My three week cleanse is officially over! Of course, the authors of this cleanse encourage you to proceed to an optional fourth week but considering that last night, I almost tap danced around the house at midnight, I don't think it's in me to continue an entirely gluten/dairy/caffeine & alcohol free lifestyle. At the same time, I have learned a few things throughout the past few weeks that have proven to be very valuable. Ready to hear about them? Come on. Like you had a choice.
Most importantly, contrary to my prediction, I did not actually die without refined sugar in my diet. This was the number one issue for me and I am extremely proud of myself for going a whole 21 days without cookies, chocolate, granola or all those other things I had been ingesting on a regular basis. Let me also add that I attended a dinner where apple pie a la mode was served. Did you hear that? Apple pie a la mode. But I passed (i.e. quickly ran out the door). Whatever. Yah for me.
Saturday night, I even pushed the envelope. I was babysitting and one of the kids and I made chocolate chip cookies. Okay, chocolate cookies are pretty much my favorite thing in life and I did not even lick a spoon. I'm telling you, it's been auto-pilot mode all the way. I cannot have that, said my brain, and that was that. Of course, this would have been a very different story had I not been able to eat fruit throughout these past weeks. I probably ate five to six servings of fruit a day to compensate for cravings which is a kind of a lot but I figured it was better to OD on berries and bananas than stick my head in the cookie batter.
So blasting sugar = victory #1.
I also am still alive sans caffeine. This was hard. So hard I almost cried a few times. I lovvvve my coffee in the morning. I love the smell, the warmth of it emptying into my belly, and of course, the little kick in the pants that the right cup can deliver. I came mighty close to stopping off and getting a cup of decaf just to fulfill my craving for the taste. However, knowing that there is a bit of caffeine even in decaf, I passed. I now have a little insight into the daily struggle of an addict. WOW.
Many people were curious about how I was doing coffeeless. I'm not sure that I have a grand conclusion. The first week was very bad and required naps. Three weeks later, I wasn't dying but I definitely still could have benefited from an afternoon siesta. Basically, I'm back to where I started with coffee. This leaves me wondering, am I not getting enough sleep at night? Is it poor sleep? Or am I simply a person who needs a late afternoon snooze and should perhaps take advantage of my awesome current work hours which allow for that?
Or do I allow myself a cup of coffee or caffeinated tea after lunch and power through the rest of the day like I normally do? I actually got to talking casually with a doctor about my cleanse and when I told him about my normal coffee intake, he scoffed. "That's not bad at all," he said. He didn't seem to believe that I could really have a major crash from a cup or two a day. Of course, this is exactly what I wanted to hear.
So here's what I've decided. After being off the bean for three weeks, the bit of caffeine in decaf could actually affect me. Plus, this would allow me to have my happy coffee drinking morning time. (See how I did that?) Problem solved? We'll see. I had a baby sized decaf this morning and must admit, I feel pretty good right now.
Getting through coffee withdrawal without killing anyone = victory #2.
It has been very interesting talking to other people about this cleanse and what their biggest challenges would be if they did the same. For some, the idea of giving up bread and butter just about sent them through the roof. For others, it's cheese and all things dairy. Then there were many like me, the ain't nothing getting between me and my ice cream cone types. But there wasn't one single person who didn't admit to some level of caffeine addiction. Hmmm.
Several people assumed I'd cheat somewhere along the way. For example, I ended up going out more than I had anticipated and alcohol was available every time. And as much as I adore a glass of red wine here and there, I did not succumb. Amazing how much money can be saved when you find yourself drinking cranberry spritzers at the bar instead! And as much as I enjoy a cocktail or a beer once in a while, it often does make me feel (and look) crappy the next day. It truly felt good to detox from the stuff.
The only time I cheated at all was when I had orange juice (not hand squeezed and probably saturated with sugar, God forbid!) at a bar while my friends enjoyed bottles of delicious Spotted Cow. I also got crazy and had a few sticks of gum along the way. It was hard to ingest all those oniony & garlicky recipes and not do something about that. Plus, who am I kidding? Gum also helped curb the sweet tooth.
Speaking of the sweet tooth, as proud as I am to have decreased my intake of sweets, I really thought by this point, my craving for them would have plummeted. Really not the case. I still crave chocolate, cookies, and all those other goodies. I'm also afraid to even open that can of worms since eating those kinds of things just make the cravings worse. Possible solution? Only allow dessert after dinner when I'm heading to bed soon after. Again, we shall see.
So now let me tell you about some of the non-food challenges of this cleanse. I never thought I'd say it but I've really missed going to the gym. Due to the decrease in calories, they recommended only light stretches and a bit of yoga. On the contrary, I love a good power yoga session and I definitely want to work up a sweat a few days a week at the gym. I'm excited to give it my all again.
I missed baking! Hence, my chocolate chip cookie making the other night. Who doesn't love a warm cookie now and then? And is that so bad? Of course not, if you can really keep it down to just one or two.
I will not miss flossing my teeth eight times a day. You think this is an exaggeration but I assure you, it is not. With all of the berries, dried fruit, nuts, spinach salads, and kale soups I ingested, I had to start carrying floss in my pocket. I considered buying stock in Oral B.
I also missed the ease of packing a can of soup for lunch on those frantic Monday mornings. Blending smoothies and trying to pack a salad with nuts and seeds and dressings on the side made things much more hectic. On the flipside, I enjoyed so many of the recipes listed. I've learned that although I will forgo carrot juice anything in my life, I will definitely be adding the Salmon with Orange-Avocado Salsa to my inventory as well as this great salad. And even though I ate 60-70 of these guys in the past three weeks (for real, they were my candy), I'll continue to nosh on them. It's always fun to get some new recipe ideas and what a bonus when they are healthy to boot.
So today I have embarked on Day 1 of freedom. My loosey goosey "craziness" has involved that tiny decaf coffee, yogurt with a bit of Kashi cereal, a cup of veggie chili, a coconut date bite, and I kid you not, a vegan "Carob Joy Chunk of Energy" from my local hippie-dippy (gotta love 'em) co-op.
One might think I am not straying too far from the cleanse. Well, rest assured that tomorrow, I will be heading out for a dinner that will hopefully include gluten, dairy, red wine, and a bit of chocolate. But I'm quite certain that this won't be every night, especially after a colleague told me that I had "willpower of steel" which was ridiculously hilarious to me at the time. But actually, her comment was inspiring. Maybe I'm not as weak as I've always considered myself to be. I went into this cleanse, not at all believing I could actually complete it. And I did it. (I also had some pretty great cheerleaders along the way. You know who you are. Thank you.) I also learned a few really valuable things about what my body needs and what it doesn't. And finally, I remembered how much I enjoy tasting rich, interesting flavors and how I love to share that experience at a dinner table with friends. For those reasons, I will not be one to completely eliminate anything from my diet. (Well, except for olives. Never had use for those olives.)
Yet, surprisingly, as much as I've been talking up having a bit fat pizza dinner, I'm not craving it at all in this moment. Instead, I'm sipping green ginger tea and still feeling quite satiated from my soup lunch. Success?
But I did buy some Spanish cheese the other day that is just sitting in my fridge, waiting to be unwrapped and devoured. Could go really well with that fresh bread a friend gave me. Give me a few hours. We'll see how the night (and that cheese) unfolds.
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