"Borderline" Diabetes - "Borderline" Pregnant?

Many time I hear someone tell me that they were diagnosed with "Borderline" Diabetes.    My reply, "Can someone be borderline pregnant??"

Obviously, you can't be "borderline" pregnant, right?  What makes someone think they can be "borderline" diabetic?  Seriously!   This is so frustrating to me that the doctors aren't direct with them.  I wish they just say, "You have diabetes.  Your pancreas is not too damaged at this point.  So if you want to avoid going on medicines or insulin, you really need to follow a diabetic diet."

When a person is told they have "borderline" diabetes, most do not take it serious and continue to allow it to get OUT OF CONTROL and the pancreas becomes damaged even more!  All the meds or insulin could have easily been avoided.  And the medical bills could have been avoided. Totally avoided.

I'm not trying to step on toes at all here, because this is NOT my point.  The trend of the doctors that seem to be doing this are ones who have been in the profession for a very long time.  Ones that have been in for <15 years seem to understand diabetes much better and don't use that "borderline" terminology.  They also seem to be the ones who take an advantage of their resources in other areas... social workers, counselors, dietitians, etc.  Just makes me wonder if the trends of teaching in medical school have shifted for the better in the recent years.  Patient care should be multi-dimensional if the patient truly needs it. By this I mean that all areas of expertise, as previously mentioned, are pulled in to assist in the "whole" care of the patient, not just partial care provided just by the medical doctor.

So if you know of someone who has be told they are "borderline" diabetic, please do them a huge favor.  Please inform them that there really is no such thing... just like there is no such thing as "borderline" pregnant.  Tell them that they should really be following a diabetic diet and take advantage of living without medicine dependency!!   If there is a dietitian in your area that can sit down for a couple hours and explain the meal plan thoroughly, please encourage them.  Or have them contact me for an available time.   Life is just to precious to live on "borderline."  - Christie

For information on Programs offered, go to www.WhyWeightLifestyle.com
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Christie Brooks, MS, RD, LD
Registered Dietitian
CrossFit Level 1 Trainer - Searcy CrossFit
www.WhyWeightLifestyle.com
facebook: www.facebook.com/WhyWeightLifestyle

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New Website & Blog Site

My new website has tons of recipes - healthy & delish!

It also contains my new blogsite & pins for pinterest.

The new site is www.whyweightlifestyle.com  and my facebook page is Why Weight Lifestyle

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Visit me!

NEW Why Weight Lifestyle - Launched!

After late nights and long hours, the first Why Weight Lifestyle program is about to be launched!  And it’s NOT “just a facelift” to the Why Weight Program that I have taught for the past 13 years (the last 5 years at Searcy Athletic Club)!  It is an entirely new menu of sessions that takes you from text to table - I’m about to burst at the seams with excitement!!  

Why Weight Lifestyle Menu:

1)    Why Weight ME (for individuals and small groups)

2)    Why Weight FAMILY (for families of Why Weight ME Graduates)

3)    Why Weight CHALLENGE (for larger groups and corporations)

4)    Eat Yourself Beautiful – Emotional Eating and Eating Disorders

Why Weight ME & Why Weight Family will be launched in January!

Why Weight ME consists of 4 one-hour sessions:

Session #1

The Nutrition/Fitness Interview helps us to identify those obstacles that are keeping you from your goals. We define Protein, Carbohydrates and Fats, exploring how the body uses them for the BEST impact in achieving weight goals.  All the hoops of Hormone Imbalance & Risk of Disease will leave you in awe!

Session #2

We will “take a ride ” together and learn to make healthy choices as we GO! We will cover healthy restaurant choices and leave you with great ideas for your own “fast food”! In this session we will learn the difference between keepers and losers in each food type as well as the importance of water and fiber!

Session #3

You will want your shopping shoes as we tour the isles of a local grocery store, learning to read product labels and clueing in on healthy, money saving shopping tips! We will also explore healthy substitutions for preparing food and delicious recipes!

