More Milestones?

24 Day Challenge day 5 complete. I'm at the halfway point for the cleanse phase.

Today seemed hectic. I ran errands and worked on worksheets for the boys. Meals got delayed, my afternoon snack forgotten. Oops. Oh well. Still had hunger issues today but got too distracted to eat. Could have been the cause. Oh well. At least I didn't deal with headache issues for most of the day until the evening. I overshot my calories again, but I'm still under what I burned. Not by much though.

Ok, today's meal plan:

- Spark

- Fiber Drink

- Breakfast - Meal Replacement Shake with banana mixed in

- Morning Snack - hummus on whole wheat tortilla

- Lunch - Salad with romaine, carrots, red bell peppers, tomatoes, hard-cooked egg, and homemade Italian dressing

- Afternoon snack - forgotten

- Dinner - Mexi dips, chicken on while wheat tortilla

Here's a pic of dinner: 

I did a chips and dips tray for a movie night with the boys. I added some chicken, but the dips are salsa, guacamole, beans, and cheese dip. Of course due to the challenge, I didn't eat the cheese dip (Velveeta dip, the rest were homemade from real foods). In place of the chips, I did a taco with the last whole wheat tortilla I had and then I used some of the chicken strips for dipping.

Good night! The adventure continues tomorrow.

End of Day 4 in 24

I feel like I've reached a mini goal. Mostly it's in my head. Or entirely. 1/6 of the way done. Starting a new phase. Kinda. Still the cleanse phase, but with probiotics. Which I forgot to take. Doh.

So bad headache again waking up. Went away after a bit. Only other issue is hunger. And another headache. This afternoon I started to get that dull pain, this time all over my head and my head started feeling cloudy. I drank an extra Spark and it helped temporarily. I think. But the hunger. After lunch, after afternoon snack (of course, dinner was really late), and after dinner. Once again, going to bed hungry. Joy of joys. Also, once again, I'm under calories burned, but over on my daily allotment for intake. No bueno.

Ok, today's meals:

- Spark first thing

- Fiber drink

- Breakfast - egg, red pepper, broccoli greens scramble and strawberries

- Snack - popcorn

- Lunch - salad with romaine, tomatoes, carrots, red pepper, hard cooked egg, and homemade Italian dressing 

- Snack - banana

- Dinner - steak, green beans, sautéed spinach 

Day 3

Still surviving. I was a total zombie again waking up this morning. Headache again, too. Not sure if it's related to the plan or just poor sleep I've been getting.

I need to figure out a way to ration my meals and figure out what lasts longer. I just have issues with being hungry. Of course, today, it was in part because we went to run errands today and it took about two hours for the boys to pick out toys for their gift cards. I made the mistake of leaving without eating my morning snack. We got back at a time I'd consider late for lunch. At least the delay  of meals meant that I was good until dinner. Of course, evening again, hungry. Ugh. Not liking this. On the upside, for a third day in a row, I've kept under my calorie allowance on my FitBit "meal plan."

Headache coming back. Meal planning then bed, I suppose. Oh, and here are my meals for today.

- Spark first thing

- Fiber Drink

- Breakfast - egg and chard breakfast taco with whole wheat tortilla and strawberries

- Morning Snack - banana

- Lunch - Meal Replacement Shake

- Afternoon Snack - hummus on whole wheat tortilla

- Dinner - chicken soup

Number 2, Day, That Is...

Giant headache when I woke up this morning. Of course, I had gotten one just before bed. Killer headache, the kind that makes you want to stay in bed. If I didn't have to get the kid to school, I would have.

So, Spark drink first thing. I hoped the caffeine in it would help with my headache. There has got to be some special method to mixing this stuff up. I can't get it all to dissolve and I'm left with nasty chunks. That means that I either end up chewing on them or adding water. I ended up doing both. My headache did finally go away. Who knows if it was related.

