Today's meals: Raspberry/cacao powder smoothie for breakfast; chicken and cashews with brown rice and an egg roll for lunch; green juice for dinner
It's hard to say for sure, but I think this detox is giving me more energy. I'm not bouncing off the walls, but I slept a little less than usual last night and I'm not totally craving caffeine like I would be normally. I did cheat -- again, I know! -- at lunch with the egg roll and I'm sure the sauce on the chicken had some iffy ingredients (I went out to a Thai restaurant to celebrate a co-worker's birthday). But I turned down the ice cream and cookie desert that arrived at the end of the meal, so I'm still pretty proud of myself. It's actually getting easier to say no to sweets, which is remarkable for me.
Photo 11/15
Liking the mirror more now
Today's meals: Green juice for breakfast; black beans and gluten-free tortillas for lunch; teriyaki chicken and tempura veggies for dinner
I'm still pretty hungry throughout the day and night, even though I'm snacking on almonds and sunflower seeds frequently. I think I'm really missing regular meals. My skin is looking good though; my fine lines seem softer and my complexion is clear. Oh, and yeah, I know I kind of cheated at dinner with the tempura and soy sauce, but the veggies count for something, right?
Photo 12/15
Hitting a plateau
Today's meals: Blueberry/cacao smoothie for breakfast; turkey sandwich for lunch; green juice for dinner
I know, I know -- I cheated with the bread on the turkey sandwich. But I was at a photo shoot and didn't have much choice on lunch. At least I didn't eat the cookie that came with it! At this point in the detox (I'm at day 16), I feel like I've plateaud. Up until now, I had more energy, I was losing weight, and my allergies were less intense. But this week (my final one!) I seem to be going back to my normal state. Granted, I cheated a bit over the weekend (a couple bites of a bacon-wrapped sausage -- don't judge me!) so maybe that's why. But it's a little frustrating considering all of the deprivation.
Photo 13/15
Are we done yet?
Today's meals: Green juice for breakfast; vegan energy bar for a snack; millet risotto with chicken for lunch; carrot ginger soup for dinner
My weight is it's lowest yet and I'm pretty low on energy today. I was starving this morning so I had a vegan energy bar with my green juice for a little pick-me-up. It seemed to help, but I was still starving again by lunchtime. I can't really say I feel a whole lot better than normal -- but I also don't feel any worse than I usually do. And I am learning that I can survive on a lot less food than I thought I needed; I'm just not sure I want to.
For dinner, I tried a different recipe from the book -- carrot ginger soup -- and wow, is it awful. It has apple cider vinegar in it and the whole soup just tastes like that; so gross. I manage to salvage it by cooking it for a lot longer than what's suggested (to cook out the vinegar taste) and adding a ton of salt, pepper, and garlic. The end result is pretty good, but nowhere near the book's recipe.
Photo 14/15
Last day -- hooray!
Today's meals: Green juice for breakfast; grilled chicken, brown rice, and spinach for lunch; mango smoothie for dinner
Last day! I'm so excited this little detox experiment is almost over. I keep daydreaming about what "normal" food I'm going to eat first tomorrow. I cheated a bit last night with a glass of wine (my first in three weeks), but it was my high school reunion -- you didn't expect me to stay totally sober, did you? I do have to admit it was nice to go to my reunion basically weighing what I did in high school; I don't think I've been this light (91.8 pounds) since then.
Since it's my last day (and to make up for last night's wine), I tried not to cheat at all. And I've got more energy than I've had in weeks. Tomorrow morning I get the results of my follow-up skin analysis. I can't wait to see if I improved.
You know how you think things out loud, and don't really realize what you're saying until it's out there? Well that's how I got roped into this detox diet. At our last brainstorming meeting, I mused aloud that it would be interesting to follow real people as they attempted detox diets. Next thing I knew my editor was handing me the book "Clean" by Dr. Alejandro Junger and telling me to take my before photo. Um, what?
You see, I am not what you would consider a "healthy eater." To me, dieting is skipping the bacon on my cheeseburger. I literally eat chocolate every day. And I can count the number of fruits and vegetables I will willingly consume on one hand. Granted, these facts are probably why I could use a body detox -- but would I survive?
My husband thought not. In fact, he laughed when I told him what the "Clean" diet plan entails: A smoothie or green juice for breakfast, an uber-healthy lunch (from a list of approved ingredients, mostly lean protein, brown rice, and steamed veggies), and a green juice or soup for dinner. That's it. No extra treats, no chocolate, no French fries. He tried to be supportive, though admitted he was eager to see if I could forgo all the junk food stocked in our pantry.
But it's amazing how much of a motivator job security is, so I set off on this detox journey. I read "Clean" so I would know how to detox, packed my kitchen with more fresh food than it's ever seen, and fired up my new Jay Kordich PowerGrind Pro Juicer.
Wondering if I survived, if I actually managed to give up that chocolate, and how I looked and felt at the end of the three weeks? Read on.
