Coconut Crack

Yum yum yum. I love me some crack. Coconut Crack that is. It's easy and no baking required.

1 cup almond flour (I like Bob's Red Mill)

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (I like Bob's again on this)

1/4 cup warmed honey (easier to mix when warmed)

1/4 cup melted coconut oil

Place the coconut oil and honey in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. Not too long or it'll boil over. In a large bowl, mix the ingredients. Roll mixture into golf sized balls and place in the fridge until set. Then eat them!

Update On Me

Just a forewarning. This blog post is about what's been happening with my crazy body these last couple months. I will be talking about some body functions that some people may think is too much info. Like poop, Aunt Flo, gas, and much more other yucky stuff. So you have been forewarned.

For the last three months I've had a whirlwind of health issues of which cannot be explained exactly. As I stated in my previous blog, back in August I started having symptoms that resembled pregnancy. Approximately 3 weeks after I began these symptoms (extreme fatigue, nausea, food aversions, and sensitive boobies), I had three days of spotting. I thought this was my period but it never really picked up to what my period looks like usually. A week after this spotting I took a pregnancy test and also had a blood test, both came back negative. For 3 more weeks I just had a overall feeling of exhaustion even though I started eating more and exercising less. The other symptoms started disappearing, but the fatigue always remained. Then my period came again at 21 days.

As I stated in the last couple posts, we have decided to start trying for another child. About 2 weeks after my period finally came I started having EXTREME bowel and digestive issues. I was having diarrhea up to 6 times a days accompanied with horrible gas. These symptoms lasted 3 weeks. I was so confused because I eat incredibly healthy and I wasn't eating anything out of the norm. During this time I met with my Ob/Gyn who did my annual exam and answered questions about what I had been experiencing. Her opinion what that my hormones were unbalanced and that is what was causing both my erratic period, fatigue and other bothersome symptoms. She then attributed my diarrhea and gass to irritable bowel syndrome.

So at the 5 week mark after my last period I had more weird spotting that lasted 2 days accompanied by horrible cramping. I also would have dizzy spells throughout the day. A few of the dizzy spells where so bad that I blacked out for a moment. Totally scary for me. At 6 weeks I had a "real" period. This one was weird too, it lasted 7 days, was extremely painful, I had severe exhaustion for a couple days, and more diarrhea. Then to make matters even worse I developed a candida infection.

My doctor doesn't seem worried as she thinks my issues are all because of a hormonal imbalance which she attributes to my history of Polycistic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS). She wants to wait a year before placing me on any medication in hopes of my body resolving the issues on its own. I agree with her to a point. I'd rather not take any medications as in the past they have only caused the issues to worsen, not resolve. I'm currently on my own plan of herbal supplements to hopefully speed the process along faster. This is including taking a raw prenatal vitamin, vitamin D, ingesting peppermint oil, taking a raw probiotic, and using Solace (a blend of essential oils known to promote hormonal balance). I also decided to stop drinking coffee and other caffeinated beverages as well as eating a diet that doesn't contribute to digestive irritation.

At this point I'm extremely confused, upset and angry because I don't understand why my body is fighting me. I exercise, eat healthfully, sleep and have plenty of rest, I don't smoke or drink alcohol. Why is this happening!? I have a couple of hypothesis on why this could possibly be going on. One is that my PCOS is acting up (this was the doctors opinion also). My other hypothesis is that I had a chemical pregnancy in August and threw off my hormones. Either way, I'm hoping it won't take too long for my body to rebalance.

Today, 4 days after finishing this last horrible period from hell, I feel really good. I had tons of energy at the gym and felt like my old self. Is this the beginning of the "reset"? I guess we will see what happens tomorrow.

Layered Graham & Yogurt Dessert

I found a delicious looking dessert on Pinterest yesterday and figured with a couple swaps it could be more healthy. I tried it today and it was delicious and super easy. All you need to do is layer reduced fat graham crackers and fat free vanilla Greek yogurt (start and end with graham layers, 4 graham sheets). Melt dark chocolate in the microwave and pour over the top. Refrigerate for 6 hours then serve.

