Post-Detox: Day 22 and Beyond

I did it!  I completed the 21 DSD!  Was I 100% perfect and follow the detox to the exact letter?  No, but I came pretty damn  close, and eating some extra beans, a little bit more fruit on a day, a gram of sugar in some salad dressing, that one time with the little bit of hummus, and that one time with the little bit of corn...well psssssh!  This tiny collection of even tinier indiscretions really isn't that big of a deal - especially when considering my incredible results!

Pre-detox, my quality of sleep wasn't great, my mental state was a bit foggy, I felt bloated and sloppy, and I tended toward the cranky, irritable, anxious side of the mood spectrum.  As I worked my way through the detox, the change in all of these areas for the better is absolutely undeniable.  My sleep is great, my mood is improved, my mental state and ability to cope is better...eating gluten-free and low sugar has been well worth the sacrifice.  

And, I lost a whopping 9.5 lbs!  Let me say that again - I lost 9.5 lbs in 3 weeks, and I did it eating real, whole foods that kept me energized and satisfied all day long.  I wasn't starving myself, I was just giving my body the type of fuel it had gone without for so long, and man, did my body respond to it!

Throughout the challenge  I averaged anywhere from 1400 to about 1800 calories a day (based on entering my meals into MyFitnessPal) I worked out a little bit, but nothing crazy - 5 yoga classes and 3 runs over the course of 21 days, so that's a few times a week on average.   My macronutrient (fat, protein, carb) ratio generally speaking was very low carb (25% or less, mostly from veggies) and  high fat and protein, and likely got my body into a ketogenic state or near it (even though the detox is not technically a ketogenic diet), which means operating on depleted glycogen energy storage, which means the body is burning fat for energy instead.  Pretty cool!  (hopefully I've explained that right!)

The favorite new food/recipe I picked up on the detox is hands down, ZOODLES!  I also tried a handful of recipes from the 21DSD book, and look forward to experimenting with many more in the future.  

My plan for "Day 22" and beyond is more or less to stick with it, but allowing for more variety of fruit, alcohol on the weekends (and a glass of wine during the week), and allowing for a little sweet treat on a special occasion...I'm toying with the idea of maybe 1 cheat meal allowed a week.  This weekend is Memorial Day, and I don't plan to go hog wild, but Brian and I may go out for ice cream or something like that, and I'm not going to deprive myself, I'm just going to be smart, and go for a taste rather than a gut-buster.  But, I am planning to stay very low sugar and low to no gluten on most days.   I'd love to try to drop another 15 lbs, if not more.

And finally, here's a walk down memory lane, with links to points on my journey.

Pre-Detox: Unsweetened:  The entry explaining my interest in the 21DSD
Day 1:  It's harder than I thought it would be!
Day 2:  Feeling Apprehensive...can I really do this?
Day 3: 1st  mini milestone - 1/7th of the way!  Resisted temptation when meeting a gf for dinner and a movie.
Day 4: Starting to experience vastly improved sleep (but peeing a lot!)
Day 5: Headaches starting to subside, and energy picking up, though experiencing some digestive challenges.
Day 6: Faced with  more temptation out with friends, but stuck with the program, and proud of it.
Day 7:  Hell yeah - made it through week 1 and feeling amazing!  The 'bad' symptoms have subsided.
Day 8: Dropped a little knowledge on the pitfalls of sugar.
Day 9: Still sleeping well, but felt a little energy dip
Day 10: I know I made the right decision to cut out sugar, but severing the emotional ties is tough.
Day 11: Halfway there!  B and I crave pizza means...we made "meatza" (so wrong, yet so right!)
Day 12:  Energy is picking up again!
Day 13: Stayed on track, but my workout was a little shaky.  Maybe I need to up the carbs just a tad.
Day 14: Two weeks down, one to go!  And...the day we discovered Zoodles!
Day 15:  Kale chips.  Overrated.
Day 16 & 17: Controlling the chaos and managing the stress at work.
Day 18 & 19:  See Day 16 & 17
Day 20:  Almost there!  Put myself in temptation's way one last time...and passed the test!
Day 21: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

21DSD: Day 21 - Mission Accomplished!

