Day 10: The 21 Day. Sugar Detox

As I explained, day 9 was the roughest one I've had yet. I'm grateful that I didn't eat an entire bag of chips, but it could have been baaaad! Today was better! I worked again, but I think since it was my third full day back in a row, I was less tired at the end of the day than I was the two days before. After work, I had enough energy to clean the house a bit, do some laundry, cut the grass, and cook dinner. Speaking of dinner, I made baked chicken strips! They were yummy!! I also had only one string cheese stick and one green apple as before/after dinner snacks. Baby steps, people.

Really, all I can look forward to is Rich coming home. He's been gone since last Friday and intermittently all August. I can't wait to spend some time with him before the madness starts. Also, I'm bored out of my mind. Even Carly is bored.

Day 1: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 2: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 3: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 4: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 5: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 6: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 7: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 8: The 21 Day Sugar Detox 

Day 9: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 9: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Nine rhymes with whine, and that's what I'm about to do. I was feeling snacky earlier. I know that's not  a word, but that's how I was feeling. I had a day about on par with what I have been having -- good, fine, eating, doing, fine. However, for the last two days, I have felt more tired than I have lately. I feel like it must be because I've been back to work this week. I guess I can't attribute it all to working, but I have worked two full days in a row. I know, I know, for all of you non-teachers out there that sounds terrible; but I'm not complaining. I'm just trying to figure out what's going on. Am I tired because of my detox, or am I tired because I've been working? Honestly, I think it's the working. I'm aware that extended time off work sounds like heaven to many of you, but my point is that when you do have extended time off, working (even if it's light) tuckers ya out.

So the book suggests that on day 8, I might "want a cookie." That one made me laugh. If I knew I wouldn't sabotage what I've already accomplished, I would probably accept a cookie right now, but I could also probably (definitely) live without it. I'd really like a potato chip or two, though, and (ask my mom) I don't even really like potato chips. The book also says I may slip-up or have temptation to eat off-plan foods. Well I think (I know) I slipped up a little. Trust me, it was absolutely not intentional. On my recent grocery store trip, I picked up a packet of taco seasoning. There's your first clue. I read the ingredients as I knew I can't have "traditional" taco seasoning out of a packet. Cayenne pepper this, sea salt that...yep, we're good to go. Flash forward a couple days to moments after I sprinkled it on my ground beef. CANE SUGAR! What the heck? I swear I read the ingredients! At that point, I didn't care. I was hungry. So, I made my taco salad and I ate every last bite. Now, let's be clear. I ate a miniscule amount of the stuff. In fact, there's less than a gram of sugar in 1/12 of the packet, and I only used half of the packet on an entire pound of beef. I do feel guilty, but I'm not dying or anything.

The book suggests that on Day 9 (which is the day I'm actually on), I might feel like, "I'm getting tired of the food I'm eating." That's half true. I honestly feel like I've had a variety of foods throughout the last week and a half. I've had lamb, chicken, bacon, beef, eggs, loads of vegetables, some fruits, some delicious smoothies, and a nice amount of cheese. I can't exactly say I'm tired of the food I'm eating, but I can say that tonight, I wanted to add a couple foods into the mix. Like I said earlier, I would have welcomed a potato chip or two into my life. It was my husband who saved me. Sort of. I told him I was feeling snacky, and he told me to have some cheese or nuts (both of which I'd already had a bit of today). I heeded his advice, I sure did. I had 4 (four) -- F-O-U-R -- string cheeses! I almost couldn't stop myself. I might have gone for the fifth if I didn't know what was good for me. Instead, I ate a green apple. Four string cheeses and a green apple, people! I know, I know, it's not like I opened a bag of chips and ate the whole thing, but still! It was quite a binge and I didn't like it! Well, I liked the cheese, but not the binge.

Aiy yai yai...Is work stress already getting to me? I guess this is a taste of what life will be like for the next few months during my "busy season." Back to reality.

