..Awareness Month

May is Celiac Awareness Month!

As well as Better Sleep, Melanoma, Colitis, and Better Posture, Clean Air, Better Hearing and Speech Awareness Month.

I feel like it is safe to say it is practically National Kristen Awareness Month. In my very short stint at life. VERY SHORT mind you I have either dealt with or had a healthy fear off all of these ailments. You see, I have this nice alabaster skin that is fondly referred to as "Dang girl you're WHITE!" Yes, I certainly check the white Anglo Saxon on my, 'Who are you?' form. However, I am certain I also hit a new kinda' pale. I'm sure I should have had red hair or possibly been deemed an albino. However, that Awareness Month is September and since I don't clinically have this condition I will in no way belittle this condition with humor. I am a pale princess with little to no hope of every having a sun kissed demeanor. However, I also have a higher risk of getting Melanoma because of my inability to tan and over ability to burn. I, as well, have the social stigma of being so pale that half of the free Nation of America would like to inform me that I may need to spend a few more moments in the sun as to not blind the other half of our free nation. Thank you kindly, but if I hate being made fun of for being white I assure you I hate Melanoma more.

My parents, whom I love dearly, have also given me the gift of gab, which we will refer to as speech this month, because that proves my point perfectly. I will make it a point to increase my hearing awareness and move on. Clean air is certainly a cause I concern myself with on a daily basis. As I run along many a road and fear sucking in exhaust will completely undo any positive health benefits I am trying to gain from running. Better sleep awareness is a cause any mother can hang her hat. And I wish it could just be better sleep awareness year, as a sound machine, fan, Posturepedic foam mattress, sleep number pillow, light blocking shades and Sleepy Time Tea isn't enough to give me good sleep when my two year old comes crawling into my bed to do sleep jumping jacks. Thank you Lord for my son, please send better sleep my way this month.

Better posture when you are a personal trainer is always a must, for if you slouch for one moment I assure you it will be noticed, photographed and brought to your attention on a moment to moment basis. Chest out! Gut in! Shoulders rolled down and back! Don't forget to breathe....

And yet all of this brings me back to Celiac Awareness month. My parents, have I mentioned how much I love them? Well they have given me a lot of kickin' traits! My screaming hysterical personality, my ability to make friends in socially awkward situations, my ridiculously awesome work ethic and what I mean by that is my ability to find that life is too much work! They have also bequeathed on me the worlds worst digestive track! I am not kidding! I can eat nothing short of ANYTHING without feeling like the weight of the world is reigning down on my intestines. We will keep this out of the TMI region and allow you to know that food although tasty is no longer my love. Gluten makes me crazy, and what I mean by that is when I eat it in any levels I lose my eye sight, become dizzy to the point of stumbling down stairs and slur my speech. I realize some of you are thinking. I'm sure she has a drinking problem. Well, that was last month's awareness and that is also not the case. I spent too many days trying with all of my might to remedy these ailments with ANYTHING but a gluten free diet. I was certain my naturopath was off of her rocker. The tests that I spent entirely too much money on were bunk and maybe just maybe these symptoms were all in my head....no pun intended.

Well.....

Here I stand. Actually I am sitting. Typing while standing, although a calorie burner and posture improver....wait, okay now I'm standing! Where was I? Here I stand gluten free and hating it! Seriously! I live in Portland Oregon! Please don't stalk me. I'm definitely not stalk worthy. This is the meca for gluten free....recycling, cycling, Birkenstocks (yes, they still make those), dairy free, deodorant free, chemical free, and a free loving life. And yet I am in the midst of crazy!

GLUTEN FREE SHOULDN'T BE A FAD DIET!

Let's be clear. Gluten free is not a "diet." Seriously! I am a personal trainer so when people hear I am gluten free their immediate response is, "Sweet! I am doing that diet too!" Twenty years ago gluten free may have been a killer diet. Now you can find gluten free cookies, cakes, brownies, breads, waffles, crackers and pasta. I know, I have searched them out. And the real clincher that gluten free isn't a diet is that ALL of these foods have more fat and sugar to make them tasty than their cheaper sister foods! I do not recommend jumping on the gluten free band wagon unless you have Celiac or a true gluten intolerace. You should also note that....

GLUTEN IS NOT THE CAUSE FOR ALL OF OUR PROBLEMS.

I've heard more than a few times that gluten is the reason for all of our diseases, ailments and itises. Okay, lets be honest with each other. While some people are physically not able to eat gluten without serious ailments. Others should not eradicate an entire food supply because they fear it will destroy them. However, I think what you will find is eating too much chemical, sugar and fat filled foods is the reason for all of our problems. Gluten is a binder and yes it binds to our intestines and does some not so cool stuff but if 90% of our diet was veggies, legumes, multiple grains and lean proteins (also not the reason for ALL of our illnesses) we would have a much better internal self. I promise. Here's the problem.

