Day 2-4

I began the Eat to Live Six-Week plan on Tuesday. I started the day with just what I had in my refrigerator that was allowable on the "plan"…an orange. I know this wasn't enough to eat but this was all I had.  Until now, my breakfast usually consisted of coffee with a nice amount of sugary creamer. This would get me through the morning.

My first trip to the grocery store that morning was interesting.  It was odd realizing how many things I used to just grab due to cravings.  In the future I will try not to notice all those sugar filled or preservative filled items that call out my name while I am walking by and instead beeline it straight to the produce section.  I purchased enough veggies, fruits and beans to get me through most of this week.

I was feeling great and motivated until later in the day when my body realized it wasn't going to get any coffee. A headache came on. It was a tolerable one so I just figured a good night sleep and lots of water would be enough to help diminish it.

The next day, though, not only did the caffeine withdrawal hit hard, but I believe I began experiencing sugar withdrawal as well.  My head ached and my body felt like it was experiencing the effects of six cups of caffeinated coffee. I was shaky, my brain foggy, my heart beat quicker than normal and I was sweating. I couldn't think, I felt exhausted, I was weak. I drank a bunch of water, took some Advil (that didn't help) and tried to eat even though i was not hungry and was too weak to cut up veggies.  

Day 3 withdrawals were almost as bad but with less of a headache.  With a weak, shaky body, I still attended my swim fitness class. While in the water, I felt wonderful. I worked out hard. But then back out of the water, I was back to my regular shaky, weak self.  I did manage to make it home and in between taking rest breaks, I made enough gazpacho for a few days, cut up veggies for a salad and dry-grilled tofu on my George Foreman Grill.

Now that I am on Day 4,  the withdrawals seem to be subsiding. I don't feel 100% but I am at least able to think enough to work on my photography and get this blog written. The withdrawals symptoms have forced me to really think about what I was eating. I thought I was fairly healthy but now realize that I had a constant low flow of sugar in my system almost all the time.  My mornings started off with sugar in my coffee and ended with some sort of sugar drink such as vitamin water or alcohol. My food intake from pastas to white carbs gave my body the sugar it craved. 

Tip of the Day

Banana "Ice-Cream"
Since I can't eat ice-cream, I get my dessert fix from taking a ripe banana, peeling, slicing and freezing it.  Once frozen, I put it in the blender.  It can't be blended too long as it will then start to warm up and become more slushy rather then like soft serve ice-cream.  Other ingredients can be added for a variety of flavor such as strawberries, nuts, blueberries or peanut butter.

Bananas that you buy and can't eat fast enough can be frozen for this purpose. I even buy extra ripe bananas from the store knowing they won't be wasted. If you plan on freezing a bunch of bananas, I usually will use Press and Seal on each banana and then place all the little packages in a freezer bag. The Press and Seal will keep the freezer burn away and keep your bananas from getting as brown.

This is a great an easy way to feed yourself and your family high nutrient ingredients all while enjoying what seems to be a luxury.