Wheat Belly Wednesday - {1}

It's Wheat Belly Wednesday - Edition 1!

The Background

I started my weight loss journey last April after a year long battle with various illnesses. In the beginning I counted calories and was doing Jillian Michael's Body Revolution. Pounds and inches were falling off and I was addicted to my new lifestyle. By the end of summer, and shortly after completing JMBR, I hit a plateau. Now, I'm no stranger to weight loss. I'd lost roughly 50 pounds before I got pregnant with my son. It was easy then and I never experienced a true plateau that time around.

September came and I was completely frustrated with the scale. I struggled to stay motivated when I wasn't seeing the results. October rolled around and I, once again, was hit with illnesses that I just could not break. On top of being sick, my body has been hurting daily. I started experiencing constant fatigue no matter how many hours of sleep I got. Plus a host of other symptoms. It was clear that I was in another Lupus flare up. You can read my Lupus diagnosis story HERE.

Until the past 18 months, I've been very fortunate with my Lupus. For about a 5 year period, I had virtually no symptoms. It was a great time and made it very easy to put myself in a state of denial about my health. I managed to get through Fit 4 Christmas in a fairly healthy state and started to see results again. My motivation was back and I was ready to kick things into high gear. By January, I got a bad case of bronchitis and a chronic sinus infection. I was put on steroids and a host of other antibiotics. Steroids always make me balloon up and I felt so defeated. The combination of medications, no workouts, and a poor attitude, I almost completely gave up my healthy lifestyle. The scale has been creeping up every since and I've struggled to get my mind in the right place.

With my Lupus being more "active" as of late, the doctors recommended I get back in with a Rheumatologist and begin a treatment plan. Lupus is not curable. All they can do is try and help the symptoms themselves. Which is fine and dandy, but it has awful side effects. One of which is weight gain. I'm just not ready to take that step. 

Before taking drastic steps, I wanted to see what I could do for myself to help my immune system and the pain. Some Google searching lead me to some theories that a grain free diet is helpful in some cases of Lupus sufferers.

Enter Wheat Belly

I have read about Wheat Belly many times - mainly from Gwen over at Against the Grain. If you haven't checked her blog out, you really should. Gwen has lost over 60 pounds and looks amazing. I am constantly amazed by her self control and determination. She has embraced the Primal life and has seen awesome health benefits from doing so.

About 3 weeks ago, I decided to go grain free to see if it will help my health problems. I did some research online, but not enough. I have struggled to jump in, both feet. To fully embrace something, I need to understand it completely. Not just "stop eating wheat and I'll feel better". But to understand the hows and whys behind it. So, I bit the bullet and ordered the book. 

I'm not far into it (but plan to finish over the weekend) and I'm already blown away by the facts. It all makes sense and I hope that it will continue to pull me in and change my life. I'm starting a Beachbody Challenge (hybrid, as I'm changing a few things) on Monday, so I'm going completely grain free starting Monday. This will give me time to finish the book and feel ready to get to it.

I'll be sharing my journey every Wednesday on the blog. It's an "experiment" in many ways. I don't know if it will help my Lupus, but time will tell!