Wildgrain Subscription Box

Wildgrain Subscription Box.. What is it?

Wildgrain offers high quality Bread and Pasta delivered right to your door. From slow fermented Sourdough to fresh buttery Croissants and Pasta it’s the box for all Carb lovers! If you enjoy freshly baked bread but don’t have this skills or time to bake from scratch this really is the perfect box.

My first box arrived and I am absolutely delighted with the offerings. The Breads are some of the best and highest quality I have tried and the fresh pasta is so easy to prepare. Plus there’s FREE Croissants for life!. Each box will come with your choice of Breads and Pastries or Breads, Pasta and Pastries. It’s entirely your choice and you can manage your delivery very easily via the website.

Upon delivery of my first box I was delighted as how well packaged everything is so there is no fear of anything defrosting in transit. The box is insulated with dry ice (Be sure to wear gloves!) and everything individually wrapped with full cooking instructions on each individual item. On top of that, everything is part baked and then flash frozen so it really is as easy as remove from the freezer and place in a pre heated oven. One thing I always look out for is ingredients and Wildgrain didn’t disappoint. Minimal, Clean and nothing questionable.. as Bread should be.

What was in my first box:

  • 1 Plain Sourdough Loaf.
  • 1 Olive Oil Ciabatta Loaf.
  • 1 Walnut Sourdough Loaf.
  • 1 package of fresh Tonnarelli
  • 1 package pf Fresh Fettuccini
  • 1 package of Lemon Raspberry Biscuits.
  • 1 package of Croissants (FREE)



    What comes in each box?

The Mixed Box:
This has the making of 30 meals all ready in 25 minutes or less.

3 Loaves of Bread or bags of Rolls.
2 Packages of fresh Pasta.
1 package of Pastries.
4 FREE Croissants.

The Bakery Box:

5 Loaves of Bread, bags of Rolls, or Muffins.
1 Package of Pastries.
4 FREE Croissants

How Much does it cost?

Each box is $89 charged on a monthly basis. You will receive an email 4 days before the charge is made. You also have easy management via the website and complete flexibility in regards being able to reschedule, skip or cancel at any time. Although once trying your first box I couldn’t imagine the latter.

You can get $10 off your first box using code 42KCOOKIE and if you go through the following link: Wildgrain

What if my box goes missing or gets stolen?

Every shipment is protected against damage or loss – No extra charge. Should this happen Wildgrain will replace your box.

Is it worth it?

All factors into consideration, Yes. The convenience, quality and flexibility all amount to two thumbs up from me. Especially if you enjoy freshly baked breads but don’t have the hours to make it this is perfect.

Conclusion:

Overall I am really impressed with the box. The delivery time was excellent, my Husband and I were able to make multiple delicious meals in under 20 minutes with easy to follow instructions and enjoyed the free Croissants at Breakfast.

Ovarian Cyst and Laparoscopy Surgery

Laparoscopy is no joke, after a rough weekend of recovery it’s really hit home the importance of having regular health check as had it not been for a regular Pap Smear my Melon sized cyst would not have been detected. The last 3 months since being diagnosed has been really stressful with numerous tests and meetings with Doctors where it all started to get too much until I realized it could have been a lot more serious and I can’t stress enough having these regular health checks.

Going back 3 year ago I was admitted to to the ER with excruciating abdomen pain where it felt like my insides were being twisted and pulled out, I was in agony for 6 hours and finally after morphine drip and other pain meds to the pain subsided enough for tests only nothing was found and I was allowed to go home with no further pain. My menstrual cycle went a little let’s say ”wonky” where I would go months with nothing and then 2 cycles in one month. I’ve had phases of this in the past so didn’t think too much of it as I was also diagnosed with Under Active Thyroid.
Fast forward to January this year and a routine Pap Smear showed ”unusual swelling” where I was sent for Ultrasounds, both internal and external which showed a Melon sized Cyst on my right Ovary and an incredibly full Bladder where the Cyst was preventing me from completely emptying when I use the bathroom.
Initially I was told that the Cyst was Orange sized and that simply monitoring it would be a good idea before I decide on Surgery but after a few week and Abdomen pain for almost a week I was admitted to ER again for more tests where it showed the Cyst was actually the size of a small Melon. With this in mind I decided to go ahead with Surgery.
The size of the Cyst being inside of me was really hard for me to get my head around, I’m only 4ft 11 after all so I was baffled as to how it can be that big. I had noticed that recently I had been looking more bloated than normal but didn’t think too much of it. My Surgeon pointed out that ”your tummy is so flat, it will be even flatter it’ removed”.

