Shake it up baby !

Amazing how a new job can put you off your food! Well as from day one back on the 10-7 treadmill I am determined to kick my sugar habit and be eating clean.
So after my fresh lemon & ginger tea fix this morning I had homemade cereal, of brown rice flakes with nuts and seeds topped with berries and coconut yogurt.
Lunch is a salad of spinach and cucumber with carrot and celery sticks (funny thing celery).
Dinner, a little something I made earlier, a coconut chicken and courgette pasta (brown rice pasta).
I discovered I have Candida Overgrowth about six months ago, I also have a sugar addiction which is really not helpful at all.

I have decided I am going to get healthy in the right way, not by dieting but by eating properly and cleanly.

Another treat I give myself which although it contains a very small amount of sugar is a meal replacement shake by Arbonne.If you blend it up with plenty of ice and water it’s like eating ice cream! I recommended it to my friend Dawn Lowe who is an actress, model and singer plus Ms London Galaxy 2015/16, this is what she has to say :-

My good friend Lecia Finch, who is an Arbonne Distributer and suggested I try Arbonne’s Essentials Chocolate Flavour Meal Replacement Shakes to help with weight loss and to replace any nutrients I’m losing through my thyroid malfunction.

The instructions tell you to replace breakfast and lunch or breakfast and evening meal with the shake and have a proper balanced meal each day.

I have to say the shakes are amazing. Not only did they taste delicious but I was also never hungry on them! I managed to lose the weight I needed to in record time too for my fitting model job and I also felt a lot healthier.

Thank you Lecia for your brilliant recommendation – I will continue to use and recommend them to others.

So you see losing weight and being healthy is not as awful as it sounds, it’s not just about mourning the things you shouldn’t eat it’s about discovering new and yummy things you can.

Now if you will excuse me I have some blending to do!

Good Morning

One of the perks of working from home for me has to be morning televison or This Morning to be exact.

I love the presenters, Philip & Holly, Eamonn & Ruth and Rylan. They actually cover some very serious and enlightening topics, which I lap up for research purposes obviously. The amazing nutritionist Amelia Freer has been on twice so has Deliciously Ella, the books from both of these ladies are helping me with my Candida Dysbiosis and it’s great to see them promoting what some people still see as a cranks diet! But most of all I love the fact that they make me laugh.

Laughter is a very important thing in life, apart from being one of the most fulfilling emotional releases (which many of us do not get enough of), it’s actually a very good exercise for our core stomach muscles.Imagine how fantastic a washboard stomach just from lots of belly laughter as opposed to crunches! It’s also great for stress and anxiety.

HOT TIP for a flat tummy.

Try standing up straight and blowing up a balloon as much as you can with one big breath, fifteen times, everyday. You use the same muscles as you do for crunches and sit ups, without killing your back!

Mental exercise for your well being is just as important as the physical stuff. For this (apart from my Sudoku addiction) I love The Chase. Bradley Walsh and the chasers apart from being very intelligent and competitive are again very funny. And the fast paced questioning gives your brain a good workout.

I am going to miss this as I am now back in full time employment.

Back to just the balloons and the Sudoku!

It’s the final countdown.

This weekend started with me checking my emails and posting my ‘case study’ blog. Then after cooking breakfast (and washing up) it was off to the park for a Summer hat photo shoot.Luckily there were no showers but plenty of sitting around waiting for the sun to blaze through the big black clouds. We set up using a fallen huge branch as a prop and snapped like crazy when the bursts of beautiful light came through, in between chasing the hats across the cricket pitch as they got whipped up in the wind!. I then ended up actually modelling them (definitely not my idea) for a bit for a couple of lifestyle rather than product shoots. Then home for editing (G  did that as he is my art director), whilst I wrote the content copy for Hat Attic.

This is all in preparation for a blog and newsletter I am publishing about UVA’s,UVB’s and sun protection, in order to educate and ultimately sell these fabulous inexpensive, very hip and cool hats.

Sunday morning (the morning after the night before!) is being spent (after the cooking and washing) finishing the new pages, updating the home page, scheduling the blog and setting up the newsletter for Monday morning.

All before I go and visit my friend who has just been diagnosed with Cancer.

This last bit puts everything into perspective doesn’t it?

I know we have to make a living so we spend most of our time fretting, stressing and rushing over ‘work’, making endless plans and lists to ensure it all goes smoothly and gets done, when really we need to take a little bit more time to think about our (and others) general health. When we are in the throes of working life we do not consider what the actually rushing and stressing is doing to our bodies let alone the pollutants that we consume, are doing to our systems.

