Tea and Detox

After last week's fun and festivities, this week has been a little rougher on me.  

School has been tough, several new kids and lots of paperwork to finish.  Add in one snow day and one two hour delay due to the Polar Vortex and that's even more of a downer.  My desk looks like a tornado came through, with piles upon piles of things that need finished.  If the desk fairy came through my room, I think she'd be quite disappointed in me.

I'm sure I'll catch up and everything will be fine, however stress and me never really get along.  

My normal go-to is a nice glass of wine, or three or four.  Seeing as I have quite the assortment (especially after my birthday) this would seem like a good idea.  

However,  I have embarked on another journey to help me "detox" from the holidays.  Doc (our fearless leader of Team Adrenaline) decided that a detox to start the new year would be a great thing.  In short, the detox consists of avoiding processed and artificial sugars, caffeine, and alcohol for six weeks. Here's his version for anyone that is interested.

The detox is very similar to what I did in the spring with Challenge Erie.  I had more or less stuck to the no sugar rule since then, with exceptions from time to time (and very frequently over Christmas).  

Always a glutton for punishment, I decided to also eliminate dairy and gluten.  I had toyed around with eliminating both for a while and discovered I felt a lot better without them.  But still, it makes for some difficult eating.

Instead of starting January 1 with all the other detoxers, I decided to wait until after my birthday.  After all the hoopla I had put around turning 30, the last thing I wanted to do was worry about what the labels said on everything I ate or drank that day.  

Since starting the detox, I feel a lot better.  My energy is back and I'm not feeling as "bloaty."  I've gotten past the first week of feeling crappy and cranky, which I'm sure Tim and M really appreciate!

When the detox was first starting, one of the more discussed topics was that of tea.  Because we are detoxing from caffeine, coffee is a no-no.  Decaf is ok, but unless you drink it black there really isn't much you can add to it (no sugar means no lactose means no milk).  I've never been big on coffee but I've always liked tea; so, I was excited about the green light to try so new types of tea.  It was through this discussion (and an impromptu Team Adrenaline trip to Wegman's) that I was introduced to the world of loose leaf tea.

Always some type of shenanigans when TA is involved.

I was excited to say the least.  In fact, I was so excited I immediately purchased my very first tea infuser, the Tea Rex!

I admit, I bought it more because he was cute than anything.  I learned very quickly, Tea Rex is only good for big, chunky teas.  The tea I was using ended up making its way through the holes and soon I was drinking chunky tea.  To add insult to injury, the thing was a pain in the ass to clean!

After sharing my Tea Rex saga with my TA friends, I received this adorable guy from Leslie.  She had seen him at the Co-Op and couldn't resist.

RoboTea (as I lovingly named him) did much better than Mr. Rex, although still  had some flaws.  My tea didn't end up near as chunky, although there still were bits of tea floating around.  And I quickly learned the importance of securely closing him, as the first time I tried he popped open spilling his contents all over my kitchen floor.

Finally ended up with a new tea infuser that has done the job.  This one, made by Teavana, not only came with a sample of tea (which I can't drink until after the detox because it has added sugar), but also has done a great job of allowing me to enjoy my new Green Tea with Blueberry obsession.

The way this detox is going so far, I have a feeling it is only going to get more and more interesting, but more on that later!

It's like spring cleaning, for your body

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food”  ― Hippocrates

After a week of indulging during my vacation in North Carolina, I returned feeling less than healthy.  I was sluggish, bloated, and overall just feeling icky. I had gone back to my old ways of eating on vacation, and enjoyed my fair share of BBQ and I could tell.  MMMM....crabcake sandwich.

I decided I needed a jumpstart in order to get me back on track and feeling like myself again.

Upon doing some research, I decided to try a 3 day cleanse developed by Dr. Oz. Now, I am not a huge fan of Dr. Oz for reasons on my own; but the cleanse looked like the type of thing that I needed to get back on track.  It included a wide variety of fruits and vegetables and didn't involve any of those gimmicky things you often find in these types of cleanses.  It was basically just getting back to healthy eating again by way of pureed produce.

