Food and Personal Goals of the Month - July 2010

It's July...FINALLY.  I've been waiting for July since April :P  When I found out our last IVF cycle failed...and that we could try again...in July!  Oddly enough this IVF cycle will be almost identical timing to our cycle with Rebecca 3 years ago.  Just a few weeks difference.  Funny how God works things out like that, no matter how much we try to plan and control things.  So, this month my focus...fertility!  I will shift from gut to reproductive health.  And I'll be a bit more strict.  I want to do everything I can to increase our chances.  And beyond that it's in God's hands.  Our 2 month break was nice, but I'm ready to get going now.

To kick off this new start/new cycle I'm giving my blog a little update.  Sometimes it's nice to have a fresh look.

Over the last 2 months I've made a lot of changes and have had some pretty ambitious goals.  This month will be more about maintaining and really being strict about eating well and implementing what I've learned.  There will be a few new things as usual.  I'm always learning something new.  But for the most part it's sticking to what I've learned so far.

Since my focus this month is on fertility I'll start there.

FOOD

Fertility
1. Eat plenty of full fat dairy.

2. Eat plenty of animal products/fats - butter, eggs, meat, cheese, organ meats - try our beef liver this month.

3. Eat more seafood - This one is critical.  I'm hoping to stock up tomorrow on good seafood.  And then eat a lot of it in the coming months.

4. Cod liver oil - This is a new one that goes along with the seafood.  I've gone back and forth about trying cod liver oil over the last couple months.  But I think I'm going to give it a try.  In small amounts.  It's a food, not a supplement.  So it's kind of like eating fish...without actually eating the meat.  We'll see how it goes.  I have to get some first :)

5. Eat more veggies, less fruit.

6. Eat plenty of lentils, nuts and beans.

7. Use unrefined sea salt each day.

8. Use natural vitamins.

9. Eat bone broth.

10. Naturally Knocked Up eCourse - This isn't just about food, but it's definitely about fertility.  I can't wait to learn even more about natural fertility and health.  The course starts July 12.  Can't wait!

11. Flax seed - I still have to research more on this.  Not sure if I should stop using it or not.  At the very least I'll probably cut down.  Not that I use much now (maybe 1 Tbsp. a day?), but it still couldn't hurt to cut down a little.

12. Exercise - Now that we're a week away from the start of stimulation it's probably time to cut back on exercise again.  I need my body fully fueled to grow good eggs so I want to be sure I'm not overtaxing my body.
 
Gut
Not much new in terms of gut health this month since my focus is more on reproductive health.  But I'll still be doing what I've started the last couple months.  I have been doing quite a bit of research on gut health.  And I have come across a few "diets" that sound really promising.  They are all very similar with a few minor differences.  So I'll look into all 3.  At this point I can't try them...not during IVF or pregnancy.  It will have to wait.  But I am excited to find such good information and hope.  The diet I'll probably go with is the GAPS diet (Gut and Psychology Syndrome).  I know my psychological issues are the main component of my digestive issues.  And this addresses them both.  The other two are the SCD (specific carbohydrate diet) and the Maker's Diet.  For now I'll still research and see what components I can incorporate right now.  But it will be a while before I try it for real.
 
1. Continue taking a probiotic.

2. Eat cultured dairy daily (i.e. yogurt, kefir) - I will try to eat kefir every day since it has a lot more good bacteria than yogurt.  Over the past week I've gotten into the habit of making kefir daily...a small amount so I can eat some that day and not have much left over.  That way I don't waste milk, and the kefir gets a lot thicker when I make small batches (with the size of my grains so far).

3. Eat fermented foods and drinks daily.

4. Reduce sugar as much as possible (sugar feeds bad bacteria) - I'm going to try to be even more strict about this right now since sugar plays a role in fertility.

5. Don't overdo on grains - what I do eat must be whole grain that is soaked, sprouted or sourdough.

6. Nothing refined, no chemicals, preservatives, nothing synthetic, etc. - only real food.

7. Eat bone broth.

Misc.
There are some other misc. food things for this month.  Mostly related to my continued healing/healthy living process.

1. No microwave - I keep reading more and more information about the dangers of using a microwave and how it alters the actual content of your food.  So my goal is to use our microwave as little as possible...in hopes of someday not using it at all.  I have already started doing this.  Now at lunch instead of warming up food for Rebecca and me in the microwave I do it on the stove.  That is the main time I use the microwave, so that's already a big step.  I will keep looking for alternatives to microwave cooking.

2. No oven - This has nothing to do with health.  I just need to work on planning meals that don't require the oven.  So far this has been a hot summer.  And with no AC the house heats up quickly.

3. Research/replace pots and pans - I've been reading lately about how much your cookware can impact your health.  I know we have some of the toxic stuff.  I'd like to keep researching and eventually replace our cookware/bakeware.  But it's expensive.  So we'll see how it goes.  For some good info check out this blog post.
4. Cast Iron Skillet - Since I'm trying to use better cookware I should be using the good stuff I do have.  I got a cast iron skillet for Christmas...and haven't used it yet!!  So I need to get to work ASAP seasoning it and trying it out!

5. Carob - I just posted a recipe for carob chips and talked about how much better for you carob is than cocoa.  So I'm going to keep experimenting with carob.  It's a great alternative for me, especially right now.

6. Food preservations - It's summer...and the fresh produce is here!  As always I'll be busy canning, freezing, drying, etc.  Blueberries are starting to come in.  Peaches are almost ready.  And it looks like our beans will be on the way very soon.  Plus so much more.  This will keep me very busy.  With everything else going on this month I hope I can keep up and still get our pantry and freezer stocked.

7. Pickling Lime - I continue to try to prepare healthy grains via soaking, sprouting, etc.  I want to try it with cornmeal (we love cornbread!!  And it's a great way to try out my cast iron skillet.).  But to do so I need pickling lime.  So I need to find some.  And then try it out :)

8. Long term goals - My long term goals still remain: stop using miralax, overcome OCD, have a successful IVF cycle/pregnancy.

9. Continue all of the healthy food prep and shopping - sprouting grains, sprouting beans, sourdough, fermenting, cultured dairy, bone broth, seafood, liver, homemade food, co-op, farmer's market.
COST REDUCTION

Financial goals are still about the same as well.

1. Continue recording spending and sales.

2. Food budget - I think I'll go with $150/week during peak produce season.

3. Continue to plan meals based on sales/what we have on hand and on what's in season and doesn't need to be cooked in the oven
4. Continue to make as much food as possible from scratch.
5. 2nd hand shopping - when the need arises.
6. Simplify - continue to minimize where possible.

MISC.

Those are all of the main goals.  Most of it is just maintenance.  I'm trying to focus as much as possible on being healthy and having a successful IVF cycle.  I have to give it my all these next few weeks and put it in God's hands.  Aside from that I'll keep trying to focus on family and living life, spending lots of quality with Justin and Rebecca.  We had a wonderful day at Michigan's Adventure yesterday.  We are going to a Whitecaps game on Sunday.  And we'll be celebrating Independence Day on Monday with the usual craft/art fair, parade, grilling and fireworks.  At the end of the month Justin and I will be celebrating our 7th anniversary.  I feel so blessed to have spent the last 7 years married to such an amazing man.  And look forward to many years to come.  Due to IVF timing we won't be able to go out on our anniversary.  But hopefully we can find a special way to celebrate at some point.

July will be an exciting, crazy month for sure!  I am so excited to see what God has in store.  He is faithful and will guide us through this.  To God be the glory!