Maybe TMI?

Just a forewarning on the following post. It maybe too much information for some of you out there. Some of you already know me well when it comes to my training and lifestyle as well as my approach to nutrition. Some of my first time clients were taken back when I'd question there poop. Yep, that's right, I asked about their bowel movements. Paying attention to your digestive health is very important. Your urine and bowels tell whether or not you're getting optimal nutrition and supplementation. Checking the color, consistency, and how often you hit the John can give an clue into your overall health. If you haven't already seen the poop episode of Dr. Oz you should google it and watch. Basically you want to be pooping at least once a day, it needs to be a brown color, and it should form a "s" or "c" shape in the toilet. Some things that aren't normal and should get checked out: blood in the stool, days of diarrhea, going a week or longer without having a bowel movement.

The reason I'm going over all this is because I really believe in practicing what I preach. For the past 6 weeks I've been absolutely exhausted, have had heartburn and nausea, not to mention diarrhea a couple times a week. THIS IS NOT NORMAL. I couldn't understand why a healthy person like me was having these digestive issues. After visiting with my doctor she stated she believes I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome. She suggested I try taking a probiotic for 6 weeks to see if it clears up and if it didn't she was going to refer me to a Gastroentologist.

So I'll keep you all informed as to if these probiotics do the trick. I'll also be following a IBS friendly diet and increase my "bulking" foods. I already eat tons of fiber and stay away from dairy so the IBS diets aren't too different than what I normally eat. I've also been doing some reading and IBS can flare up because of stress which is my only guess as to why I'm having digestive issues. Confusing for me because I've never really had too many issues in the past. Hopefully I just need some of the healthy gut flora provided by these probiotics to clear up the issue.

So like I said, this might have been TMI for some of you but this is none the less important information for your health. Start looking in your toilets people and ask your doc if anything is bothersome.

Less Training Means More Free Time

So since I've chosen baby that means my lifestyle changes. That means two things different for me, more food and less training. Sound funny? Believe it or not if your bodyfat is too low and you train too intensely your body will not want to support a human life. For me this means sacrificing my "train hard" gym sessions for a different approach. Training not for muscle and a lean physique but for a healthy bodyfat while staying moderately strong and cardiovascularly fit. I plan on hitting the gym 4 times a week, lifting for 40 minutes and cardio for 20 minutes. My caloric intake also increases about 300 calories a day but in the form of healthy fats and some additional carbohydrates. I must admit, I went to Trader Joes yesterday for my groceries and I was very excited to throw peanut butter filled pretzels and the ingredients for tacos into the cart. I'll continue to eat clean of course, but it'll be much more relaxed in terms of food choices compared to my competition preparation.

With all this free time I started a couple projects that I've been putting off. First one finished: refurbished cellphone cover. I got the idea from Kandee Johnson whose blogs I follow. She's such a sweetheart and she is very artistic and creative. Check out the before and after photos along with a picture of my little helper.

And the decision has been made...

Baby time.

Maybe in a future post I will explain my decision. Or for those of you who are already mommies out there you'll already understand. ;)

A Sign From God?

So today is decision day, do I keep training and dieting for the November 3 Figure Competition or do I move forward with family plans of adding a new addition to the family? For the last couple days I've been so undecided often flipping back and forth on the matter multiple times a day.

This morning I woke up to what are the signs that I'm ovulating. I was surprised to see it but in the same thought I took it as a sign that it's time to try for our latest addition for our Finney Family.

About 2 hours later I was at Golds Gym working my arms and calves. I'm a regular there and everyone already knows Kellen and I even though we've only been going there for a 3 weeks. Since I frequent this gym almost daily I recognize if anything is different. Well today something was different at Golds. They added a huge poster for the upcoming Bodybuilding/Figure Competition on November 3. It wasn't there yesterday... Another sign, am I supposed to compete? Now I'm really confused. Needless to say, these signs aren't helping and I'm in the exact same predicament that I was on Tuesday. I'm taking the weekend off of training and I'll start it off tonight with a delicious burger from Bachi Burger which my brother informed me I had to eat since we moved to Vegas.