Crap

Day 1: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 2: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 3: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 4: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 5: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 6: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 7: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 8: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 8: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Hi, there! Face here! And you're watching Nick Jr.! Does anyone remember that from back in the day? Well, I do, and it seems like every time I'm beginning one of these detox posts, that's how I want to do it. Anywho, I am at the brink of the end of my 8th day on the 21 Day Sugar Detox, and I've lived to tell the tale. My tale is really boring. I'm so very lonely without Rich -- he's still on Lake Michigan fishin' for salmon -- that my life currently consists of waking, cooking/preparing and eating, working/cleaning/shopping/galavanting, cooking and eating, watching TV, cooking and eating, walking, blogging, and sleeping.  I put the "duh" in dull.

Today was my first kinda real day back to work. I went in around 7 a.m. and got next to nothing done before the new freshmen showed up for orientation. They are babies! Each year, I forget how tiny many of them are, and how much some of them change over the course of a school year. I saw one girl today (who is actually going to be a senior) who I had as a student for 2 years. I remarked how she looks different, but I just couldn't put my finger on why. After thinking about it, I realized it was just because she's maturing. She has the look of a young woman rather than a teenage girl. That's one of the cool parts about my job. Would you like me to tell you one of the sucky parts? I'll save that saga for later. But I digress.

I had a pumpkin spice smoothie for breakfast. I really like that one better than the apple pie one. It's got more umph, more flava. For lunch, I had leftover crustless quiche, some walnuts and almonds, and some cheese. For a snack before dinner, I ate a less-than-stellar grapefruit. I was so disappointed when I opened it because I could tell it was going to be crappy. It was light orange in color -- not ruby red like I was hoping for. Are there different types of grapefruit? Please don't judge me for asking that. I really just want to make sure I look out for the red kind next time I buy. Too bad I have a sack of em' sitting on my counter. Anyway, for dinner I made creamy mushroom soup using some of the leftover bone broth I made last week. I am so excited about that bone broth. It's already been used to make two meals, and I plan to use it for another later this week! The mushroom soup was delicious. I just ate half of an avocado with salt n' peppa on the side. Yum-o.

After dinner, I took a good walk with Carly -- just over 3 miles. Carly wasn't nearly as good tonight as she was yesterday. Shoo, doggie. Literally. On our walk we encountered 1 toad (that I had to jump over), 12 rabbits (ugh), and 1,000,001 dogs a' barkin'. My little girl was overstimulated to say the least. But, if her laying next to me half passed out is any indication, I tired her out. I plan to take over the world next.

Day 1: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 2: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 3: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 4: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 5: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 6: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 7: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 7: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Guess what! I'm still alive. Rich too. After 7 whole days with no sugar, I'm still standing. My skin is all still attached, my bones feel like they're in pretty good shape, and I can still see with my eyes. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I survived an entire week with no added sugar whatsoever! I'm celebrating with an imaginary sugar-filled cake. With strawberries on top. And whipped cream. No peanuts, please.

The last week has been a bit of a roller coaster. As you may recall, I experienced a bit of a blood-sugar breakdown, and felt a little woozy poozy during a couple mornings this week. That, however, was the worst of it. I really haven't missed the sugar a whole lot. I can't say I don't have cravings. Do I get the occasional urge for some dark chocolate? Yup. Does my mouth water a little when I'm listening to a podcast about the origins of ice cream? Heck yeah. Does the thought of bread make me want to jump through the roof? Well, I wouldn't take it that far, but you get my point.

After a week with no sugar, I feel like I can do another week without sugar. I certainly don't want to live without it for the rest of my life, but I feel like I could maintain this as a regular thing with maybe a sweet treat here or there.

