Day 8

Upon much reflection, I have abandoned the 21 day cleanse with 8 days to go. It is not working out for me. I do not feel Well; which is the point of doing it. I am pleased with the weight loss, but I actually attribute that more to Weight Watchers which is a tried and true trusted friend who has carried me from 217 pounds to where I am now.

My decision was not taken lightly. I discussed it with several people prior to breaking the "fast". I prepared a healthy dinner and enjoyed it. I did eat steak; but I only ate half of it. I did not want to get sick. I did not have any gluton and I am still drinking decaf for now. I enjoyed some wine and then switched to decaf tea before bed.

We are planning an upcoming trip to someplace warm with Palm trees...so I will continue my journey while counting weight watchers points. I know not to focus on just the destination; in this case vacation and my goal weight, but to enjoy the trip and time it takes to get there. I was not enjoying being a vegan. I can embrace some of the ideas and philosophies it has to offer, but it is not a program for me at this point in my life.

Thanks to all who read about my experiment. I will continue to write my musings as the tide continues to change and waves roll in and roll out.

Day 17

Friday. Today is going to be tough. The weekend usually means a great deal of cooking and eating and wine. I just keep telling myself that in order to kick start weight loss, I need to give up the wine for a few weeks. I did not have a headache to start the day, which was good, but the same co-worker that had complimented me earlier this week asked "Are you alright? You look like you have been crying". Great ego boost to start the day. My skin is not looking so great. Some of the changes that Kathy Freston promises during the wellness cleanse are "clearer skin and eyes". Well this is obviously not the case with me.

Now the good news...weight is now 177.2! That is a loss of 3.4 pounds since Monday. I normally lose an average of 5lbs the first week of doing any type of weight loss program; so I am right on track.



Breakfast: 1/4 cup Kasha (buckwheat) cooked with nutmeg and cinnamon and sprinkled with 1 tsp flax seed, 6 diced dried apricots and 1/4 cup of walnuts. 9 points

Lunch: 1/2 cup of black beans, 1/2 cup of fresh salsa and 1/2 avocado diced. 100 cal pack of almonds and two rice cakes with 2 tblsp of tahini lemon hummus. 11 points

Snack: 1 mini bag of microwave popcorn. 1 point

Dinner: marinated (Lime juice and the vinegar from a jar of hot banana peppers) tempeh grilled and a sweet potato sliced into circles sprinkled with 2 tsp olive oil,cayenne, chili powder, black pepper, roasted an hour in a 400 degree oven. 10 points

I have eaten more than 23 points per day and have had quite a bit of my weekly points allowance of 35 points. I only have 3 points left. My food intake on Saturday and Sunday have to be 24 and 25 points only. I don't anticipate that I will be able to get some walking in as we are expecting torrential downpours for the next three days. The chapter today focuses on "moving your body" and encorporating exercise into your daily routine. Easier said than done! This weekend is the time change which will make for longer afternoons of sunshine and more light to take that "cleansing wellness" walk.

Day 20

No Coffee. No coffee smells...husband not home. This should be easy, except for the fact that I am waking up with a headache. The hangover is still hanging over. Atleast the sun is shining and I can get outside today for a walk. It is my day off from work and I can get some things done. Before I begin, I must face the scale. I need to see the number. In the spirit of spring cleaning, I actually windexed the surface of my scale and waited for it to thoroughly dry (no need for any extra ounces being tallied prior to my stepping on).

180.6 .

Ok. I expected that. Lets watch that number go down. Shall we?


Breakfast: 8oz of Green Goodness Fruit Smoothie and two slices of Ezekial sprouted bread toasted. 6 points. I drank my obligatory 32oz of water and popped a Centrum for good measure.

I put on my sneakers and got my ipod and Niamh. Off we went on a brisk (while stopping every now and again to sniff) walk. Niamh needs a total wellness cleanse as well. You see, she has been supplementing her diet with cat food. She is a "closet" cat food eater and tends to do it when no one can see her. I don't think she purges after theses little binges, (but the cats do. I wonder why this daily event can't be stopped?); so she has thickened a bit through the middle. Can't blame her as she is now 5 years old and in dog years, well that is 35 and it happens to almost all bitches at that time. The weather is superb and our walk does cause my headache to dissipate a bit.

Lunch: 2 cups of mixed greens, 2 tsp of olive oil, 1/2 cup chickpeas, 2 tblsp of lemon tahini hummus, 1/2 cup of fresh salsa and 8 black olives. 6 points. 8oz Light Soy milk 1 point.This was a really good combination! Sometimes my culinary creations are a disaster, but this one was a hit. Lots of food on the plate so my eyes are happy also.



Afternoon was tough. I was trying to read and I could not concentrate. I set the kitchen timer to wake me at 2 and fell asleep on the couch. I awoke to get the kids but I was very shaky. I guzzled some water and went off to the school. A quick stop to get an inspection sticker was in order as mine had expired in August of 2008. The candy bowl at the garage had two options: tootsie rolls and wintergreen mints. I opted for none.



Dinner: Cashew Carrot Ginger soup with 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds, a rice cake with 1 tblsp of Tahini. 10 points. Sliced strawberries and cantaloupe would have been 1 point, but Niamh ate the beautifully crafted bowl of sliced fruit. I had a banana 2 points. I am starving. I feel wobbly. I need to eat. Quorn turkey burger, 2 points. Quorn is a really tasty product. It is a mycoprotein. Basically, it is fermented mushrooms used as a meat substitute.



I was able to stick to 26 points for today! Hopefully tomorrow I will reap the benefits of the cleanse and be feeling better. Today's chapter in the book was titled, "Why No Caffeine?" Kathy Freston then states several medical reasons why using strong words like addiction and central nervous system stimulant and a psychoactive drug. I sure do miss my fix and would like a hit. This Tazo Passion Herbal tea is just not filling the void.