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood for SO MANY reasons!  It was a bright, sunny 72 degrees today, it's the end of a lovely weekend, I finished my project this morning, I got in 2 solid workouts today, and....I completed my 21 day detox!

Today marks "day the final", and tomorrow I'll settle into a modified version of the detox, one that allows for a bit more variety of fruit (though keeping to 1-2 helpings), some additional legumes and carb sources, like hummus and sweet potato (though I'll still mostly away from the refined stuff and the gluten), and yes, wine and cocktails, though I will more or less limit those to the weekend.

Tomorrow morning, I'll step on the scale to see how I fared in the weigh loss dept.  I'll share those results, along with my detox recap, a little later in the week, probably Wednesday or Thursday.  Tomorrow I also plan to treat myself to a Starbucks iced venti coffee with agave in the AM and a glass of wine (or 2) for the planned girls night to watch the season opener of the Bachelorette in the evening (don't judge! it's a fun excuse to get together and catch up sans the men in our lives).

And now, here's the DAY 21 Rundown:

Time Went to Bed Last night: 1 am. 
Time got up this morning: 8:30 am
How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor): good
General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair, poor):  good/good.  put in a few hours of work this morning and finished my work project
Exercise (type/duration):   B and I rented Nice Rides and biked around Lake Calhoun. I also ran 4.2 miles through the Lyndale Gardens and around Lake Harriet.  Not too shabby.
Breakfast:  Coffee with cream.  That's it.  I don't advocate skipping breakfast, but I got into a groove while working and finishing up my project that I didn't stop to prepare anything beyond 2 cups of coffee.
Lunch: Got a chicken salad at chipotle, with beans, pico, onions and peppers, cheese and sour cream
Dinner:  We cooked up some ground beef, onions and peppers, with cheese and salsa (yes, quite similar to lunch....what can I say? Food with a little mex/tex-mex flair works well with the detox)
Snack: Almonds
Water Intake: at least 6 glasses 

21DSD: Day 20

I didn't get a chance to post last night, because last night B and I were out late, first to dinner at a fun, new restaurant here in Uptown that specializes in Southern style cuisine called the Boneyard, followed  by a night at the Orpheum theater to see AZIZ ANSARI!  It's our second time seeing Aziz perform live in Minneapolis, and for the second time, he didn't disappoint.

Of course, the hardest part about today (and weekends in general during the duration of this thing), was no alchohol when we went out to dinner.  That drink menu looked TASTY!  Man, I feel like a lush, that the thing I miss the most, and the thing I keep talking about over and over and over is that I miss being able to have a glass of wine, beer or a cocktail.  Maybe that's a sign I need to cut back, which I've already promised to do.  My rules on this will be limiting drinks to the weekend, and allowing myself a glass once during the work week if out for a happy hour or evening with friends.  There. Concrete, clear, manageable.

Here's the DAY 20 (SO CLOSE NOW!) rundown:

Time Went to Bed Last night: 12:30 am. 

Time got up this morning: 9 am.    weeeee! so much sleeeep!

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor): good

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair, poor):  good/good.  put in a few hours of work in the morning, which was no fun on a Sunny Saturday, but hey, gotta stay in the good graces of my employer and keep earnin' 'em dolla dolla billz. 

Exercise (type/duration):   Low impact today.  Went to the driving range.  Handled the woods pretty well today (heh!  get your mind out of the gutter!  Oh, that wasn't what you were thinking?  Liar.)

Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, bacon and scrambled eggs with onions, peppers and cheese.

Lunch:  Snacked for lunch - apples, cheese, almonds

Dinner:  As I just mentioned, went out to dinner at the Boneyard.  I actually was able to choose a (mostly) detox friendly option, the "sweet tea" brined grilled chicken breast, with succotash, braised kale, creole aioli.  The only "off plan" item was a little bit of corn in the succotash...imho its nbd!

