How the heck did this middle-aged Southern girl get here anyway?  I grew up with parents who had both been raised on farms, but I grew up in suburban Charlotte.  I was a typical kid of the 70s and 80s with a (mostly) working mom, and plenty of Fruit Loops, Little Debbies, and Stouffers. But I had these grandparents who loaded us up with fresh vegetables from their gardens all summer long, and canned veggies in the winter months. That probably sparked something in my little heart. I grew up loving fresh vegetables, but never really appreciated their full value & importance until my own children were born. Like so many moms, when that first baby came along, I was all over my books and the internet (although it wasn’t quite the same internet in 1999), looking for information on feeding my baby. That’s when the organic passion started for me, but the passion waned into mere interest as #2 came along and there just wasn’t as much reading time any more. I know many of you can relate. For about 7 years, organic & natural living was a reading interest; enjoyed, but not fully capturing my heart to a level of full implementation. I read and studied, but I knew way more than I applied. The busyness of life with kids, moving, home schooling for 3 years, and ministry life, must have over shadowed my reading I suppose. It’s somewhat of a blur to me, so I can’t say for sure (let’s blame it on the sugar & gluten brain fog). I’m just glad I am more intentional NOW.

In 2010, I had a lot of hip pain (sciatica) and plantar fasciitis. I started seeing a chiropractor, Dr. Tony Hyser, at Providence Health Center. I immediately knew I was “home”. He had a “let’s try natural first” approach to healing, and his incorporation of food & exercise for total health made sense to me. His healthy living classes/seminars were captivating, and I was taking it all in, stirring up all those organic interests I had years before! My little organic light was beginning to shine again.  My hip and foot were feeling so much better (pain is completely gone now) and I was renewing all my old healthy interests. It felt great, there were changes happening, but I was not making huge changes with my food (remember …. j o u r n e y ...) Then it happened.

The event was a contest in spring of 2011. (Yes, a freaking fitness contest! NO, I had never entered a fitness contest before in my entire life!) My husband’s boss at that time created a fitness contest at work (called Best Bod Now) and invited the spouses to participate.  Staff were required to enter,  spouses were voluntary. The incentive was a trip to Aruba and that was enough motivation for me! I went after it full force! We could choose our own diet and our own exercise plan, but we were supposed to log our food and activities into a website journal every day.  I had discussions with my doctor about the “healing diet”, which was essentially a grain and sugar-free diet. I had seen others in his practice achieve great results. He also suggested a raw vegan plan for the first three weeks of the diet, just to drop noticeable weight very quickly (remember, it was a contest!),  so that’s what we did.  Three weeks of raw vegan cleanse, which was literally raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds ONLY, for three weeks.  After the three-weeks, we switched to the Maximized Living Advanced Eating Plan/Healing Diet: sugar and grain free diet, which also limits root/starchy vegetables,  high sugar fruit, and beans.  It encourages organic veg and grass-fed meats. We continued with that diet for the last nine weeks of the contest. During the process, I realized the importance of food journaling. I can’t explain how, but it motivates healthier choices.  I also started the MaxT3 burst training exercise DVD, 6 times per week. We lost about 20 pounds of fat (we gained muscle) each, and although we did not win the contest, we won a whole new life!

After the 12 weeks were over, we just kept going and haven’t stopped since, with a few adjustments for our family. I became so passionate about what we were doing, I wasn’t about to stop! I had NEVER ever been on a “diet” before, and considered this to be a LIFESTYLE change, not a diet. I knew I could keep doing this. We could keep doing this. We had gotten through the (seriously) hardest part, the “hump” of detoxing. And once you get through THAT, it’s so much better on the other side.  I hated cooking before, like literally hated to cook. I could do it, but never enjoyed it. Again, I cannot fully explain why, but once I started learning how to cook truly healthy foods that my family loved, it made me start to love the whole cooking idea! This grain and sugar-free world was brand new to me. No one in our family had food allergies or any health crisis. We were just “coasting along”, gaining the “normal” 40-year-old weight, feeling the “normal” aches and pains of aging. Slowly killing ourselves without even realizing it! Not long after implementing some changes, the way I started feeling and the “things” that were happening to my body were noticeable and exciting!  I started a list of improvements, things I didn’t even know were “wrong” with me before. I thought those (old) things were normal! OH, how wrong I was! My eyes were opening to this new world. It was so thrilling, and I had to share what I was experiencing! I was so encouraged with the results I was getting, by cutting sugar & grains and enjoying exercising for the first time ever. I started to tweet about it as @organiceater. Shortly after that I created the Organic Eater Facebook page, and then the blog.

And here I am today. Applying and implementing the knowledge. Creating the life I know is right for me & my family,  and encouraging you towards health too. I know if I can do this, so can you. Remember, I hated to cook and grew up eating fast food like everyone else.

But this process has changed me, it is changing me. And the “improvements” in my life make it easy to keep doing this. I WANT to do this, and the “sacrifices” are well worth it. The benefits far outweigh those sacrifices.  I think all the elements (food, exercise, sleep, chiropractic, spiritual, environmental) all work in synergy and are ALL important, and ALL contribute in some way to the following list.  Although, I do believe food is probably the main key to these changes.  Here are some of the reasons I’ll never go back to my old ways:

Related articles

see my page My Sugar and Grain Free LIfe for more explanation on the details of what I eat and why, specifically the links to explain my mostly-grain-free-life choices.

• Why You Should Eat Leafy Greens (marksdailyapple.com)
• read about my friend’s similar food discoveries at HomeCookedHealthy.com
• read about Vanessa’s journey at Healthy Living How To
• you can contact Dr. Tony Hyser  if you’re interested in the Nutrition Plan, Max T3 DVD, or other health related issues. You can attend the health seminars even if you’re not a patient.