Two weeks ago I wrote the first in a series of blogs detailing my journey to repair my good hip. You can read the first blog here. In my previous blog I promised to share with you the different body types and some of the foods that I am using.
One of the biggest factors to poor health is chronic inflammation. It contributes to every chronic health issue that modern medicine is attempting to deal with. This includes joint health! Our joints are impacted by chronic inflammation within our body and after years of dealing with it begins to lose the battle. Rid the body of chronic inflammation and you can heal the body.
When my wife Susanne started to delve into the new personalized health program the first thing they asked was to get a profile. This included measurements over various parts of the body as well as family history and current health circumstances. Once this health profile is completed it goes into the database and provides an overall view of your body type. There are 6 key body types. Guardian, Diplomat, Activator, Connector, Sensor and Crusader.
Based on this profile and the body type that identifies with you the database sets what food are suited best for you and what food are best to avoid. This seems so simple yet for most people the realization that certain foods are no longer on their “list” of good to eat they can find it very difficult. It is often hard to let go of past habits to create new ones. The real question then becomes…just how serious am I about my health and vitality…??
For me I was very serious about my health and vitality!! I have the mindset that living to 100 should be everyone’s goal.
I was identified as an activator. Along with that came a new food plan. I started to eat foods that would help me to rid the chronic inflammation in my body. Kale and spinach were my new everyday friends along with chives, artichoke hearts, carrots, potatoes and just about any dark green you can think of. Interesting though, Swiss chard was not one of my new food friends. In fact it was not recommended at all. All the foods I have listed would help me to reduce inflammation in my body and as well provide vital nutrients such as vitamins, minerals such as sulfur which helps with joint health. There are many other benefits such as being anti-fungal, which can help with nail fungus. Eating these foods also helps to create alkalinity which is great for tendons and joints. Each food has it’s own nutritional super power that are there to help with my specific needs. There were many fruits that were recommended but not everyday. Some 4 to 5 times a week and some only once a week. Protein such as animal protein were recommended only a few times a week. For instance chicken was suggested to be 2-3 times a week. Beef such as steak once a week. Many different types of fish once or twice a week. I would not go hungry! Everyday I ate the foods that were rated excellent for me. Plenty of salads, potatoes, egg whites, sunflower seeds and so on.
One of my favorite ways to get my Kale and Spinach is by making a green smoothie every morning with them in it. Here is the recipe.
- Kale 30 grams
- Spinach 30 grams
- Artichoke hearts 100 grams
- Papaya 80 grams
- Hemp seeds 30 grams
- Pineapple to taste
- fresh root ginger 10 grams
- coconut water or plain filtered water 150 mil
- egg whites 80 mil
- grated nutmeg to taste
On the flip side the foods I needed to avoid were processed sugars, alcohol, caffeine, all sweets, junk food, pop, simple carbohydrate foods like white rice, all types of cheese, dairy, bread, chicken livers, and so on. For me it was an easy thing to do because I am highly motivated to have my other hip be healthy. My “why” when it comes to health is very strong.
There have been times along the way that may have felt a little deprived but it did not take me long to get back on track. Results helped!
So it began on May 21st, 2017. In the first 2 weeks I started to lose weight very quickly. My starting weight was 175 and if you looked at me you would think I was at my ideal weight. After 2 weeks i had lost 5 pounds and was closing in on breaking 170. I made sure that i was eating lots of food. My caloric intake remained high and water was an important part of the process drinking at least 8 full glasses of water everyday. On June 14th I was 165 so in just over 3 weeks I had lost 10 pounds. My hip was not “firing” like it was only a few short weeks earlier. I experimented with different ways to cook my excellent foods and found that I started to really like my early morning shakes. By the end of June I was down another 5 pounds for a total weight lose of 15 pounds! Remember I was eating like crazy! My caloric intake was high yet I was losing weight. It is amazing what happens to the body when it gets the right food. The pounds were just melting off and my hip was no longer “firing”.
In July I had a birthday and wedding anniversary so I celebrated by having a few of the food and drink that are on my avoid list. So we celebrated with some champagne and a few beer along with bread and so on. The celebrations were a ton of fun! It is not what you do once in awhile but what you do most of the time that determines the success or failure of just about anything. By the end of July I had lost a total of 18 pounds and through the month of August have remained at this weight. It seems my body has found the right set point and my hip has not “fired” at anytime in the last month.
Losing the weight has been an eye opener for me. I am at the weight I was 30 years ago. My hip is feeling better than it has since I started to experience symptoms 18 months ago. I feel that I am on the right track to full recovery!
In my next blog I will detail other factors this program addresses such as what type of fitness program is right for your body type and what is the best environment for you to live in. This is a complete personalized health program that is tailored to you and only you! There are subtle variations for each and every person who does this program. This is why it works so well.
Yours in Health,
John OneHipGuy