Session #4

“You have brains in your head and feet in your shoes and you can steer yourself any direction you choose”, as Dr. Seuss would say, but this meeting is more than a send-off. You will leave equipped with a personalized “Nutrition Prescription” and exercise guidelines complete with built-in rewards and check points.

Why Weight FAMILY – Why Weight ME graduates have access to the Nutrition Nanny! It’s hard to refrain from saying more, but I’m leaving it as a surprise for now.  Let’s just say that Nutrition Nanny has come to town and she will take your family from couch potatoes to baked sweet potatoes!

Why Weight CHALLENGE and Eat Yourself Beautiful are on the drawing board - right along with my own website!

Nutrition and Fitness is more than a career for me, it is a deep rooted passion that is stemmed from my own experiences and the strength I gained through our Savior.  I too, just like most of you, am surrounded by a family history of diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and cancers – all of which are highly influenced by our choice of lifestyle.  My passion and Purpose is to “pass it forward.”  To help those who have allowed the emotional eating take control and to help others understand in a simple way how to fuel their body to be at their peak best!  I invite you to join me on this journey!   I’m only taking 8 clients in January, so call or write me today!

christiebrooksrd@gmail.com

501-281-5546

Why I Do What I Do???

It's not about the latest diet fads, it's not about comparison of self to the magazine cover, and it's not about being consumed so much by the physique.  It's about our ONE blessing God gave us to be stewards of... our ONE engine in life... our one body that houses our soul.  Eating healthy & working out to me is glorifying Him in so many ways.  It is being a good steward and being physically & mentally fit to meet the needs of others when He sends them my way.  I can NOT help others when I myself am sick.  I can NOT love others when I do not love myself as God loves me.  I can NOT be fruitful for His Kingdom if I myself is in desperate need of repair.
A healthy lifestyle is not about "diets"... it's not about spending 2 hours in the gym either!  It's about asking Him to guide you before your feet hit the floor in the morning.  It's about making healthier choices ONE bite at a time.  It's about staying fit so you can always be ahead of Satan who loves to chase you!  It's about a CHOICE of the mind every day.  Satan loves to fill your head with lies about yourself!  Why do you fall for it?!  God did NOT create you for such nonsense!  He created you in the most perfect & loving form!  He loved you and has molded you in so many ways... isn't it time to listen to Him instead of Satan's lies?  
Start your day off with healthy choices...ONE bite at a time and ONE step at a time!  YOU CAN DO IT!!   I believe in you and so does He.

Super Moist Healthier Choice Pumpkin Bread

This is my son's favorite recipe!   I have tried this recipe with both canned pumpkin and with cooked/roasted pumpkin.  My son prefers it from a roasted pumpkin (me too and it's much healthier!).  You can experiment yourself and see what suits your fancy.   I've tried a Paleo version, using almond flour & coconut flour instead of regular flour... they just didn't pass my little man's test!

INGREDIENTS

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1-1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 to 2/3 cup honey

2 cups pumpkin puree

2/3 cup applesauce (this replaces your oil)

2/3 cup Coconut Milk (I purchase mine in a can in Asian Isle at grocery store)

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon ground Nutmeg

1-1/2 teaspoons ground Cinnamon

4 tablespoons ground flax seed

Optional: 1 cup toasted chopped walnuts (I don't use this for my son's muffins/loafs, 

but the rest of us eat it with the nuts - see pic above - the bottom right loaf has walnuts)

Optional: 1/2 cup flaked coconut (I've only used this once)

