Well, they did not exactly found their way into my kitchen, I brought them in there. When I started eating healthier few month ago, I felt better than ever for a while, but then my poison food addiction took over again. It started by eating white bread and vegan mayo.....then the other foods joined the party. And the results? I gained back all the weight that I lost since January and my health problems are back! I feel toxic, depressed and weak! I feel sluggish, tired, constantly hungry and unhappy. The more garbage I eat, the more I want. It is like a drug addiction. I needed to admit to myself that I have a problem and that I am addicted to white foods (white bread, sugar, etc), chocolate and processed vegan junk food. I realized that in order for me to break the addiction, I have to detox myself first and clean my body and mind from all the toxic food, toxic emotions and stress. I have a mentally and physically demanding job and the stress often makes me crave bad foods and I "reward" myself for the stress and hard work with garbage foods. Recently I decided that I need to break this addiction and get better. I made a promise to myself today to get healthy, to eat better, to lose 27 pounds by December, to make time for myself and not to give up or make excuses. I want to be radiant, healthy, full of energy and love. I want to start living my life to the fullest!
This is not going to be easy, this is not going to be an overnight fix and I am fine with it. I have a lot of knowledge and support this time around. I found a lot of inspiration online and in books. I just finished reading "Crazy, Sexy Diet" by Kris Carr and I am feeling powerful and ready to do this!
I started a 5 day Express REBOOT today. I modified my reboot slightly to eat mostly raw, living veggies and fruits, juices and smoothies. No grains, no beans, gluten, condiments, etc.
I drank a gallon of unpasteurized green juice (cucumber, celery, lemons, spinach, parsley) and a small cherry juice. I had two smoothies, one with spinach, banana and mango, and the other was carrot, banana and mango. I am not used to drinking so much and not eating all day. I felt very weak at times, but I would get bursts of energy and mental clarity. I noticed I was more cranky and sensitive today than ever. To make it even worse, I had to do grocery shopping and get fresh bread for my husband. I was almost drooling over his dinner while sipping on my smoothie.... That was a real torture! I did some dry brushing, meditating, cleaning and reading. I bathed my dog, too :-)
My husband is my biggest support and inspiration :-)
My friend Brennan has been a huge inspiration, too. He rocks!!!
I found a lot of support and inspiration in Raw Rebecca (including the idea of having two jars with little stones representing total pounds lost and total pounds left). She is amazing!
I also have a lot of support via several Facebook and Twitter friends, too.
Here are some foods that I will be eating for the next few days. Raaaaaaaw :-)
My work lunch and breakfast for tomorrow
My dinner smoothie: spinach, banana, mango and purified water.
I find as soon as I have junk, I then want more junk. and then more junk. Its a snowball effect -- thats all the motivation I need to avoid it! proud of you!
ReplyDeleteThat is what happened to me :-( You are one of my big inspirations, too! Your cookbooks are so helpful and I cannot wait to start cooking more from The Happy Herbivore again!
DeleteWow I am so inspired by your honesty! I go through these phases too. You are right...the more you eat junk the more you want to eat it! I wish you all the best with your detox/reboot (I love kris carr's book) and look forward to hearing more about your journey. Way to go!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your support and inspiration!
DeleteYour written promise to yourself is really awesome and inspiring. I think I'm going to write down my promises to myself too! You might feel weak because you aren't eating very many calories, you might check what your caloric intake is and then throw in as many nuts as you need to make sure you are getting enough. Good luck on your reboot, and thanks for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Yes, I have been eating and drinking about half of my daily calories these past two days but I am feeling pretty good now :-) I added some raw nuts and seeds to my dinner today :)
DeleteYou would find much, much worse if you looked into my fridge :-) I loved Crazy Sexy Diet too, and I think your jar of stones is a great, visual motivator. I know all of your hard work will pay off for you!
ReplyDeleteYou are so inspirational to me, Elisabeth! I am so proud to know you. Thanks for sharing your story and encouraging me to get my act together. We can lean on each other!
ReplyDeleteThank you! You are a great inspiration to me!
DeleteI love raw veggies especially now in hot weather. Kris Carr's story is so inspiring, I read about her before. Personally what works for me is Dr McDougall's advice. He recommends plant based of course, but with a focus on starches (and other veggies) and elimination of added fats, even olive oil. Quite similar to Engine 2 Diet. (also plant-based!) Honestly this is the first time in my life that I can eat as much as I like and not gain weight. But I'm a carb lover so it really suits me. I gladly gave up the oil for more potato! :) Here is his site if you're interested: thttp://www.drmcdougall.com The forum is very helpful. I use http://cronometer.com/ to see what nutrients I'm missing, and you'll see how easy it is to get everything with a few tweaks, I find it so helpful, maybe others will too. :)
ReplyDeleteWonderful info, thank you! I am following a mixture of different diets :-) Using zero or very little oil in my diet, but eating nuts and seeds and avocados, plus tons of veggies and fruits. I do eat legumes, beans, oats, quinoa, brown rice, etc. but try to avoid wheat flour products, especially white flour.
DeleteElisabeth you are welcome. :) Sounds alot like what I eat (or try my best), except that since I started following McD's advice I eat very little nuts/seeds and avocado. A sprinkle of flaxseed on my oatmeal to make sure I get enough omega 3 is usually enough. I realised how little fat we actually need! 'Good fats' used to be my downfall, especially olive oil and nuts, didnt realise their high caloric density. And the fuss about vegans not getting enough of omegas. Just insert what you ate today in cronometer and see how incredibly easy it is to get those fats, (as well as protein, even if you don't feel like eating beans every day)
DeleteKeep up the good work with your blog! :)