yoga tourism -- YAS in Venice CA

My husband and I are visiting relatives in SoCal for Thanksgiving, and yesterday were meeting some friends in Venice. I had wanted to do a yoga class on the beach but it wasn't being held this weekend. So my friend suggested YAS yoga where a friend of his teaches.

"No granola, no Sanscrit, no chanting" is the motto, and indeed this studio focuses on the physical side of yoga in a class called Yoga from Athletes. We took a class from the founder Kimberley herself. She has an interesting backstory -- she was diagnosed with a golf ball sized brain tumor. The doctors wanted to take it out but it would mean she would lose her sight and be partially paralyzed. She said no thanks, and had a friend carry her home from the hospital. She did her own self-healing program with a lot of yoga. She recovered (which is clear from the photo you can see at left, and even more so in person) and evidently years later the tumor is still there in her head, not causing problems. (I would love more detail on exactly what she did to recover, since of course I'm interested in tales of miraculous healing and how to beat tumors, but this is all I could glean from the articles posted in the studio, and when she greeted us after the class it didn't feel right to suddenly start quizzing her about that.)

The class was an excellent workout, I was definitely sweating. Also a businessperson I was also impressed by the packaging of the whole place, in terms of concept, graphics, colors, supporting materials etc. She is franchising, and either she is very good at branding or has hired someone who is. I love seeing successful female entrepreneurs. The whole place was also very LA-ish so and the people watching was good, so was a fun tourist kind of experience too.

Going to an in-person class was a great change of pace since we normally do yoga at home off of DVDs. Somehow the teacher right there pushes you to try harder. So we are thinking about scoping out some of the yoga studios near where we live, or even a less expensive gym that offers classes. (We just moved a little over a year ago, and live in the hills so it's a bit of a drive to get to anything, but to keep our workouts fresh it's probably necessary, also I had been thinking of joining a gym because I want to do weights again...)

However I've also added the Yoga for AthletesDVD to my wish list, as I think it would be a good addition to our home practice.

After the class grabbed some healthy food from J's Kitchen down the street --- authentic Japanese macrobiotic food, the branch of a store from Japan.

important info if you have anemia -- don't take iron at same time as calcium

Important information for women with fibroids, who often struggle with anemia. I just found out yesterday that calcium inhibits the absorption of iron. So it's not a good idea to take your calcium pills at the same time as your iron supplements. Just one of the many things that I wish someone had told me before!

Here's a good general article on iron absorption: http://www.parentingscience.com/iron-absorption.html

protein for egg quality -- how much is needed?

I am gearing up for another IVF stimulation and egg retrieval cycle. I had heard somewhere (although not from my IVF physician or any of my acupuncturists) that a high protein diet can help egg quality. And indeed, ever since the spring when I found out about my candida problem, I have been trying to have fewer carbs and more protein so am thinking that is a good thing.

And not that my cycle is starting, am really thinking that I need to make sure I get enough protein. But I was wondering how much. Started looking around on the web and found this page which says that 60-70 grams of protein is needed as protein intake during IVF. That is a lot! I saw the same 60 gram figure on one of the fertility chat boards. And this fertility diet page says 45-60 grams of protein per day is recommended for boosting fertility on general principles.

So time to make sure I get enough protein. And esp. for us fibroid shrinkers, it's not like we want to go eat a steak. I'm supplementing with pure brown rice protein powder(a lot of the protein powders out there have flavorings or other things in there I don't need). One scoop is 10 grams of protein. I am taking 1-2 scoops a day, in organic almond milk. The spirulina powder I take is also a good high quality protein source.

For further reference a chat board thread on protein and IVF egg quality.

Time to feed those eggies!

a new fertility blog

The author of The Fertile Femaleand Inconceivable: A Woman's Triumph over Despair and Statistics now has a blog, worth checking out!

delicious squash muffin recipe

I mentioned previously that I was trying out the gluten-free dairy-free soy-free muffin and pancake mixes from www.purelyelizabeth.com. They are really scrumptious, and full of fibroid-friendly and fertility friendly like millet flour, hemp seeds, and chia seeds. Unfortunately rather on the pricey side, but I'm hoping their popularity will increase and they can go into more mass production and the prices will go down (sorry, that's the MBA in me talking...)

I have been having fun dressing them up. Here's how to make some great squash muffins.