I am not just talking about the pollutants in the air, I mean the stuff we ingest through food, medication and what we put on our skin. Being mindful and attempting to somehow reduce our stress levels is a key factor but so is what is going into your system via our skin and mouths.

Think about this as you zoom past grabbing a chocolate muffin on the way to your next power meeting!

Sugar, I’m having a hot flush!

Hot flush

Today I want to talk about hot flashes or flushes as we say in Blighty. Something else like female hair loss that is often sighted as another sign of peri -menopause or early menopause, but is it?

My Mother will tell you that the worst part of menopause is the flushes which boil up and overtake your body like a possessive demon. This is what makes you lash out, swear and throw things, apparently, I was sure this is the same as what happens to me at P.M.T time.

I am actually not very good with heat anyway, I tend to get panicky and cry a lot because I just can’t function, I get brain fog, sickness, headaches or sometimes I just pass out!

Discovering my Candida Dysbiosis, was like having all my prayers answered in one go. Even going on the initial elimination diet (no wheat, gluten, dairy or sugar) unveiled so much. When I do have the odd intake of sugar, I can instantly feel it surging through my body, flushing my face, making me dizzy and of course sending my temperature soaring.

I totally agree with recent news pieces about the dangers and over consumption of sugar, I think it has a lot more to answer for than just obesity and premature aging. I know this through my own ‘experiments’ with it. Much as I love it I know it to be the food of all evil, I used to think that was tomatoes!

But when I am being really good and eating (and drinking) really clean, I do not suffer from any of these things but best of all no hot flushes! And because I am not overloading on carbs, chocolate and other unnecessary ‘comfort’ foods (sugar) at period time, I do not try to kill anyone or jump out of any windows.

It’s good to be a lemon in the morning.

Have I mentioned I’m going back to full time employment next week?

As a run up to that momentous event I’m going crazy trying to organise all of my blogs, newsletters, social media posts etc for Hat Attic and plan menus (we are fussy, clean eaters) and sort out running a home! This is where I thank goodness I do not have children.

I thought I’d share with you the one part of my life I have off pat already, my morning routine.

I wake up at 7am, when G gets up for work and as we live in a bedsit I stay in bed (don’t want to get in the way) and I do my meditation which involves my gratitude list (literally a list of all of the things, events, people I am grateful for), positive affirmations and my to do list for the day.

Then I have a big mug of fresh lemon and ginger in hot water. This is one of the best treats you can give yourself as apart from the fact that it is a great internal cleanser, it’s great for digestion, the immune system, hydration and energy, skin rejuvenation and weight loss, to name but a few reasons, the antitoxidants not only combat anti-aging but help reduce the risk of many types of cancer.

Then it’s time for a bit of a stretch (planks and bridges), I do a lot of walking so it’s just basic exercise at this point.

Followed by my breakfast of protein shake and vitamins, shower, face, clothes ( sorted out the night before), TA DAH! ready to face the day!

How to take off nineteen years.

According to the Wiifit I am 26 years old and a friend I haven’t seen for 25 years tells me I haven’t changed a bit, so how have I done it, I hear you ask? After the last few years of drama and depression it’s a mystery.

Just over a year ago I was introduced, by my chiropractioner, to a fantastic clean, pure, botanical company called Arbonne.

Like most people I was skeptical at first, until I did some research and tested the products myself. My Mums’ breast cancer made me realise that there has to be a connection with what we ingest, whether orally or topically, and cancer. So the fact that all of Arbonnes products are botanically based with no nasties like parabens or man made fragrance, really appealed to me. Have you thought about the fact that whatever you put on your skin, shower gel, body lotion even shampoo gets into your system, into your blood, and if it’s not pure and natural it can be doing all sorts of harm internally.

Parabens, that’s been a buzz word for a while now, did you know they are a mineral oil, a derivative of petrol! Most cosmetics and beauty products use parabens for bulking up, then they add some chemical perfume and then you put this petrol and chemical mix on your face!

I decided to become an Independent Consultant for Arbonne, ie. I sell their products but it is my own part of the business, to sell in my way for my reasons. I sell it because I love the purity and green philosophy and I know that it is not harming me, my friends & family or the planet. Also I love the fact that it works, it actually does what it says on the bottle!

