senior citizen assistance. Let us not forget my passion of the writing of books, blogs and reaching out through social media as well. To balance all of these tasks in my life without regard to my husband, the connections and relationships with my large family abroad and in the United States, my work family and my community of writers, the balancing seems almost impossible. These tasks can wreak havoc on my health.

How do I protect myself? I protect myself by changing the word from balancing to blending. When I think of the word blending I think of the word solution, like a salt solution. When I was a kid and we studied science in school, we put a few drops of salt in the water. The salt in the water was a solution, not a mixture like oil and water or salad dressing. The salt dissolved into the water and became salt water. It became something else entirely. So I think of my life as blending. All of the components of my life are blending and becoming something else entirely so that it all becomes something manageable. Instead of a salad dressing or oil floating on top of the water, I'm blending all of the parts of my life into one happy beautiful solution, creating a solution that I can manage. This makes it less stressful for me to comprehend. Does that make sense?

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Healthy Recovery after Giving Birth

3/6/2017

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​Being pregnant is wonderful for a lot of women. It was for me. I felt fat and sexy, was rosy cheeked and horny all of the time. After I gave birth to my children, my focus was on rest. If I didn't sleep nine hours in the evening I was not able to create and release the hormones that produced my milk. Women need to sleep to produce milk and most of us do not get enough sleep because we are up at intervals nightly feeding the baby. Enlist the help of others in the household, if you can.

Also I had to get enough water in my body to help heal the tissues in the reproductive areas and to produce milk. I was so thirsty all of the time. Even now I still drink about a gallon of water a day. I infuse the water with lemons, limes, and cucumber. Other days I put slices of apple and a cinnamon stick in my water. Sometimes I prefer a water that is flavored with savory elements. I use tomato and basil water on those days. I encourage my clients to be creative and use things like ginger and peach water, citrus and rosemary water, or whatever they have around the house that seems interesting to their palates.

"Laughter is the best medicine," Mama used to say. I think she was right. In my personal experience, when I was nursing my children and watching old reruns of Three's Company, I would crack up so hard, my milk supply would overflow so much so that my children would choke a little and spit up the extra! 

Finally, I believe in the power of touch. Massage from my partner or a professional was very healing and loving during the sensitive time after birthing a new life into this world. My emotions and hormones were running rampant, my learning of the whole nursing thing (and parenting thing) was new and troublesome at first, and I was in need of some loving tender kindness.

I hope this helps!
Please feel free to contact me if I may be of further assistance.
In Gratitude,
KJ Landis
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