Living the Experience

By now, I'm sure you've all caught up on my story...diagnosed with Stage 4 Breast Cancer, last year....living every moment of my life trying to outsmart the Grim Reaper. So, far....it's working!! Yay!!

I thought it might be fun to share one of my recipes with you! I chose this one, because I'm totally addicted to Asian cuisine...and can't eat it anymore, because of the soy. Boo!! My sister actually came up with this idea, and it works sooooo well! LOL!!

Enjoy this recipe for "Garlic and Ginger Infused Fried Rice"....(I don't use measurements....the ginger and garlic are "to taste".)

Frozen Mixed Veggies

 

 

Long-grain Brown Rice

 

 

 

 

Minced Garlic

 

 

 

Ground Ginger

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cage-Free Eggs

 

 

 

Ok, here's what you do....

 

 

First, you scramble a couple of eggs, and set them aside. Then you cook the rice, and heat up the frozen veggies (drain off the water, when they're fully heated). After they're done, you put everything in a frying pan; add the ginger and garlic (to taste), and heat through, in some extra virgin olive oil (I don't measure that, either!).

 

 

 

 

This tastes exactly like take-out!! And, is a very versatile recipe...you can make it with any veggie combo you like!

 

Always try to use non-GMO ingredients...and always, always use organic! Cage-free eggs are the best...currently, I'm on the lookout for grass fed/grass finished eggs, and will let you know, when I find them!

 

Let me know what you think, after you've given this a taste test!

 

 

 

Clean Eating to Fight Cancer

I thought I'd spend a little time explaining why I've chosen to become a flexitarian, and eat clean, now.

As soon as the diagnosis of Stage IV Breast Cancer had set in, I began to reasearch natural ways to fight it off...I wasn't too keen, in the beginning, about going through Chemo! To be honest with you...I'm still not fond of the idea! But, there are TONS to sites out there, devoted to natural healing...here's what I have discovered:

No disease, illness, virus, etc. can live in a body that is pH balanced!

That's right! If your body is too acidic, you're at risk for developing all sorts of health concerns....diabetes, the flu, cancer, fibromyalgia, etc. Only when your body's pH is balanced, will you be in perfect health. So, I dug a little deeper to find out what foods are acid forming, and which ones were alkaline forming.

Anything we would consider "junk food" is acid forming. It's not even in it's natural state, and depleted of all, or most, of it's nutrient value. The term "junk food" was coined over 30 years ago, and consists of foods made by these guys, and their competitors:

Any and all candies, chips, colas, snack cakes, desserts, etc. are also junk foods, and acid forming to the body.

However, I did discover that there are some healthy foods that are acid forming...but you shouldn't do away with them. Most of these foods have beneficial nutrients:


ACIDIFYING VEGETABLES
Corn
Lentils
Olives
Winter Squash

ACIDIFYING FRUITS
Blueberries
Canned or Glazed Fruits
Cranberries
Currants
Plums
Prunes

ACIDIFYING GRAINS, GRAIN PRODUCTS
Amaranth
Barley
Bran, oat
Bran, wheat
Bread
Corn
Cornstarch
Crackers, soda
Flour, wheat
Flour, white
Hemp Seed Flour
Kamut
Macaroni
Noodles
Oatmeal
Oats (rolled)
Quinoa
Rice (all)
Rice Cakes
Rye
Spaghetti
Spelt
Wheat Germ
Wheat

ACIDIFYING BEANS & LEGUMES
Almond Milk
Black Beans
Chick Peas
Green Peas
Kidney Beans
Lentils
Pinto Beans
Red Beans
Rice Milk
Soy Beans
Soy Milk
White Beans

ACIDIFYING DAIRY
Butter
Cheese
Cheese, Processed
Ice Cream
Ice Milk

ACIDIFYING NUTS & BUTTERS
Cashews
Legumes
Peanut Butter
Peanuts
Pecans
Tahini
Walnuts

ACIDIFYING ANIMAL PROTEIN
Bacon
Beef
Carp
Clams
Cod
Corned Beef
Fish
Haddock
Lamb
Lobster
Mussels
Organ Meats
Oyster
Pike
Pork
Rabbit
Salmon
Sardines
Sausage
Scallops
Shellfish
Shrimp
Tuna
Turkey
Veal
Venison

ACIDIFYING FATS & OILS
Avacado Oil
Butter
Canola Oil
Corn Oil
Flax Oil
Hemp Seed Oil
Lard
Olive Oil
Safflower Oil
Sesame Oil
Sunflower Oil


Other foods and, products we consume, that are not-so-good for us are also acid forming:

ACIDIFYING SWEETENERS
Carob
Corn Syrup
Sugar

ACIDIFYING ALCOHOL
Beer
Hard Liquor
Spirits
Wine

ACIDIFYING OTHER FOODS
Catsup
Cocoa
Coffee
Mustard
Pepper
Soft Drinks
Vinegar

ACIDIFYING DRUGS & CHEMICALS
Aspirin
Chemicals
Drugs, Medicinal
Drugs, Psychedelic
Herbicides
Pesticides
Tobacco

ACIDIFYING JUNK FOOD
Beer: pH 2.5
Coca-Cola: pH 2
Coffee: pH 4

Any and all medications we take, whether they are over-the-counter or prescriptions, are acid forming. In order that our bodies are pH balanced, we need to be consuming more alkaline forming foods, than we do acid forming foods.

