Many a moon ago when I featured a supplement on Instagram for Supplement Sunday, someone asked, “What is Supplement Sunday?”
22 Adaptogens for Hormones
I’m sharing 22 adaptogens for hormones today, and I think you’ll enjoy this post if you have now (or have ever had) hormone problems.
NOW Foods
I was invited to a private NOW Foods event in the suburbs of Illinois mid-May.
{Disclosure: This post was paid, and the trip was fully covered and sponsored. I rarely do sponsored posts or trips and when I do, you better believe it’s because I personally use the products and/or services.}
If you want the honest truth, I went because I wanted to learn more about my beloved L-Glutamine, which I am constantly talking about both here on my blog and via the A Gutsy Girl Instagram. But beyond that, I was sort of on the fence with how I felt about the company. My mind told me, “It’s all supplements; maybe minimal at that.” But again, since I’m so passionate about L-Glutamine for gut healing, I thought (maybe hoped) that possibly they would have other products I’d feel excited to share.
Spoiler alert: They do have other products besides just supplements; 1,500-ish to be exact. If you want to know some of my favorites, just skip to the bottom of this post where I share them PLUS enter to win them ALL!
NOW Foods: May 17, 2018
NOW Foods flew about 15-20 of us in from all over the United States on Thursday, May 17.
I shared a plane ride with two other women from Minnesota and one from Washington. I sat right next to Sarah Carlson for a lovely hour conversation.
They had a car waiting for us when we arrived, and our driver took us to the Itasca Resort where we were greeted with warm welcomes from Alana (a total career-driven mama like me) with the NOW Foods team. She told us the schedule for the night, and to relax until then.
There was a room filled with NOW Foods product when I got in, so I started sorting through it all, realizing that I, in fact, really knew nothing about the company.
My friend Marissa was also attending, so I sent her a text to see if she wanted to grab a quick drink before the night started. Of course she did, so we bellied up at the bar downstairs for overdue catch-up chat. I haven’t seen her in years, and we talked all things babies, work, and life.
Around 5:45pm, NOW Foods had transportation waiting for us. It took us to the Cooking Skills Academy, where we spent the rest of the evening.
The evening began with general mingling, appetizers, and getting our colored aprons. Those with like-aprons would be on the same cooking challenge team. I got a blue apron, put it on, and grabbed little mushroom and zucchini bites while meeting as many people as I could.
When the evening officially began, various people on the NOW Foods executive team spoke, including the CEO, Jim Emme and Dan Richard, the Vice President (also part of the family who owns NOW Foods).
My girl Kasey Arena (aka PowerCakes) then did a cooking demonstration for her Sea Salt Chocolate Protein Glazed Donuts. Listen, I’m all about that donut life. I have made so many donuts over the years with my favorite being the recipe I altered from Grandma Josephine’s original (which can be found HERE). And I’m going to tell you right now that Kasey’s donut recipe will rival them.
You will find the Donut recipe in the NOW Foods 50 Twenty-Minute Recipes e-book they just launched. It’s free, and all you have to do is click the link to download (sometimes the e-book will go to your spam, so make sure to check there, too).
After that, we watched the chef do a cooking demonstration and explain what the cooking challenge was all about. You know the ropes, though because you watch the Food Network, yes?! Okay, just me. Anyways, each team had to get creative with the products available, create a dish, and then a panel of NOW Foods judges tasted and chose their favorites.
My team was the best, seriously.
Somehow I lucked out and got on a team with: Leslie, Frankie (yes, part of the USA Bobsled team), and Norris Frederick (a long jumper who is my new BFF:) ). Here is the video Norris made from the challenge:
For the record, we made a dairy-free Tzatziki sauce over quinoa pilaf with avocado. But it was too much avocado, so we failed miserably. We didn’t place in the top three, and it was really heartbreaking, but somehow we carried on. Somehow.
That was not dinner, thank God. I had fish and vegetables and salad, and then of course dessert – I think it was a cookie and brownie or something; all gluten-free, of course.
During dinner, Jim, the CEO, sat at our table so we could fire off whatever questions we wanted to him. He sat there and, very diligently and thoughtfully, answered every last one.
I knew I liked him immediately when he told me he does Crossfit and when I asked him what his favorite NOW Foods product was he replied, “L-Glutamine.”
He told us repeatedly how much he appreciated us all flying in, how they value our help in sharing their story, and how they have always and will always maintain their commitment to excellence.
As the night wrapped up, I was so glad to be there.