Snack: see: lunch

Water Intake: 6 glasses 

21DSD: Day 18 & 19

TGIMFF!  Man, this was a ROUGH week at work!  Long, difficult hours, and challenges and obstacles to my game plan popped up all week long.  My crazy work life definitely hindered the energy I had leftover to keep up on my daily updates at the end of the day.  So once again this week, I'm writing up these past 2 nights to catch up.

In the midst of the stress and chaos this week, it would have been very easy to slip back into bad eating habits, but I'm proud to say that I've stuck with the program!  Without my usual go-to stress busters to turn to (wine, sweets), I sought healthier options to ease my stress (yoga, reading).  I have had crazy weeks like this in the past (though honestly, the past weeks were even worse), the kind of weeks that would bring me to tears once I got home from work. To be fair, those tears usually came after several weeks in a row of the crazy hours, and my hours are much better on the whole now that I've rotated into a new division, and weeks like the one I just had are no longer the norm. Still, I do think my improved diet helped me with my coping skills and ability to focus this week, even if my work stress today isn't at the same danger-zone level as it has been in the past. No tears, just plowing through and moving on.

Once I end the detox, while I'm definitely going to allow myself to drink wine, I am going to cut way back on the number of nights I week I reach for that glass. This weekend, I'll be plotting out my "day 22 and beyond" plan, and setting some concrete boundaries for myself.  It's easy to say "Oh, I plan to more or less stick to the plan most of the time" -- but that seems wishy washy and leaves far too much room for interpretation.  Let's face it, I like rules, I like process, I like order -- it's just a part of who I am and how I operate.  I've always been one to play by the rules (most of the time, I can get feisty on occasion, step out of bounds and raise a little hell!). Since that's what I know works for me, I'll be writing my personal rule book this weekend to help me continue to navigate down this new path.

All right, let's get to the run down --

Day 19 - Today

Time Went to Bed Last night: 11 pm. 

Time got up this morning: 7 am.    

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor): good

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair,  poor):  fair on mood, good on energy.  Today was another crazy hectic day at work, which admittedly made me a bit cranky..and unfortunately, I'll be working this weekend too, wrapping up a big project that's due on Monday and that blew up a little at the end here. I worked a long day today trying to get things back into order, well into the evening, which sucks since it's Friday.  I am so glad this week is over, even though I have that ~4 hours I'll need to put in this weekend.  

Exercise (type/duration):   I decided to put an end to my work day around 7 this evening so I could make it to 730 yoga class this evening.  I'm so glad I made that judgment call.  Since I can't have wine on the detox, yoga really did the job to soothe and relax me. It was just what I needed.

Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, egg white muffins with spinach, feta, black olives

Lunch:  Leftover Mexican lime chicken with salsa and cheese on top of black beans.

Dinner:  Leftover Mexican lime chicken with cheese on top of black beans.  Yes, I had the same thing for dinner that I had for lunch, and yes, I ate this earlier in the week too, twice. We purposely prepared it to have lots of leftovers, and they have been a lifesaver this week. My long work hours that have left me coming home with very little energy and brain power to put toward cooking. Technically this meal is a bit of a "cheat" since I'm supposed to stick to 1/2 cup of beans/legumes a day, and today, I had a cup. I hardly count eating an extra 1/2 cup of fiber rich black beans as a big deal.  As the kids and their hashtags say #sorrynotsorry

Snack: almonds (clearly my go to snack...), warm apples topped with cinnamon (sliced and sauteed with a little bit of coconut oil) 

Water Intake: At least 8 glasses

Day 18 - Yesterday (Thursday)

Time Went to Bed Last night: 12a

Time got up this morning: 5:30 am.    

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor): good

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair,  poor):  good to fair on both accounts.  Work has kicked my butt this week, and I haven't been getting the 8 hours of sleep that I need to feel super charged.

Exercise (type/duration):   Not today

Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, egg white muffins with spinach, feta, black olives

Lunch:  I was in a hurry, and I haven't had a lot of time to prep at home, so I got a salad at Subway - lettuce and spinach, lots of veggies, chicken and vinegar, oil, salt and pepper

Dinner:  B made dinner - yay!  He made zoodles ("noodles" made ouf of zucchini - my new favorite thing!) with spicy garlic shrimp. So yummy.  I posted a picture below, and while I've shared links to both in the past, I may as well share them again - zoodles, and spicy garlic shrimp

Snack:  Almonds, banana

Water Intake: At least 6 glasses

"Zoodles" with spicy garlic shrimp.  So good!

