My increase in exercise has really increased my appetite. The second night of my new routine left me having massive Carb cravings. I tried to counteract it with more protein, and that helped, but it was too little too late, and I had a little of my son's A-friendly cereal. I survived that better than I expected, but still feel a little achy. Now I've increased my meat portions by half (or just as much as I can eat), and I'm trying to increase my vegetable portions by more than double, but that's a challenge for me. I tried kale for the first time, but forgot to keep track of the cooking time, so I don't know if they were undercooked or overcooked, they were pretty chewy, but palatable. I always like greens best in soups, so I'll try that out sometime. I have some baby carrots to munch on next time a carb attack hits.

Until I get my protein and veggies worked out, I've increased the amount of juice I drink (all beneficial juices) just to keep me away from any avoids. I splurged on a $3 little bottle of pomegranate juice, since pomegranates are beneficial for O non-secretors, and I wanted a treat. It's potent stuff, www.pomwonderful.com reminds me a little bit of noni juice, but better. It says on the label that it has more antioxidant power than red wine and blueberry juice. Flavor-wise, a little goes a long way, and it's great mixed with plenty of sparkiling water. I'm big on antioxidants these days, most of the fruit I eat is the darkly pigmented beneficials like blueberries and plums.

My body told me to take an extra rest day from the jogging today. I still got a good workout in... pushing the stroller up a couple of the biggest hills I could find for 30 minutes. I may need to do another ab session tonight though, it just feels like I need to do a little more than I have. I didn't get much sleep last night, and it's really throwing me off. I went to the library to try some other exercise videos, decided I better try it before I buy it.

I'd like to welcome the newest blogger, Dr. D'Adamo! Yup, he's up above where the As I See It column used to be. He's already made 3 entries in the last 24 hours... that's a tough act to keep up with!

I am now officially no-longer sedentary. I'm surprised I stayed sane before, when I didn't get regular exercise. I've been jogging every other day. I'm still at the wimpy 1/2 mile distance, that's my minimum, then walking or climbing hills after that. I had PMS when I started, and I was just SO angry, for no apparent reason, and crying, blah blah blah...all that was built up inside of me. Combine PMS with Seasonal Affective Disorder, with seasonal allergies... it was bad. Now I feel great. I have to get out and just do it. Today I kept looking for excuses to stop and walk before I reached my minimum distance, my heart just wasn't in it. I kept telling myself "I'm designed for this", and similar mantras, to keep going, then I even sprinted the last leg of it just so I wouldn't feel like a slacker. It felt good, I left the track feeling calm and focused.

I'm still working out what to do on the off days, I tried yoga last night, but it left me feeling kind of loopy, although my body liked it. I prefer the emotional focus that jogging gives me, to the feeling yoga gives me. I used to do quite a bit of pilates, but one of the exercises didn't agree with my back. I think I prefer just a difficult abs workout, I just need to find a good exercise video for that, since I don't really have time to go to the gym for classes. What I really want to accomplish by that workout is to really strengthen my abs and upper body, as last time I started jogging I injured my back with the impact. I was heavier then, and hadn't found the BTD or it's anti-inflammatory benefits, but I'm still cautious.

My eating is going well too, the wheat I accidentally got last week at a restaurant is now out of my system and things are running smoothly. I cooked a mess of buffalo burgers yesterday to keep myself in the protein for the next few days. I'm starting to feed my son more variety of good foods for his type. All he ever wants is chicken nuggets and watermelon. But he'll eat beans, and this morning he ate all but five of MY blueberries. I'm trying to get him used to the taste of tofu (he's an A), but haven't had much luck yet. So far the other good snacks he likes are: milk-free rice and granola bars, wheat-free milk-free fig newmans, little boxes of rice milk and soy milk. He also likes pears, pinto beans, refried beans, lentils, lentil soup, rice, broccoli (a little), onions and garlic (in foods), peas & eggs. The eggs are a recent victory, he has slightly low iron, so every yolk counts. I went on a shopping spree at the health food store today, mainly foods for him. Soy ice cream, goat yogurt (we'll see about that one), more snack foods, etc.

I go nuts in the summer, I get so irritable and stir crazy. I need to exercise more, but my allergies and sun sensitivity keep me indoors. Yesterday, though, I just had to get out and pound it all out. Do I like to run? Sure, just not very far I've decided to change that though. I wasn't given long legs, and an Os stress profile and metabolism for nothing. I want to see what my potential really is. The furthest I've ever run in one stretch was one mile, so yesterday, only the second time I've run in 4 years, I decided to run 1/2 a mile. I had to run through lots of walls, but I made it to my goal. I would have done another 1/2 mile after my cool-down 1/2 mile walk, but my throat and lungs were too burned. My husband tells me it gets easier after the first few times, as far as that goes. It felt good, I ran instead of just plodding/jogging. At the end of it, I pictured a finish line and competitors...all alternate reality versions of me who just couldn't quite keep up.