Rich? He's got this on lock. He's dabbled in low-carb diets before. I take that back. Rich has rocked the socks off some low-carb edibles in the past. He lost about 40 pounds at one point. While this certainly isn't a low-carb diet (far from it), some of the staples of the diet are very much the same. For example, one should really stay away from bread in both instances. Ice cream? Nuh uh. Can I offer you a handful of almonds? Sure, I'd love some! However, whilst away on his fishing trip, the guys have been fishing on and off with little sustinance along the way. Because of this, they stopped for Wendy's hamburgers at around 11 p.m. last night. He assured me it was out of necessity, and I believe him. He told me it tasted like there was sugar dumped on top of the burger! Whoa! This is totally because of the detox! Crazy, no? He said it got him to thinking that maybe sugar and salt are somehow connected. For example, his uncle adds lots of salt to everything he eats. Rich wondered if people add salt to counteract the amount of sugar in the processed foods we eat. I'm no expert (in fact, I really can't elaborate because I'm still twisting the idea around in my brain), but it seems to have some merit. What do you think?

As I mentioned, I completed my meal planning and grocery list last night. I made another trip to Trader Joe's today. I asked on Facebook for recommendations of good places to by good quality meats and produce. I got a ton of great suggestsions (thanks to everyone), but I decided to go to Joe's because I'm comfortable there. I know what I can get, and I know what I'm getting is good stuff. I'll have to do a little more research and a little more shopping around. I'd really like to stay a little closer to home.

I took 2 long walks today (about 2.5 miles each), so that was great for my mind and body. Carly can sometimes be a chore on walks. She loves her some bunnies. Because of that, I'm sometimes reluctant to go for walks which in turn holds me back. She was actually very good today! I was so pleased. I think my little girl is growing up! :)

I'm looking forward to week 2 to see what it brings! Student orientation is tomorrow and Tuesday, so I'll be getting my first look at the students I'll be seeing more than my family come September. As I get busier, it will become increasingly difficult to post my thoughts and feelings, but I'd really like to continue because it provides me with a lot of motivation. It's a great outlet, and knowing that I'm writing it down keeps me way more accountable.

Check out other posts in this series:

Day 1: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 2: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 3: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 4: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 5: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 6: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 6: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Here we are again, ladies and gentlemen. Day 6 of the 21 Day Detox is coming to a close. As I explained, yesterday turned out to be a pretty good day for both Rich and I. Today there is nothing too exciting to report because it has been very much the same. No moodiness, no low blood sugar, no "flu-like" symptoms. In fact, the book suggests that the cold and flu-like symptoms should begin to subside today. I'm happy to report that the book has been pretty accurate thus far. I struggled a tiny (very tiny) bit with snacking today. What I mean is I wanted to snack, but resisted as much as possible. I did munch on some almonds and a couple walnuts here and there, but that's about it. Breakfast today was another applie pie smoothie, lunch was a fresh salad and albacore tuna mixed with celery, jalepenos, and homemade mayonaise, and dinner will be wild caught salmon topped with a "no-honey mustard" sauce and pecans. I haven't tried it yet, but it sure sounds yummy. I haven't heard much from Rich today since he's on his fishing trip, but he did say he got to sleep in which was "glorious." I'm happy he's happy.

I think the biggest struggle today and tomorrow will be meal planning for next week. Many of you know that I hate, hate, hate to grocery shop, so the planning stages are always the toughest for me. Just like with any new diet, one has to be really on top of their game in order to make sure the right foods are ready when it's time to cook and eat. Otherwise, some serious downward spiraling can occur. I plan to sit down tonight or tomorrow morning to make a grocery list. It should be slightly easier this time around since I now know some of the things I really like, some of the things I really don't like, and what does and doesn't work for us. I'm feeling positive, so I hope to keep that up.

One thing I'd really like to accomplish before I get too deep into this is to type up or copy my favorite recipes and meal plans and put them in a "favorites" binder. That way, I won't have to carry around the books like they're made of gold anymore. It's just something I know will take a bit of time, so I continue to put it off. Gotta get on that.