The prep for Surgery was even more blood tests and the week before my surgery date a meeting with my Surgeon who went through the process with me and marked out where the incisions would be.
A Laparoscopy is where 3 small incisions are made an the Abdomen, gas was then used to inflate the area so that the Cyst could be drained and removed. The whole process typically takes 90 minutes where you are sedated with gas.

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Surgery day: I arrived for my appointment at 11:45am and went through all the required preparation of dressing for the procedure, being linked up to IV and having heart rate, temperature and blood pressure was taken where I was then given a light sedative before gas and at around 1pm was drowsily wheeled into Surgery.
I came round at 3:45 in recovery where I was told everything went well and was released shortly after with my bag full of medications including Antibiotics, 2 type of pain relief and stool softener (apparently it’s common to have problem afterwards).

Few hours after Surgery: Feeling sore and incredibly hungry. I hadn’t been ale to eat for close to 20 hours do to needing to be fasted for Surgery yet despite being so hungry I couldn’t swallow solid food, my mouth was really sore, dry and I must have drank about 100ml of Water. I was able to get down a Protein shake and some Yogurt.

4am Friday (day after Surgery): Woke up feeling like I had been hit by a truck which is a side effect of the gas. The nights sleep was restless and where I usually sleep on my stomach I had to try lay on my back due to my scars.

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Friday: Spent the entire day on the couch in and out of consciousness due to the medication making me drowsy, the pain was bearable and under control. My little fur baby Tigger kept me company with lot’s of cuddles. My appetite had depleted yet still managed to eat more Yogurt and protein shake. I was able to clean the scars (3 of them) and put my belly ring back in.

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Saturday: I was going tire crazy at home doing nothing so Steve suggested we go see a film. We went to the Movies to see Jungle Book where I ended up falling asleep again. Another day of just having Yogurt for Breakfast we decided to go to Fahrenheit Pizza in Pleasanton where I managed to eat half of my Chicken Pesto.

Sunday: Curiosity got the best of me and I decided to weight myself.. 4lb loss since Friday. My initial thought was ”my gainz!!” many Women would be happy at such a loss but that’ a lot for someone already so small. I now weight in at 101lb.
I couldn’t sit at home for another day and the pain had pretty much gone so Steve drove us up to Sacramento for a visit to the Zoo, it was nice to be out of the house but probably a little premature for me to be venturing out as the pain kicked in meaning more medication and then falling asleep on the ride home.

Today I’m feeling much more like my normal self, the forced rest and not being able to go in the Gym or Run is driving me crazy but I know the rest is doing me good. I realized I haven’t taken a full on rest day in close to 6 months and am always going hard when I train so this is like a vacation for my Muscles.
I’m still a little swollen but the scars are looking a lot better now after regular cleaning yet I’m still not able to take a proper shower and clean the Iodine stain from my skin. I’m also finally able to eat regular foods.

One thing I cannot stress enough after this episode i that sure a Pap Smear is not pleasant but having these regular health checks are incredibly important and could save your life. Ladies, please don’t skip these! And guys have your regular checks too.

408k Race to the Row

This year was my second time Running this event and was quite the honor that this time I was part of the Represent Running Ambassador Crew. The 408k is the first in the ”Run The Bay” series with 2 other events later in the year. One in San Francisco (the 415k) in July and one in Oakland (the 510k) in October. the 408 comes from the zip code in which it is held – San Jose where the course is 8k from SAP Center to Santana Row,

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Living in Mountain House (on the boarder of East Bay / Central Valley) the drive down to San Jose is long but I feel worth it for these events. I drove down the Friday before to pick up my packet an also met JT from Under Armour who are the sponsors for the event and kindly provided all of us Ambassadors with Shirts, Shorts and Shoes. How awesome is that? Anyway, packet pick up was easy as it was fairly well sign posted and I just needed my bib number. I was hoping there may be some more vendors there selling Running gear but Under Armour was present with some nice items.
I managed to pick up my Shirt and Shorts for the events but no Shoes were on sight so I had them mailed to me at a later date. When they arrived I was overjoyed, it really was like Christmas and I am so grateful for such a generous gift. The shoes are the Speedform Gemini 2 and so comfortable and lightweight.

