Day One

So now it is time to get back to eating healthy and I have to say that I am more than ready!! The 21 day vacation means taking a break from Meat, Dairy, Sugar, Gluten, Caffeine, and Alcohol(if that is something you normally drink). People freak out and say, "What can you eat?!" Let me assure you that the best things to eat are things that are not on the list above! You are trying to avoid processed foods, chemicals, and artificial flavorings and dyes. Let me warn everyone that is going on this digestive "vacation"... you are going to feel lousy for a couple of days or even up to a week as your body goes through caffeine and sugar withdrawal. Everyone's body has it's own chemical make-up, I've personally found that sugar drives everything for me. As I remove sugar from my diet I will get a HUGE headache for several days. I drink lots of water which helps....but it is still a process that takes several days to feel better and to control my cravings for anything sweet. Here are a few things to get you thinking about healthy eating. During the 21 day cleanse you are giving your body a break from:

Alcohol (easy one-for some :-)
Gluten
Sugar
Caffeine
all animal products

Dairy

Basic plan:

*Drink half your body weight in ounces of water per day.

Breakfast
Eat fruit only. We usually have a nectarine, pear, grapes. Usually three things but it can be as little or as much as makes you full.

Snack: after about 30 minutes to an hour later you can have a handful of almonds.

Lunch
Usually leftovers from the night before or one of the salad recipes.

Dinner

One of the recipe's I'll post.

After dinner snack:
Fresh popcorn made with coconut oil (cheapest at HEB in the oil section, white plastic container that says LouAnne's coconut oil.)

Another great snack is frozen grapes or frozen cherries. Another snack idea is to put a bag of frozen raspberries in the blender with the juice from one or two fresh squeezed oranges. You can use any frozen berry and it makes a nice smoothie or sorbet if you like it thicker.

This way of eating is a lot like the Volumetrics eating. You can eat as much as you want of healthy things. I've never eaten so much and lost weight! The idea is to eat as healthy as possible without preservatives or additives or dyes. If you cooked it fresh, you know it won't have those. We gave up all artificially sweetened drink mixes and diet sodas (easy for me, but painful for Mike...but he did it!). We both decided that giving up processed sugar is the miracle that keeps you from craving and not being satisfied.

I found that drinking water is the key, as in all healthy eating. I have at least one lime a day. I cut it in half and squeeze it into a glass of water and then put the other half in another glass.

Exercise is also important—even if it is walking every morning or evening. Mike and I walk about 4 miles every morning.

Tonight I am making Charro Beans and Rice.