Tuesday 16 February 2016

Burst Training to Increase Basal Body Temperature Trial Day 5

Having been on the anti candida diet for fifty days, I have learned that cutting carbs, introducing probiotics and antifungals are not enough to kill candida alone, for many of my symptoms of candida remain (although my hair grew back). But I have discovered that low basal body temperature will cause the body to go into an inflammatory state.

Candida and Hypothyroid Symptoms

This is because the internal organs are not designed to function in any other temperature but within a narrow margin. Digestive enzymes underperforms and the good gut flora suffers. This gives the candida the chance to flourish. My symptoms get worse in the evening, when my body temperature falls, and get better during the luteal phase of the female cycle and during pregnancy (when body temperature rises a little).

Candida and Body Temperature

I don’t have hypothyroidism, which leaves adrenal exhaustion or estrogendominance.

So after drastically reducing grains (except for porridge), no junk food, sweets, cakes, biscuits or booze, my itchy eczema remains, as well as fatigue, bloating, water retention, oral thrush, and now I have suffered a bad bout of conjunctivitis.

Conjunctivitis and Estrogen Dominance

I have suffered mysterious and recurrent conjunctivitis for many years. A gritty sensation would develop in one or both eyes, and then would become inflamed and sore. I regularly bathe my eyes as they often get dry. My GP thinks I have Sjogren’s Syndrome.

However, I have since found a link between low body temperature and dry/inflamed eyes.

Low Body Temperatures throughout the Day - Dark are Cool, Pale are Warmer
After keeping a record of my basal body temperature, I have discovered that mine is terribly low. I have also menstruated three times in close succession which has made things worse. It is well known that menstruation causes the body temperature to plummet. This means progesterone (a heat giving hormone) has had no chance of building up, as there has been little luteal phase to do so. As a result, my eyes became very dry in the evenings. And finally, have become inflamed.

Body Temperature Grid

As can be seen from the screenshot of my body temperature readings, my basal temperature falls between 3.59°C and 3.61°C at night and remains that way for several hours. My daytime temperatures (which should be 37°C) averaged between 36.7°C to 36.8°C. In fact, 37°C occurs only three times in the entire week for a total of a few hours.

I have used shaded increments to make the illustration easier to appreciate. Cool are dark than warm are paler. The 37°C and above region are pale orange and 36.9°C is pink.

Can HIIT Raise Body Temperature

In a bid to raise my body temperature, I have begun a program of HIIT exercises to include with my healthy diet program. HIIT is high intense interval training. These consist of short bursts of exercise to exhaustion for three periods of 30 seconds, linked by moderate exercise of 20 or 30 seconds.

Any exercise can be practiced so long as it is short and intense. A session of racing up and down the stairs was my choice, although burpees, running or cycling will do as well. Always check with your doctor before embarking upon a new exercise program.

When Continual Cardio is Bad

Sustained exercise such as jogging or swimming will do no good for someone who already has adrenal exhaustion or estrogen dominance, as stress will rob the body of progesterone and cause the body temperature to plummet further. But short bursts of intense exercise provides a longer recovery time for the body. The good thing about HIIT is that it spurs the production of human growth hormone as well as reduce insulin resistance.

Burst Training and Hyperthyroid Symptoms

I practiced my second HIIT session today. (HIIT should be practiced three times per week, not every day). Unfortunately, I had to abstain from HIIT for two days because of menstrual problems. It’s frustrating. HIIT is uncomfortable, but short. I felt nauseous afterwards and full recovery took half an hour.

Before practicing HIIT, my body temperature was 36.6°C. Minutes after the session, it dropped to 36.1°C. Half an hour later when my body had recovered, my body temperature returned to 36.7°C.

So far, I can feel no difference in my symptoms, but it is early days. My body temperatures remain poor but I aim to include sea vegetables to my diet, as they contain lots of iodine to support the thyroid. Let’s see if HIIT, healthy diet and sea vegetables will bring my temperatures up.

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