The weigh in

I had a great first week.  I cannot believe it's been 8 days since I have had any sugar, white flour, meat or dairy.  To be honest, I have to say I haven't really missed it.  There are days when I would love to have a piece of bread with butter, but other than that, I haven't felt the need to cheat.  I did have to add the caffeine back on day 4.  I just got withdrawal headaches too bad and I didn't want to keep taking Advil.  I figured I could conquer that at a later time. I am not drinking coffee because it's so acidic and I'm trying to balance my PH level.  I will probably start making green tea with Stevia, but for now I'm drinking this.

XS has caffeine without the sugar (uses Sucralose)and has only 6 calories.  The best part, it has 4900% of B12.  That's a whole lot of B12 and it gives me the boost I need to get my day started.

I don't know if I mentioned this in my last post or not, but I do not know my starting weight.  I could probably come within 10 pounds or so if I guessed, but this time around I just didn't want to know.  That may sound odd, but I have my reasons for doing it this way.  You see, every time I start a "diet", the scale is my nemesis.  I live by it, which is not the smartest thing to do.  So this time around, I decided not to let the scale be my guide.  Brian is the only one that knows how much I weigh.  So yesterday, I closed my eyes and stepped on the scale.  I was praying that I had at least lost a pound.  I asked Brian if I had lost anything.  He enthusiastically said, Yes.  I knew by his reaction that it was good.  He asked me if I wanted to know how much and I said you betcha.  When he said 5 pounds (4.8 to be exact, but I'm rounding up.  :) I couldn't believe my ears.  Are you kidding me?  5 pounds in 6 days.  Holy cow, that has never happened before, ever.  I had also lost .8% body fat.  That to me is huge.  The best part is that I didn't starve myself and I was eating nutrient foods.  No fad diet here, just living food.   

Here is what a typical day looks like for anyone interested.

Breakfast:

Wake up and have a large glass of water.

I make a vegan protein shake with coconut milk.

Then I have a fresh juice which is usually made of Kale, Apple and Lemon (delish)

Lunch:

Veggie Soup

Large Spinach and Romaine salad with Chickpeas, carrots, sunflower seeds and balsamic vinegar & olive oil

I snack on apples with cashew butter, clementines, and pistachios.  I drink lots of water.

Dinner:

Vegan protein shake with coconut milk

Another garden salad, same as lunch.

The menu will broaden as I learn how to cook vegetarian meals.  I'm stocking up on books this week and combing the Internet.  I love going to bed satisfied, but not stuffed.  I wake up in the morning and I'm not starving.  It's amazing, when you give your body whole, living foods, how full it makes you feel.  I've committed to a Vegan diet (no dairy or meats) until my birthday in April.  I figure anything is doable for 3 months.  If I love it, great, if not, then I can always slowly starting putting meat back in to my diet.  I think the dairy might be gone for good.  I feel great without it.  I'm not waking up congested or sneezing like I used to.  It will be interesting to see if I notice changes in my skin and the dark circles under my eyes.

I'm excited to learn this way of life for myself first, in hopes to have my family join me as we learn a new way of eating and fueling our bodies.  I'd love to hear what you think.  If you have questions or comments, please leave them for me.  I will try my best to respond back to you.  Have a great week. 

"Eat to Live, not Live to Eat" (Quote from a movie I watched last night that rocked my world.  I'll be sharing all about it this week, so stay tuned).