I have tried and tested most of the products in the catalogue, I can’t sell them if I don’t have personal experience. My favourite is the RE9 anti-aging skincare range, apart from the fact that it does anti-age you it smells beautiful and makes you feel good, so you do have a natural glow. My Mum tells me she ‘can’t live without it’ and her skin has never felt so good or got so many compliments, my Mum is 70.

If you want full, bouncing, shiny hair I recommend the FC5  shampoo and conditioner and the thermal fusion scalp revitaliser (once a week), this combination has helped me with the battle against badly thinning hair (depression, candida dysbiosis), and an aunt with post chemotherapy regrowth.

A  friend who has been plagued with nasty psoriasis, has this summer been able to wear short sleeved tops and skirts for the first time in years. She has used a combination of the baby ABC body wash, with the ABC body lotion mixed with a couple of drops of FC5 oil, twice a day. She had tried everything off the shelves and prescribed but nothing was able to help.

And another friend, who is a model and beauty queen, swears by the protein shakes to give her the kick she needs during the day and to help her loose a centimeter here and there. She loves the flavour & texture and the fact that they (you have two during the day) keep her full until her proper nutritional dinner.

These are just a few of the successes I have had with Arbonne and I would love to hear your experiences too.

It is ever so simple, log on to : http://leciafinch.arbonne.com/ and treat yourself to something that is doing us all good, especially you. There are many benefits to joining as a Preferred client, 20% discount and lots of other offers and deals but you can also become a Consultant like me and run your own business, earn a bit of extra cash (who doesn’t need that?) and feel the content knowing you are helping to save the planet and the people that live on it.

Feel like a bit of old rope?

I know when I do, it’s time to get back on track with Amelia Freer.

The news yesterday was that we all have to half our sugar intake, well I am definitely one of those that needs to stop it altogether!  I suffer from Candida Dysbiosis, a leaky gut caused by the overgrowth of yeast spores that leech and live on the yeast created by sugar and white carbohydrates. Causing, among other debilitating symptoms. extreme tiredness and fatigue, digestive issues, lack of concentration, poor memory, lack of focus and brain fog, skin issues, mood swings, anxiety & depression, headaches, sore throats and infections.

Now whilst I know this, I also have the terrible fate of being a total ice cream addict. A carton of Ben & Jerrys only lasts about half an hour in my hands, four almond magnums? don’t mind if I do, then I have to go out and hide the package evidence in a nearby bin so that my other half doesn’t know. Confessing this to you helps, but I need to have a serious word with my willpower. This has gone beyond just being about, gluttony or emotional eating it’s about my general health, ‘I must not feed the spores they make me really ill.’

So, on waking up feeling mega c**p again this morning I decided that today was the day, I put this to bed. Lets face it when I go back to full time work on the 28th I’m not going to have the time to pop to the shops and eat nonsense. The plan is to force myself to eat salad during the day and when I get home it will be too late to mess about so, steamed vegetables.

Today is mostly about liquids of water and the green tea variety, with eggs and smoked salmon (good protein) for breakfast and a prawn and mango stir fry for dinner ( yes @FreerNutrition, the one you made on @itv_this Morning).

I’m busy planning all of my blogs, newsletters, posts and content for the re-launch of new look Hat Attic so I might as well add in planning menus and shopping lists for the big return, I’m not going to have time for messing about!

I have got my vitamins  lined up to top up my energy levels and keep me tip top, I need to make sure I do the rest right and practice what I preach!

I can’t be  Wonder Woman if I feel like a bit of old rope can I?

The penny has dropped!

It’s only taken 45 years 9 months!

When I was five I wanted to be a fashion designer, twelve, a textile designer, at nineteen I had to go into what I knew, fashion shop manager. So you can see I have always been a dedicated follower of fashion in one way or another.

From managing a shop in the Fulham Road, being an assistant manager of a very fancy designer shop in Knightsbridge and a concession manager in a department store I made it into said department stores buying office. I was to spend the next seventeen years dedicating my life to learning, striving and battling bullying to climb the career ladder, I was going to get my buyership even if it killed me, and it damned near did!

The MD that was bullying me died and suddenly it was all change, in with the new out with the old. Suddenly we started seeing members of our beloved ‘family’ disappearing, my turn came suddenly in October 2013, just after my 44th birthday.

I was thrown into major depression, anxiety and panic attacks, nervous breakdown country.

In the last year and nine months with very close monitoring by my brilliant GP (when I actually can get an appointment), C.B.T , my amazing counsellor and my love of reading and learning, I have managed to pull myself out of the abyss and make the improvements I feel comfortable with.