So, making up my mind and using the provided grocery list (huge plus!), I headed off to the grocery store to get my food for the next three days.  I was pretty proud as I headed up to the cash register.  My cart was filled with a plethora of colors including a wide variety of fruits and vegetables.  I was excited, as there were many new (for me) fruits and veggies to be included in my smoothies.  What I wasn't excited about was the price, I guess I didn't think about how much all those items would cost.  But I figured it was for a good cause, and I knew that any left overs would be fine for Tim or M as well.

A couple things before I go into the details of my cleanse:

• I was not in this for weight loss.  Instead I was looking to cleanse my system and get back on track.

• I have already been eating rather clean (other than vacation) since May.  This has definitely changed my taste buds, and I've found that I'm more in tune to the subtle sweetness of many things.  Things that I find flavorful and delicious, I've found that others see as bland. Also, many people who had done the cleanse before complained of feeling irritable and moody.  I attributed that effect to the lack of processed sugar.  How do I know this?  I went through a week of it when I cut out processed sugar back in May.  It sucks, I know; but when you get past that, you'll never want to go back to eating crap again (unless you are on a Southern vacation).

• I tried very hard to buy organic.  The only things that were non-organic were the avocados, bananas, and mangoes.  This added to the cost, but I believe it is worth it.

• I didn't exercise during the cleanse.  I planned on it the first day, however, decided not to after looking at my calorie intake.  I track my food; not because I'm counting calories, but because I like to see where I'm strong (like Vitamin A), and where I am deficient (protein).  Seeing the total calories for the day, I decided not to go burn any as I wanted to stay true to the cleanse and wouldn't be able to replenish when I got home.

Day 1

Starting the day off with a cup of green tea was no change for me.  I have always been a tea drinker, although I tend to lean more towards chai than green.  I did not include the stevia in my tea, as I normally do not sweeten my tea.  The lemon was more than sufficient to sweeten. 

The breakfast smoothie was a raspberry banana smoothie with some other "stuff" thrown in there.  This was by far my favorite smoothie, sweet but with a slight tang provided by some lemon juice.  I was optimistic.  If breakfast went that well, the rest of the day should too, right?

I made it to lunch no problem.  The breakfast smoothie kept me full and satisfied.  I kept up with my water intake like normal (about a half gallon by lunch). 

The lunch smoothie was, interesting, and very...green.  Celery, green apple, pineapple and cucumber were just some of the green ingredients.  It smelled good and I was still optimistic.  It had a surprisingly sweet flavor, although the celery provided a unique and unexpected undertone.  It wasn't bad, but it wasn't something I would choose to make on a regular basis.  Along with the different flavor, it had a very different type of consistency.  The best way to describe it was pulpy.  I decided just to drink it as fast as I could and get it over with.

The lunch smoothie did fill me up (it filled almost two glasses!).  I made it to dinner and didn't feel like I was hungry.  At this point, however, I was definitely missing solid food.  There is something about chewing that helps to satisfy.  Still, I made my dinner smoothie.  This one included many fruits and veggies I rarely (if ever) eat.  Mango, avocado, and coconut water all made their appearance.  The recipe also called for cayenne pepper, which I thought was an interesting addition.  I don't mind spicy food but I was worried about how the cayenne would effect the flavor of the smoothie, so I only included half the called for amount.  Overall the flavor wasn't too bad, and I finished it without any issue.  Still there was a weird heat to the smoothie (thank you cayenne) that I couldn't decide if I liked or not.

By the end of Day 1 I was looking forward to the detox bath.  I love my baths, and any excuse to take one is good for me.  It was a nice way to end the day, and helped me to forget all the stress of grad school that I was dealing with that day.  Going to bed I was surprised I was feeling like I had only drank my meals all day.  I did, however, dream of eating solid food.

