My goal was to eat only real food (nothing made in a factory). Mostly I ate fruit, veggies, chicken, beef, eggs....and dark chocolate (it's allowed on a clean eating diet....really!). We weren't supposed to eat any dairy, but I did put greek yogurt in my smoothies a couple of times...it helped me get another protein in and I like it to make my smoothies thicker. Whole grains were allowed, but I've been trying to limit my gluten, and thus, only had 1 slice of 100% whole grain bread one of the days because I was tired of eggs for breakfast.
I ate every 2-3 hours and tried to have a protein and veggie with every meal. I also made sure to include a couple of healthy fats every other meal or so. For those, I used coconut oil to cook my eggs and veggies with and had a handful of almonds too.
Here are a few samples of my meals:
So, why am I doing this?? I don't need to lose weight, but being skinny doesn't = healthy. I have had stomach issues for most of my life and have never tried to figure out what was causing it until recently (because having to cart 2 little ones into a public bathroom with you is not fun!). I tried a dairy free diet as there is some dairy intolerance in my family, but I only lasted a couple of days.....then I tried gluten free...and only lasted about 4 days. Fast forward a couple of weeks.....actually no, back up a few months........
I was looking for a low intensity fitness program to do at home when I came across a brand new program called Piyo. It's a mix of pilates and yoga. It sounded like exactly what I was looking for! Only problem was, it didn't come out until June! Darn. I will wait a few months.
Okay...back to a couple of weeks after trying a gluten free diet. A friend of mine posted on Facebook that she was going to be starting a Piyo fitness support group as soon as the DVD came out. Of course I jumped on that...because I know that having support helps keep me motivated and accountable! When the DVD arrived at my house, it came with a nutrition plan....which consisted of eating REAL food....ie, plants and animals....nothing made in a factory. So I decided that if I'm going to spend the next 8 weeks working out every day, I may as well follow the nutrition plan to get the most bang for my buck. Plus, I have read/seen/heard that toning your body is 80% diet and 20% exercise. And toning is what I was aiming for. And, maybe, just maybe it would help clear up my stomach issues.
So....3 weeks into the fitness program I had been following the nutrition plan about 70% of the time. At this point, the same girl who started this fitness support group, asked if anyone was interested in doing a 7 day clean eating challenge. I figured I may as well since I'm already more than half way there anyway....I'll eat 100% clean for 7 days...it's only a week of my life...can't be that hard.
I went to the grocery store and stocked up on produce, chicken and eggs. You wouldn't believe all the veggies I ate!!!! Remember that post awhile back when I mentioned I MAYBE ate 1 veggie per week....yeah, I ate 9 different veggies in 1 DAY!!! I didn't even know I liked that many veggies!!!
So...at the end of just 3 days I felt so amazing!!! I wasn't bloated any more (which tended to be 100% of the time for me...causing people to ask me when I'm "due")....it's amazing how eating processed junk makes you feel so heavy in your stomach. I felt so much lighter and just generally very healthy. I know it sounds so cliché...but I really felt so good from the inside out. I was waking up with lots of energy and never got tired during the day.
By day 5, I felt like a new person. Crazy...just 5 days! I went to the grocery store and turned down a free sample of a chocolate chip cookie.....did you hear that?!?!?!?!?! It was tough, but I did it and it felt good.
Fast forward about 4 hours......we had a BBQ at our house and as the food started coming into the house I thought, "okay, I can pass that one up......I don't want that one either....I won't be heartbroken if I don't try that one....." And then.....the desserts.....Oh the desserts!!! They started pouring in. Oh no!! I'm gonna break...I'm so gonna break.....
My plate was 80% desserts!!! And I had seconds! And I didn't regret it! Oh the yumminess!!!
Fast forward to bedtime.....I lay down in my bed and think I might throw up. I didn't even have any alcohol, but I feel like I did. I felt so full and so gross. I managed to relax and go to sleep, but the next morning was even worse. It felt like a hangover. I was so groggy and bloated and dehydrated and just lifeless. My whole day felt that way. I still didn't regret eating all of those sweets, but I did hate that I had come so far and now I have to start over.
We had leftovers to finish on Sunday and today, while I started my day awesome, I finished it poorly...HAD to eat the last piece of strawberry rhubarb crisp in my fridge!! (and yes, I HAD to have the donut from the grocery store today too...it was the one thing I kept craving during my 100% clean eating). Tomorrow though, is a new day and we are starting a new challenge....so back to the eggs and veggies I go. I'm looking forward to it....it was almost a "high" to feel so good and I'm excited to get that back.
This time around though, I think I will do more of an 80/20 clean eating. And I will choose my 20% carefully. I think I may not have indulged in quite so many sweets on Saturday night had I allowed myself to have one or two sweeter items in the prior few days.
Something else I learned in those few days is how much mindless eating I do. Normally when I give my kids a snack (which is never real food), I have a bite too...it was like a hand slapping me every time I even thought about biting the head off the teddy graham :) I also used to grab a handful of whatever I could find in the pantry every time I opened the door...which was a lot! By having more actual meals throughout the day and eating real foods, I never had the urge to snack and had to remind myself of my goal as I eyed something in the pantry.
I did not make my family suffer through eating bland boring real food, and while I know I would be doing them a favor making them eat more veggies, I would rather have a happy family than unsatisfied, still hungry, crying little kids to listen to all day (I know, they would eventually get over it and adapt, but I just can't rob them of a goldfish eating childhood, right?)
I did take a "before" picture a few weeks ago when I started Piyo and eating better...hopefully at the end of 8 weeks I will have a distinguishingly different picture to show!
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