I have decided that I don’t have to meet other peoples approval by dressing, acting and being a certain way, I wear what I like, because it suits me, it’s my look. I have always refused to be anybody’s little ‘fashionista’ but even more so now, I don’t have that sort of precious attitude. I love my family, friends and the planet we all live on, I want to live as cleanly and quietly as possible, that includes my diet, skincare and all other products that I need to use. I prefer to use alternative or holistic medicines as far as I can (I find diet has a lot to do with that) and most unlike anyone in my ‘sector’ I do not want to be seen as judgmental. I have never been a materialistic sort of girl, despite my job, so to go to work and not have major responsibilities and just be able to bring in enough to pay the rent and put food on the table is enough for me. My fabulous website, that has been created purely to help people (like me now!) who have no spare time to be messing about looking all over town for that perfect gift or classic accessory, will provide me with a bit of extra, to be able to treat myself now and then.

The penny has dropped, I am now my own woman, who is practicing emotional detachment, mindful meditations, eating and living cleanly. I am happy, healthy and looking forward to living my carefree, comfortable life in my way with my nearest and dearest.

Diamonds are a girls best friend.

Last night, despite the fact that I felt really stressed and uncomfortable with my back pain (that’s another story altogether) I went to see Mr Neil Diamond (otherwise known as my Dad!). As I’ve have mentioned before I do have periods of depression and anxiety and have to do a lot of work, practicing mindfulness, detachment and meditation daily. I have always loved music and it is key part of my practice, I love going to concerts and clubs and just losing myself in it.

Neil Diamond was on fire last night, I have seen him several times over the years and can honestly say I have never been disappointed, he is the best showman ever. Last night this unstoppable 74 year old sang for two hours and fifteen minutes, non stop, literally the soundtrack of my life. I made two new friends Stuart and Laura from Chester and despite our various injuries, we danced ourselves silly, relaxed and had a ball.

My point in this is, that whilst we spend the bulk of our working years striving for perfection and battling to the top rung of the career ladder, many of us forget to relax and actually enjoy the life we have been given to live. I have, as you know been there and done that and learnt a very hard lesson when it was all taken away. I have learnt and more importantly decided, in the last year and ten months, that I am now going to live and enjoy my life. I don’t need the responsibility, stress and ‘glamour’ of being at the top, I want to sleep at night. I don’t want my anxiety levels going through the top of my head, I don’t want panic attacks, I don’t want to be crying with fear and frustration, working myself into an early grave for other people who just sit back and expect it, then can wipe you out over night.

Here is my plan:

I go to work, do my thing, put money in the till, I come home.

I then work, for myself, on my own business Hat Attic where I know I am providing a service, making life easier, saving time and energy for others looking for beautiful, exclusive goodies for themselves and others.

I spend time with my friends and family, I go out dancing, go to exhibitions, the theatre, cinema, everything and anything I want to do.

I get to sleep soundly, carry on learning to cook, study my nutrition and skincare and so much more.

And most importantly get to dance and sing around my flat to Neil Diamond with a happy heart.

#27 NEVER STOP LEARNING.

One thing I have learnt to love since I was rendered unemployed is cooking.

In an effort to make myself feel better, I went on an investigation into the relationship between food and mood (so to speak)

During this time I found that I actually suffer with a condition called Candida dysbiosis/ overgrowth, leaky gut. This is when yeast spores get out of control in your gut and can cause many different ‘illnesses and diseases’ ie. bloating, IBS like symptoms, skin & nail infections, extreme fatigue, autoimmune problems, brain fog (lack of concentration, memory loss etc), skin issues (eczema, psoriasis, rashes itching), depression, mood swings, all of this and more. So I decided that I would experiment with my diet in order to combat, visits to the GP ( they are busy enough as it is).

Basically diets high in sugar, yeast and carbohydrates make your stomach a playground for these spores. That’s why you get the cravings for these specific foods.

After reading and learning a lot from books by Amelia Freer, Deliciously Ella and many others, I have decided to go clean on my diet. That means I am wheat, dairy and sugar free, most of the time. Obviously this mode of eating is quite difficult to be 100% on when you eat out but easy to maintain at home.

This is my basic essentials list and few recipes that I use over and over again, you can use them as basics and make twists to them according to your tastes as you get more confident and experiment a bit.

I am not a doctor or a nutritionist, but I find this is working for me. And I am really enjoying learning new tricks with food, spices, tastes and ingredients. Now that I have had the time to learn to cook properly I am really enjoying it.x