Did you notice something, though? Pesticides and herbicides are also acid forming to your body....who, in there right mind, would EAT pesticides or hebicides???

We do....the consumer. Every time you purchase fruits and veggies that are not organic, you risk eating something Monsanto has genetically engineered/modified; which means it probably has pesticides or herbicides in it. Even if it's original purpose was to be alkaline forming...becoming a GMO alters it's purpose.

Here is the list of alkaline forming foods....

ALKALIZING VEGETABLESAlfalfa
Barley Grass
Beet Greens
Beets
Broccoli
Cabbage
Carrot
Cauliflower
Celery
Chard Greens
Chlorella
Collard Greens
Cucumber
Dandelions
Dulce
Edible Flowers
Eggplant
Fermented Veggies
Garlic
Green Beans
Green Peas
Kale
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Mushrooms
Mustard Greens
Nightshade Veggies
Onions
Parsnips (high glycemic)
Peas
Peppers
Pumpkin
Radishes
Rutabaga
Sea Veggies
Spinach, green
Spirulina
Sprouts
Sweet Potatoes
Tomatoes
Watercress
Wheat Grass
Wild Greens

ALKALIZING ORIENTAL VEGETABLES
Daikon
Dandelion Root
Kombu
Maitake
Nori
Reishi
Shitake
Umeboshi
Wakame

ALKALIZING FRUITS
Apple
Apricot
Avocado
Banana (high glycemic)
Berries
Blackberries
Cantaloupe
Cherries, sour
Coconut, fresh
Currants
Dates, dried
Figs, dried
Grapes
Grapefruit
Honeydew Melon
Lemon
Lime
Muskmelons
Nectarine
Orange
Peach
Pear
Pineapple
Raisins
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Strawberries
Tangerine
Tomato
Tropical Fruits
Umeboshi Plums
Watermelon

ALKALIZING PROTEIN
Almonds
Chestnuts
Millet
Tempeh (fermented)
Tofu (fermented)
Whey Protein Powder

ALKALIZING SWEETENERS
Stevia

ALKALIZING SPICES & SEASONINGS
Chili Pepper
Cinnamon
Curry
Ginger
Herbs (all)
Miso
Mustard
Sea Salt
Tamari

ALKALIZING OTHER
Alkaline Antioxidant Water
Apple Cider Vinegar
Bee Pollen
Fresh Fruit Juice
Green Juices
Lecithin Granules
Mineral Water
Molasses, blackstrap
Probiotic Cultures
Soured Dairy Products
Veggie Juices

ALKALIZING MINERALS
Calcium: pH 12
Cesium: pH 14
Magnesium: pH 9
Potassium: pH 14
Sodium: pH 14

When purchasing your foods, whatever you're getting, always try to buy organic. I know it can get pretty costly, but you'll be doing your body (and your budget) a favor, in the long run! Eat free range chicken (and eggs from them), meats that were not injected with hormones or antibiotics; organic fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains (also organic), and milk from grass fed cows or goats (or try almond milk, or rice milk, if you're lactose intolerant).

Thanks for taking the time to read this; I hope it serves you well! Be healthy, and may God bless you!

It's been a while!

Sorry about that, folks...I've been a little focused on life, and haven't taken the time to blog, for a while.

Since my last Blog, I've transitioned from regular Physical Therapy, to a program called Phase II. I'm still doing the same exercises, same routine, but I'm doing it all on my own!! I no longer have a Physical Therapist! She did tell me that if I needed her, she'd be there to help me...I even asked her to "introduce me" to one of the machines I wasn't too familiar with, yet! LOL!! This is kind of what it looks like...

My reps and my weights are increasing, on all my weight bearing exercises.....and I FINALLY walked for a solid 20 minutes, on the treadmill (my speed is at 1.5)!! Super excited about that!! I almost felt like dancing, when I saw the treadmill's timer said I was approaching the 20 minute mark! LOL!!

This bird's got the right idea!! LOL!!

My hair is still very short, too...it seems to be growing slowly, at about 1/2 an inch per month. Not complaining, though...I don't mind the short do, at all! I'm merely stating this because prior to chemo, my hair grew pretty quickly, and now it's not growing all that fast. I was told there would be changes, after chemo....there are a lot of differences, now...I'm a whole new person!

Since my diet changed (clean eating now), I've noticed when I do indulge in something not-so-good, my body can't handle it, anymore. The other day, I ate a serving of canned chicken and dumplings, and within about 45 minutes I began to feel sluggish; then my stomach began to bother me. It was not nice, at all!

Let me tell you about what I eat, now....

I'm now known as a flexitarian; I eat mostly fresh fruits, fresh veggies, nuts, seeds, legumes, and whole grains; I also eat real cheese and real butter, and meat/eggs on occasion. Very rarely do I venture into the aisles, because that's where all the processed foods are located.

When I eat meat (beef, pork, chicken, etc) I make sure the package says "no hormones" and "no antibiotics". Some of the meats I've been purchasing also say "grass fed". The eggs I buy come from free-range chickens. And I've recently switched to almond milk, rather than cow's milk. Getting healthy, and staying healthy!!

When I do brave the aisles in the middle of the store, it's to get things like Couscous, whole grain pasta, organic sauces, multi-grain bread, brown rice, tapioca, organic soup, specific herbs and spices, and extra virgin olive oil.

Goodness...all this talk about food is making me hungry! LOL!! I think I'll fix some whole grain pasta, with organic pasta sauce, and a nice salad! Thanks for stopping by...have a great evening!