Living Jenn

A LIFESTYLE BLOG ABOUT MARRIAGE, INFERTILITY, AND LIFE

Run Girl Run 

In 5 days, my training for Run She Is Beautiful starts. I haven’t run consistently in about six years (I’m not counting the here and there runs), I haven’t always gone to the gym in 2 years, and I’m 130 pounds overweight. This is the heaviest I’ve ever been, and I’m not happy about it. A combination of laziness, fertility drugs, injuries, surgeries, and eating well has got me where I am, and enough is enough. I want to be the healthiest I can be before our upcoming wedding and FET! Yes, we are F I N A L L Y getting married!

You can follow my journey back to healthiest me here and on Instagram.

XOXO

A Few of My Favorite Things

Happy Tuesday! I wanted to share a few of my #favoritethings that is helping me get through the week and I’ve linked the stores I’ve purchased everything from.

1) My Chemex I can’t say how much I love my Chemex! I brew decaf for myself, specifically Whole Foods Allegro Organic Coffee (various varieties); it is Swiss Water processed vs. chemical; it’s said to be 99.9% decaf, and the Chemex removes any remaining acid that might be in the beans, so it’s great for tummy issues. Our other favorite coffee is from Philz. If you love coffee and haven’t tried Philz, you must.

2.) I finally switched to a sulfate-free shampoo, and it’s helping extend my color; after trying a few I decided on Redken’s Color Extend Magnetics Shampoo & Conditioner; it smells great and cleans without stripping right now; Ulta has a buy 2 get one free deal.

3.) After all the fertility drugs I took last year, my skin discolored in some areas. Sephora + Pantone’s Universe Correct + Conceal Palette is easy to use; you get a user guide and many colors in one container.

4.) I’ve been trying to find a good natural deodorant, and I think I finally found it in PiperWai. Many natural deodorants I tried have way too much baking soda in them, which irritated the heck out of my pits ??. PiperWai is hands down the best out of the 3 I’ve tried; order you up some today!

5.) It is a blowout membership from The Drybar. Now, I know this seems a bit much, but for 75 bucks, you get two blowouts a month +a bday blowout, and these blowouts are the sh*ts! No lie, they are the B E S T! Their products are paraben and sulfate-free, so you don’t have to worry about your color fading or washing out.

What are some of your favorite things? Comment below, and let’s connect on Instagram. 

Maya Massage

This past Wednesday, I had a polypectomy; after the surgery, my doctor came into recovery and enthusiastically told me, “everything looks good, and everything is exactly where it should be!” She also said there were no signs of endometriosis, scar tissue, or adhesions.

After the surgery, I made an appointment for a Maya Massage. I know some women benefit from the massage for me I don’t think it was worth it. Looking back, I wish I had asked for a consultation and had the therapist check to see if I needed a massage or not. Before the massage, the therapist told me that she would check if the uterus is tilted, prolapsed, or out of place. After the massage, I asked what she thought she said, “your uterus didn’t seem out of place, tilted or prolapsed,” basically everything the doctors had told me. I did ask if she thought I needed to come back, she said not unless I wanted to.

Ladies, prior to having anything done, make sure you need it; if there’s absolutely no reason to do something, don’t do it; don’t waste your money. If you have the Maya Massage, make sure you have it at the right time of the month; if the therapist says you can have it anytime, then look elsewhere. As always, consult your doctor before trying anything new.

XOXO,
Jenn

It’s All About Balance

The first thing I’ve learned about this trying to conceive journey (TTC) is that everyone has an opinion on what supplements you should take and what you should or should not eat. Now, before I begin, these are my thoughts and what I learned about a diet I was on I’m not saying I’m right or wrong; I just found what works for me.

For three years before trying to conceive, I was a strict vegetarian, and I was the unhealthiest I have ever been. My skin looked awful; I was constantly sick; I had very low energy; I also gained weight I was the heaviest I had ever been. I’m still struggling with the weight I gained. I was a bad vegetarian.

I would crave meat protein but would deny myself it because I had it stuck in my head that it was horrible for me, but in actuality, it was my diet that was horrible for me. Don’t get me started on all the juice cleanses or juice-only days I did oh, I could kick myself! Because I was not getting enough nutrients and protein, I craved sugar and carbs so much, so it made me pre-diabetic, and all the sugar in all the juices I was drinking didn’t help. My digestive system was also out of whack, which made me feel stuck and sluggish.

After a routine checkup and blood work, my doctor called to tell me I had several vitamin and mineral deficiencies, and that’s when she explains to me the diet I was restricting myself to was doing more harm than good. She also told me she suspected I had developed leaky gut syndrome because she needed me to see a few specialists.

It’s All About Balance
I now eat balanced meals, skip gluten as much as possible, and say no to juice cleanses. When I went back to eating a limited amount of meat, my cravings for sugar and carbs disappeared, and I regained my energy. Eastern medicine, as well as many other cultures, believe that balance ‘cold’ foods lowers your blood flow and ‘warm’ foods increase it; optimal health is associated with free-flowing energy when you’re blocked, this can’t happen. Non-Western Medicine believes our power is centered in our middle, and it must be working correctly for everything else to be working correctly. I think feeling stuck had a lot to do with my diet.

Here are a few ways to increase your blood and energy flow:
Acupuncture
Massage
Maya/Arvigo massage
Chiropractic Care
Walking
Yoga
Swimming
Stretching
Mediating
Whatever diet you prescribe to make sure it’s the right one for you.

XOXO