Day 2

I slept great, but couldn't determine if that was an effect of the detox or running after a 3 year old all day. 

I woke up early, looking forward to my cup of tea.  I got to enjoy it by myself, in silence, as Tim and M were still in bed.  That makes for a great start to the morning.

I went through the smoothie regiment once again.  This time I knew what to expect so I threw a couple extra raspberries in my morning smoothie, blended the lunch smoothie extra long (still didn't help), and still put in only half the amount of cayenne into my dinner smoothie.

I was feeling a lot better.  I wasn't as sluggish, and I was surprised at the amount of energy I had.  Another surprise was how much I was peeing.  I drink upwards of a gallon of water a day so I'm used to frequent trips to the bathroom.  Still, this was way more than normal. I attributed it to my body flushing out toxins.  Tim thought is was comical when I even took a potty break at Toys 'R' Us; I am not a fan of public toilets.

Knowing I would end the day with another bath was exciting.  I loved the me time, and felt like if anything it allowed me to unwind a bit before bed.  M was jealous, so she got her own bath after I was done.

By the end of Day 2, I felt pretty good.  However, I was looking forward to finishing so that I could once again chew my food.

Day 3

I again got the morning to myself.  This time, I got to drink my tea and watch a rainstorm pass.  It's the little things in life...

I again slept well, and I was excited for the last day of the cleanse (I know, I'm weird).  I was starting to feel like myself again and noticed that the sluggishness and bloating from before were gone.  At this point, however, I was ready to be done only drinking my meals. 

I was itching to get some exercise in. I've gotten used to being active, and really get bored sitting around. Since I didn't want to venture to the gym, I took Tim and M on a trek to the gorge instead.  It was nice to get moving and get outside.  Plus, M really loved throwing stones in the creek and exploring the trails.  As expected, I did feel a little out of gas after the hike.  I knew this would happen, knowing that I was not taking in any extra calories.

By the end of day 3 I was pretty excited.  I felt better, and felt like the cleanse was just what I needed to get back to me.

Results

All in all, I'm really happy I did the cleanse.  I feel like myself again and feel like I can get back to my sugar-free, dairy-free, gluten-free way of eating that keeps me feeling good. Would I do it again?  Possibly.  If I get back in the situation I started in, it is something to use that I know helps quite a bit.

Even though I wasn't in this for the weight loss, I did lose 3 pounds in three days. 

This isn't a miracle cleanse by any means, nor did I expect it to be.  It did just what I wanted it to, reset my system so I could get back to feeling great.  True, I could've turned to over the counter medicines to combat the fatigue or bloat that I was dealing with; but I think using my food to help get back to normal was a much better choice.

What the South taught me

“Every person needs to take one day away.  A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future.  Jobs, family, employers, and friends can exist one day without any one of us, and if our egos permit us to confess, they could exist eternally in our absence.  Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for.  Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us.”  ― Maya Angelou, Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now

When I last wrote I will admit I wasn't in a very good place.  My foot injury came at quite possibly the worst time.  Between grad school, the impending school year, and many other stressors, I had begun to rely on running and exercise to help manage my stress (it did a pretty awesome job).  Take that away, and I was just a ball of nerves.

Call it perfect timing (or not), but all of this happened just in time for vacation.  Earlier in the year M and I had agreed to join my parents in a trek down to Durham to visit my sister, followed by several days in Asheville for a music festival.  Overall I was looking forward to the time away.  Still, I tend see vacations (especially those with my family) as more of a stressor than anything else. 

Our first few days in Durham provided a mish-mash of miscellaneous activities.  Shopping with the family (always an interesting venture) helped to highlight some of the vast differences the South provided.  Everyone was so much nicer.  Store clerks said hello, not just because they had to, and inquired about the boot (now lovingly known as Bertha).  We were in one store that provided free balloon animals and face painting for M (she still says it is one of the highlights of her trip).