NOW Foods: Friday, May 18, 2018
I woke up bright and early, per the usual, but I was tired from the night before, so I hobbled downstairs to get coffee. Alana was there, we chatted while in line, and she bought my java fix.
I walked back to my room, changed into workout clothes, and got myself ready for the morning workout.
The day started at 6:40am when we all met to walk for the morning workout, and the workout started around 7am. Kasey, in addition to her professional donut-making skills, is a fitness trainer. She lead us through about an hour HIIT workout. Guys – I used bands for squats near the end of the workout, and I thought I might die. I was a champ and hung in there until she really did us in with the grand finale – Tabata style burpees. So. Fun.
I totally paid for that workout the rest of the weekend, making me feel miserably out of shape. (I wasn’t, though. If you read my post on Monday, you know that most of the ill feelings, soreness and general sickness was because of SIBO.)
The workout ended at 8am, and NOW Foods had a huge smoothie bar waiting for us. There was anything and everything you could think of to make a great smoothie; fruit, greens, protein powder, supplemental boosts, dairy-free milks, all of it. I made a huge smoothie, drank it quickly, and then went back up to taste the Mocha MCT Oil because it just sounded so good (it was, and I now have some for my coffee – it’s so good that I included it in my giveaway below).
While sipping on those smoothies, the Sports Brand Manager and Fitness Trainer spoke to us. I didn’t even know this category existed for them (like most of the other categories). They have everything from protein powders to amino acids.
Norris was going to make a video on site for the NOW Foods team, so he and Frankie were in a room getting ready to shoot that after smoothies. I was tempted to stay, play, and pick up some new video tricks, but I was sitting in drenched sweat and didn’t feel like anyone would want to hang with me the rest of the day if I didn’t shower. So off I went.
We all had breakfast together, and then a driver took us all to the NOW Foods plant.
We saw just one of their plants and it was huge. They went into great detail about their testing methods and how everything is carefully produced. I couldn’t get enough of the L-Glutamine coming off the line.
After the plant tour we had lunch. It kind of seems like that’s all we did – eat. I mean, that’s kind of accurate actually. They always had stuff waiting for us.
We finished the day by learning about their oils and other body care products. We made our own bath soak/scrub and a gym equipment cleansing spray (with oils). And once that was over, Leslie lead us through meditation, which was so peaceful. I felt like I was by a river and fell asleep. Go figure.
I definitely was not ready for our time there to be over so quickly. My only wish for the event is that it would have been longer.
NOW Foods: 20 Favorite Products for Gut, Thyroid and General Health
Click HERE to save these for later.
NOW Foods gave us a huge bag of products, valued over $500, in addition to everything else. They also told us we could give that same bag full of things to someone.
Even though both this post and the trip were sponsored, I reached out to Alana immediately when I returned to see if I could customize a gift for one of you because while I firmly believe the company and products are high class and fantastic and would fully recommend them, my goal is to share with you the products I personally would use regularly.
If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know those products typically fall under: gut health and healing (almost always), thyroid + adrenal support, and now oftentimes things for the kids.
With that said, here are the items I hand-picked to give to one of you.
- Magnesium Flakes: This can be subbed for Epsom Salt, which I’ve already told you is magical. ($21.99)
- Premium Personal Blender: I recently did the 7-day Smoothie Challenge because I wanted to give more ideas for how to get all the gut-healing boosts in your life. This will help. ($39.99)
- Betaine HCL with Vegetarian Pepsin: HCL has been critical on my healing journey, and my body screams at me when I start getting lazy with it. ($19.99)
- Chocolate Mocha MCT Oil: ($19.99) (Can also grab it HERE.)
- 1 lb L-Glutamine Powder: I’ve talked about this one at great length over the years. I’m giving a 1 lb canister of it away. ($35.99) (See more about it HERE.)
- 10oz. Nutritional Yeast Flakes: I love these as a “cheesy” alternative for those who can’t do dairy. If you are a Vegan trying to heal your gut, this is something great to add into the diet. We use it a ton at our house. ($14.99)
- 8oz Kelp Powder: So good for the thyroid. ($10.99)
- Melatonin 1 mg Tablets: If you need a little extra boost in calming down at night to sleep, try this. ($8.99)
- Cal-Mag DK: Not many people know it, but you more than just calcium in order for it to get absorbed. Calcium, magnesium, Vitamin D, and Vitamin K are a powerful combination. ($23.99)
- Chicken Bone Broth Powder: I have not yet had this, but I won’t lie. Super curious (it also comes in beef). ($35.99) (Can also grab it HERE.)
