Sarah E. Welch

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been feeling healthier, stronger, and more energetic–all thanks to my new yeast free diet. I’ve been feeling the urge, no the need to exercise and to use some of this excess energy. Getting active is always one of those things I’ve said I was going to do, but it really hasn’t happened. I’ve taken yoga and ballroom dancing and swam a bit in the past, but nothing stuck. Swimming in public was intimidating back in Missouri. It seems emotionally impossible in this land of beautiful people here in Boulder. Ballroom was fun, but it can be frustrating–especially since Rich and I prefer much different styles. I love Latin; he prefers waltz. As for yoga, I’ve been kind of gun shy since a severe injury a couple of years ago.

When we moved into our current condo here in Boulder back in December, I had mixed feelings about the community fitness room. On one hand, I was excited it was here. Locker rooms are gross and intimidating. Even on rainy/snowy/super hot days, the proximity would leave me little excuse. On the other hand, now I had to feel guilty if I didn’t use it. That’s girl wuss logic for you.

Over the last few months, I’ve been taking baby steps–tiny, tiny little baby steps to get myself started. I started by visiting the weight room, just in my street clothes. I didn’t do anything with the equipment. The first time, I didn’t even walk all the way in, just walked in and out. I did this a few more times, increasing how long I stayed and started paying attention to what was in the room. Tonight, I went twice–in work out clothes and with intent to actually work out. You see, I’ve decided to start running. It hit me a couple of weeks ago that I wanted to run, not because I should or because I wanted to fit in here in Boulder. I wanted to feel the wind in my hair and catch a little air. So, Friday, I’m going in to Boulder Running Company for gait analysis (link to video) and to buy running shoes–or at least walking/jogging shoes for now :)

If you watch the video, you’ll see that the folks at Boulder Running Company will video tape me jogging on a treadmill to help me pick the right shoe for me. This was a problem as I have never jogged on a treadmill, until tonight that is. I’ve walked plenty, but jog? That’s always seemed a bit dangerous to me. Yes, I know I’m revealing my level of cowardice here.  But…I did it. And? It was fun! As part of my baby steps, I walked and jogged on the treadmill (at various speeds and inclines). I used the stationary bike. I tried a few things on the Nautilus type equipment we have. I did some arm curls with hand weights. As it turns out, I can still do a few arm curls with a 15lb weight. Woot! When I got back to our place, I even popped in a yoga DVD for a few minutes and discovered I need to work on my setup. Overall, it was probably around a half hour of working out, but that’s half an hour more than I did yesterday. I think it’s going to stick. I felt good after working out. I’ve always heard that’s how you’re supposed to feel after working out, but it hasn’t been that true for me in the past other than a glimmer from yoga. Tonight, it happened. I felt good. Baby steps.

Boulder, fitness, running, self-improvement, weight training, yeast free, yoga

Eating yeast free does not have to mean giving up tasty food, and as I’ve discovered, it doesn’t even mean giving up dessert. Tonight for dinner, we had coconut curry chicken and triple berry cobbler. Does that sound like I’m suffering?! No :) The “recipes” are below. I use that term very loosely, as I hadn’t intended to blog about either. The curry chicken is just one of my throw together meals. The cobbler was just an experiment, but it worked, so I’ll share :)

Coconut Curry Chicken

This is a great, throw together meal–especially when you have leftover chicken and various veggies in the fridge. I frequently make my own curry powder from whole seeds, but this was a week night throw together, so I used a pre-purchased blend. If you aren’t already a die hard fan, you should really check out Savory Spice. It’s a local Colorado chain, but they’re also online, so you can enjoy their awesome where ever you are. Also, the amounts are my best guess. Unless it’s rice or bread, it’s highly unlikely to ever encounter a measuring device in my kitchen.

• coconut oil (olive oil or ghee would also work)
• 2 tbs garam masala
• 2 tbs turmeric
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 c veggies (I used a mix of small sweet peppers and cauliflower)
• 2 c chopped pre-cooked chicken (I used a mix of chicken tenders and roasted legs)
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/2 c large flake coconut
• 1/2 c water
• 2c rice

1. Heat the oil in a wide bottom pan on medium-high heat. Add the spices to the oil and stir to make a paste. Add water if needed. Let this mixture cook for a few minutes to develop the flavors in the spices.
2. Add the onion to the mixture and stir to coat the onion pieces with the seasoning.  Cook until the onions are about half clear and add the remaining vegetables.
3. Add the coconut milk, cover, and simmer the vegetables until about half cooked through.
4. Add the diced chopped chicken and coconut flakes and reduce to low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.
5. Serve over rice.

Triple Berry Cobbler

• 10 oz mixed berries (I used strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries)
• 1 tsp agave syrup
• 1/2 c water
• 1 c almond flour
• 1 c coconut flour
• 1 c medium coconut flakes
• 1 c almond milk, unsweetened
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (available at Savory Spice, sub vanilla extract if you must)

1. Filling: Wash and chop berries. Cook over medium heat with agave syrup and water until berries begin to burst and thicken.
2. Crust: Mix remaining ingredients. Pat into a disk and cut into smaller shapes. (It is too crumbly to make a full crust.)
3. Pour berries into deep dish casserole and add crust to top.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

Note: I intend to try adding an egg to the crust on my next go around. It should help the crust stay together. I’m also considering trying the addition of almond butter.

food, yeast free

photo by Uwe Hermann

I’ve been thinking about what I’ve wanted to say about sugar and carbs for a couple of weeks now. My thoughts and feelings about these old friends have changed dramatically, more dramatically than I thought possible. As I began to realize how differently I felt on and off sugar and carbs, I had little moments of déjà vu where I remembered what other people had said about how they felt after breaking their “sugar addiction” or “sugar habit”. I remember bristling whenever one of these people went on and on about how living without sugar was the only way to live or acted disgusted when they saw someone eating candy. Writing this post has been hard because I’m afraid I’m turning into ‘one of those people’.

Don’t worry, I’m really not turning into one of those people. I’m not going to judge you if you eat a hot fudge sundae in front of me. I’m not going to lecture you on the evils of carbs while you’re enjoying a bagel or plate of pasta. I will quietly think about how much better I feel without those foods in my life, though, and I will be happy to share with you if you ask about my peculiar eating habits.

So, how do I feel about sugar and carbs now that we’ve parted ways? I feel free. That’s the best way to put it. I did not realize how much of a driver sugar was in how I felt until it was gone. I didn’t even have a real big sugar problem, comparatively. I only rarely drank soda, maybe two or three a month. I had dessert with about the same frequency. My body managed sugar well, too. I always had great fasting blood sugar numbers, as were A1C’s I have taken. A1C tests your blood sugar over the last few weeks. My last test was a 4.1, where normal is 4-5.9 and lower is better. So, my feelings of freedom for sugar are not the results of a diabetic or pre-diabetic learning to manage blood sugar. I was a moderate sugar consumer with a body that managed blood sugar quite well.

Now, I’m an almost no sugar consumer, with an incredibly happy body and mind. My thoughts are clearer and more sharp. My mood is more even and overall more positive. I don’t get cranky between meals, and I don’t need to eat as frequently. Now, I recognize that this isn’t all from reducing sugar and carbs. It’s also from avoiding yeast, since I have an allergy. It’s from eating more protein and vegetables. Those changes are part of the package, though, because if you can’t eat sugar and carbs, you have to eat something.

food, yeast free