I'm hoping to update daily, if for no other reason than to document my thoughts and feelings throughout the 21 days. I hope you'll come back and cheer for me along the way.

Check out other posts in this series:

Day 1: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 2: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 3: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 4: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 5: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 5: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

What up?! Tonight marks the end of day 5 (5!) of The 21 Day Sugar Detox for Rich and I. I, for one, am feelin goooood. Rich, for two, is feeling pretty dang good himself. Both of us had to rise and shine at 4:30 a.m. this morning because he was heading straight from work to a fishing trip with his dadio. Since the plan was for his dad to pick him up, I had the fortunate job of driving him the 32 minutes to work! Why so early, you ask? Some blockhead scheduled a meeting with the Mexico office at the butt crack of dawn. (Rich is the blockhead.) Before we got on the road, I whipped up a couple breakfast smoothies (applie pie). I had absolutely no signs of lightheadedness and I didn't feel a bit queasy this morning. We were both exhausted, but that's to be expected for waking up at 4:30 in the mornin'. I didn't really talk to him much all day, save for annoying him with a few questions about the Walking Spree program at work. I was attempting to order us a couple wristband health gadgety things (much like a Fit Bit) that connect to your computer/smart phone and track your steps, calories burned, activity levels, etc. Through his company, we can buy them for 25 bucks and if we average so many steps a day, he'll get an extra bit of money tacked onto his paycheck. We're walking anyway, so we might as well take advantage of it. I got them ordered, and we should be receiving them sometime next week!

Lunch for both of us was leftover chicken soup and a mixed salad. The soup was even better reheated. The broth turned out so good and flavorful. I'll definitely be making that again. Around midday, I had to head out to run some errands before heading out to have dinner with my cousin, Michelle. She was making tacos, so I adapted by bringing lettuce to make a salad. I stopped at the store and bought an avocado to add to the mix, and I also picked up some no-sugar-added-salsa. (It was Wholly brand -- the same company that makes Wholly Guacamole -- which is an approved brand on the 21DSD.) Full fat cheese (in moderation) is acceptable, so I piled that on along with some jalepenos. Yum-o. There's nothing better than a good taco salad. The visit was great simply because I got to spend some quality time with one of my favorite girls. However, it was a bit of a struggle for the second night in a row to resist the temptation of snacking on tortilla chips. But honestly? I don't know if it's because I'm uber focused right now, or if it's because my cravings are shrinking like they're supposed to, but it really hasn't been too difficult. On the Rich front, he reported that he enjoyed the soup and salad for lunch, and had a Western omelette that included ham, cheese, green pepper, red pepper, bacon and sausage for dinner. Not too shabby as all of that is basically approved for the 21DSD. I say basically because the meat was almost certainly not grass fed, but all the veggies are on the YES list.

I currently have lots and lots of energy. For some reason, I'm tending to have more energy at night than throughout the day. I called Rich on my way home from Michelle's, and he said he was also feeling great. He said he expected to be tired during the day, but he was pleasantly surprised. He remarked that he thinks we've "made it through the hardest part," but I'm not sold yet. I think some of the toughest days to come. Time will tell. I'm so glad we're both feeling positive, though. Speaking of how we're feeling on Day 5, the book says we may experience, "headaches starting to clear and fewer cravings, or struggles with temptation and slip-ups if you're unprepared and hunger sets in." I'd say right now we find ourselves safely in the "headaches starting to clear and fewer cravings" zone. Speaking of symptoms, my heartburn went away last night. I actually took 1 Tums tablet with 1 gram of sugar because my heart was a-burnin' something fierce. I'm sure they're are more natural sugar-free remedies out there, but at this house, tum-tum-tum-tum-Tums are tried and true. I'll look more into alternative possibilities in the future.

I'm hoping to update daily, if for no other reason than to document my thoughts and feelings throughout the 21 days. I hope you'll come back and cheer for me along the way.

