Postpartum Weight Loss Update: Kelsie Millet

Hey friends! So it has been awhile since I have actually updated you with how I'm doing. This week my little babe will be THREE months old..time goes way too fast! I took my picture this morning and wasn't feeling too confident until I compared it to where I started. You need to take pictures!! You will feel so much better when you can actually see how much better you are doing rather than taking someone else's word for it.

A recap for those of you who haven't followed along...I had a pretty traumatic labor and wasn't allowed to start exercising until 12 weeks postpartum (so almost just barely). So you wonder how I've been losing almost all my baby weight??? EATING HEALTHY and taking all natural supplements to help my metabolism.
Starting 1 month postpartum I decided that if I couldn't exercise I was going to make my best effort to eat what my body wanted. I went into Veo Clinic ( a herbal supplement company/chiropractic clinic) and was muscle tested to see what types of food my body didn't want and DID want.
I was given a diet plan which consisted of drinking lots and lots of water, unlimited veggies, one fruit a day, unlimited protein, and 1-2 servings of carbs a day. The only carbs my body "wanted" when I was muscle tested were "smart" tortillas ( I ate whole wheat tortillas with a high protein count) and sweet potatoes.
Also, I ate within 20-30 minutes of waking up to boost my metabolism and then throughout the day I ate every 2-3 hours. Most importantly every time I ate I ate a true protein with something else or alone.
Along with eating according to this diet plan I also took two different supplements. Lipozymes and Burn, which you can read more about Lipozymes HERE and Burn HERE. These products have been amazingly helpful and are safe to take while breastfeeding. After talking with the owner I was able to get a discount for any of you that would like to purchase these products. Use code KELSIE20 at checkout. Go HERE to purchase. Or if you would rather I can also get you a free sample, if you want to try the product out first. Please email me at kelsieandjess@gmail.com if you are interested and I can mail one out to you!

Veggie Cooking Sheet

I don't know if any of you guys are like me but sometimes I don't know all the ways I can cook my veggies or for how long etc. I found this cheat sheet and it is PERFECT!!! I had to share.

Easy Paleo Hamburger Pie

If you are like me the worst part of the day is deciding what to make for dinner. Especially when you are trying to eat healthy and trying to cut out carbs. I have been on the search for yummy and filling dinner recipes and this one is ranked mine and my husband's favorite. We LOVE IT. It is super simple to make and it fills us both up. This is one of those dinners that we almost have weekly now.
I normally will steam some broccoli and carrots for a side to go along with the pie for a complete meal. The recipe can be found HERE, thanks to beautyandthefoodie.com

Believe me you will love this! For me and my husband we usually add a little bit more sauce then the recipes calls for mixed in with the meat...adjust for how you like it.

Update and Some Stressful Complications

My pursuit of the natural life began for several reasons. The first of which was obvious. I wanted to get healthy and fit after having my daughter. The second was something that had effected me since I got pregnant with my daughter. I had experienced some pretty awful skin afflictions. They would come and go but always came back worse than when they were the time before. 

This is my face during the beginning of my pregnancy with my daughter. I was about 2 months along. I only broke out a few more times after this but the last time was the worst. I had broken out in painful sores all over my face in a matter of hours. These sores that night then proceeded to burst and ooze. I was in Vegas at the time and just wanted to get home so I did not see a physician and didn't know Dr. Millet at the time. I went to see a doctor who prescribed me a bunch of meds because he thought one of them has to work. I did not feel comfortable with this so I took none of them. After I had my daughter my face was never plagued by these sores again. However my hands were another story.

I began to develop the same sores on my hands (fingers only) that had been on my face. I was unable to put my hands in water hold anything relatively heavy or even wash my hair when I had the break outs. 

After I began the 90 day challenge with the Veo Clinic I discovered I had a case of Candida which probably developed after having open sores on my hands for so long. After my general detox and a foot bath detox my hands cleared up.

We got into our house and began working on it and my hand issue returned. With a vengeance. Eager to have this solved once and or all I went to a different doctor. I informed him of my natural life style and told him I will not be pumped full of a bunch of different drugs while we keep our fingers crossed it would work. He agreed and ran some tests. 

