Phytonutrients: Peace, Love and Carrotsticks

In a world full of documentaries on the subject of weight loss, commercial 'calorie burning' products that work for some, stress reduction and health, I can attest to the power of a plant-based diet.  I allow for the rare Cheese Pizza and Cookies.  Simple Carbs represent a minute part of my diet.  Vegetables and their various enzymatic components and phytonutrients, offer me self-preservation in more than just the psychological sense.  I'm up to running 2.5 miles in 25 minutes.  Here's to a half marathon where I finish the course (Jensen knows).  I owe a straight up thanks to God and hope in Jesus Christ for the fortitude that gets me through the maintenance stage.  I will do whatever it takes to ensure that I never lay in bed over every single weekend, or weeks at a time over a period of years. I'm worth far more than laying wasting away trapped in my flesh surrounded by impenetrable walls exhausted and helpless.  While afraid of getting sick, I know my body will age and I'll eventually pass.  Until an acceptable life expiration date where I've surpassed the average life-span of a female, I'm putting up a fair and well-strategized fight.

Part I:  The Meat Slab Diet-Before Phytonutrient Knowledge

What do Meat, Steak, Cheese, Sour Cream, Pickles, Sugar-Free Chocolate, and Salsa have in common?  Those foods are low-carb or carb free.  They were the only foods I allowed myself to eat while training my body to burn fat.  My face was shiny, and my skin glowed.  My dogmatic motive behind the weight loss was for my overall health.  I'm middle-aged.  Improved appearance was a nice by-product.  I feel like my organs don't have to work as hard as they would if I weighed my former 250 lbs.  Before my readers assume I was pregnant, I wasn't.  I dated in between my weight loss episodes, which felt normal and didn't at the same time.  One boyfriend told me, "You know, you could lose that pooch if you really wanted to and surgery isn't that expensive."  His "pro-tip" for me landed him in the outfield. (He found someone else, or was dating someone else at the time and got married four weeks later.)

The second time I blew up like a balloon, I did 6.5 rounds of Atkins to lose weight.  It was difficult as I felt ketogenic flu symptoms and headaches if I didn't drink enough water.  I'd lose 20 lbs, then take a little break. Then lose another 15 pounds, then take a break.  This process repeated for four more times until I could get into single-digit sizes.  I felt mortified by my appearance in family photos.  It was my second "rodeo" of gaining massive amounts of weight due to an endocrine disorder that wasn't diagnosed until I was 38.  On the first rodeo in 2011, I followed Atkins phase I for 120 days.  Weight Watchers didn't take the pounds off fast enough.

Atkins was difficult.  Maintaining my weight loss was important for my health and self-confidence.  After two rounds of carnivorous gluttony, I never wanted to suffer through months of a triple my normal waistline.  Feeling ill every day for years was a mental beat-down that no formal register adjectives could adequately express.  The health issues went on for so long; I honestly stopped fighting at points.  My personality started to change.  Many days, I couldn't even get out of bed.  I had pneumonia and sinus infections that felt like the Dante's Inferno was about to explode.

Part II: Few Safe Places for the Sick Fat Girl and a slow Solution

Before my weight loss and even after, I felt muscle pain all the time.  What's worse is that I didn't have anyone that could provide a solution much less sound counsel.  It takes time to find a therapist that resonates with you.  At various points, between a long commute (2 hours)I wasn't around any of my immediate family.  I saw them once or twice a year.  Religion offered little to no comfort.  I even sought answers from people and was told, "You're not sick, and if you lived a more righteous life, you'd be in good stead."  Thanks for the cliche and country wisdom textbook answer (not textbook) response.  To be fair, none of the people I met at church encountered understood my situation or grief.  I was obese, cranky, anti-social and seriously clinically depressed.  I didn't openly share my feelings with my family, even my dad.  My dad and I are very close.

Quite frankly, I didn't have any definitive answers or a game plan myself.  By any standards, I couldn't help myself with any solutions conventional wisdom offered.  Hitting the gym, following the food pyramid, avoiding sugared drinks all failed and the pounds kept coming on.  After many co-pays, I didn't have any solutions and was left thinking that I was going to battle feeling like a "fat girl" forever.  I felt like a prisoner in my flesh trapped between impenetrable walls.  I decided to put my feelings of shame aside for my cousin's wedding.  My cousin and her husband are genuinely nice people.  (Okay, and there was an open bar at a St. Arnold's brewery located in Houston.)