We were planning on attending a Durham Bulls baseball game, however soon realized that with a 3-month-old and a 3 year old that may not be the best idea.  Instead, my sister directed us toward the restaurant that was located on the far wall of the stadium.  Here we were able to pay attention to the game, and eat some wonderful food all at the same time.  Plus, when the kiddos were ready to go, we could easily leave without feeling guilty for spending money on tickets.  This was especially nice, since we ended up seeing only an inning and a half of baseball.  Through this experience I got to try both fried green tomatoes and hoppin' john, two southern staples I had never tried before.

Monday and Tuesday of our vacation were pretty laid back.  Both my sister and her husband had to work, so we were staying home with their daughter.  My mom had that job taken care of, so M and I decided to use those afternoons for some quality bonding time.  Our first afternoon consisted of a lunch date to Red Robin, another first for both of us.  It was nothing spectacular, although M is still raving about the delicious milkshakes.  Our second afternoon had me venturing to Chapel Hill to the KidzU Children's Museum.  Although small, M had a blast!  For me, just the drive into Chapel Hill was an adventure.  I don't do well with directions, and have been known to get lost even with a GPS.  So I was pretty proud of my self for navigating the 5 lane highways of Durham.

Wednesday we left for Asheville.  A three car caravan, led by my dad, seemed like a good idea at the time.  Still I soon realized that I much rather driving on my own that following others.  As we approached Hendersonville (where our cabin was located), we were quickly reminded of the mountains surrounding us.  We left the highway only to be greeted with winding mountain roads with steep cliffs to one side.  Definitely not ideal if you are afraid of heights.  As we approached the road for our cabin, we first were greeted with a sign indicating that only four-wheel drive vehicles were recommended.  Seeing as my parents were in their mini-van, this was going to be interesting.

Turns out, the road up to our cabin was a mile and a half of winding dirt road going up the side of the mountain.  I think my sister said that our cabin was at 2800 feet. The driveway to the cabin itself was even more daunting at just about 45 degrees!  Luckily, we all made it and were greeted with a gorgeous cabin.  We spent the rest of the afternoon just enjoying the accommodations.  Although I'm not "into nature" I definitely enjoyed spending time out on the deck, just me and the trees (and M singing another one of her made-up songs).

Thursday we decided to venture out to get some BBQ.  My brother-in-law had gotten a recommendation from a buddy of his, so we ventured down the mountain and into Hendersonville to 12 Bones Smokehouse.  Talk about some of the best bar-b-que ever!  I enjoyed the pulled pork sandwich (yes I know it isn't sugar free but it was TOTALLY worth it!) while others in the group tried the ribs and the brisket.  No one had anything negative to say.  Even M loved the mac and cheese.  I loved it so much that I had to get the T-Shirt. 

Friday was the first day of the Bele Chere music festival.  My dad is a music fanatic, and is always looking for new bands and places to hear good music.  Finding this festival helped to solidify the Asheville portion of the trip for us.  I will admit I was a little worried about taking M.  It was a lot of walking, in the sun, with some pretty sketchy characters.  But, we had a good time.  Once again, I was amazed by the food selection.  You could get everything from fried candy bars to fried rice, BBQ to seafood to vegan fare.  Just choosing what to get for lunch was a daunting task.  I chose the crab cake sandwich from a local restaurant (Yes, I am aware this is again not sugar-free.  I was on vacation, give me a break!).  It was delectable.  M had some freshly made chips with some ice cream.  I learned that I was quite fond of the food in the South.

Just the people watching was entertainment.  You had all walks of life including hippies, the street corner preachers, and the occasional girl walking around topless (apparently you can do that in Asheville).  We spent a lot of time looking at all the different vendors selling just about anything imaginable.  The festival had a children's center that took up the entire floor of the civic arena.  M got to enjoy several bounce houses and slides, a tea-cup-like ride, and even bumper cars.  This was all on top of enjoying the live music.