My health and blood were immaculate. I only had slightly elevated thyroid levels but other than that  I was extremely healthy. I know I owed that to the Veo program. My next step was to see my second dermatologist. 

What a great visit I had. I went in clear about my lifestyle and what had been going on and he totally respected me and spoke with me to inform me not to only treat me. 

I was diagnosed with dishydrotic eczema. This condition only effects that hands and/or feet (my face was affected during my pregnancy because your body basically does whatever it wants when you are pregnant :b) And it is brought on my what else? Stress. I should have known. I have had some crazy stress between raising my 8 month old, buying and remodeling our first home and a few other personal matters.

Due to the extremity of my case I was put on a couple prescriptions to get the breakout under control. Thankfully I do not need to continue to take these medications once my hands are healed which is happening quickly. I have been advised to keep the products i use very natural and to not use anything with extra perfumes or dyes. which is conveniently in line with a healthy lifestyle :)

I am going to investigate a product carried by Veo Clinic that helps with stress. My next post will have some more information for you guys on what I find out and a few other stress relieving techniques I have begun to introduce into my life. 

Also, here is my update for this week!! 

10 Weightloss tips for the Mom on the Go

1.) Eat foods you actually like:
When trying to change your eating habits they aren't going to stick unless you actually like what you are eating. Look for healthy versions of recipes you already love or just modify the ones you have to fit your new healthy lifestyle.

2.) Make exercise just a normal part of your day:
If you get into a routine where you do morning yoga, end your night with a walk or hit the gym once a day everyday then you will naturally make it happen. Most people gravitate to habit and like to have a routine, especially moms! We are striving for a natural life so lets make it our life! :)

3.) If you "mess up" all is not lost:
We all have temptation. "We went to a wedding and I absolutely love wedding cake." "We went to a movie and I really wanted that oh so buttery popcorn." It is OK! Just keep moving forward with good choices. One moment of weakness doesn't mean all is lost. It is better to falter once than give up the natural life all together.

4.) Include your family/ friends:
When I have others involved to help me stay on track I feel I have to be accountable to not only myself but to them. If I am cooking healthy for my family and they love it and everyone feels better and then I just stop one day, my family is losing the benefits of a natural life, not just myself. Walks with friends are a great way to get your exercise and it helps you feel like you are not alone in your healthy endeavors.

5.) Find a good regimen of vitamins:
Mine and Kelsie's life style changes have been supported by the wonderful supplements provided by Veo Clinic. They have three lines of products: Professional Botanicals, 365 Active, and Veo Natural. All of these products have worked wonders for us. And with Dr. Allen's help we have really been able to pin point what works best for our bodies.

6.) Detox:
I have found that the detox is a great way to jump start any healthy lifestyle. Flush out the bad and bring in the good. I use another Professional Botanicals product, Prep-Tonic Detox.

7.) Find a good meal replacement shake:
When you are a busy mom you don't always get to eat let alone eat healthy. I have found my mornings are the busiest. I am always running or making my baby breakfast and getting everyone ready for the day. I use yet another Veo Natural product, Pearl 2.0. I use this mixed with fruit and berries or other Veo Products like Jade or Momentum 2.0.

8.) Don't skip meals:
Even if you just have to make a quick meal replacement shake DO NOT SKIP MEALS! You want to keep your metabolism up and moving and if you skip meals your body goes into survival mode. Not expecting to eat again, your body then stores energy in fat cells. This makes you gain weight. Get your body used to frequent nutrients and your metabolism will go into hyper drive :)

9.)Don't gauge your success only by the scale:
I have found that sometimes I get discouraged when I think I have done great and I must have lost a ton then I get on the scale and haven't lost anything. I have found pictures are your best friend. Take weekly photos so you can actually see the results and have something to compare them too. Another helpful thing is your clothes. See how your clothes fit. For me fitting into a pair of jeans that have been tight forever is incredibly rewarding :)

10.) Realize you are a WOMAN:
Lets just get to the point. We ovulate. There I said it. We bloat, we have occasional craving and sometimes when we even are in great shape our pants won't fit around that time of the month. As far as cravings go, find healthier alternatives for the foods you love. They may not be ideal but just make sure they are better than that Twinkie you really want.

