Week 4 and going strong-er!

Hi folks!

I got through the 21-day detox alive and well. In fact, it was ALMOST easy. That is because I had all my meals prepared for me and they were delicious, plus I could buy treats from the gym too that are all detox-friendly.

I began the second part of this 3-month process last week. Theoretically, we are supposed to ease back in to a normal diet over one week, but I didn't really have that option. I ended my detox on the morning of Easter Sunday, and spent the afternoon having Easter lunch/dinner with my Portuguese in-laws-to-be. I don't know if it's the same in all Portuguese families (but I know this is true of most Meditteranean nations), but here's what an Easter (or Christmas) dinner for anywhere from 4 to 8 people will look like: one cod casserole (bacalhau a bras, which had potatoes and all kinds of yummy stuff in it), one full roast chicken, one full roast beef, some marinated shrimp, some marinated octopus (SO GOOD), maybe a sprinkling of salad or brocoli, a whole lot of potatoes, some rice, red wine, maybe some other wine, port or liqueur. Before this there are fried goodies like cod balls and these spicy fried shrimp dumpling-like things. After dinner it's some Portuguese pastries and coffee, sometimes cake too. Oh and there's bread.

So all that to say there is nothing I could do to "ease" the transition, except that I didn't drink any booze and stayed away from the bread, and ate FAR FAR fewer potatoes and fried goodies and meat than usual. And that's hard because it's all so good. However, having eaten SO green for three weeks, I was surprised that my beloved meat did not taste as good as it usually does.

So now, I have cut back on coffee and dairy, which for me are the two things I think affect me most. I am eating less meat/fish as well, but I haven't managed to keep myself from the bread. Living in Montreal and so close to an amazing bakery just makes it very hard not to crave nut loaf or croissants.

Oh, you may be wondering what the results of the detox were. Well, my skin was radiant most of the time, I lost an inch around my waist (probably a half-inch or so in reality after starting to eat normally again), I had so much energy and I lost 3-5 lbs. Today I am 146.4 lbs.

I didn't do much better on my fitness test, but I started doing more and more intense classes as the detox went on, and I know I am in much better shape than I was 3 weeks ago. I had done a "sculpt" class right before the fitness test, so I was a bit worn out.

Now that I don't have to do classes every single day, I have been trying to keep up the walking and I have started running too. I have still been going to classes regularly as well. I actually have to leave now for another sculpt class.

Wish me luck and I hope you all make at least 1 good healthy choice this week for yourself. It's worth it!