21DSD: Days 16 & 17

I've had a busy work week, and the longer hours have made it difficult to keep up with the blog.  More importantly though, I've stayed on track, and I also feel that, even with the heightened work stress, I've been coping with it pretty well - better than I would have in the past.  Could it be that this change in my diet is helping me to concentrate better, stay focused, and keep calm and even keel?  It could be indeed, given that a ride on the sugar roller coaster can make us feel irritable and anxious.  Not me, I'm chill, yo!  Well, maybe I'm feeling a little stressed, but for the most part, I'm feeling pretty good.

It's getting late, and I have to get into the office early again tomorrow for another jam packed day, so here's my recap for yesterday and today 

Day 17 - Today

Time Went to Bed Last night: 11:30 pm. 

Time got up this morning: 6:30 am.    

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor): good

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair,  poor):  Good/good - I felt as though I was very focused today - got a lot done and controlled the chaos at work.

Exercise (type/duration):   Made it to the later yoga class tonight after a nearly 12 hour day at the office. Booyah!

Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, banana, almonds

Lunch:  Made myself a salad at Byerlys - greens, veggies, turkey, eggs, cheese, bacon

Dinner:  Leftover Mexican lime chicken with salsa and cheese on top of black beans.

Snack: More almonds

Water Intake: At least 8 glasses

Day 16 - Yesterday

Time Went to Bed Last night: 12 am. 

Time got up this morning: 6 am.    

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor): good

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair,  poor):  Good/good - busy busy day....

Exercise (type/duration):   Not today

Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, egg white muffins with spinach, feta, sausage

Lunch:  Went to pancheros and had a salad with chicken, veggies and topped with queso...mmmmm!  (yes, it's allowed at level one!! Such a treat!)

Dinner:  Beans with cheese, salsa, sour cream and black olives (lazy person's dinner since neither B or i felt like cooking, but filling, fueling, and felt a little indulgent, like a mexican layer dip)

Snack:  Almonds, banana

Water Intake: At least 6 glasses

21DSD: Day 15

My allergies are still bothering me, and I'm on the tired side today after a busy day at work coupled with the dreary weather, so I'm going to keep it short.  

I did promise to talk about the Kale chips I made yesterday.  I feel like such a health nut!  I made Kale chips!  And....I did NOT like them!  I think Kale is bitter, and even with the spicy blend, I wasn't a fan.  So, perhaps I spoke to soon, and my health nut card will be revoked, because I do not get the obsession with Kale chips. I'm sure it didn't help that I didn't quite get the "consistency" right.  Some of my "chips" tasted burnt, while others seemed fine on the crisp factor, but when I went to give them a second shot today, they were all pretty soggy.  Too much effort for a lackluster return.  I'll stick to seeds and nuts for now.

Anyway, here's my day 15 run down -- 

Time Went to Bed Last night: 12 am.  (reading, and also trouble falling asleep due to allergies

Time got up this morning: 7:00 am.    

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Fair/poor - sinus issues with my allergies.  At least that means the trees and buds are blooming!

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair,  poor):  Good/fair and good.  The weather made me a little moody.

Exercise (type/duration):   Recovery day.  After 2 days in a row of running (which I hadn't done in a while), I'm pretty sore.

Breakfast:  Egg white muffins with feta, spinach, and sausage crumbles.

Lunch:  Steak salad from Chipotle with beans, cheese, onions, peppers, pico and sour cream.

Dinner:  Brian cooked dinner tonight - Mexican lime chicken with broccoli topped with salsa

Snack: Banana, a handful of almonds, cheese & summer sausage

Water Intake: 6 glasses

21DSD: Day14 (2 weeks down, 1 to go!)

Awwww yeah!  I've made it through two weeks, and am feeling confident that I will make it through this next and final detox week. 