In the photo below (last weeks updated pic) I am slightly bloated. I felt discouraged until I made my list above. I am a woman and I have made great progress. I will keep truckin' along and work for my goal of a healthier happier me. :) -Jess

Supplements Instead of Ibuprofen

If any of you have taken the time to read baby Grey's birth story you know that he was posterior and I ended up pushing for 3 hours. (If you would like to read it, click here. ) Because of him being in the birth canal for so long it really did some damage to my body. It has been 9 weeks today since I had my little boy and I am still on my road to recovering. In the past 2 weeks I have finally seen leaps and bounds of improvement, which has been extremely encouraging, but before that I was still in immense pain.
I was very uncomfortable 90% of the time. Sitting hurt because I had fractured my tail bone. Standing, was a joke because of all my scar tissue...I could only stand for about 15 minutes before I had to sit down because of the pain I was in.
I DO NOT tell you this for pity or for anyone to feel bad for me. I still to this day would not change anything about my labor and delivery and am thankful I was able to deliver my son naturally. With that said, why I am telling you this is because I was taking a TON of ibuprofen.
When I was sent home from the hospital I was given a prescription for 800 mg Ibuprofen. I would count down the hours until I could take my next dose because of the pain I was feeling. After my prescription ran up about a week after the delivery I still would take up to 4 pills (800 mg) of Ibuprofen. It wasn't until about 3 weeks after that I reduced the amount I was taking each time to 400 mg.
If you can only imagine what I was beginning to do to my body. I was starting to get dry mouth and stomach aches as result of having so much Ibuprofen in me. On top of that I was feeling like a terrible mother because I knew Grey was also receiving a lot of Ibuprofen from my breast milk. I was torn on what to do because I couldn't pick him up and rock him back to sleep or calm him if I wasn't being helped in someway with my pain. I knew though that somehow I had to find a way to stop taking the ibuprofen.

Luckily there is a Professional Botanicals Supplement called "Total Pain Support" that had the same results in helping with pain as Ibuprofen with out all the bad side effects that come along with Ibuprofen. I switched to taking "Total Pain Support" and was amazed at how well it actually worked. I would recommend this to anyone. If you are interested in learning more (click here) about it or purchasing (click here) it for yourself, check it out on their website (click here).

*Professional Botanicals is owned by the same owners of Veo Natural/Veo Clinic

So we don’t have the usual update this week guys. My update picture and weight will have to wait until tomorrow until I find my scale and get my mirror hung in our new bathroom. Our new home is slowly coming together (which is beautiful by the way, thanks to my wonderful husband and all his hard work).

So, this week I will share with you one of my favorite workout/ relaxation techniques for the morning. Yoga!! I know it isn’t revolutionary but I will say it has been for me in my life.  I find that working out in the morning helps my entire day go better but on those days I can’t make it to the gym (and honestly sometimes after I get home from the gym) I like to find my focus and my center with a simple yoga video. I have my mat in the living room before the family wakes up and I just take my time for me. The video doesn’t need to be long or expensive. I use one that I got from Wal-Mart called “Gaiam: Am Yoga for Your Week”. There a few short videos focusing on different areas of the body and I just switch up my routine daily. Just another way I keep myself living the natural life. ;) -Jess

Children Chiropractic Adjustments

I haven't been one that has been seeing a Chiropractor my whole life, but now wish I had. I started getting adjusted about two years ago, and I feel like it has made a huge difference in how my body feels. The biggest thing I have learned from being adjusted is that your body doesn't have to be hurting to need an adjustment. Getting adjusted helps with several areas in the body and it's not always something that you can be aware of by pain.
I found this video of Dr. Millet at Veo Clinic adjusting this little baby and I love it. I knew I wanted to share it immediately because Dr. Millet adjusts my little baby whose 2 months old. He adjusted my little Grey for the first time when he was only a day old. Dr. Millet is awesome with kids, as you can see in the video. I would highly recommend him to anyone that is interested in adjustments for your kids or for you.