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Race day morning and another long drive I planned to meet with the rest of the Ambassador Crew and members of my Running Club at the Start line where I was ready and waiting from around 7:20am. It wasn’t at all busy at this time and I even had time to use one of the many porta potties before introducing myself and having  a group photo with everybody. I am terrible with names but I do know I met Sharon (IG: RunHikeNPlay), Christina ( IG: LittleBeastling), Jason (IG: RunningMileCom) and of course Brian (IG: PavementRunner). Everybody was so friendly and full of energy, it’s great to be part of a group of people that share my passion.

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Thankfully after rain forecast for the Morning we got very lucky and  the weather was cooperating, beautiful blue sky and no sign of rain which meant the Race started without any hitches and on time.
I decided to Run this event with 2 members of my Running Club at their pace instead of trying to PR, my time last year was 34 minute and I couldn’t remember more than 20% of the course so I thought being Ambassador it was a good idea to aim for 40-55 minute finish time so that I could take in the course and event. The first mile was a mass of people all finding their pace and I was happy running alongside my fellow MHRC members and talking about the race series and other 2 races later this year. It was about the 1.5 mile mark that 2 of us broke off at a faster face and continued along the course conversation for the duration.

Mile 3 came around quickly which was memorial mile and the one part of the course I remember the entire of from last year. Seeing Veterans come out to cheer US on blows my mind! There didn’t seem to be as many people lining the streets this year which I put down to the earlier threat of Rain, I spotted a gentleman I recall giving ”high-five” last year and veered off to the side of the course for a repeat. It wasn’t until after the event I found out that this was actually one of the other Represent Running Ambassadors Dad!! Hoe cool is that?

Mile 3 gave way to 4 where we saw Mariachi Mile and my Running companion took a couple of pictures and nearing the finish we picked up pace  a little and in no time were turning the corner onto Santana Row, down the home straight and over the Finish line where I heard the announcer call my name and that I was one of the race Ambassadors, that was kinda cool and totally unexpected.

Finish time? 42 minutes something.. I think.

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Post race we hung out around by the Under Armour booth where other MHRC members and some of the Ambassador crew found us and took pictures. Pot race snacks were on hand with Banana’s and little baggie with fruit snacks, Go Macro bar and some Corn snack thing. I’m so glad this year had Banana’s after being handed an Apple last year.

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The next event for this series is set for the 10th of July and has both a 12k and 5k option (#Run415k) sign up using code ”REPRESENT2016EB” for 10% discount.

Team Run the Bay

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I am so excited and honored to say that I have been selected as an Ambassador for Represent Running and the Run The Bay series in 2016!! I found this out just before Christmas but was requested to keep it quite so that it could be officially announced and posted via the Represent Running website.

So, what is the Run the Bay series?
It’s 3 Running events in the Bay Area where if you complete all 3 events you bag yourself an extra medal and it’s some pretty sweet bling! The series starts with the 408k in San Jose on Sunday 6th March. This is an 8k (4.9mi) flat course starting in Downtown and ending at Santana Row.

Want to join me? Sign up using code ”REPRESENT2016EB” for 10% off registration via the Website

If you can’t make it to any of the events but still want the goodies (Shirt and Medal) then you can sign up as a ”Remote Runner”. This means you get to run the distance at a time and place that suits you, meaning no getting up early and driving to the location. Although we would love to see you at the finish line parry! Plus in doing so you also get the awesome professional photos to show your friends.

The second Run is the 415k Across the Bay starting in Sausalito, going over the Golden Gate Bridge (how cool is that?) and finishing in San Francisco on the 10h of July.
The series then ends with the Let’s Go 510 in Oakland on the 10th of October.

I am going to be at each of the events and would love to have you come join me! All Running capabilities are welcome.

Holy PR! Jingle All the Way 5k

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For the 3rd year Running the Jingle All the Way 5k has taken place in Mountain House and where I initially wasn’t going to Run decided to sign up almost last minute and damn I am glad I did because I not only beat my unofficial PR (20:14 set back in August 2013) but I completely smashed my previous years time (22:43) finishing in 19:44, 1st overall!

I have some of my fellow MHRC members for this because not one but 6 people told I must sign up for this and despite the busy day already had planned I managed to squeeze it in. It was a local 5k after all, not like I was driving 30+ to run a Half Marathon.