Check out other posts in this series:

Day 1: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 2: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 3: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 4: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 4: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Hey, y'all! Tonight marks the end of day 4 of The 21 Day Sugar Detox for Rich and I. While 4 days doesn't seem like a lot, it's more than half of a week, and I'm pretty excited about the progress I've made! The book suggests that we may experience, "mood changes, minor skin irritation, or breakouts." As for me, I most definitely experienced a little mood swinginess today. It wasn't terrible, but I could feel myself getting grumpy. So here's the story: I woke up early and felt a bit of the same low blood sugar thing I had going on yesterday. Because I was expecting it, and because it wasn't too bad, it was hardly a problem. Rich left for work and I did a little cleaning until a teacher friend picked me up so we could go into work for a bit and start getting things organized for the new school year. The day went smoothly. Early in the day, Rich called me since he had some time to kill between meetings. He remarked that even though he felt a little light-headed and tired, he is just generally in a better mood lately. I think that's great. Work tends to stress him out, so I'm on board for anything that can help. By about 2:00, I had gotten enough work done that I felt okay walking out the door. However, my energy was waning. By that time, I had eaten 2 eggs, a banana, some nuts and an avocado. My friend was nice enough to drop me off at the car dealership since my car was finished being repaired. I walked up to the cashier's window and handed her my credit card. Then she asked me for my ID. I checked my wallet and realized I didn't have it. Ugh. Remember that long walk I went on with Kim yesterday? My ID was the pocket of the pants I was wearing yesterday along with my debit card. Crap! There was nothing the lady could do (understandable), so I called my mom who came and saved the day (par for the course). She picked me up, we went to my house to get my cards, and we went back to the dealership to finish the transaction. Finally, I drove away with my car. I can't really describe how I was feeling throughout the ordeal. I wasn't mad, but I was frustrated. My mood was definitely a-swingin'. I suppose that's somewhat to be expected when going through such a thing, but I'm going to attribute it to being both a normal reaction and a side-effect of the 21DSD.

Once I was finally home, I got to work on dinner tonight: chicken soup with homemade dill crackers. The broth actually stewed in the crockpot for about 20 hours! That's the first time I attempted something like that, so I was pretty excited at the results. Basically, you mix about 2 pounds of bones (any kind), 16 cups of water, 10 cloves of garlic, 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, and 2 teaspoons of salt together in a crock pot and let it simmer on low for a looooong while. When it was done, I did add some more salt, but not a ton. I whipped up the dill crackers and added the chicken and veggies to the broth closer to meal time. The dill crackers were okay. I used coconut oil to make the dough, but I should have used butter or ghee. They turned out pretty "sweet" due to the coconut which wasn't a super awesome combo with the chicken soup. I was really excited to put anything that tasted remotely like a cracker in my mouth. Too bad, so sad.

Actually, tonight was the night of my crockpot recipe exchange, which is why I chose to make the soup. (I cheated a bit by not making the entire meal in a crockpot, but that's okay.) Unfortunately, I couldn't really enjoy much of anything except the chicken soup at the exchange, so that was a bummer. The best part was getting together with my favorite colleagues before all we can talk about are students and pre tests and marking periods and lesson plans and staff meetings and open house and doooooooooooom.

Other than my mild "mood swings," I can also report a bad case of heartburn. I've had it for a few days, ever since eating the beef and bacon cottage pie leftovers. (The spices resemble the taste of Worcestershire sauce.) In general, though, I'm definitely ending the day on a good note. In fact, I'm feeling more energetic now at 10:00 p.m. than I was at 3:00 p.m. Do you think it has something to do with the car sitch?

I'm hoping to update daily, if for no other reason than to document my thoughts and feelings throughout the 21 days. I hope you'll come back and cheer for me along the way.

Check out other posts in this series:

Day 1: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 2: The 21 Day Sugar Detox

Day 3: The 21 Day Sugar Detox