Detox Days 4 and 5

Day 4: Starting to lose my detox mojo. Did well with everything all day then had dinner in the mall food court – I ordered a superfood salad from Chick Fil-A but it just was not cutting it for me… so supplemented it with 3 fries and a chicken nugget. Those were the best 3 fries and chicken nugget my mouth has ever tasted.

superfood-salad
My “large” Superfood Salad from Chick Fil-A

Day 5 started out okay, but by the end of the day I decided I definitely need a cheeseburger. So we had dinner at Burger-Fi and I thoroughly enjoyed every sinful bite.

So that was it, that was the official end of the detox. Do I feel guilty for quitting before day 15? Yes. But I’ve decided I’m not going to beat myself up over it. Here’s my summary of the experience:

The Bad

  1. It’s very difficult to prepare and eat one type of food while also preparing and serving a completely different type of food to a house full of people. It would be much easier to do if everyone in the house was on the same diet so the temptations weren’t so readily available.
  2. Veggies are delicious but they make me gassy. Very very gassy. I felt like I couldn’t leave the house through most of the detox because I dropped stink bombs every time I took a step. It doesn’t feel good to be so gassy, it certainly doesn’t smell good, and it made me feel like a prisoner of my house.
  3. I was hoping to feel an energy boost after a couple days of the mostly-vegetable diet, but I really felt kind of tired all the time. After the cheeseburger meal I felt like my old self again. I think my body just needs cheeseburgers, period.

The Good

  1. The health issues I was experiencing prior to the detox are now completely gone – even the nighttime coughing thing that lingered for 6+ weeks. It could have been the Chinese herbal supplements or the new diet – most likely a combination of the two. Either way, I’m 100% back to good health! Yay! 🙂
  2. I now know how to cook with all kinds of healthy ingredients that I never tried before! I’ll continue using coconut aminos in place of soy sauce because it tastes exactly the same. Dandy Blend is a nice healthy coffee alternative and blends well with all liquids, so I like adding this to my morning vanilla smoothie. SunButter, oooooh the SunButter. It’s like heaven in a jar. Great substitute for peanut butter, made with sunflower seeds. Perfect for dipping apples into, or for making a banana SunButter sandwich, yum. I also like the taste of coconut oil – something I previously only used topically in lotions and soaps!
  3. I learned that I love spaghetti squash (never had it before the detox!), and roasted broccoli florets – though both make me gassy so I have to eat them in moderation.
  4. I have 2 new kitchen gadgets which I plan to continue using: a food processor (can’t wait to try making hummus like my Aunt Donna’s!) and a fun lemon squeezer, which Jacob absolutely loves using, too. Lemons are great for clearing/brightening skin, aiding digestion, boosting energy, and elevating mood. Aaaand they’re affordable! I plan to keep squeezing lemon juice into my water and tea regularly. Side note: I learned about the magic of lemon juice a few months ago and occasionally dropped lemon essential oil (by Young Living) into a glass of water, but it always seemed to just float on the surface and didn’t taste nearly as good as the fresh squeezed lemons. Another side note: You can buy lemons by the sack and it’s cheaper than buying them individually.
  5. I will continue drinking Amazing Grass Protein Superfood each day because it is packed with nutrition and tastes great.
  6. The detox plan came with a recipe book which I plan to continue trying recipes from. It includes several healthy desserts too – can’t wait to try those!

Overall it was a good experience and although I didn’t end up feeling super energetic and renewed, I did learn a lot about nutrition and I believe I will [generally] make better food choices because of it.