On The Road to Health After Years of Abuse

July 2, 2013|Weight Management|Caroline Sarda6

We all hear that beauty is skin deep but I beg to differ. I’m a true believer in “what you see on the outside is a reflection of what’s going on inside.”  This is a 3-part blog. In part 1, I’m going to “talk” to you about my health and lifestyle, past and present.  I wasn’t always healthy. That’s actually one of the main reasons I started blogging and my business. I want to help others know that life can be awesome if you take good care of yourself mentally, physically, emotionally and spiritually.

If you aren’t currently as healthy as you’d like to be, you can change that.

In part 2, I will share with you diet and lifestyle tips to not only improve your health but to give you great youthful skin.

I’ve been passionate about health for years. Over the past decade, I’ve had to make a lot of changes in my life, especially my diet. Being French, I love cheese and croissants. I used to say that everything tastes better with cheese. Boy did that get me in trouble.

Having moved out on my own at 17, I started working full time to not only support myself but put myself through college. Working 40+ hours a week and taking 18-21 units a semester, I was a busy girl. I had officially signed up for the rat race! Taking care of myself and cooking were not priorities. A meal prepared in ten minutes or less seemed about right. That is when I really started abusing my body and just let myself go.

Over time, I put on weight. I loved my cheesy creamy sauces and my bread. What kind of French person would I be if I didn’t! I starting getting headaches, having GI issues, and feeling run down. By the time I was in my late 20s, my coworkers had given me the nickname “grandma”. That was because I was always too tired to go out. I barely had enough energy to work so how could I possibly go out?

In my early 30s, I met my now husband who was ten years older and full of health issues. Being with him and seeing what he had to go through made me open my eyes. He needed to make changes in his life and so did I. Together, we started exploring alternative medicine from acupuncture, NAET, QRA, oxygen-therapy, detoxing… We also changed out daily habits.

We started eating a lot more vegetables and cut out gluten completely. I love to shop at farmer’s markets and buy organic fruit and vegetables. If you’re not sure what you should and shouldn’t buy that’s organic, check out my blog called The Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen: Eating Organic.

We also dramatically reduced any cow milk products and now eat goat’s milk yogurt and cheese. Trader Joes carries great cheeses made with goat’s milk. I am quite a fan of Goat’s Milk Gouda now.

We stopped drinking coffee every day and starting drinking tea instead. I have a Nespresso machine at home so do enjoy my occasional coffee. I’m a true believer in moderation and that life is meant to be enjoyed. I do, however, listen to my body and know that it’s not happy if I touch fried foods or processed foods so I just avoid those altogether.

We began making green juices daily and drinking fresh carrot juice. We also started working out. I feel in love with P90X and started doing that work out at home. With running a business it’s not always easy to take an hour a day to work out. On very busy days, I at least go for a 30-minute walk.

We just completely changed out lifestyle one step at a time and I am so thankful that we did. I feel better at 38 than I did at 25. I also look healthier and younger. This journey, which I will always be on, has been a long one but boy is it worth it!

Stay tuned for Part 2 tomorrow where you can find out ways to better health and gorgeous skin (and they’re a lot easier than you think!)