2 cups raw butternut squash, chopped finely
a handful of pecans
a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice
1 package purely elizabeth blueberry maple muffin mix
the items listed on the package, plus an extra egg to make 2 eggs total

Steam the squash until tender, about 15 minutes.
Prepare the muffins according to package directions, adding the squash and the other ingredients.

Really great!

interesting article on food cravings

decode your food cravings to see what they say about you (your physiology and mood)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33589896/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/?ocid=twitter

new addition to the regimen

Lately based on the BioSet my body has not wanted the wheat grass or the Green Magma, which I was using to help me alkalize and also for the protein and nutrient content.

So today my acupuncturist suggested that I do spirulina. It's less cold than the chlorella, which I was taking for awhile this summer but had trouble with. She also said that its salty nature is good to help strengthen my kidneys, which have seemed weak lately.

Spirulina is full of nutrients and is also a source of high quality protein, and is often recommended as a good food both for fibroid shrinkers and those who want good egg quality for IVF. So should be perfect for me! I'm taking it in the powder form which is supposedly better absorbed.

Lots of good general information on spirulina on this page.

a natural fibroid shrinking success story

http://www.vitalitymagazine.com/apr_08_bodymind

Note that in addition to a lot of detox and progesterone cream, she used the Eat Right 4 Your Type recommendations for diet selections based on your blood type.

She also used spirulina, which I will discuss in my next post.

great article on how bad birth control pills are

http://meghantelpnerblog.com/2009/11/17/the-pill-sex-drugs-and-f-bombing-our-emotions-part-2/

Chinese medicine approaches to a better menstrual cycle

Lots of good basic stuff in here, although it needs an editor!
I had PMS problems for nearly 2 decades before my fibroids diagnosis, now I realize that was an early warning signal and I wish I had had this kind of information then.
http://women108.blogspot.com/2009/11/menstrual-health-easy-to-remove-and.html

additions to my supplement regimen

To give my liver some help, my acupuncturist added to my regimen N-Acetyl-l-Cysteine
and Sambazon Acai Powder.

This page suggests the N-Acetyl-l-Cysteine as being helpful for fibroids. Reason is that it's a strong anti-oxidant, and fibroids are a sign of oxidative stress (hadn't heard that one before). Also this page suggests it could be helpful for the ovaries.

I poked around to see if acai has any specific action on fibroids, but did not find anything. It does seem to be the popular superfood lately though, and my acupuncturist mentioned that it's a great antioxidant plus is full of good fats. Also it's a good source of protein which can be helpful for egg quality.

activity record and weigh-in

You may have noticed that I have not been consistent with my exercise reports lately. That's because I have not been consistent with my exercise! My trip to the East Coast last month, and then tons of work afterwards, and feeling yukky taking the birth control pills in prep for my next stimulation cycle, have all conspired to keep me away from my regular routine. I have been exercising, but it's been sporadic. I want to get back into the swing of it this week!

Meanwhile, just weighed myself, and although my weight has not changed my fat % and metabolic age have changed for the worse, so indeed am seeing the impact of not exercising as much. Back to work!

weight 139.2
fat % 35.1%
water % 45%
bone 4.6 lbs
metabolic age 47

new supplements

I've been rather tired lately, my acupuncturist thinks that my adrenals have been getting a bit worn down and that my kidneys need some support. A combo of general stress, plus taking birth control pills to calm my ovaries in preparation for the next stimulation cycle.

I'm adding one small box of Zico Coconut Water per day for electrolytes and potassium. This should help the problem I have been having of waking up early to go to the bathroom.

Going back to some old friends from Standard Process that are good for building up the adrenals
Congaplex (good for boosting immunity)
Trace Minerals - B12 (good for energy)
Oculotrophin (good for strengthening the eyes)

Getting some zinc and vitamin C from Country Life Zinc Lozenges

Continuing to battle my Candida with Klaire Labs Interfase

and another fibroid shrinking story with essiac

http://herbladyisin.pnn.com/articles/show/29631-fibroid-tumors-natural-therapies-avoid-surgery

true story of fibroid shrinking

This woman used Essaic Tea and Pau D'Arco and other supplements (unfortunately not named) to shrink her fibroids. http://www.drmomessentials.net/2009/11/02/how-i-resolved-uterine-fibroids-prevented-more-miscarraige/comment-page-1/#comment-114