It’s time for an update on my adventure to my optimal self and the fight against my sugar addiction. It is now day 89 without me having a relapse. Yay!

Usually, I can eat a meal, get up from the table without having any desert and still feel happy and satisfied. This is huge. Risky for me are now only days when I eat too much fruit or wait too long with preparing my next meal. Then grasping a “healthy bar” (too much sugar) or a piece of cheese (personal sensitivity: can trigger cold sores) is still very tempting.

Otherwise I eat gluten free without any regrets (when I eat gluten, it can cause depression or self-doubt within 2 days) and I don’t buy anything that comes with an ingredient list.

All is well that ends well? Unfortunately not.

My own heart measurement (SweetBeat App, 60Beats chest strap) has shown that my HRV (heart rate variability) and HF / LF (high frequency, low frequency) values ​​are less than optimal. Both are measured to determine

• the personal stress tolerance,
• the biological (real) age,
• the vital reserves,
• the physical and mental fitness,
• the recovery and regeneration capability,
• and the respiratory function.

On the contrary, my values are ​​by far the worst that I have ever measured on a test subject. Oops, that was a shock, and my active cycling comeback scheduled for this spring had to be cancelled. My journey to my optimal self is thus far from over.

Well, my dear heart was always my weak point. What to do next was the big question. Being professionally involved with health solutions proves to be very helpful at such occasion. I used my Swiss Nutritioneer analysis system, as described in my online practice. The findings were as follows:

– Adrenal fatigue in the 2nd stage (caused by chronic stressors)
– Resulting catabolic dominance in the body
– Assumed compensation by adrenaline
– Chronic adrenaline acts like “poison” for my heart

The real headache was to identify my main stressors. After a meeting with myself that included a sheet of paper, a pen, a quiet place in the sun and the willingness to question everything, I was able to determine these factors quite clearly. There are two emotional stressors in my current life that cause enormous, chronic stress (multiple simultaneous projects with their organizational and financial requirements). By the way, the three main causes of chronic stress are listed here, if you need help to identify yours.

As a result, I created the following, optimal program for me:

1. Nutrition
   Self-experiment applying Dr. Terry Wahl’s diet protocols. (Watch her TED Talk: Defeat multiple sclerosis and other diseases with healthy food! 17 min.)
2. Remove emotional stressors
   – Change my attitude towards these ongoing projects (book recommendation Eckhard Tolle, The Power Of Now.) I plan to write an additional blog post about what worked for me to stay in the moment instead of worrying about future events or regret things happened in the past)
   – Breathing exercises using the Inner Balance App and the necessary ear sensor.
   – Freeze frame technique (book recommendation The Heartmath Solution)
   – Laugh! There is hardly a more powerful weapon against chronic stress than laughter. One Chuck TV episode in the evening works very well for me. You’ll have to find out what works best for you.
3. Movement
   – Explosive, super short one rep max strength exercises of the strongest muscle groups in the body (chest press, leg press, shoulder pulls, calf raises), which trigger an anabolic hormone response.
   – HIIT (high intensitiy interval training): Extremely short but full gas sprints of max. 6 seconds with 2 minutes rest in between. A total of 6 to 12 sprints. (boosts anabolic hormones)
   – Overall, no workout longer than 15 to 20 minutes and no cycling (too much of a catabolic effect)
   – Work less, surf more. Or translated for landlocked countries: less work, more hobby;)
4. Monitoring progress
   Every morning, using HRV and LF / HF 3-minute test (SweetBeat App)

Obviously, my next chapter on the journey to my optimal self and faster cycling is opened…

Visit iTunes to download SweetBeat!

To read the original article and more from the Swiss Nutritioneer, visit his website!

Rene von Gunten is certified by the National Academy of Sports Medicine and the Nutritional Therapy Association and also holds a diploma in Nutritional Balancing Science from the Westbrook University. Rene is a graduate of the renowned mentorship program in functional medicine by Dr. Kalish.