David, I cut out salt, too. I've never been a big salt shaker guy (my father, however, is another story), but I never payed attention to sodium content in foods I bought. Now, I do, and since becoming more conscientious of salt, I find that I'm retaining a lot less water (that, and reducing the narcotic pain meds, together with exercise, has made an incredibly noticeable difference in the puffiness of my face. I look almost back to 100% normal).
The biggest change, I think, as simple as it sounds, was getting soda out of my system, and drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day. I have one of those really nice 24 oz Contigo double vacuum drink containers, and 14 hours later, if I haven't finished everything inside, there's still ice. I love my water cold, so this thing makes going through a lot of water so easy. And this water has flushed a lot of impurities out of my body. I sleep better, and feel better (and have no more caffeine headaches).
Body chemistry is such a delicate thing. Making a few simple changes can have immediate, lasting benefits. Like you had experienced, I've had a huge boost to my energy level. I don't "love" going to the gym, but I don't have any problems getting motivated to go in. After, I stop and get a 20 oz gladiator protein smoothie with blueberries and banana. Banana is a high natural sugar fruit, but my friend in Houston, who is a certified personal trainer, said for what I am doing, the benefits outweigh the sugar content. For one thing, I am able to bounce back much more quickly after a workout, as bananas reduce muscle soreness. And the anti-oxidants in berries are wonderful for health.
The 45 g of protein is great, as protein is the big fat burner. I go to Smoothie King when I haven't had my scrambled eggs with breakfast. Easy to digest whey protein is my rocket fuel, really.
Good luck with getting back to where you were. Just stay consistent, and you'll get back there.
Happy to be of some inspiration to you guys.
