Detox Complete

It has taken me a week to write this as I not only wanted to let you know how my detox went, but also how I feel now that it is over.  The timing could not have been better as this week has been a pretty big week of celebrations.  If ever there was a need to break a detox, this week was going to be it with Mother’s Day, Jordan’s 18th birthday and a wedding to attend.

Let’s start with confessions.  I am human and there were a few occasions that I did break my detox slightly.  Most of these were due to bad planning and the need to buy a meal on the run.  There were a small number of occasions when I was not sure what was in the meals I bought, so I may have inadvertently eaten a small amount of soy, quinoa and cheese.  I also attended a few functions that were catered and tried to find the best alternatives from the food that was available.  This meant that I ate 4 small quiches and a few crumbed calamari rings.  I found it easier just not to eat when I was out, but sometimes that is difficult.

I did occasionally eat some gluten free plain potato chips which, while not specifically on my list of banned foods were not really the best choice.  I did break the alcohol ban on two occasions – the first was at day 23 when Jordan’s team won their grand final.  I celebrated with a glass of champagne.  The second was on the last day of the detox when Jordan’s team won the national final and by then I figured that I would just finish a few hours ahead of time.

Ok, so I was not perfect but I was pretty damn good and I am proud of the determination it took for me to stick to my commitment.  By the end of it I was feeling a lot better as I had lost about 5 kilos.  This was starting to give me a little extra confidence as body image is something I really struggle with.  I felt nice when a few people did notice that I had lost a little weight, and it felt great that my clothes felt a little loose rather than too tight.  I was not as tired, I was feeling quite focused and felt that my performance at work was improving as a result.

Cut forward to this week, and while I had intended to stay to my diet as much as possible, this was a little easier said than done.  Diet wise, I have not been too bad.  I am trying to stick to real foods, avoiding grains, dairy and sugar.  There has been birthday cake and I did have a sausage sandwich at football yesterday, which was rather under whelming and didn’t meet the expectations I had for those things I thought I really missed.  I do think my relationship with food has changed for the better.  I won’t be denying myself, but I think that I can make better choices now and feel happy with those choices.

Alcohol wise, this week has been a struggle due to the celebratory nature of things.  I have resolved to only drink when there is a good reason to do so, ie, a celebration, but this week has been full of those.  I haven’t gone overboard, and I do find the impact is hitting a little harder now that I have not been drinking for a while, so there is no need to drink excessively.  I have also noticed how tired it makes me feel when I have had a few drinks.  I don’t feel anywhere near as focused, I have not been sleeping as well and I just don’t feel all that positive about things this week.

Next week is not so “celebratory” so I am going to try to be alcohol free for as much of the week that I can.  I do think I have a new perspective on how food and drink are impacting on my life and I need to keep working on this.  I will never be perfect at it, but I will keep trying.

Now I am focusing on the 8 week challenge at the gym.  It is week 3 and I am doing OK.  Baby steps, but lots of baby steps transform into bigger steps.  Everything in moderation.