- Cacao Powder: Cacao rules my chocolate world when I’m in periods of deep healing because – no sugar (if it’s 100% cacao). I’ve been eating a lot this week. ($8.99)
- 1lb Beef Gelatin Powder: Know what you could use this for besides a million things?! Yes, making my AIP Bread (which you get for free with The Gutsy Girl’s Bible: an approach to healing the gut, 3.0). I couldn’t believe NOW Foods has their own Gelatin powder. I was super excited! ($13.99)
- Green Banana Flour: It’s the powdered form of this resistant starch. ($9.99)
- Guar Gum: I don’t think I mentioned it in my last SIBO posts, but while I’m on the antibiotics in the near future, my doctor wants me to simultaneously take Guar Gum. Now I have my source. I’ll try to tell you more about it soon. ($7.99)
- Raw Energy Nut Mix: It’s just the basics, no additives, and totally awesome. ($8.99)
- Essential Oils
- Tea Tree Oil 100%: 1fl oz Dr. Axe lists out the Tea Tree Oil benefits. I like it for acne. ($8.99)
- Thyme Oil White 100%: 1fl oz Thyme Oil kills infections and balances hormones. Enough said. ($14.99)
- Rose Absolute 5%: 1 fl oz There are so many positive applications for this one, even though it’s not a common oil. ($15.99)
- Jojoba Oil 4 fl oz: A carrier oil for your essential oils. Also, a great alternative to coconut oil for acne. ($12.99)
- Glass Swirl USB Oil Diffuser: Breathe in the essential oils all day long with this beautiful glass swirl diffuser. ($44.99) (Can also grab it HERE.)
Enter to Win Every Single Product Above. (Total retail value is $380.80)
To enter, all you have to do is:
- Follow me on Instagram HERE.
- Follow NOW Foods on Instagram HERE.
- Leave a comment on this post which of the 20 products listed you’d want to try most.
- Let me know via Rafflecopter that you’ve commented 🙂
Try Them
As I mentioned in the beginning, NOW Foods has 1,500-ish products. If the ones I like don’t interest you, I promise something will. And the reason you should support them is because good, honest companies with great ethics and phenomenal leadership from the top are so, so, so hard to find.
I’m looking forward to working with them much more in the upcoming year, so please let me know if you have any questions.
Xox,
SKH
Complete List of Gut and Hormone Tests
I finally put together my complete list of gut and hormone tests because a reader reached out asking if I had them all in one place.
Top 11 Ways I Continued Healing in 2017
Today I’m sharing the top 11 ways I continued healing in 2017.
This is my favorite time of year for all things blog related because it’s the time of year when I reflect, remember, and then plan and prepare for the next year.
I kick off this season with the reader survey, which I recently published. You can share your thoughts and voice by clicking HERE (it will remain open until January 1, 2018).
And then I plan and prepare posts to share with you for the upcoming year on both blog and personal goals, as well as the past year recaps. This year, I’ve added one more recap – this one – the top 11 ways I continued healing in 2017 because I think the information could be useful for many of you.
How am I able to write this post with ease? Because 2017 was, by far, my healthiest and best healing year yet! Did I have some lumps and bumps along the way? Of course. Success absolutely looks like this….
(source)
In 2017, though, the kinks and coils on the upward were far fewer than any other year.
And these are the things I attribute to that.
Top 11 Ways I Continued Healing in 2017
Click HERE to save this post for later.
{The list below is in no particular order of importance.}
- Two doctors, one institute. I stayed the course with the gut doctor I see, but then I added another doctor at the same institute to help dial in my hormones. I am constantly being asked about my doctors, so I’ll share again. I go to the California Institute for Functional Medicine. I see Sunjya K. Schweig, M.D. and Amy Nett, M.D. Sunjya constantly has a huge wait list (and I don’t think you can get in as a new patient anymore) so adding in Amy to help was priceless for my healing efforts. Together, I think I saw them a total of 5-ish times in 2017.
- Stomach acid focus. My overall stomach acid has increased. At least I think it has because I am down to 2-3 HCL’s with protein-heavy meals (last year I hovered 7-8). I have stayed super consistent all year long by doing many of these 11 things.
- WP Thyroid. I am so thankful I take this Thyroid medication over Synthroid or any other traditional Thyroid medication. As of about this past month, I think we have finally dialed in the perfect amount to take on a daily basis.
- LDN. I still take LDN, and I have zero concerns about it. In 2018, I may consider weaning off it because I might be ready.