Let me paint you a picture....

American Diet:
Breakfast - Diet high fiber, boxed cereal and 3/4 cup milk, 3 cups of coffee with non-dairy creamer (Because you know, you are trying to cut down on dairy, right.)
Snack - Granola Bar
Lunch - Turkey Sandwich with cheese, mayo, and mustard. Diet Coke (Sugar is bad for us and yet chemicals aren't????)
Snack - Light Yogurt with dried cranberries (I hear they are full of antioxidants.) and a Handful of Pretzels (They are fat free right?), Diet Coke
Dinner - Spaghetti with Meat Sauce, bread and butter (Heck I'll have two pieces), Diet Coke with a lemon.
Snack - Potato Chips (While watching our favorite shows. Holy CRAP! I just ate the whole bag!!!!!

Although nothing inherently terrible about this diet, right? WRONG! It is filled with sugar, chemicals and fat! The very little vegetables and fruit found in this diet are processed and sugar coated. Yes, you will find a plethora of gluten, but I would argue it is the combination of many bad for your choices that will ultimately be the downfall of the American internal infrastructure!

What the American Diet Should Be Closer To:
Breakfast: 1/2 cup Oatmeal, 1 TB raisins, Cinnamon, and 1 Organic Hard Boiled Egg
Snack: 1 Sliced Bell Pepper, 1/2 Cup Carrots, 1 TB Peanut Butter
Lunch: 3 Cups Spinach, 1/2 Cucumber, 1/2 Cup Kidney Beans, 1 Sliced Green Onion, 1 TB Avocado, 1 Sliced Beet (Yes, people still eat these.), 2 TB Vinaigrette (1 TB Olive Oil, 1 TB Red Wine Vinegar, Salt and Pepper to taste)
Snack: 1/2 Large Apple and 1 TB Almond Butter
Dinner: 1 Chicken Breast, 1 1/2 Cup Broccoli, 1/2 Sweet Potato with Salt to taste.

*This diet is a general recommendation for incorporating whole foods into your life and should not be followed without the recommendation of you doctor or health care provider.

~Thanks! Kristen

liveinspiredpdx.com

Find Your Voice

Finding your voice is never easy. Some of us have found it and then through loose clenched fists, it slipped away. Others, fearful of finding what it has to say, refuse to acknowledge it is there. Some find it hard to hear over the droning of this world. And those who have found it and seemed to have held tight, may have found themselves using it as a weapon instead of a tool.

As a young child I remember being afraid to speak. I remember not wanting to make my own choices. I wanted others to speak for me and make my own decisions. I was okay with following a path on the map to my future. Making decisions was scary. Thinking on my own and allowing others to hear what on the inside was paralyzing.  However, when I found a voice I was unable to control it. Speaking loudly allowed me to get a point across. What point, I wasn't quite sure. All I knew is I wanted to be heard. My voice was left unchecked and unfiltered. Honesty cloaked by sarcasm became a weapon to protect me. Loud and funny became my shield. And sadly, my true voice lie quiet, hoping for a debut some day. I found myself allowing others to walk my walk and lead me where they felt "my journey" was destined. I stuck up of for myself, never. And found "no" was a five letter word with the last three letters silent. And yet I became others' voice in the darkness. However, what I didn't realize was, that instead of allowing them to find their own voice I merely became their vehicle of change without allowing them the joy of finding their own symphony.

Don't get me wrong, being the verbal hero to those who are lost and quiet is a valiant and noble venture. However, shielding the hurts often times robs someone of the joy of standing firmly on their own two feet, announcing who they are in this crazy, loud and chaotic world.

At 33, I feel like I am finding who I am. Some areas I don't like and others, that I have fervently tried to change, I realize I like quite nicely. I have begun to allow myself to see that although I may not walk the journey set out for me at a young age by others; I will walk and sometimes run the path I have forged for myself. Someone once said, (Thank you Ross Matthews)"Learning who you aren't is just as important as learning who you are."

I have found my voice. I may be loud and unfiltered at times. I may say things you don't want to hear. My loud and energetic may clash with your quiet and serene. Sadly, I may (WILL) sing out of tune or in the wrong key. However, I have found what is important in this confusing world. I found me.

My hope for you in this world where others will assure you, they know what you need and should want, that you find your voice. High pitched, squeaky, perfectly in time, gargling gravel, rough, too big, too little, too loud or too quiet. I hope you find it and you realize, it's just right.

~Kristen
liveinspiredpdx.com