Thursday, May 21, 2015

Sugar, Sugar



Hey, y'all!

I've been a little absent. I had every intention of doing my post-partem posts but life happens. It's crazy how much different having two kids is than one. I'm actually relieved that we're done!

I'm writing today to talk about the 21 Day Sugar Detox. I know it sounds gimmicky and like I'm trying to sell you something, but I'm not! That's the beauty of this program!


It's a book that you can probably even find at the library. It explains how bad sugar is for us (if you haven't yet, you NEED to watch "Fed Up". It is now on Netflix) and even artificial sugars. She even provides a detailed menu for the whole 21 days if you aren't a picky eater and have plenty of time to cook and do food prep. It's easy to follow as there are specific food lists such as Yes foods, Limit foods, and No foods. It even has modifications if you are extremely active and/or pregnant or breastfeeding. There are different levels as well based on how you are currently eating. 3/4 of this book are delicious recipes.

This is zucchini noodles (don't knock it until you try it), simple marinara sauce, perfectly grilled chicken, and Organic whole fat Parmesan cheese.

This is lemon Rosemary salmon with lemon and olive asparagus.

The nice thing, these recipes are actually easy!!! I am no cook, but I've been able to make these meals from scratch with ease. Even my hubby likes doing this detox because it forces me to cook more since some of my go-to recipes are off limits. He has also lost five pounds and we're only on day 6.

About day 3, I noticed my upper abs poking through! Before you look at the picture, please remember that I had a baby 5 months ago, I have stretch marks, a c-section scar, an appendectomy scar, and two hernias. I'm over it but I wanted to address the fact that I'm aware that my stomach may not be up to some people's standards. Be kind. I earned all of those scars.

Elmo totally photobombed me! I use E's bathroom because of the lighting.

Don't have a lot of time to cook glorious meals? That's okay too because there are easy things to make too.


This was just scrambled eggs with onion, pepper, and spinach, nitrate/nitrite free bacon, and while fat, local milk. Not too shabby, eh?

I also made my own beef jerky to have on hand so after workouts I've been eating some of that with some nuts and a veggie like cherry tomatoes or sugar-snap peas. For breakfast I usually have a couple of hard-boiled eggs, sweet potatoes with cinnamon (I'm on an energy modifier), and a banana or a green apple. 

It is not all rose though. Day 3 I woke up feeling sick and shaky. I thought I was actually sick, but when I looked in the book at what to expect for each day, day 3 said exactly how I was feeling. And I didn't even think I had that big of a problem with sugar! I'm past the shakiness, but I feel off in my workouts and wake up with a pretty good sized headache, which is all normal. All of this is part of the process and will pass. This just goes to show the havoc that sugars wreck on our minds and bodies!

The good things: 
I am a pill popper. I hate that about myself, but I don't sleep well without taking Benadryl or melatonin or *gulp* BOTH. I have nightmares and dreams about my past that I'd rather not relive, so I self-medicate. It can take me HOURS to fall asleep. However, I have had no problems with sleeping without any medicine since starting this. That is HUGE for me! Also, I tend to drink one Spark energy drink and one Zip Fizz everyday for energy. I have always hated reading the ingredient list and seeing things I can't pronounce and the biggie, sucralose! Critics will say that there is no research that shows it's bad for you and just passed through your system, but I don't think it's been around long enough. Our bodies don't know how to digest it and really, are there any man made food substitutes that have been proven to be good for us? I have always stumbled on this because I have always preached whole, clean foods but yet drink things daily that basically have Splenda in it. I wanted to wean myself off and this seamed like the perfect opportunity. So far, so good. I've been drinking a cup of coffee in the morning to help with that initial "wake up" moment that I still need at this point.

In conclusion of this really long post, I'm going to suggest that you watch the movie "Fed Up". It is something every American should watch, especially if you have children. We eat decently well in our house and I'm horrified by the amounts of sugar my little E was still getting everyday that we don't think about. Something needs to be done about this--in our schools and homes on the local level and getting some work done on the political front.






No comments:

Post a Comment