30 Day Detox/Clean Eating

Much like everyone else, my New Year embarked on a 30 day cleansing of my body.

This 30 Day Detox/Clean eating may seem a bit extreme, because I consider myself a fairly healthy person. I eat balanced meals, I exercise when I'm not on Netflix and I drink milk. So, I didn't think it would be that bad.

Wrong. I just came off a two week vacation with nothing but eating out and sipping on highly caloric beverages. My body needed a little jumpstart. I'm not really doing it to lose weight and I'm not doing it because it's the New Year. (I did a pseudo-detox in July when I was training for my 5k. People, clean eating works!!) I'm doing it because it needs done.

So I'm halfway done and I've learned tonnnns! Articles and articles and articles talk about super foods and gluten and acid and foods to eat more of. That's so overwhelming. Like, one article says eat whole wheat bread (or gluten free) and then another article said that it's actually not that good for you. (Welcome to the internet.) I think I've got a good grasp on it, though. And after this detox, I'm just going to have to remember to eat everything in moderation. A sandwich isn't going to hurt me, however chicken noodles, mashed potatoes and a roll are, if I eat them all the time. So, lesson #1 - moderation on everything.

The hardest part, I've discovered, is the cravings that I've been getting. I can't even explain what I'm craving. Just...everything. Cheese, mostly. Because I eat cheese on everything. But, the difference between what I'm doing this month and what I've done in the past is that I'm staying strong. I haven't really cheated. I've passed up weekly BDubs wings, bought gluten free bread, stayed away from white potatoes. I'm rocking this detox. But, because I used to put so much sugar and crap in my body, all that rocking doesn't discount the fact I look at mac and cheese and lust. So, my goal in February is to watch the intake of unnecessary sugar. So, lesson #2 - that Big Mac isn't necessary.

My first week on the detox seemed a bit harder because I wasn't only depriving myself the things I craved, but I was cutting back on HOW much I ate. The point is to eat smaller portions during the day, but eat more often. That's hard for me to wrap my head around. I'm the girl that doesn't need to feel full to stop eating, I need to feel stuffed. Like pop a button stuffed. This clean eating has been interesting because I can still have meat and food and basically anything I want. I mean, it's not a depriving detox at all. But, it took me a while to figure that out. For lunch I was thinking all I could eat was a sweet potato and my fizz stick. False. I need all of the components to make this work. So I'm adding veggies to each meal, I'm making sure that I'm getting a variety of flavors and nutrients each time I plan a meal. That's something I need to get better at. So, lesson #3 - stop overstuffing your belly with crap, overstuff your plate with good.

Finally, I was scared this detox wouldn't be satisfying. I don't need to lose weight. So I really didn't know what my goal was going to be, except to rid my body of toxins. And, surprise, that's all I really needed. I had been putting so much crap into my body that it just started craving and craving things that didn't matter (Late night McD's with a diet, please?) and I definitely didn't need. However, this detox has given me the strength to know that I can do it and I can overcome this vicious cycle that sometimes takes hold of me and doesn't let me go. So, lesson #4 - encourage myself.

Now I have some goals for February. This is going to become a lifestyle (I'll rid myself of white potatoes if I can have my white bread back - it's only fair.) and I'm going to feel better about myself. I hope this second half brings a better attitude and now that I have the eating part down, I can detox my life of things that aren't vital to my survival. Don't worry, McD's, you'll still be a favorite, but you won't be my drive-home-from-work-I-couldn't-care-less-about-life favorite.

I encourage you to try a clean eating lifestyle and I can hook you up with some amazing products and aids that can direct you on the right path. I know I wouldn't be here if someone wouldn't taken hold of me and encouraged me to do this.

T