I got in 4 workouts this week - 2 sessions of yoga, and 2 three-mile runs, so that's quite an improvement over the prior week, with my single yoga session as my only workout.  I also tried out a handful of new recipes this week, including chicken with artichokes and olives on Day 10 (with great leftovers on day 12 and 13)  apple Streusel egg muffins on Day 11.

I got some fun new inspiration in the mail this week (I gifted myself these items via Amazon Prime), including the 21DSD Cookbook, and a Kuhn Rikon Julienne Peeler to make zucchini noodles, aka "zoodles"!  I made Zoodles today with my new peeler- and they were awesome! I LOVE pasta, and I've been seeing zucchini and squash noodles all over Pinterest and on various Paleo and healthy eating blogs swearing that the texture is reminiscent of a delicious plate of spaghetti.   That piqued my interest since I love pasta, and today I gave it a whirl.  It could not have been easier -- used my new Julienne peeler to julienne a bunch of zuchinni into strips, or "noodles", then sauteed them for about 5-7 minutes, topped them with a "homemade" meat sauce (e.g. canned diced tomatoes with some fresh basil, onions, garlic, sea salt and pepper and browned ground beef), and VOILA!  A Delicious, and highly nutritious meal!

Zucchini is a variety of summer squash, and summer squash has some amazing health benefits, including linkage to diabetes prevention and insulin regulation, and packed loads of antioxidants, according to the Worlds Healthiest Foods (whfoods.org). You can learn more about this amazing veggie on WHFoods here.  The extent of the blood-sugar benefits is just one more reason to love zucchini!

Here's my day 14 run down -- 

Time Went to Bed Last night: 11 pm.  (yep, we get crazy on a Saturday night!)

Time got up this morning: 8:00 am.    

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Fair/poor - I think the headache I got after my run yesterday was actually allergy related.  It stuck with me through the evening, and I woke up with it today.  B picked up some allergy meds for me, and stubborn me, I haven't taken them yet.  I probably will start in the morning.

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair,  poor):  Good/ Excellent - My mood was pretty good all day, and my energy levels were pretty terrific - I got a lot of chores completed around the house, played in the kitchen a bit, practiced my saxophone....and got in a workout too! (see directly below)

Exercise (type/duration):  Ran 3 miles.  Bam!  2 days in a row!

Breakfast:  Pumpkin Pancakes from the 21DSD original book.  I didn't have the recipe to make the accompanying vanilla bean coconut butter, and without it, these were a bit bland. These pancakes would also be pretty good with maple syrup, which obviously isn't allowed since maple syrup is straight up sugar.  I may try them again, but will look into that vanilla bean butter to see if that jazzes it up.

Lunch:  Caesar salad (sans croutons) with leftover lemon chicken.

Dinner: Zoodles (recipe here, it could not be easier!) with Parmesan cheese and Marinara sauce from my new 21DSD Cookbook, plus I added ground beef to make it a meaty marinara. So good! B even said "I never need to eat pasta again!"  This easy recipe is sure to become a go to and a regular part of the dinnertime rotation in our house.  Photos below.

Snack: Apple, homemade kale chips (I'll talk about these tomorrow)

Water Intake: 8 glasses

                            Zoodles Step 1 - Julienne!

Zoodles Step 2:  saute and sizzle!

Zoodles Step 3: Enjoy!

21DSD: Day 13

Not much to say about day 13, except I don't think I got enough good carbs (e.g. veggies) for energy and nutrients, since I felt a bit weak/headachy after my workout.. Plus, it's pretty obvious by the rundown that didn't eat many veggies at all today.  Tomorrow's a new day.

