To eat, or not to eat?

There I found myself a short seven days into my new eating style and I was starving! Not to mention the lack of coffee for the first time in oh, ten years, was wreaking havoc on my head and the withdrawal aches and pains were making themselves quite known. I thought I was going to instantly feel better, a sense of overnight success for taking on the big D-tox. Wrong, oh so wrong. The first two weeks were rough, no sugar coating here, couldn’t have sugar if I wanted it. I say this not to cause hesitation if you choose to change your cupboard’s stocked shelves, I say this because it is not about over night success and it should not be. Take your time and allow your mind and body to adjust in good time! You will know when you are feeling better.

If you decide to take on a radical shift no matter the intensity give yourself some breathing room. Perhaps it is time to cash in on a couple of sick days and let your body recharge. Don’t forget to conserve your energy! It will take more of your new foods refueling action to keep energized then what you were comfortable with before. Not ready to deplete so much from your diet? Try this variation and maybe work your way into some new eating habits, you may find with time that you like the new way.

Instead of taking to the trash all of the previous post list, start with these 5 foods: white flour (ie. white or wheat breads, pasta, and those coffee bar baked goods), white sugar (ie. baked anything, processed foods/the boxed foods, soda), dairy (ie. milk, cheese, ice cream, creamer, some yogurts), red meat (including pork!), & non-water beverages (ie. soda, coffee, tea (except green!), matte, juice, or alcohol)

Stopping cold in your tracks may not feel so great, give yourself at least a week to take these things out of your daily diet, but don’t forget to replace them with the good stuff! What is the good stuff? Plenty of the following:

Water

Green Tea

Vegetables (especially spinach, broccoli, red peppers, kale, cabbage, asparagus, celery, and cucumbers)

Fruits (darker the color the better, such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, cherries, blackberries, also melons, peaches, plums, kiwi, apples & bananas)

Rice or Almond Milk

Whole Grains (the term “whole” should be present or it is a trick! These can be whole grain brown rice, whole grain spelt flour, basmati rice or my favorite quinoa)

Organic Eggs (excellent source of protein and energy)

Seafood (not farmed! Look for terms like “wild” and stick with these

fish: salmon, cod, halibut, tuna, and trout)

Good Nuts (these include almonds, cashews, and walnuts but make sure they are raw)

Oatmeal

Olive Oil

Honey if you are having a case of the sweet tooth

Get down to the basics and give yourself a full fourteen days, then start to rebuild. (More on that rebuilding process to come.)

Oh and one last thing, the skinny on the O word: Organic! The more organic the better, especially with fresh whole foods like fruit and veggies. If it is not organic you don’t know what it has come into contact with and that means one more unknown thing your body has to detox. And you thought losing the coffee was bad, well I did.

Peace and much love.