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Morning of it was pretty cool to see a lot of familiar faces, Running Club members and a few team mates from Ragnar along with people from neighboring towns. From what I could tell everything ran smoothly this year and pretty much right on time we started.
I went into the Run thinking between 21 and 24 minutes was a good time to aim for considering both my Asthma and left Knee not playing nice.
The first part of the run was down the road before turning onto the Creek Trail where I spotted a few MHRC members and ended up Running with Randy for a very brief moment along the trail where a photographer got the 2 of us together (pretty cool btw! 2 MHRC members in one shot). Before I knew it I was speeding along the trail with 2 little boys who I guess were no older than 12, those are some fast little kids! Spotted another photographer and some cheering faces as I breezed through the aid and past the 2 little boys into the lead and feeling pretty darn awesome looking down at my Garmin I realized I was on track to beat my unofficial PR.
That was until I noticed my right shoelace had come undone. F**k!! I was just going to carry on running but knowing that at only about 1.5 miles in wasn’t a good idea. I would trip over the lace and face plant on the trail (which sounds funny but really isn’t) or I would loose my shoe altogether. I decided the smart move would be to stop and re-tie my lace, Actually the smarter move would have been to make sure it was tied properly in the first place and for not doing that I mad at myself but I clearly didn’t have my smarts with me that day.
Quick glance at my Garmin just as I stopped said I was averaging 6:11 minute mile and let me tell you.. Trying to tie laces with gloves on is not easy! 2 attempts and I had to remove them, quick re-tie and off I went realizing I was now averaging 7:24 minute mile. Thinking that I had completely ruined my chances of beating my own PR made me angry. I realize now that may have actually worked in my favor as I picked up pace on the last stretch of the the outward section of the trail and coming back down the other side of the creek I noticed I was back averaging 6:20 something just as I went into mile 3. If there’s one thing I have noticed that is not performing as good as I have done previously seems to light a fire in me and my determination to better myself spurs me on.

2.5 mile in had my lungs burning in the 30 odd degrees and I had to use my Asthma pump which was little relief and thoughts by the 2.80 mile point was that ”This shit is going to kill me one day”. Dramatic much? But thoughts quickly passed when I turned the final corner and saw the finish line in sight. Still in front position I ran down the path, over the crossing and through the finish line to see Steve filming me and hear Corey announce I was first overall and my time… Sub 20!! I do believe the first thing I did was jump up and down squeeling ”F**k yeah! I PR’d!” before realizing I couldn’t breath and needed water asap!

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After the run I hung around for a bit seeing other people I know finish and talk with some of the club members while also attempting to refuel with some Muffins. And of course, claim my medal too which was some pretty sweet bling, very Christmassy. Medals were only given to those who placed in their age group and we also got an extra little something from NXT level.
I really like this annual Run and I hope is something that continues every year, even if I don’t Run it I’ll come out and support those that do.

I’ve been matched!!

I am so excited!! As of the 2nd of November 2015 I was matched with my Running buddy, Shaelynn! ((I’m adding the date because this blog post is really late!).

Signing up for a match is something I had been considering for around 2 years but given the injury I had with my Knee I held off doing so because I didn’t want to be matched and then not be able to Run but at the beginning of 2015 I decided it was time and signed up. The wait had increased somewhat since I first looked into it and took 7-8 months for me to be matched but it was totally worth the wait. Shaelynn is a gorgeous, happy little girl who turned 7 years old on November 7th. Born with Cerebral Palsy she is unable to Run herself so for as long as I can Run I will be dedicating all of my miles to her.

Ragnar Relay

What happens when you get 12 people together to Run 195.9 miles over 34 hours? Memories for a lifetime and one big check off of your Bucket list!
Ragnar Relay is an event I had been interested in doing for close to 2 years but didn’t actually know that many people who Run and even less who would want to spend almost 2 days Running from San Francisco to Calistoga. But luckily for me my prayers were answered when the Running Club I am a member of were getting a team together and sure I didn’t know most of the team but whole part of the fun is getting to know new people. I had been a member of the Running Club for 2 years and had only met a handful of people so was a little unsure how spending over a day in a van with 3 people I had never met before would go down.  Nothing to worry about as we all got on really well!