Our original plan was to stay through Sunday.  However, over a week without daddy was proving to be difficult for both M and I (and I think daddy was a little lonely too).  Friday we found out he would be going back to work the following week, so the decision was made to leave a day early.

Waking up to rain Saturday morning, I was happy that I made that decision.  The rain would make it pretty hard to enjoy anything outside, and that is what most of our plans consisted of.  So I packed up the car and M and I were on our way.  Back down the treacherous hill and through four states.  I will say, the low clouds laced through the mountains made for some spectacular sights along the way home.

Going into the vacation I was in a rut.  Partially depressed because my "stress reliever" had been taken away, I needed a change of pace.  The South provided just that.  I learned a lot from the South.  It taught me to slow down a bit, enjoy the moment and enjoy some good food.  Be kind to one another and have confidence in yourself.  I learned that riding in the middle seat in the back of my parents van is a recipe for nausea.  Sometimes it is the simple things in life that are most valued, like sharing a milkshake with your daughter on a random afternoon.

So what DO you eat?

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well-Virginia Woolf

I love food.  There is no question about that.  Although as a child I was quite picky (think chicken nuggets and French fries every night for 13 years), as I have grown older, my tastes have also grown more diverse.  Unfortunately, I was eating WAY too much of all the wrong foods.  I was a sucker for sweets, addicted to salt, and even though I tried, I never knew when to quit. 

When I started Challenge Erie, I knew all of that had to change.  Lucky for me, I was given some guidance.  I decided to really step out of my comfort zone and go sugar free.  To clarify I wasn't 100% sugar free, I still allowed natural sugars.  I went sugar free in the sense that I was eating:

• No processed or refined sugars
• No artificial sugars
• No dairy
• No caffeine
• And for the first 3 weeks no alcohol (I've tried to keep the alcohol consumption to a minimum since then)

 

This was a daunting task.  I read somewhere (although I can't recall where now) that over 85% of foods at the grocery store contain some type of sugar.  On top of that, I am aware of almost 30 ways that sugar is listed on the label (and I'm sure there are probably other ways I am unaware of).  Needless to say, cutting out sugar cut out a lot of foods that I used to eat.  Now that I'm over two months in, things have gotten much easier, but the question I hear all the time is, "What DO you eat?"

My diet now consists mainly of fresh fruits and vegetables and protein. There really aren't too many processed foods that don't have sugar.  I've also noticed that I've really reduced the amount of carbs that I'm eating as well.  Eating out is tricky, so I really make an effort to make as much at home as possible.  In the coming weeks I will try and get some of my favorite recipes up so that you may use them as well. (I'm by no means a chef, so I can't promise anything spectacular...but we like them!)

So what am I eating now? 

Breakfast - typically a smoothie of some sort paired with a piece of Ezekiel toast with organic peanut butter

Lunch - Piece of fruit, peanut butter sandwich or a wrap with chicken and veggies, blue corn tortilla chips with homemade salsa

Dinner - chicken or seafood, steamed or roasted veggie, occasionally some whole wheat or brown rice pasta or quinoa

Snacks - nuts, dried fruit (really need to read labels on this one), pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds, blue corn tortilla chips with salsa

Day 1

"Do not wait until the conditions are perfect to begin. Beginning makes the conditions perfect." -Alan Cohen

Yesterday marked quite the beginning for me.  As the first day of Challenge Erie, I began my own 10 week journey towards wellness.  It is one of those things I always said I should do, focus on me, yet never did.

Up until now, I was really good a finding excuses.  First, I had a newborn, I didn't have time to bathe let alone focus on my eating and exercise.  I told myself that if I did it before my wedding, I could do it again and didn't need to make it immediate.

Once M grew a bit, I found new excuses.  I was going back to school.  Between working, being a mom, AND being a student.  I certainly didn't have the time for being healthy!