- Super intense training and SIBO battle like cats and dogs. I kept learning these lessons the hard way in 2017, and I’m hopeful I don’t make them anymore in 2018. Everyone has to know their own body, what you are and are not capable of. Could I be a great runner? Maybe, but will I ever fully see that potential? I’m not sure, though I highly doubt it because super intense training completely drains me, causes flare-ups, and introduces a downward spiral. Realizing this only helped my healing efforts, though, because when I heed that which I know I feel fantastic and still make fitness progress.
- Found way more balance with food. This one is sort of chicken and egg because I’m not sure what happened first – I healed more and then found I could have more balance with food or because I was more balanced with food, my healing efforts multiplied? Either way, my eating style became far less dogmatic. My core beliefs still tell me that s#$% food is s%&* food, but I no longer have rules about what I can and can’t eat based on a theory that may or may not be true.
- Meal Spacing for SIBO. While I might be much more liberal with what I eat, I do still practice meal spacing as often as possible because yes, yes it does it work.
- Add-ins vs. crowd outs. At The Institute for Integrative Nutrition, we learned a lot about adding things in vs. crowding things out. In other words, instead of constantly removing things from the diet, what can you add in to help healing progress? The more good you add, the less room you have for other things. In this way, I consumed way more things like collagen and gelatin, fermented veggies, cod liver oil, greens, root veggies, and organic in general.
- Supplements on point. These 10 have been key.
- Beautycounter. You think I’m bluffing on this one, and some of you might think that just because I’m part of the Beautycounter team and make money from it that it’s not real. But let me tell you…..it’s so real. Skin health and endocrine disruptors have everything to do with gut healing. The hormones and gut go hand-in-hand. I’ve been reading all the books and paying attention to The Never List. In addition to swapping all old stuff in for Beautycounter, I also made sure my toothpaste was on point, and for those body care products I could make, I have made (i.e. THIS Peppermint Body Scrub).
- Knowledge meets listening. In addition to staying consistent with everything in 2017, the best thing I did for my healing efforts was applied knowledge and listening. I have honed in on listening to my body in a massive way and then applying the knowledge I have to whatever my body is telling me. I can literally feel my “remedy” for every situation on any given day. If I feel slight “upper stomach fermentation,” I know what to do. If I feel famished for no good reason, I know what to do. If I feel drained, I know why and what to do. Because of this, I never stayed down for very long in 2017, making the kinks and coils on my line to success far fewer.
But How Do You Know You’re Doing So Well?
So now you might be thinking….but how do you know you healed so much in 2017?
Symptoms and numbers. It all comes down to symptoms and numbers.
From a symptoms standpoint, I can count the number of times I thought my SIBO might be trying to relapse and of those times, symptoms lasted less than a week (while I re-routed efforts and corrected anything I knew was throwing me off – i.e. intense running). My SIBO never came back in 2017, and I never needed Rifaximin, Neomycin, herbal supplements or anything else targeting SIBO directly. (I did, however, use Atrantil in the beginning of the year, which I believe worked wonders in setting me up for the rest of 2017.)
I go to the bathroom now like a normal person. I rarely feel bloated, and most of the time if I do feel bloat it’s only the type of female-monthly-friend bloat (which, by the way, is nothing compared to SIBO bloat).
My energy came back! I am able to function the way I wanted to for so long. Of course, I’m still tired at night by 8 or 9 pm, but I’m also up every single day between 3:30 – 4 am (you can read a typical day via Experience Life Magazine HERE).
My weight stabilized. When my gut is off, I always know because my weight changes quickly – like within just a day or two. For several months now, the scale has not budged much, and it’s at a place that feels natural and comfortable.
From a numbers standpoint, my SIBO tests showed that, while not completely eradicated, it was improving (and by the way, the last time I did this test was early 2017 I believe – I have made leaps and bounds progress since then).
“Overall,” said Dr. Amy, “your DUTCH profile looks good.” T3 is still somewhat low, but we are managing that and I am retesting those levels in early 2018.
My blood pressure continues to be fairly low and my hands and feet remain cold (I am trying some new things for that, too!), but all blood counts are normal and “healthy.”
We are continuing to do some testing in 2018, and most everything will remain the same (not fixing anything that’s not broken). I’m hoping for another healthy and vibrant year in 2018. And I wish the same for you as well!
Xox,
SKH
11 Gut and Hormone Supplements
Today I’m sharing 11 gut and hormone supplements I take (or have taken).