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The morning of Ragnar comes and we all met at Corey’s (our Team captain) house at 5am and head off to San Francisco where the event started at 7:30am. Corey was runner 1 and myself 2 so I had to be prepared and ready at the first exchange 30 minute after the start. To be completely honest, I hadn’t even looked at which Legs I was doing until the night before but here’s pretty much how they looked on paper:

Leg 1 (2 of the event): 5.5 miles ”Hard”.
Leg 2 (14 of the event): 4.7miles ”Moderate”.
Leg 3 (26 of the event): 8.3 miles ”Very Hard”.

Not anything that worried me, I’ve done Half marathon’s up to 3,200ft in the past so I went into it pretty blindly without looking at elevation.
The first leg was actually lot of fun. It started immediately with steps down onto a trail which then gave way to even more steps going both up and down the trail for a considerable distance, they were also  sand covered and very slippery (my Garmin logged 140 flights). Those steps then gave way to an almost Tough Mudder style obstacle course of tree’s and rocks to climb over before going down onto the beach. Not going to lie, Running on loose sand is not easy, especially when you turn left on the beach instead of right adding 5-7 minutes to your time like I did. I had to double back towards Golden Gate Bridge which is when I decided to run on the compacted sand closer to the water. Big mistake! Because not 1 minute later a huge wave crashed on the shore and I ended up with wet feet for the next 3+ miles.
Part of this leg was also Running over the Golden Gate Bridge where the hand off was on the other side. There really could have been some marking for where this hand off was supposed to be as I stopped at a group of people that looked like it was the hand off point only to not see my team. I had to ask if anybody knew where I was supposed to go, only nobody knew and I ended up Running around aimlessly hoping to see someone.. anyone from my team. Luckily I found them and the hand off went smoothly but the whole leg left me thinking ”Hang on a minute, If that was ”hard” what is my ”very hard” one going to be like?” A Facebook friend joked that I would have to jump through rings of fire.

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My second leg was a somewhat easy one for me as the first couple of miles were mainly uphill, something I seem to excel at. It was dark and we were running at the side of the road which was very narrow in places with no street lighting so I relied heavily on my headlamp and thank goodness for those awesome Tracer 360 vest because had I not been wearing them I could have quite easily ended up as roadkill! Anyway… the first few miles were a breeze until the downhill came which is no secret I absolutely hate and was made worse by the fact that I got a stabbing pain just under my left kneecap on impact. The pain was mild at first by then spread down my calf and up my quad, by the time I was done with the 4.7 miles the pain was so bad I was worried I wouldn’t be able to finish the event.

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With Running legs split between 12 people it gave me plenty of time to roll out my Leg that was incredibly angry at me and with the help of an awesome team mate got my Knee tapped in some rather nice KT tape which eased the pain but stuck in a van didn’t help much as I found being sat still my Knee would stiffen up and hurt like hell yet once I was moving it was fine. I had never experienced this pain before and to this day have absolutely no idea what it was or what caused it but I am thankful for that tape because without it it I don’t think I would have managed my final leg.

The final leg was 8.3 miles and something I am not a fan of – road running! I decided that to avoid too much pain or further injury I would take a slower pace and try not even look at my Garmin which I succeeded in for the first 3.5 miles until curiosity got the better of me. The first few miles was still in the dark and those few miles where I saw the sun rise was so peaceful, watching the sun creep out above the hills in front of me and fill the horizon with beautiful pink and blue colors reminded me why I enjoyed Running so much and even took a few minutes to stop and take a couple of pictures.
The leg itself I found to be easy, there were no significant hills or rough terrain which had me decide that the difficulty ratings provided by Ragnar were not at all accurate and are really just a rough guide. I can only assume it was rated on distance. Despite the niggling pain on the side of my Leg / Knee the remainder of my run was smooth and within no time I was upon the final mile which was my cue to text the team and tell them I was almost done.

Once our Van had finished our part of the event we had a few hours to kill while we waited for Van 2 so took to hitting up a Brewery in Calistoga for a short while before heading to the finish site where we could wait for the other Runner and all cross the Finish line together.

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The post race festival was smaller than I expected with each Van getting one small Pizza to share (literally one small slice each) and a Beer each, as I don’t drink I gave my ticket to a fellow team mate. There were also a few tents selling merchandise and Monster on hand for those that wasn’t into the Beer. Given the size of the event I have to admit that I did expect more at the end especially considering how it was made to sound in emails, everyone was in high spirits though so I guess that’s all that really matters.
I don’t know about the rest of the MHRC team but I really enjoyed this event and am glad I got to share the experience with them, knocking another event off my bucket list. The discussion has already been had of doing the Golden Gate Relay next year and is definitely something I want in on.