DIRECTIONS

If you want to go the real pumpkin route, YAY!!!  It's really easy!  If you have never done it before, here's a great website that shows illustrated instructions on how to do it:

http://www.pickyourown.org/pumpkincooking.php

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).  Spray oil onto 8x4 inch pans, or go smaller like me and use 6x3 inch mini loaf pans (mine is a Pampered Chef brand in case you are wondering). I also do muffins for my little munckin too!
2.  In a large bowl, combine flour, ground flax seed, brown sugar, honey, pumpkin puree, applesauce, coconut milk, baking soda, sea salt, nutmeg,and cinnamon.  Mix up until you can't see any more "white" flour.  If you want to do the optionals (nuts or coconut), go on and fold those in at this time.  Pour the batter into the prepared pans.
3.  Bake for 1 hr/15 min OR until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Smaller loaf pans (like mine) or muffin pans will take less time!!  Remove from over and cover the bread/muffins with foil tightly to keep steam in.  Allow to steam for 10 minutes (this is what keeps it moist inside!).  Remove foil and turn out onto a cooling rack.  Lay the foil back on top of the bread/muffins loosely like a "tent" until they have all cooled completely.

They are super moist!!!   I bet it would taste great with mushed bananas in it instead of applesauce (another great healthy alternative!).  There are several healthy versions you can do; however, you tend to lose the taste if you do more than 3 substitutions.  My philosophy is... I won't eat cardboard, but I will go as healthy as I can without giving up flavor!!  Just eat smaller portions!

I have to share with you my Little Man Taste Tester....

Happy Holidays!!!!!

Stretch Pants Santa!!!

Well WELCOME HOLIDAYS!  And on comes the food!  GRRR!  I know it’s that time of year that everyone centers conversation around food and the table.   It’s the time of year that is full of thanksgiving and blessings too.   

Here’s where my pet peeve falls in (you knew it was coming)…  When did the mindset of  “must have all this food” become the main objective for the holidays?  Why not make it easy on everyone and do something simple & light so that the focus lies on visiting with family and friends… and focusing on our blessings?   It’s like a twisted mindset that everyone has to cook for an army with surplus of food (which could easily feed a poor family … whom would appreciate it at this time of year)!   

Then the meal comes ….   We feel like we have to “try” everything so we don’t hurt poor Aunt FeedOurEmotions’ feelings;  and then we nibble for hours afterwards to stay awake.  And that really tired feeling we get… that’s from the turkey we just overstuffed on(yep- tryptophan sends a hormonal signal to our brains making a chain reaction which eventually makes us feel “tired”).   It’s taking all we can to keep from falling asleep in the chair while Cousin GottaNibbleMore is talking to us.   Our top button has already popped on our britches, or if they haven’t already, they are screaming at us to relieve the pressure!   We just should have worn stretch pants!  Seriously, what are we thinking??!

Then Cousin AllOrNothingThinking feels like he’s blown it already for the day so he decides to continue blowing it that night too.   And since it takes a week to finish off all the pies & turkey (turkey salad, turkey sandwich, and the infamous “turkey surprise”), that will leave us with only 3 weeks away from Christmas.  Oh the self-control!!!!     The chocolates and desserts at all the Christmas Parties we will be attending is just too much to bear!  Cousin AllOrNothingThinking has given his disease to us so we just give up before we even start trying!!  It’s too stressful anyways, shopping for everyone… just a little fast–food while on the go will just keep us satisfied…Seriously, no biggie.  Then Christmas arrives (thank goodness for stretch pants!) and we continue our pattern; why not?!?  We just have a few more days until we have to start our new year’s resolutions, right?  So lets eat, drink, and be merry while it lasts because we know we have to stop the madness beginning January 1^st with our annual “new year’s resolutions” of weight loss attempts.    

That being said, I hope you have a wonderfully blessed Thanksgiving!!   …Oh,  and don’t forget to ask Santa for some stretch pants!

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I do wish everyone a very blessed Holiday Season.  Spend time with family and friends focusing on our blessings of thankfulness.  He has given us Free Will... the power of choice.   We are made to crave… but not food.  We are made to crave Him.  You can do all things through Him who strengthens you (Phil. 4:13).  Our bodies are His Temple.  Are you fit for the King? Don't wait until the new year.