Wednesday, April 21, 2010

You want me to eat what?


Food is a serious issue around our house. We love it! We live to eat all the way. We love bacon and sausage and pancakes and roast and fried chicken…you get the point. Southern comfort food is a must! Saturated fat is a food group in our home. But that is changing…

Nate recently had to undergo some testing due to some liver issues. There was a little blood work, an ultrasound, and ultimately a biopsy. The diagnosis was on the better end of liver problems. Best-case scenario was nothing…next best case was fatty liver. And that is where we landed. Medically speaking it is steatohepatitis. Basically, fat has accumulated around his liver and caused inflammation. His doctor has prescribed prednisone, but I have prescribed a diet overhaul. Apparently, fatty liver disease is becoming pretty prevalent due to the rise in obesity and diabetes. One site I found even referred to it as a “rich country disease.” Apparently, our food group of saturated fat hasn’t been pairing too well with Nate’s liver.

So, with the power of food in my hands at home, I am off on a mission. In our seven years together, we have had small journeys of eating healthier. Usually those journeys are short-lived as he longs for something greasy and I long for something sugary. His health is serious though. He has too many things going against him not to get healthy…and I could lose a few lot of pounds, too.

I know the best way to do this is Clean Eating. If you haven’t heard about it you can check it out HERE. I did this about six months after having Lily to lose weight...until J.J. decided to make his presence known and I quit. The general idea is to eat foods that are as whole and natural as possible. Processed foods are horrible for our bodies and one of the main reasons our country is suffering so much with nutritional and health issues. (I know lots and lots about nutrition and fitness and yet put none of it into action.)

So anyways, Nate is completely aware that I’ve been working on new menu plans and trying to find a plan for his new healthy liver! I’m a planner and when I start planning…it’s all about business. So, I get my stuff together and I’m somewhat ready for my grocery trip. Let me repeat, Nate is completely aware that I’m going towards a whole foods eating plan. We discussed this while I spent two hours on the couch Monday night making meal plans. We did discuss gradually easing into the plan. For example, really focusing on drinking only water. (Which I’ve been doing for about one or two weeks now.)

So, how we both found ourselves in complete and utter shock when he met me at the grocery store yesterday I will never know. He arrived and I was pretty much finished with my shopping at Food City with a cart full of fresh fruits and vegetables. This was good stuff and I was pumped! He looks at me with this glazed look and said, “I thought we were going to ease into this?” And I say, “We are. We’re not completely clean eating.” So, he requests for my meal plan. “Well, it looks like we’re completely clean eating to me.” And then I say, “I told you I was working on a plan and this is just preparing us. You sat there for TWO hours while I talked with about meals that would be OK with you.” So, he’s just bumfuzzled. “So, what part of this is not clean?” My reply (snicker, snicker), “Well, I’m not buying bee pollen and we’re not doing natural nut butters, yet.”

So, I admit it. I have a plan and my test subject is not being compliant. Apparently, he declares he has a food allergy to whole foods. So, after a day of good clean eating meals and snacks, he gets some meatball subs for dinner to make him feel more like he's easing into it. (BTW- 44% DV of saturated fat...makes me SICK! Food labels should definitely be a MUST in all food facilities.)


And besides, when have I ever eased in to anything? Remember…?

7 comments:

Tony C said...

Yep...you're definitely a plunge into the deep end kinda girl. I'm sure Nate is fully aware of that fact.

Clean eating sounds...well...expensive. But what is your health worth? We flush billions of dollars a year down toilets in supplements excreted because our bodies can't absorb them then complain about an organic apple costing a dollar. Makes no sense.

I'm sure your minds made up and you've counted to ten...better settle in for the long haul Nate.

Tracy said...

I've got one thing to say about the scene at the grocery store - he's a man.

I'm not saying this in a disrespectful way. Men are wonderful, my man is a blessing from God. But, the scenario of discussing something at length and then the man acting like - what??? It's all too familiar to most women.

Covnitkepr1 said...

Ladies, Ladies...you have to remember that we men have very thick skulls,lol
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Bob West said...

I enjoyed visiting your blog! Very inspiring
Hopefully you will appreciate mine also
God Bless, Bob West
http://westbob.blogspot.com/2010/04/line-upon-line.html

Mike said...

I've always been in good physical condition. Since my wife began transitioning our home to organics (and we even bought real chickens and built a chicken coop...that's how serious it is...but I digress) I've felt a lot better than when we were eating the regular store-bought food.

Kudos to you. Keep up the good fight. Your body is a temple!

nate said...

Well, to defend myself a bit, I was not totally against clean eating. I was just wanting to ease into it a little more slowly. True, Shell said we would not be doing this immediately, but what she really meant was you can eat "your" food until it runs out. I told her lets do one thing at a time, her response, "oh dont worry, we are not starting this tommorow." Why? because we still had food left. Now at the grocery store I was expecting to see the normal food with a couple of healthy replacements and some new things to try out. What I saw was a buggy full of ground turkey, chicken, vegetables, and fruit. No ground beef for taco's, no chips, no hotdogs. What the heck is all of this. See tricked me into agreeing to try this. Now I will agree that I need to eat better, but come on, no ground beef. Who does that?? I repeat, I am not a rabbit. Give me some meat and potatoes please. No seriously, I love my wife and she tries to take care of me the best she can. I am a hard test subject apparently.

Solid Rock or Sinking Sand said...

Thanks for such an interesting blog. God bless, Lloyd