I finally cracked the 110kg barrier! Weight this morning: 109.9! Waaahooo! And, due to one simple diet change, my skin is sooooo much better! I exercised for 30 mins 4 times in the week, and didn't eat anything terrible, though I did enjoy a few treats.
As for my skin - I now wish I had before-and-after pics for this past week - the changes are so profound as to be almost unbelievable! So let me describe what my skin looked like a week ago: bright red patches on top of nose, forehead, cheek and chin. Full blown acne on right cheek and chin, spots everywhere else. Masses of dry, flaky scales. Basically it looked and felt like my face was falling off! I've never had skin so bad, and it was just getting worse and worse week to week. :-(
So, last Tuesday morning I was going for my walk and pondering my skin. Then I recalled an article I had read the day before about gluten and autoimmune disease - most of it was what I already know; those of us with autoimmune disease should avoid gluten as gluten proteins are very similar to the proteins found in various parts of the body but particularly the thyroid, so consumption of gluten can trigger autoimmune attack on the thyroid. What I didn't know was that casein proteins in milk are also strikingly similar - and can trigger the same inflammation. Knowing my dairy consumption has definitely increased since going gluten and sugar free, I figured a few days trial couldn't hurt - so from Tuesday I went dairy free.
Now, knowing it takes 8 weeks for the skin to fully renew itself, I wasn't expecting to wake up the next morning with perfectly clear skin, but I did expect to notice at least a reduction in inflammation over the week if I was on the right track. By day 2 it was obvious that there was a difference. By day 5 I could hardly believe the change! Now, only 6 days later, I am truly amazed! No more bright red patches. Still a bit of dry skin on the bride of my nose, but NOTHING like it has been. No more severe acne. A few small spots, but they are rapidly disappearing too. And no more itching. My wrist isn't hurting either. :-)
So, I guess from here on out, at least for the next few months, I will be gluten free and sugar free AND dairy free. Oh well, on the plus side, that means I can get my head around more cooking ideas to help my eldest who is dairy and gluten free but struggling for ideas (he doesn't live at home).
Right. Next goal: under 100 kg by the end of the year!
As for my skin - I now wish I had before-and-after pics for this past week - the changes are so profound as to be almost unbelievable! So let me describe what my skin looked like a week ago: bright red patches on top of nose, forehead, cheek and chin. Full blown acne on right cheek and chin, spots everywhere else. Masses of dry, flaky scales. Basically it looked and felt like my face was falling off! I've never had skin so bad, and it was just getting worse and worse week to week. :-(
So, last Tuesday morning I was going for my walk and pondering my skin. Then I recalled an article I had read the day before about gluten and autoimmune disease - most of it was what I already know; those of us with autoimmune disease should avoid gluten as gluten proteins are very similar to the proteins found in various parts of the body but particularly the thyroid, so consumption of gluten can trigger autoimmune attack on the thyroid. What I didn't know was that casein proteins in milk are also strikingly similar - and can trigger the same inflammation. Knowing my dairy consumption has definitely increased since going gluten and sugar free, I figured a few days trial couldn't hurt - so from Tuesday I went dairy free.
Now, knowing it takes 8 weeks for the skin to fully renew itself, I wasn't expecting to wake up the next morning with perfectly clear skin, but I did expect to notice at least a reduction in inflammation over the week if I was on the right track. By day 2 it was obvious that there was a difference. By day 5 I could hardly believe the change! Now, only 6 days later, I am truly amazed! No more bright red patches. Still a bit of dry skin on the bride of my nose, but NOTHING like it has been. No more severe acne. A few small spots, but they are rapidly disappearing too. And no more itching. My wrist isn't hurting either. :-)
So, I guess from here on out, at least for the next few months, I will be gluten free and sugar free AND dairy free. Oh well, on the plus side, that means I can get my head around more cooking ideas to help my eldest who is dairy and gluten free but struggling for ideas (he doesn't live at home).
Right. Next goal: under 100 kg by the end of the year!