Since I was in a rush this morning, I prepped the Fiber Drink and breakfast shake one right after the other. I was shocked at the difference in the peaches and cream fiber drink compared to the citrus. WAY better. No more rat food in a cup. It's much more like the Spark, but a bit thicker. I can handle that for the next 8 days. I threw in some frozen strawberries to mix with the breakfast shake. Hubs picked up a Ninja system last night so I got to play with my new toy - single serve blending, insanely quick, no pouring, heck yeah! I'm loving this new gadget!

I did some shopping today to pick up some veggies. Our house was sparse of fresh fruits and veg since our Christmas trip. The co-op I participate in was also out for the holidays until this week, so I'll get a whole bunch more on Saturday. I went a bit overboard ordering extra items, but considering I'm really boosting my fruit and veg intake, I figure it's worth it. Plus, as I said, we were out in that department, so I also consider it restocking.

Some bad news though. I realized that I ordered the wrong thing for the challenge. Rather than getting the Herbal Cleanse, I accidentally ordered the Fiber Drink by itself. That means I don't have the extra pills to take at night. I'll finish up the probiotics that I have from when hubs was doing it (when those start in a few days) and then I'll use some probiotics I have at the house. Coach said it'd be ok and that way, I wouldn't have to return and reorder and throw off the schedule. She said the Fiber Drink would still help and that sometimes people will do use just that. Crisis averted.

I was pretty hungry come snack time. The banana did not hold me over at all and I couldn't wait for lunch. Lunch didn't keep me full that long either. I had a nice salad which was awesome on the calorie count until I added the dressing. Even homemade Italian dressing is not free from calories. But at least it's tasty and since the veggies were minimal in the Cal department, I could afford the salad dressing. But yeah, before too long, I was super hungry again. I tried to distract myself and managed to make it a few hours. I pulled out the hummus I made last night (using the Ninja) and slathered that on some lettuce and munched away while the kiddos had some on crackers. Not a bad first try on the hummus, but I didn't get the chickpeas fully cooked. I have that issue with beans. I really need to soak them, but being able to cook them from dry in the pressure cooker is just so convenient.

Not surprisingly, my snack didn't hold me over for very long. I was excited about dinner, though. I had grabbed some peppers at the store and planned to do fajitas. I decided I'd attempt to make tortillas with whole wheat flour instead of all purpose since whole wheat is actually allowed on this challenge. I was surprised at how well they turned out. I typically hate the taste of whole wheat foods, as I mentioned in my post a few days ago, but I must have been bitten by some radioactive spider that made me attempt this. I was pleasantly surprised.

The bad news is that despite the filling dinner with surprisingly decent whole wheat tortillas, I'm hungry again. Today has been a day full of lots of hunger. It's bothersome. I'm going to see if doing a big breakfast again will help tomorrow. I also got in the new set of shakes I ordered so I can try out Chocolate Mocha. Sounds tasty. We'll see. That will be my lunch. I'm going to need to figure out more filling snacks because it's not fun being hungry and making yourself wait until the next meal. Again, though, I kept to my calorie allowance according to my fit bit plan. This time, I was just over by several calories in regards to my allowance, but I'm pretty sure I'm still under expenditure, so that's especially important. I also have some more time to burn a few extra calories and adjust my allowance so I'm no longer in the red on that. Anyhoo... another day survived. I'm going to see if I can figure out a meal plan for tomorrow, then it's off to bed. But not without first knowing the outcome of the BCS National Championship, that is.

D-day

So, here it is. The start of my 24-Day Challenge. I actually spent quite a bit of time texting my "coach" last night working out some of the details. I finally figured out what all I was going to do and I even worked out a meal plan for the entire day.

So this morning starts out and first thing, I get an energy drink. This is a good thing because of my "need" for coffee. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised and I actually didn't feel like I was dragging early on. It did lack that soothing warm sensation though which is especially nice now that the weather is turning icy.

Next up comes a fiber drink. I'd be ok if I never had to consume it again. But I do. For another 9 days. It's not that it tastes bad, but it makes me think I'm drinking rat kibble crushed up, mixed with water and just enough gelatin to make sure it oozes down. Yeah. Taste, not so bad. Texture, no thank you. Then you have to chase it with a glass of water. Sounds like a good plan to rinse out, but after that, you feel full so you don't even want to think about breakfast. Until you do.