Do I have any tips for this event? Sure!

– Get a team together! Make sure you get along as you’ll be spending A LOT of time together in a very small space.
– Have team training runs so that you determine each others strengths and weaknesses,
– Plan! The positions vary in difficulty so there is a spot for all capabilities. Don’t go putting the newbie Runner with the longest mileage.
– Research places to stop along the way (Food, Water ect)
– Make sure you have the entire team’s cell numbers in your phone and take chargers / battery packs.
– If you have space take a cool box with some food and water in.
– Other must have while packing: Aid kits, Pain medication, Headlamps, Visibility Vests, Foam Roller, Wet wipes.
– Have fun! It’s great to finish in really good time but in my opinion Ragnar isn’t a Race but an experience. Leave those goals to PR at home and just enjoy it.

Living with Under Active Thyroid

Under Active Thyroid = Hypothyroidism.

Having been diagnosed with this a little over 2 years ago I recently noticed just how little many people actually know about it and how seriously it affects those that are diagnosed.
When I was diagnosed it wasn’t something I even considered having and my Doctor only did the blood work for it when 2 other blood drawings failed to provide me with the answers I was looking for, looking up the symptoms after being diagnosed it all became clear and having around 95% of them I was somewhat surprised it wasn’t something that was noticed sooner.

I’ve been prompted to write this post because I do feel more Women need to be aware of it and also partly because of a few people I have encountered lately. People who claim to have ”Under Active Thyroid” without bothering to get checked out. The reason for self diagnosis? Having trouble loosing weight. This is to be quite honest, something that really got my back up as it seems too many people use this as an excuse for weight gain / trouble loosing weight instead of looking at their lifestyle and eating habits. This is just ONE of the many symptoms myself and thousands of other Women (and even some Men) struggle with on a daily basis and is not something to be made light of. Other symptoms include Depression, Fatigue, Hair loss, changes in Menstrual Cycle (or complete loss of mensuration), Impaired Memory and sensitivity to Cold. There are other symptoms and I will add some help full links to the end of my post.

Anyhow, after being diagnosed and my Doctor not being at all helpful I went on for over 2 years struggling with the symptoms until very recently decided to try something Steve (my Husband) found out about by researching online. He found out about this cream that when applied twice a day apparently reverses the symptoms, I say apparently because I thought surely if it’s as simple as a cream Doctors would prescribe it? Plus my Husband is always full of these crazy idea’s even once telling me that I should try some ”Big bookie cookies” to help my boobs grow after them shrinking 4 sizes after weight loss. I know.. Cookies that give you bigger boobs! (I’m lol’ing right now) So I was saying, the cream. I decided ”to hell with it” and ordered some just to see if it did actually work. You start using the cream 7-10 days after the start of your last cycle and applying it twice a day to varying parts of your body (inner Arms, Legs, Abs and Chest) and I started this process around 10 days. Many people using the cream have reported changes within a couple of weeks, others months and I don’t know iof it’s just pure coincidence but I noticed weird shit going on with my body by about day 4. By weird shit I mean:

– Cramps! Oh yeah, fun times!
– Intense Chocolate cravings (many Women have reported this). Cravings this intense are not at all normal for me.
– Spot breakout. Sure I have the occasional spot with on average one big one a year but this last week I’ve had 10 years worth of giant ones. I no likey!!
– Oh yeah I also went from 2-4 menstrual cycles a year to 2 in 3 weeks.
– Constantly hungry. I joked before about always being hungry (gotta feed those Muscles!) Yet this last week has been non stop eating.

I guess you could say the cream is working? It’s doing something that’s for sure and at present I’m obviously not enjoying it at all but I am hopeful that it will have a positive effect.

So yeah, Hypothyroidism is a somewhat misunderstood disease that affects thousands of people, it’s not pleasant and definitely not something to be self diagnosed. If you think you may have it GET CHECKED OUT! I’m also going to add a way to contact me in my bio if anybody wishes discuss it more. Useful links:

Hypothyroidism

Hypothyroidism

Body changes

This past week I took a visit to both my Hair Stylist and my Dentist / Hygienist, 3 people I hadn’t seen in 6-8 months and where most visits are generally uneventful this one really had me thinking. Not because of the parts of me in which I was there for but the rest of me, it’s true that others you don’t see often notice the changes in you way more than people you do.