Part III: Phytonutrients:  Peace, Love, and Carrot sticks

Why do I broach this subject?  I'm so sick of meat and eating fat to lose fat.  I can't stomach it anymore.  Over Lent this year, I went 75% raw.  By 75% raw, I mean that my diet strictly consisted of fruits, vegetables, seeds, and nuts.  I ate more roughage at the time than a Triceratops.  (Please excuse the Hyperbole.)  I felt genuinely healthy without lethargy.  I wondered, specifically why plants made me feel so bright and nourished.

Other than vitamins, plants tens of thousands of phytonutrients.  To satisfy my further curiosity, I wanted to know how phytonutrients could help me.  I did a little research.  The links below (this paragraph) answered a lot of my questions.

https://www.webmd.com/diet/guide/phytonutrients-faq#1

https://draxe.com/phytonutrients/

https://www.livescience.com/52541-phytonutrients.html

From the cited link directly above this paragraph:
"Phytonutrients, also called phytochemicals, are chemicals produced by plants. Plants use phytonutrients to stay healthy. For example, some phytonutrients protect plants from insect attacks, while others protect against radiation from UV rays.
Phytonutrients can also provide significant benefits for humans who eat plant foods. Phytonutrient-rich foods include colorful fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, tea, whole grains and many spices. They affect human health but are not considered nutrients that are essential for life, like carbohydrates, protein, fats, vitamins, and minerals.
Among the benefits of phytonutrients are antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Phytonutrients may also enhance immunity and intercellular communication, repair DNA damage from exposure to toxins, detoxify carcinogens and alter estrogen metabolism. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) notes that consuming a phytonutrient-rich diet seems to be an “effective strategy” for reducing cancer and heart disease risks."
https://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/what-are-phytochemicals

http://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/090313p70.shtml

(The detailed information below is cited from the link above.)

Phytochemicals Defined
"Phytochemicals also referred to as phytonutrients, are found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, beans, herbs, spices, nuts, and seeds and are classified according to their chemical structures and functional properties. The terminology used to describe phytochemicals (flavonoids, flavonols, flavanols, proanthocyanidins, procyanidins) can be confusing. Phytochemicals include compounds such as salicylates, phytosterols, saponins, glucosinolates, polyphenols, protease inhibitors, monoterpenes, phytoestrogens, sulphides, terpenes, lectins, and many more. The Phytochemical Family Tree (see below) shows the major groups of phytochemicals found in foods.
Tens of thousands of phytochemicals have been identified, and researchers speculate that there are likely many more they haven’t yet discovered in the foods we eat. Though the broadest groups of phytochemicals, such as flavonoids, isoflavones, or anthocyanidins, often are referred to as if they were a homogenous group, the individual compounds within each group have different chemical structures, are metabolized differently by the body, and may have different health effects.
Flavonoids are the largest, most varied, and most studied group of phytochemicals. In fact, more than 6,000 flavonoids that occur in plant foods have been described. Plants typically produce several phytochemicals that act as a protective mechanism against environmental stressors; the more environmental stressors, the more phytochemicals a plant produces.As a result, phytochemical content can vary with growing conditions.
There’s little information on the average intake of phytochemicals among Americans. However, it shouldn’t be surprising that the intake of phytochemicals is higher among people consuming the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables. Though recommendations suggest consuming a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, for example, single foods often account for the majority of the total intake of some phytochemicals.
Phytochemical Research
As mentioned, research on specific phytochemicals in foods and their effects on disease risk is limited, but there’s enough evidence—mostly from looking at the association between foods rich in phytochemicals and disease risk—to strongly suggest that consuming foods and beverages rich in these compounds may help prevent disease. However, it isn’t known whether the health benefits are the result of individual phytochemicals, the interaction of various phytochemicals, the fiber content of plant foods, or the interaction of phytochemicals and the vitamins and minerals found in the same foods."

http://www.precisionnutrition.com/color-chart

IV:  The Course Forward is Set

Onward.  This is the end of my post.