Here's the day 13 run down -- 

Time Went to Bed Last night: 10:30 pm.  B and I are party animals.
Time got up this morning: 9:00 am. So much sleep!   
How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor): Excellent
General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair,  poor):  Excellent/ Excellent - it's the freakin' weekend!  Well, a little low energy and headachy after my run today, but it hasn't dampened my spirits.
Exercise (type/duration):  Ran 3 miles.  hit golf balls at the driving range.
Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, scrambled eggs with cheese, onions, peppers
Lunch:  Beans with cheese, ground beef, salsa, sour cream.
Dinner: We ordered chicken wings.  Neither of us felt like cooking.  Maybe not the most balanced meal, but fits within the parameters of the detox.  I will need to bolster my kitchen repertoire to make this way of eatin work long term.
Snack: Apple, pumpkin seeds
Water Intake: 8 glasses

21DSD: Day 12

B and I were catching up on reboot of 24: Live Another Day, so I didn't get around to posting my Day 12 recap last night, so here it is.

My energy seems to be back on the upswing, and I felt good all day.  I'm sure the fact that it was Friday was a positive little boost.  Plus, I ordered Diane Sanfilippo's 21 Day Sugar Detox Cookbook, and it arrived today, so I'm looking forward to flipping through it and discovering some tasty treats. I've started to think ahead to what I will do once the detox is officially over, and once my first order of business is complete (a glass of wine in the evening), I plan to keep sticking to this low sugar, nutrient dense way of eating that I've learned, so I'll need to keep looking for recipes to help keep me engaged and motivated. Sanfilippo's cookbook oughtta help!

I'm anxious to see how I'm progressing on the scale, but I'm planning to wait until after I complete the detox to uncover that result.  I stepped on the scale last week (to see if I was actually losing weight.  answer = yes!), but now plan to wait until the end for the final detox #. I'm excited to see what I've accomplished!  In just these two weeks, I feel like my clothes are fitting better, and that's a better indicator of how my body is changing than the scale anyway.

Here's the day 12 run down -- 

Time Went to Bed Last night: 12:00 am. I was lost in a book - I just ordered Laura Sobiech's spiritual memoir on Kindle.  She's the mother of the incredibly brave, positive and inspiring Zach Sobiech, a Twin Cities local teenager and musician who passed away a year ago of Osteosarcoma.  Fave Zach quote - "You don't have to find out you're dying to start living."  You can learn more about the incredible Sobiech family via this Soul Pancake YouTube video.
Time got up this morning: 7:00 am 
How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Good.  I love the great sleep I continue to get without sugar to interfere!
General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Excellent/ Excellent - I'm back on the up and up!
Exercise (type/duration):  1 hour of Yoga.  I felt incredible at yoga today!  For me, yoga is always a good decision.  My intention today was "patience" with myself, with others, with life.  I'm not a patient person, but I know that as I reshape my body and mind, patience is essential to the plan.
Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, banana, pumpkin seeds
Lunch:  The last of my leftover Chicken, artichoke and olive dish.  B doesn't like artichokes or olives, so that means lots of fantastic leftovers for me.
Dinner:  Steak and green beans.
Water Intake: 8 glasses

21DSD: Day 11 (Half way there!)

Technically, I made it through day 11, and technically I'm officially OVER half way through the detox! Technically.   Even though I didn't cheat (much), I kind of feel like I did.

First, I ate the entire batch of Apple Streusel egg muffins I made last night (which is 6 muffins and equivalent to 3 servings).  These are from the 21DSD book, so all ingredients are approved, but it probably totaled just under 2 apples consumed, when I really should have only eaten one apple today (that's my cheat. I don't feel too bad about it).  At least I did not eat all of the muffin at once! I had three of the muffins for breakfast and the remaining for a snack.  Needless to say, the muffins were pretty good.

Then, for dinner, Brian and I were both craving pizza, which is obviously NOT allowed on the detox.  So, B went for the loophole and got a little creative in the kitchen and invented his version of "Meatza"  -- a weaved bacon "crust" topped with ground beef, tomato, cheese, onions, peppers and oregano.  It was oh, so wrong, and yet oh, so right!  And, gluten/sugar/soy free! All of those items are allowed...but man that's a lot of fat.  I had two pieces.  there.  I've confessed!  I even posted photos below.

Let's just move to the day 11 rundown, shall we?!?-

Time Went to Bed Last night: 11:00 pm

Time I Got Up This Morning: 6:30 am 

How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Good

General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Good/good, though energy in the evening kind of low

Exercise (type/duration):  None.

Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, and 3 apple streusel egg muffins from the 21DSD book.

Lunch:  Salad with veggies and lemon pepper chicken that I prepped at the start of the week

Dinner:  "Meatza" as discussed in the paragraph above. I do not wish to discuss further!

Snacks:  The remaining 2 apple streusel egg muffins (and confession - I tried one last night right before bed, after I already published my update.  Technically not cheating except for eating a few additional slices of apple when the limit is technically one apple a day).

Water Intake: 6 glasses

"Bacon Weave Crust"

The full on "Meatza"

21DSD: Day 10

My energy is still a little bit low as I near the halfway point. I was riding a high after making it through week one, and while I wouldn't say I'm feeling 'low' (my sleep quality is still good and my mood is still better overall), I guess I've been feeling reflective. I absolutely love to eat, and am an emotional eater to a tee.  As excited as I am about my progress, the thought of having to significantly restrict some of my favorite foods (pasta! pizza! cream cheese wantons! sammys!  ice cream! chocolate chip cookies! nachos! cheddar and sour cream potato chips! booze! so many oms and noms!)...it's kind of depressing.  Even if I can kill the physical addiction and cravings I experience, my emotional addiction to these comforting foods is separate issue I need to face.  

Yes, I realize it's all of those carby/sugary foods that have been making me feel awful and wreaking havoc on my body and mind for so long.  But...they've also made me feel good, they've been a part of happy memories, and they've been a crutch to help me get through hard times.  It's hard to say goodbye to these good friends, even if they are "toxic" friends. Still, I know that I can enjoy treats on occasion, but I also know I can easily turn an everyday thing into an "occasion",  and I will need to be very mindful of this. This detox is just one of many steps I need to improve my relationship with the foods I eat.

Here's the day 10 rundown--

Time Went to Bed Last night: 11:00 pm
Time I Got Up This Morning: 6:30 am 
How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Good
General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Good/good-fair.  Mood has been much  more on the "up" side than the "down" side.  My energy has been a little bit down though.  All I wanted to do today was eat Cookies & Cream Ice cream (my favorite flavor) -- I have not caved into that craving
Exercise (type/duration):  None.
Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, and 3 egg white muffins with spinach, sausage, and feta
Lunch:  I went to Chipotle today and got a salad - lettuce, steak, onions, peppers, tomatoes, sour cream, cheese.  Seriously, being able to have as much full fat dairy as I want on my detox, acceptable for level one, has been a life saver.  I'm thankful that I don't have a dairy intolerance.  I wonder if I could feel *even better* if I limited dairy....but that's for a different day.  Cutting out sugar/gluten/soy is a big step, and author Diane Sanfilippo advocates starting where you are - no need to be a daredevil or a hero!
Dinner:   Leftover Chicken with artichokes and olives, a recipe I found in the detox book.  Photo below.  I'm pleased with this dish.  B is more of the cook in our household, though I dabble a bit.  While sometimes I enjoy cooking and baking, it's not my favorite thing to do.  This detox is forcing me to spend a lot more time in the kitchen prepping food and actually cooking.  If my food choices seem a little bland, it's because I want to make sure I always have something to eat and don't starve as a result of getting over my head and failing to make something more complicated or time consuming than I realized.  Over time, I'm sure I will get better at this.  Again, it's important to "start where you are" - and I'm at a more basic level.  I'm motivated to keep experimenting as much as I can, so that I don't get bored and take a misstep as a result.  It's been tough, but I'll get there!
Snacks:  Apple, pumpkin seeds
Water Intake: 6 glasses

Chicken with artichokes and olives

21DSD: Day 9

Man, am I too pooped to party today.  My energy has been low all day, and I can't pinpoint why.  I woke up to a cat walking across my head, and generally feeling cranky.  Despite my low energy, I've stayed on track with the detox, and have actually had a very productive evening catching up on wedding details that I've been procrastinating on addressing, trying out a new recipe from the 21DSD for dinner, whipping up a few more egg white/spinach/sausage muffins (this time with feta!) to have for breakfast tomorrow, and tidying the kitchen.  It's 10p now, and I cannot wait to hit the sack.  Therefore, I'm going to get straight to the rundown.