I was actually excited about breakfast. Scrambled egg with Swiss chard mixed in, grapes, and oatmeal. Of course, the oatmeal was far from ideal - no milk and no sugar. Oh well, it was filling. I almost wasn't hungry at snack time. My snack was a hard boiled egg. 

I kinda put off lunch, partly because I wasn't hungry and partly because I was afraid I'd be hungry later in the day. For lunch I drank a meal replacement shake. The taste wasn't bad, but I need to mix it up better next time.

Noah and I went to a movie and I watched him munch half-heartedly on the popcorn he begged me to buy while I drooled at it. Not really, but it would have been nice to enjoy. I was starving when I got home and was so ready for my snack - more grapes.

The grapes didn't hold me over for too long. Dinner couldn't come soon enough. I made salmon and I really piled on the veggies with oversized portions (for me). Dinner was tasty and I finally felt full again. Temporarily. I'm hungry now. 

I'll probably go to bed before too long, it's after 10:30 and sleeping will hopefully make me forget the hunger. One thing that's exciting is that for once, I was actually under my calorie allowance on my FitBit which hasn't happened since I set up a "meal plan" (basically just a weight loss goal/calorie intake calculation). Now I need to decide what to do for my meals tomorrow. Good times. We'll see how another day goes. So far, things aren't looking too bad.

Coffee and Zebra Cakes

So, it's been forever since I actually posted to my blog. It's in part due to being busy, but also, despite the busyness, I don't consider a whirlwind of playdates and grocery shopping to be terribly enthralling. Considering my lack of ability to ingrain humor into my writing, you my readers (yep, I actually have a whole two followers!) are being spared the details of my day-to-day life.

But, alas, I now feel like I have something to write about. And it very much has something to do with that seemingly random title. Visualize the wonder that is coffee and zebra cakes:

Yes, that is actually coffee. I know to many the color seems off, but when you have my sweet tooth, the bite of coffee is a bit too much so in order to get that glorious caffeine surge and the whole body warming effect on a cold morning, I add a bit of coffee to my sugar and cream (and that's real heavy cream, not some diluted half & half or artificial creamer junk). Yum! In my mind, this is the color coffee is supposed to be.

So, why the obsession with coffee and zebra cakes (which make a really good combo by the way, move over coffee cake, you are no longer needed)? Well, I've had this for breakfast the past two days. Great start to the day, if you ask me.

I suppose that then begs to question, why did I have this for breakfast? Well, I'm about to embark on a journey for the next month (or so). I am joining the ranks of the many new year resolutioners. For those of you that know me well (which one of the two? Both? Can I be that lucky?), this is SO not my thing. I'll explain:

The program I'm doing is the Advocare 24 Day Challenge. If you are unfamiliar with the company, they are an MLM (multi-level marketing) type of company that makes health and wellness products like you'd find at your local GNC - you know, protein shakes, supplements, etc. The 24 Day Challenge is intended as a kick-start to better eating habits. It uses a set of their products in a 2 part program (cleanse & max phases) to help flush out your system and recharge it to work better. At least, that's the idea. During the challenge, you eat a restricted diet of lean meats, fruits, veggies, complex carbs, and low-fat dairy. Nothing processed, refined, or artificial is allowed or it needs to be restricted. Basically, it's your conventional weight-loss health plan. With supplements.

Ok, well, it doesn't sound so bad, why is this not my type of thing? Well, the problem is that I'm scientifically and especially nutritionally minded. Here are some things I tend to avoid in my normal, day to day life:

• Chemically produced artificial supplements - I'm all about getting vitamins and minerals in the most natural form possible. Most supplements don't fall in that category. Artificially made (aka, synthetic) vitamin and mineral supplements just don't get used by the body as readily, which is why many of them can have astronomical levels of them and you don't end up overdosing. Part of this program includes consuming quite a bit of supplements.
• Artificial sweeteners - I prefer the real deal, hooray for sugar! Sometimes honey or pure maple syrup. If I want something healthier, I opt for coconut sugar or even stevia extract. Either way, my sweeteners are the real deal, some refined, but real nonetheless. Many of the products I'll be consuming are sweetened with the equivalent to Splenda. Don't worry, the irony of the real food diet and synthetically packed supplements and artificial sweeteners isn't lost on me.
• Vegetable oil - I prefer real fats, like butter. Butter is my friend. As a healthier alternative, I also use coconut oil and olive oil (nut oil and fruit oil, not vegetable). This program will allow me to use coconut oil and olive oil (as well as pretty much any other veggie oil available - gross) but I have to say, "so long" to butter
• Low fat foods - Fat means flavor. When foods are low fat, they tend to fix the flavor issue with added salt. That means you can take in too much sodium and mess up your electrolyte balance, retain water, etc. I'm not all about a high fat diet, but in moderation, I'm a fan. Fat doesn't just get added to your thighs. Your body does have to break it down first. The problem then, is not the fat, but the excess glucose in your system once it's broken down. Your body will convert it back to fat if you don't use the glucose (aka energy) and fat gives you a lot of glucose. During the program, meats need to be lean and dairy needs to be low fat.
• Cleanses/detoxes - I am so against these on so many levels. I truly, in the furthest depths of my soul really dislike these (by using dislike, I'm being nice). I'm completely, utterly, and vehemently against them. Why? They don't work, at least, not in the way that proponents of them would have you believe. Our bodies adapt, it's what they were made to do. Anytime you cut things out of your diet, your body goes through withdrawal because it had been depending on it (for whatever reason). It then has to readjust to utilize what it is getting (either in place of what was lost or what's left in your diet). This will happen regardless. You don't need fancy diets or supplements, it's not proof that you were addicted to something, the body just has to adjust. Any perceived improvement is psychosomatic or a result of you feeling better after the withdrawal symptoms resolve. Certainly cleaning up your diet isn't a bad thing and can make you feel better in the long run, but there is no reason to shock your body into it. I can and will happen over time and without the nasty withdrawal symptoms if you make gradual changes. But yes, the first 10 days of the program, I will be going through the "cleanse phase" - joy. <-- dripping="" here.="" insert="" li="" sarcasm="">
• Whole grains - Now this seems weird, I know. Everyone knows that whole grains are better. And to be honest, I'm not really against all whole grains, mostly just whole grain wheat and whole grain rice. Give me the white, processed, stripped product any day. I'm not a fan of whole wheat bread - even worse, whole grain, multi-grain bread - gross. To me, this is all about a palatability issue. They are gritty and dry and don't have a great flavor (the same reason I'm not a fan of seeds and nuts). That being said, I do actually keep whole wheat flour in my kitchen and have used it in combination with regular white flour for breads and muffins. It just dries things out so much, you have to be really careful so that foods are still edible. I'd rather avoid breads and things made with all whole wheat than switch to eating them. I'm cool with whole grain oatmeal though. And corn is ok. I'll willingly eat popcorn. =) So, yeah, because I can't have refined grains, I'm going to have to alter my diet a bit. Fortunately, breads and pastas aren't a huge portion of my diet anyway, so it's a minor adjustment in that area.

I suppose the next thing left to answer then is why on earth I'm doing this when it goes against so much of what I know about nutrition? Well, there are several reasons:

• We had most of the program products in our pantry. A while back, hubs wanted to do the program. He ended up getting sick about a week in, completely unrelated to the program, so he stopped. He never really picked it up again. I have a solidly ingrained need to not let things go to waste, so this gives me an opportunity to not let that money go to waste.
• A friend was starting the program with some other friends. I consider it a way to get some moral support and someone to keep you honest, so to speak. I don't know that I'd be able to keep up with the whole program if I didn't have someone to keep me going.
• I wouldn't mind losing a few pounds and cleaning up my diet. Lately I've been a bit too lax with the treats and given my recent addiction to coffee in addition to that (and you see how I like my coffee), I've added on a few pounds. I kinda need a kick in the pants to straighten up my act and eat better.
• It helps support my friend's business. The friend that is doing the program sells the products so it helps her with her business, and I'm all about supporting home based businesses where I can. After all, I have my own home business(es) and I'd like my friends to help support me as well.