The Hygienist was first on my appointments schedule and upon arriving she stated I looked ”Thin”. This statement rattled me somewhat, where a lot of Women would be happy to hear such a thing I sure wasn’t. I always pride myself on trying to be ”Fit not Skinny” and actually got a little concerned with my mind racing while in the chair. ”Have I not been eating enough? Have I overdone it? Is that really how people see me?”. She must have sensed that I was now on edge because she then tried to sidestep saying that I looked ”really great” and concerns dissipated somewhat when the Dentist came in and announced that actually I looked ”Buff” (lol) Phew! Nothing like a Guys perspective to balance it out.

That was said was still going through my mind as I headed to my Hair Stylist and once I got there had all concerns vanish from my mind when she looked at me saying it was clear I was lifting weights and was looking so good for it.
Anyhow the whole experience made me realize that while I stopped worrying about trying to gain muscle / loose fat and obsessing over what workouts I needed to do and keeping my food in check I’ve actually made huge changes in my physique. This is something that pleases me so much because it wasn’t long ago I knew I started to turn down a dark path and I don’t ever want to be that person that is forever tracking food and obsessing rather than just enjoying  life and the body I have already spent years working on. As far as I am concerned my days of tracking food and making workout plans a week in advance are over. Of course I still maintain the healthy lifestyle and use the home Gym on a daily basis because it’s what i enjoy but if I want a Cheeseburger then dammit, I will have a Cheeseburger and if I want to sit in front of the TV with a pint of Gelato then that’s what I am going to do! And I’m not going to feel guilty about it either. My approach on food is now ”I eat what I want when I want” and I like it that way, of course most of the foods I crave are what most consider ‘healthy” (Greek Yogurt, Grilled Meats and Vegetables) and of course the occasional Dessert, I am only human after all.

Something else that has been brought up lately is if I am training for a Weight Lifting competition or if I have ever considered doing a Bodybuilding / Bikini competition. The first time someone asked me (my Masseuse) I actually thought they were joking but now that I am cutting back on the Running I’m starting to think that yeah, maybe. Not a Bodybuilding competition, oh no! Like I said, my days of obsessing over training / food are done and there is no way I am walking around on a stage in a teeny tiny bit of fabric no bigger than a piece of dental floss in front of hundreds of people but Power Lifting? Maybe. I’m overdue a new challenge and it actually looks like fun. Since my right Knee is still not 100% I have to see if and when that fully heals and take it from there. Who knows I may be this little bad-ass woman you see dead lifting 3 x her own body weight!

When ”Friendships” become creepy

The last 7 or 8 months has had me do some serious thinking about so called ”Friendships” in my life and what sort of impact they are having and sadly, there is one or two that simply are not working. I need to make positive changes in my life and one of these things I cutting loose what I consider to be fake friendships.
When I say fake I mean people that had attached themselves to me and called me a friend but then having their actions say the complete opposite. For example imitation. This is one thing that really pisses me off. Be yourself, dammit! Trying to have everything I have and being everything that I am from trying to Run the same pace as me, going after the same Ambassador positions, eating the same damn foods as me after saying they ”hated it” and stalking my social media and posting identical things just hours later despite not being a follower is creepy as f**k!!! Then self diagnosing the same medical conditions as me.. that’s seriously messed up. They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery. No, it’s not. Then all the while doing this making sly digs at me and my lifestyle. 1. My lifestyle is MY business and 2. If it’s that bad to make digs then why try imitate it?! Uurgh.

So yeah, I’m trying to make positive changes for a more harmonious life and having such people removed from it are what is going to help. This constant stalking (yes, stalking!) is stressing me out and I don’t need it. My social media became mainly Fitness related with recipe’s and tips for those that need it. I’ve recently thought about making all of my social media private but I just this past couple of weeks discovered that my pages are inspiring others. Yay! This is why I certified in the first place and I shouldn’t have to hide or change this information just because one or two people have no originality or imagination of their own.

A somewhat sad post but I find writing things down helps me get them off my chest and understand them better. So If you’ve recently found yourself removed from my life this should give insight as to why.