Time Went to Bed Last night: 11:00 pm
Time I Got Up This Morning: 6:00 am 
How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor):  poor - super cranky and could have easily snoozed for 3 hours, if not for, you know, the need to earn a living.
General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Good/Fair.  My mood improved thorughout the day, and my energy upped a little bit, but I felt tired pretty much all day.
Exercise (type/duration):  None.
Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, and 3 egg white muffins with spinach, onion and sausage.
Lunch:  Went to the Byerly's salad bar for lunch and made a big salad, packed with veggies, turkey, eggs and balsamic dressing.
Dinner:   Made a delicious recipe from the 21DSD, Chicken with artichokes and olives.  I took a photo, and will upload it tomorrow, since I'll likely be having the leftovers for dinner.  I found the exact recipe online here.  Though, I used chicken breasts instead of thighs, and included 100% kalamata instead of a mix of olives.
Snacks:  Banana; baby carrot sticks with cream cheese
Water Intake: 6 glasses

21DSD: Day 8

I'm now wrapping up Day 8 of the detox, or day 1 of week 2. I felt a bit of fatigue today, but I attribute that to the fact that it's Monday more than the detox. I went to yoga tonight, and that always leaves me feeling relaxed, so I may turn in pretty soon.  But, before I do, I thought I'd drop a little detox knowledge based on what I've learned in the 21DSD (and hopefully I've processed this all correctly)!

• The body has a limited ability to store carbs and sugars, but an unlimited ability to store fat.  Any carbs and sugar that can't be immediately used as fuel or stored in the muscles, liver or bloodstream, is converted into fat in the form of triglycerides (circulating blood fats), or adipos (body fat).

• Eating too much sugar puts our bodies in a constant state of stress.  Insulin works overtime trying to deal with the storage issue, which often results in sugar crashes...which ironically make us crave more sugar.  

• Cortisol, the "fight or flight' stress hormone, reacts to these crashes.  Thinking the body is in danger, cortisol levels spike.   If our bodies constantly produce cortisol, thinking we are in danger, other systems in turn start to slow down or shut down.  Reading that truth reminded me of the little that I know about hypothermia, and that under extreme cold your body only allows the absolutely necessary systems to sustain life to keep functioning, and everything else turns off.  I'd guess it's kind of like that. 

• Two of such body functions that get the ax are the thyroid, which controls your metabolism, and sex hormones, which impact everything from sexual drive, to dealing with PMS to impeding the ability to reproduce.

• In a nut shell, too much sugar gums up your whole system, throws your hormones out of whack, put a major dent in your immune system and make you susceptible to other illnesses as well.

• Sugar is a tricky sonofagun.  Sweets trigger dopamine, which is a chemical messenger (neurotransmitter) that sends our body messages of pleasure and reward. Who doesn't want to feel these things?!? It makes us crave these lovely feelings more and more. But don't be fooled! Don't forget about the old bait and switch -- you may THINK you're feeling the happy fuzzies...but what you're really getting is a gunked up system and the litany of issues mentioned above and plenty of others as well.

I'd say that's enough knowledge dropped for now.  Class dismissed!  For a little 'extra credit' Here's my Day 8 Rundown: 

Time Went to Bed Last night: 11:30 pm (but it took me a while to fall asleep)
Time I Got Up This Morning: 7:00 am
How I felt when I woke up (excellent, good, fair, poor):  good, ready to tackle the week.
General Mood/Energy throughout the day (excellent, good, fair, poor):  Excellent/Good
Exercise (type/duration):  An hour of yoga
Breakfast:  Coffee with cream, and 3 egg white muffins with spinach, onion and sausage.
Lunch:  Lettuce and spinach salad with veggies, feta cheese, and lemon pepper chicken I prepared the night before (marinated in lemon juice, olive oil, and lemon pepper chicken)
Dinner:   Tacos sans shell - ground beef with onions, pepper, salsa, tomatoes &  sour cream
Snacks:  Almonds; Baby carrots with cream cheese
Water Intake: 6 glasses