Day 9

I got around 7 hours of sleep last night and felt better than yesterday, but still fatigued. A really poor night's sleep like I got on Monday night can mess me up for a couple days. The stress response from being under rested can and will make a person crave carbs. I was just craving food.

I had packed a small chicken and broccoli breakfast that satisfied me in the morning, but by the late afternoon I needed more! 

Being stuck at work means I can't go out and find food. To make things worse I work in an area where finding plain old steamed vegetables and meat without a bunch of odd additives and cooked in oils I don't want to be consuming right now (GMO canola, soy and "vegetable" oils) is an unachievable task. 

One of the downsides to this diet is that unless you're cooking it yourself there's a strong chance it's not in line with the diet. Once I surpass the 21 days I'll ease up a little bit. As a lifestyle and not a diet having to consume a small amount of ingredients that aren't ideal every now and then is a better option that completely secluding yourself from the society you live in and starving yourself when that's not your intent (ie. when you're not intentionally fasting).

So I ate breakfast at about 6:15 pm (I rarely eat this early) and waited until 7:00 pm to eat dinner. During that time I became pretty tired and hungry. If I would have had another meal packed I think I would have been fine. So I learned my lesson... again. Make MORE food in advance!

For dinner I had some amazing chicken soup that my girlfriend cooked up using 1 whole pastured chicken, garlic, onions, zucchini, carrots, celery and parsnips along with the regular sea salt and pepper. It was amazing! And I'll probably have some for breakfast in the morning as well.

Things I noticed today...

1. Scalp/hair feel better

My scalp is starting to feel different. It just feels calmer. I'm becoming way less inclined to dandruff outbreaks, my hair feels stronger and my scalp feels kind of relaxed... like it's healing. I've always had great results with the health of my scalp and hair with certain dietary adherence so this is not surprise, but it's always welcomed. 

Note: If you're interested I'll be documenting my attempt at hair regrowth over the next few months on another blog of mine at http://ineedmorehair.blogspot.com/

2. Skin tone seems different

My skin tone seems a little bit darker. Who knows... maybe I'm jaundiced lol. Possible, but I don't feel that way and it's not a yellowish tint, but more of an oxygenated look. Call me crazy. I suppose it's tough to be objective about something like this (I mean it's not like having tan lines to use for comparison) , but I am noticing a difference my skin tone.

3. Fatigue revisited

As I stated earlier... I'm tired! I have to start making sure I get enough carbs. Going very low carb was certainly not the intent of this experiment, but it has been a result to some degree. I don't want to stuff my face with food just to avoid low carb'ing because I may just overstuff myself and miss out on some of the benefits of this diet. However, I have to make sure I'm getting more carbs. My solution may be winter squash. Winter squash varieties are heavier on the carbs without the insulin spike really starchy vegetables like potatoes bring (and still in line with SCD rules). Oh and did I mention winter squash is absolutely delicious? Acorn squash, spaghetti squash, butternut squash... nom nom? Yes... nom nom.

Oh! And one more update! I excluded almost all vitamins, supplements and pills of any kind in the beginning of the diet (I took a daily probiotic and betaine HCL one time) in order to avoid skewing the blood results (I had my blood drawn Monday, day 7) and to see what the effects would be like from strictly diet. However, I'm bringing back in a few at this point.

Tonight I took:

1 wide spectrum vitamin E sofgel (Tocosorb by Jarrows)

200 mg Magnesium Malate (AOR bran)

25,000 IU Vitamin A (Thorne Research brand)

1,000 mg Lypo-spheric Vitamin C (LivON Laboratories brand)

The reason for taking this particular combination is because I was going to be playing music... LOUD music and there have been studies showing that the combination of vitamin E, C and A (in the form of beta carotene in the study which is NOT what I took) can protect against noise related hearing damage.  Magnesium on its own has also been showing to be hearing protective.

Because of my issue with hearing loss, tinnitus and hyperacusis over the past year and a few months I have to take all precautions I can to protect my ears and help improve the condition.

Another reason for taking magnesium is that I'm inclined to having hard stools. Along with the unmeasurable amount of biological processes it supports and conditions it can improve, magnesium will help to improve constipation. Some forms, more than others, will have a laxative effect. So if you're ever having an issue with constipation and increased water intake, or some good quality fat intake both aren't working try taking a small amount of epsom salts (magnesium sulfate - One of the 3 main ingredients in the method I used to rid me of my ridiculously stubborn plantar wart) in water. It should help.

I will be taking other supplements as I move forward as well to support general health and possibly and specific issues I've had ongoing. The diet should help everything to work better if it doesn't heal things on its own. For instance, the health of my hair is more reliant on my diet than anything else I've ever done to improve it. If I'm not eating right almost nothing will have a noticeably positive effect on my scalp or hair. Even minoxidil (Rogaine) barely worked until I got my diet and health moving in the right direction.

I've heard it stated a certain way before that has resonated with me ever since...

Pouring a gallon of chlorine (supplements) in a pool won't do much to make the water clear until you pull out the tree branches, leaves and plastic garbage bags. 

...Not the most elegant analogy, but I think you get the point... : )

Til tomorrow!

-Rob