After I started classes and got used to how busy I was, I just found more excuses.  The holidays, upcoming events, other people.  For three and a half years I waited for the "perfect conditions" and instead just made excuses, until yesterday.

Starting Challenge Erie just marked another milestone in my journey.  Although I have been working out with Team Adrenaline for a couple weeks now, starting the challenge is giving me the perfect change to focus on more than just exercise....I get to focus on me.  (And I can assure you, the conditions now are less than perfect!)

To kick it off, we spent the morning at a ropes course.  It was a fantastic way to get to know all of the other people involved.  Here I was, flying down a zipline, being caught by people I barely new.  Although normally being in that close of proximity with strangers would make me nervous, I knew everyone else was going through the same thing.  I could be comfortable, and nobody would judge.

After looking through the binder of information we were given for the Challenge, my first step was to choose what type of nutrition plan I was going to follow.  I wouldn't say that I've ever eatten "bad,"  I'm just not the healthiest all the time.  With that in mind, I decided to go for it and eliminate sugar from my diet.  Anyone who knows me, knows that this is going to be a HUGE challenge for me.  Still, I figured that this was my opportunity to make a big change and have the support and encouragement needed to do it.  Even if I failed, I could still say I tried.

So Day 1 and no sugar, I began to think I was crazy.  Still, as I write this at the end of Day 2, I'm surprised.  I haven't melted, gone into shock, or turned into dust.   Is it easy?  Absolutely not!  Especially when your husband lovingly eats cotton candy the whole way home from the grocery store.  Are the conditions perfect for me to succeed?  No, they are no different than yesterday, but now I have the motivation to change what I need to and make them perfect.  I figure any change worth making isn't easy at first.  I'll keep you updated with how this goes!  If you have any suggestions on what to eat, they'd be greatly appreciated! 

North Carolina, burnt kale chips, and getting back at it.

It's been a while, but I'm back!  We had almost a week off so I took the oppotunity to drive down to North Carolina to visit my extremely (and overdue) pregnant sister and her husband.  I was hoping that I would be there for the arrival for my niece, however that was not the case.  As of today, my poor sister is now 4 days overdue.  Little girl is proving just to be as stubborn as her mama!

While we were there, to say I "splurged" a little in the food department would be a vast understatement.  My sister and her husband know all these great restaurants around town that they took us to.  Even though we only ate out a few times, I definitely took advantage of all the different food.  When we didn't eat out, we ate well at home with food on the grill and homemade pizza.  I slacked on the exercise as well, using their elliptical only once while I was there.  I did get a lot of walking in, as we took M to the museum and park.

 

Coming home, I was faced with Easter and a plethora of candy, wine, and other delectable goodies.  All in all, I gained about 4 pounds in the past week.  I vowed to get back on track starting Monday.

Yesterday started my food tracking and exercising again.  Running, I definitely could tell I had taken some time off, but should be able to regain that endurance rather quickly.  I also made a double batch of my favorite Peanut Butter Banana Protein Cookie.  Following the healthy food trend, I decided to try to make some kale chips.  My sister has talked about them in the past, and I've heard good things.  Looking at good ol' Pinterest, I got some ideas of how to do it. Unfortunately, I baked the chips a little too long and burnt the kale.  I can tell you now that burnt kale is absolutely awful!  I didn't use the whole bunch of kale that I had bought, so I'm going to try again later this week and hopefully get a better result.

I've also gotten back on the gym train and now have been back for two days in a row.  Yesterday was too crowded to do much of anything; I went earlier than usual and was reminded why I normally go later.  I got a quick run in and then focused on abs and arms.  Today I ran for a good 45 minutes and got over 4 miles in.  I had the gym to myself tonight, so I was able to finish the arm workout that I didn't get to finish yesterday.

So I'm desperately trying to get back on track, despite the ridiculous amount of candy in the house right now.  Hopefully I can regain my focus and keep trucking along!