I was really good an the diet for a week, and could tell the difference. I cooked all my food at home, in batches, ate more fish, the whole deal. Then I had a couple restaurant experiences that didn't turn out so well. My problem with eating out is that I love to try new things instead of sticking with the tried and true, and some avoid always slips in. One thing about avoids is, like unwelcome guests, they're lots harder to get back out, once they get in.

My new goals are to push myself with running every other day, and to eat more antioxidants. Yesterday's natural health update on the home page about antioxidants and gastric cancer really hit home with me, since I've had h. pylori in the past, I need to supersize the fruits and vegetables; I'm also adding in more supplements and teas.

I often have trouble finding things on dadamo.com. There's a ton of information, but it's hard to find it all. I have found the search function useful, though even it is hard to find (from the support button at the top, Search The Site link). Or just use this link

And here is a list of links to the recipes I've posted to my blogs over time (my favorites have stars*) These are recipes for O non-secretors, unless noted otherwise:

O-Nonnie Refried Beans*

Nonnie Flax Amaranth Flatbread*

Sauteed Mushrooms

Teffioca Pudding

Pineapple Curry Egg Salad instructions*

Jerky instructions*

Rebeka's Freeze, 4 secretors

Energy Balls, nonnie O*

Stew Instructions

Crock Pot Beef Brisket - before I learned tamari is a nonnie avoid...if you're a nonnie use a little molasses, salt and water to approximate the tamari sauce.

The question I get most of all is in regard to what it means to be a secretor or non-secretor, how to find out, etc. So Here goes...

For beginning on the BTD, it is advised to start out with the Secretor version of the diet, or that found in the wallet foodlists. That is simply because most (about 80%) of all people are secretors, and it’s a little easier diet to follow when you’re starting out as grains and sugars aren’t as restricted. After a time, though, you will want to find out your secretor status, especially if you have any chronic health problems. This enables you to fine tune the diet further and see even more amazing results.

You can order the salivary secretor test through this website’s online store, North American Pharmacal, or a few other sources. Here are some links:

NAP Secretor Test

In Europe, go to

http://websell.pipex.com/beta-cgi/rightforeu/4-kits.html

You must know your ABO bloodtype beforehand, and the rest is simple, with detailed instructions provided. Basically you spit into the little tube provided and mail it to the lab in the postage-paid envelope provided. You can get your results either through the mail or online. The salivary test is more accurate than blood tests, as it is easier to read in the lab.

Then, when you get your results, if you find out you’re an O secretor, congratulations! Have a party, and eat some strawberries for me. If you’re an O non-secretor, time to study up and make the mental adjustment to giving up soy, dairy, spelt, and cutting further back on carbs. O’s can see my archive for things that non-secretors can add back into their diet, the blog was titled “O Secretors: 58, Non-Secretors: 16”, from January. For most of you the news of your non-secretor status won’t be a complete surprise, you may have already noticed some of the signs: increased food sensitivities, more problems with UTI’s, Candida, h. pylori, dental cavities, etc. In my case finding out my secretor type helped me get a diagnosis on my h. pylori. I realized, you know, I do have some symptoms, so I explained my symptoms to my doctor and he tested me for it with a positive result.

Keep in mind that it’s not easy to guess ahead of time, as not all non-secretors have all the telltale signs. For instance, I have great teeth, not one cavity, but I do have most of the other problems (more than a handful of food allergies/intolerances, previous problems with h. pylori, previous recurrent UTI’s, etc.). I attribute my good teeth to diagnosing myself (inaccurately) with hypoglycemia as a teenager and going sugar free for many years. I didn’t have hypoglycemia, my sugar levels were normal, but I knew then that I felt better when I didn’t eat sugar, especially sodas.

Here is a good overview of secretor subtypes I just came across:



http://websell.pipex.com/beta-cgi/rightforeu/4-Lewisgroup.html

The Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia and Live Right 4 Your Type give the most comprehensive information I can find, so I recommend those especially for my fellow non-secretors.

Also, if you're a nonsecretor, you don't need to worry about the Tier system in Live Right, all non-secretor food lists are automatically like Tier II. We nonnies have to be good, but the potential for great health is certainly there, if we follow the plan. Many non-secretors express how sick and tired they are of being sick and tired...we were often the sickly children, getting prescribed antibiotics time after time, missing school or work, repeated unfruitful doctor's visits, etc. The great news is that we can turn that around and become the image of good health. In my experience, we O nonnies can lose weight very quickly on the diet. Do other nonnies have this experience? I often worry about losing it too quickly. I have to avoid stepping on the scales or else I might be tempted to slow things down by eating too many carbs. Just focus on how you feel, not what the scale says.