I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think
going completely cold turkey and taking the 100 Days of Real Food challenge
would have been easier than taking the 100 Days of Real Food mini challenges.
Part of my issue is that I'm constantly thinking to myself, 'Wait,
what was the new challenge this week? And wait, what was last week's
challenge?'
Then of course there are the times I miss
blogging about a week--like last week for example. I started the post, but life
got in the way.
Thanks a lot, life.
As the week progressed, and I continued to not
post about the fourth week's challenge, the realization sunk in that if I had
just given everything up, then I would at least know that basically everything
is off limits.
Of course then I considered that if I had made
such a move I might not be writing this post from the comfort of my home.
Instead I might be writing it from my jail cell, reflecting on how jumping
blindy into a food challenge led to the worst food rage known to man.
Even so, I am recognizing that I am now making
better choices in my eating. I question what I really want, I question what I
really need, and I drink water constantly and eat more fruits and vegetables than
ever before.
The most difficult challenge thus far was
certainly last last week:
Week Four: "Real" beverages: Beverages
will be limited to coffee, tea, water, and milk (only naturally sweetened with
a little honey or 100% pure maple syrup). One cup of juice will be allowed
throughout the week, and wine (preferably red) will be allowed in moderation
(an average of one drink per day).
This shouldn't have been so challenging. I
haven't had a need to drink soda since the 9th grade, I rarely drink juice and
if I do it is usually Bai 5 drinks which are 100% natural using only natural
sweeteners and colors and coffeefruit extract (the fruit that surrounds the
coffee bean). Basically it is the most amazingly good-for-you drink out there
that has tons of flavor and a teeny tiny 10-calorie count per bottle. While I
do drink wine, if I have more than two or three glasses in a week, then that
was one crazy week!
Milkshakes are definitely an occasional weakness, but specialty coffees hold the key to my heart. Lattes, macchiatos, cappuccinos, basically anything with frothed milk and espresso makes me weak in the knees.
The only problem is that most of these drinks
contain a lot of sugar. Luckily a cappuccino and your bare bones latte are
still just espresso and milk, but of course during the past two week's my mouth
desperately has been craving the sweet flavor of caramel throughout my drink.
I've been strong.
This pictures was not taken during the last two weeks, I promise. Ps: It's a Salted Pretzel Latte--yum?! |
Most of the time.
I'm still keeping up with the other challenges.
I haven't been able to loyally serve two fruits or veggies with every meal, but
I start out my day with some fruit, occasionally adding a little peanut butter
in the mix. At lunch I've tried to have a veggie and fruit, but most days I'm
lucky to have brought anything with me for lunch.
While I'm at it, I'll cover what Week Five
looked like:
Week Five: No fast foods or deep-fried foods: No
fast foods or any foods that have been deep-fried in oil.
Because our eating habits have been slowly
changing, we actually haven't had too much of a struggle avoiding fast foods.
Of course, this might depend on what you classify as fast food versus what I
classify as fast food. McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy’s, Taco Bell, etc...those
are my "fast foods". Things like Wawa (which if you don't live on the
east coast you don't have and my heart cries for you), Panera, and Qdoba I
don't really lump into the 'fast food' category. It's like I saw on a sign at
Pei Wei a few weeks ago: Food fast, not fast food. Naturally, you still have to
be cautious. There are healthy and not-so-healthy choices at such places. And
yes, what they are cooking with is probably not 100% natural. And yes, some
might have items that are deep-fried (meaning now I've got to avoid them!) but
they aren't of the same exact caliber of your typical fast food burger joint.
McDonald's used to be a dear friend of mine, but
after a few months without it, I went and ordered a small fry (this was
probably three weeks ago, before the fast food challenge) and I wasn't
impressed. Maybe it was a bad batch, the wrong time of day, they had been
sitting for a while, or perhaps my tastes have changed and the thrill of
McDonalds is wearing off.*
*Note: I still ate that entire fry. I had to be sure.
I'm really learning, most of all, that when I'm
hungry the worst-for-me-things are usually the most convenient (cookies, cakes,
chips, chocolates--looks like today's letter is 'C'). But in the end they
always leave me wanting more.
The same, I think, can be said for dinner. I've
noticed when I overstuff myself* on fatty foods, foods that don't have a lot of
'real' foods to them, I feel bloated but longing for something better, almost
regretting having chosen something of a lower quality.
*Note: This was the first challenge, and
everyday I work on reminding myself of the importance of not overstuffing
myself.
Though I haven’t been overly strict, yes I had
one caramel latte two weeks ago; I wouldn’t say I’m miserably failing these
challenges. If anything, they are alerting my mind to better standards for
eating and living healthy.
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