Detox - Day 1

Hi folks,
I've certainly been keeping a low profile lately. Not deliberately holding back from you guys, but simply letting life go by without blogging for a bit (imagine that!!). I've missed it, and admit that the will to maintain healthy habits has practically flown out the window. My motivation has been down, my weight has gone up and my body is paying for it, the aches and pains, bad skin and lack of energy are all testimony to this.

After hanging out with M & Mary at the fitness expo last weekend, I have been inspired to get back on the wagon. Last week I celebrated 2 anniversaries - 3 years with my boyfriend, and 4 years since I first walked into weight watchers weighing 96kgs. I've been trying to think of a way to get the 'instant hit' of enthusiasm that spurred me on in the first place. It's not like I've piled it all back on - only 5 or so kg are currently giving me grief - but I can't seem to find the spark again.

As a result, I've turned to Blackmores 10 day Detox. I suspect that the novelty, combined with the short term commitment and the fact that I paid about 60 bucks for a box of pills, might just trick my head into believing that I can actually do this.

For those of you unfamiliar with this kind of supplemented detox program, there are a few rules:

AVOID:

• Alcohol, caffeine, soft drink, sugary drinks etc
• Refined carbs: sugar, honey, chocolates and any wheat products
• Red meat
• Dairy
• Refined grains: all yeast based bread, pasta, noodles, cakes
• Artificial sweeteners, preservatives, additives, bla bla bla
  

INCREASE:

• All fruit and vegetables (except dried fruit & grapefruit)
  
• Tofu, legumes, raw nuts, raw seeds
• Water intake
  
• Fish & Chicken

In addition to the food changes, there is also some supplements in the box to aid in the cleansing process of the different bits of the body:

• Stomach - Digestive bitters (ewk! I don't think I'm going to be able to take the correct dose - this tastes sooooo bad!)
• Liver - Milk Thistle
  
• Intestines - Acidophilus Bifidus
• Colon - Herbal colon care (read: laxative)
• Skin - Exfoliating glove.

After mentally preparing my self for the 'ride', I took my self off to Harris Farm to get the food I need. I came home with an entire trolley full of fresh fruit and vegetables, half a dozen cans of different kind of beans, and a few soy based dairy substitutes. I also managed to find a couple of the wheat bread substitute suggestions (Rye bread etc) and some brown rice.

So. Day 1.
It's about 10pm now and I'm quite hungry. This detox thing is already starting to effect by body, lots of gurgling going down below (yup!). I'm struggling to find any quick and easy meal ideas. Today was a disaster - I'm not even sure if I can count it as my official start day as things went a bit haywire on the dinner front.

Here's what I ate today:

Breakfast
Warm water with lemon, vegie juice*, 1 x free range egg - soft boiled, 6 cherry tomatoes, 1/2 glass of choc soy milk*, 1/2 piece of pumpernickle (rye - bloody awful!)

Lunch
Rough salad of 1 carrot, 8 cherry tomatoes, snow peas and cucumber, 1 boiled egg, 2 tbls hommous (preservative free)

Dinner - Disaster!
Attempted tofu and vegie stir fry with ginger, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, beans, snow peas, bok choy, challots & mushrooms. The tofu turned to mushu. It was gross - I chucked it out.

Snacks
Vege chips* (packaged, from healthfood store), soy yoghurt* another vegie juice* & choc soy milk*, apple and a pear.

* These items aren't part of the plan - they have added sugar and are fairly well processed, but I didn't plan things well enough. I'm going to try and go without the choc soy drink tomorrow. The vegie chips also contain a bit of sugar and some kind of flour. I have to do some research of what snack foods are substantial without jeopardising the whole detox.

Tonight before I go to bed I have to take the colon care herbs - I'm glad it's a public holiday so that I can, erm, monitor the effects in a friendly environment!

incidentally, I decided to increase the opportunity to lose a bit of weight by starting my morning walking again. I dragged myself out of bed at 6 am and plodded around the park. Not much fun - I'm so unfit!.

Tomorrow is going to be interesting. I've decided that the blackmores calorie controlled diet is too hard to do when I'm working. So I'll try and devise myself an eating plan based on the ww point system, whilst restricting my food choices to items from the "allowed" food list. At least that way I know I'm getting 'enough' food, even if the nutrition is a little less balanced. I'm thinking that I may also cheat a little and introduce a tiny bit of dairy and pasta. This may not be ideal, but at least I won't be starving if my meals are disasters every night.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has ever tried detox and might have some satisfying detox-friendly recipes!

On that note, I'm going to bed. I've lovingly typed this post on my new computer but I have a big day tomorrow (nerding it up!) and need to sleep before I get hungry again.

Night!