So there it is. I'm keeping in the back of my head that it's only a month. I can do this for a month. I fully believe in my body's ability to adapt, so even though many of the diet components and conditions aren't what I'd consider ideal, I'll rely on my adaptability and keep on moving. I'm also glad that the program is broken up a bit so you kinda have mini-goals. It's like a light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. And hey, if I loose a bit of weight due to the reduction in caloric intake, I certainly won't be complaining.

My idea then, is to chronicle this little "adventure" here on my blog. We'll see how successful I am with that considering I've gone, what, almost a year without writing a post? Yeah... I might be setting my sites on journaling this process a bit high, but we'll see...

And so it begins...

Ah, Lent... Yep, it's that time again. Pretty much everyone you run into is familiar with the idea of giving something up. If you are Catholic, it's almost an expectation from those around you. There are many people that aren't Catholic, other Christian sects, that will also give something up for Lent as well, but mainly, it seems associated with Catholics as accurate or inaccurate as that may be.

This time honored tradition is intended to be a form of self-sacrifice as we make preparations for Easter. We remember the suffering of Christ for our sins just prior to His resurrection and although our own "giving something up" would never match the sacrifice of our Savior, it helps to ground us and bring us back to the gravity of our sins. At least, it's supposed to.

When I was young, I noticed that giving something up for Lent became a very much a contest of who could be more sacrificing. A person who loved soft drinks suddenly took every opportunity to declare, "Oh, no, I can't have that, I gave it up for Lent." It almost becomes a competition prior to the start of Lent, "So, what are you giving up for Lent?" A challenge that, to me, comes off as, "How holy are you? Are you a good Christian/Catholic? Can I come up with a better sacrifice than you?" Lenten sacrifices take on a whole new face when during the six week time period things that are given up become new topics of conversation. "I'm sorry I'm so tired lately, I gave up caffeine for Lent and it's really wearing on me." Today's social media avenues are a great medium for expressing one's plight, "Day three of no chocolate. I would love a Snickers right about now." I can't help it, but all I see is, "Look at me, look at me, aren't I holy?" with a side of "Feel sorry for me and these religious practices I've adopted."

Another phenomenon that happens, though surely less frequently, I'd hope, is the sacrifice that really isn't a sacrifice. "Oh, I'm giving up skydiving" for someone who never goes skydiving, or "I'm giving up McDonald's" for a person who never goes. More often, this type of sacrifice is probably more likely seen from one who only has minimal interactions with the "negative" item, a person who eats ice cream once or twice a week to give up ice cream really isn't a sacrifice, or someone who gives up exercise when they really want an excuse to get out of doing it.

Possibly the most common habit is that of giving up something that the person perceives as bad. People choose unhealthy dietary habits that they feel have become excessive, intake of chocolate or soft drinks. Some decide to avoid certain spending habits they feel have gotten out of hand and decide to give up Starbucks visits or regular trips to the video store. More recently, perceived social media addictions are coming under assault with a large number of people bidding farewell to Facebook and Twitter for the next 40 days. While these things may fall under that category of sacrifice, I'm not sure that it achieves the purpose. In the case of some, it's an excuse to jump start self-improvement, but does that really do anything to bring glory to God? It may benefit your health, your pocketbook, your relationship with friends and family, but what about your relationship with God?

And all of this for what? Does giving up chocolate really bring you closer to God and closer to being the type of person you want to be for Him?

In more recent years, we've heard at church (at Catholic churches anyway) a recommendation to alter the perception of Lenten sacrifice. Rather than being encouraged to give something up, we are encouraged to take on something that brings us closer to God. Suggestions include attending daily mass or getting more involved in charity work. Sometimes it is difficult to work such things into our schedule. It is a sacrifice, after all.

No matter what we choose for our Lenten sacrifice, should we choose to participate, I think it's important to keep in mind Matthew 6:16-18. Just sayin'.