NO CARBS, NO SUGAR and feeling great!

I've been on a carb-free, sugar-free diet for over a month now, mostly as a way to get rid of the candida that seemed to have flared up in my gut.  I've had bouts with it ever since my first trip to India, and the holidays with all the sweet squashes, desserts and potatoes always seems cause a flare up.  It's been years since I've done this intense of a candida diet, but I have to say, I'm really enjoying it!   I feel super healthy and I'm sleeping better too!

What I'm eating is mostly vegetables, eggs, nuts and poultry, with a little dairy and chocolate.  I've just added cultured cottage cheese which is a welcome treat and full of good probiotics for my gut.  Breakfast is usually some cottage cheese with sprouted nuts and avocado.  Lunch is usually miso soup with eggs and vegetables, or a salad with chicken, followed by a few pieces of super dark chocolate which is much lower in sugar (I eat the kind that's sweetened only with stevia or beet sugar).  Dinner is usually chicken and steamed or stir-fry veggies, or chicken soup.  I stay away from potatoes as they're high in sugar, and I minimize beets for the same reason.

I immediately noticed that I lost some weight.  I didn't need to lose any, but I had been feeling bloated and so this calmed way down.  I tend to get hungry more often on this diet, so I keep nuts around for snacks, and I've just learned that sprouting all nuts and seeds except pecans and walnuts is recommended.  I like to peel the almond skin off as it's pretty hard to digest.  Soaked almonds are a nice hearty snack.  I'm now staying away from cashews as well as they're also pretty tough on the gut.

I like how clean this diet feels, even with the dairy and meat.  I've heard many people talk about the Paleo diet and how grains aren't ideal for our health, so this is pretty much the same thing.  Sometimes I miss dessert but I find a spoonful of almond butter can do the trick.  I doubt I'll eat this extreme way forever, but I do like the idea of cutting out most grains.  Once the candid is gone, I'd like to integrate beans and lentils again so I'm not eating so much meat.

My naturopath recently told me that for people who wake up around 2 - 3 from drinking alcohol (and I did), it means they're more sensitive to sugar and so cutting out sugars and carbs can be a great way to improve sleep.  It has to do with your stress hormones which cause you to crave more sugars, so if you satisfy those cravings, you are aggravating your system and will likely have sleeping troubles from it.  I haven't fully researched this, but it makes sense and I encourage you to check it out if you have the type of insomnia where you wake up in the night.


This diet seems like a good prep for the Spring Cleanse I'll be leading in April.   I'm already half-way there so I imagine it will be a relatively easy transition.

I hope you feel inspired to consider at least reducing your sugar and carbohydrate intake.  Let me know what happens! 

To your health!  and Namaste,
Robyn