Detox Day 13

I totally expected to wake up this morning and feel like crap from cheating Friday night. I was pleasantly surprised when I felt great, despite the slight sore throat and nasal drip I still have. Since dairy is what I am missing the most, I am glad it doesn't seem to have an effect on my body like gluten does. Gluten is the devil, I've decided :)

Today was a busy day, so our meals were more like snacks until we had time to sit and take a minute at dinner time. I don't mind that so much, now that we've cut out the bad foods we used to turn to prior to this cleanse. To tell the truth, I honestly don't miss it! I do however hate the extra effort it takes in either planning or obtaining these healthier snack and food items. Eating right should be as easy as fast food, why isn't it? I don't understand!

I am a proud lover of chocolate! It makes everything better, but since I have been eating primarily dark chocolate, I hate commercial chocolate now! Tonight while getting gas I grabbed a Hershey's bar. I ate one piece and it was gross! Too sweet! Grainy! Not satisfying at all!

I doubt that I will be giving up white chocolate anytime soon, I die for white chocolate, but milk chocolate is out! It is dark chocolate around here from now on! Woohoo!

It's amazing how good the foods that are GOOD for you really taste after you cleanse your system of the crap you have been poisoning yourself with. I honestly believe it is mind over matter for us. I have to tell myself why I shouldn't eat something so I won't eat it. I need to teach myself to feel how food makes me feel, that we eat for substance not enjoyment. I have a beautiful, healthy baby girl and a loving husband and they are my new source of enjoyment, I vow to reward myself with experiences with them, not with food. It will be a difficult change, but I can do it...and so can you!

Water about 80 ounces

Breakfast
1/2 banana
1/2 cup granola

Lunch
Slices of ham, turkey, and pepperoni
Sweet potato and Beet chips

Dinner
Salmon and avocado roll
Spicy tuna roll
Chicken satay with peanut sauce
Split order of pad Thai with hubby

Snack
1 piece of chocolate bar

Detox Days 11 & 12

Day 11, so far so good. We have increased our fruit and veggie intake by at least double, tripled our water intake, and eliminated all gluten and dairy. We are remember to take all of our supplements, with the exception of the probiotics post meal. Over all I feel great!

Today I chased my 15 month old around an indoor playground for 2 hours and for once she was ready to drop before I was!

"Detoxing the body, is like detoxing the soul" ...unknown (I am sure someone has said that right? I feel great!

So great in fact that Mother Nature decided to bless this nursing mother with her womanly gift, after a 2 year hiatus (almost to the day!) lucky me!

Day 11

Water 100 ounces
Breakfast

1/2 banana
1/2 cup cherries, grapes, blueberries
2 egg frittata with caramelized purple onion, mushrooms, spinach, and potato

Lunch
Whole Food lunch stop
Veggies, chilli on 1/2 taco shell, chicken, plantains
GF chocolate chip cookie

Dinner
Brown rice
White beans
1/2 chicken breast
1 cup left over chicken veggie soup

Snack
1/2 gluten free apple tart


Day 12

Well I can honestly say that I feel like a teenager again, not in a great way either! I woke up feeling cramps and aches in my belly and back, sore throat and swollen glands. Weighed myself this morning and I am down 7 pounds in 12 days, not bad. My hubby is down over 10 in 12 days. I'm jealous of the male metabolism :)

Needless to say today was a couch and movie kind of day! Oh, and a cheat night! Joanne told me to ask my body what it needed, then eat it. Today it wanted a burger!

Water 60 ounces
3 glasses of hot lemon with honey

Breakfast
1/2 banana
1/2 cup homemade granola

Snack
Orange
1/4 cup hummus with carrots
Apple

Lunch
2 burger patties with cheese (I was very hungry...and I needed the cheese...no bun)
Sautéed mushrooms and onions
French fries with chili (it took a lot to skip the cheese here!)

Snack
6 wings

So I fell off the wagon today by 2 slices of cheese and some red meat. I took my probiotics after I stuffed myself, and I don't feel too bad, yet. Back to the grind tomorrow! Hopefully this sore throat goes away too!

Detox Days 8, 9, 10

I am falling behind on blogging, sorry about that! Life has been crazy!

I am definitely feeling more energy and I am really considering eliminating 95% of the gluten from our diet.

Dairy is another story! I miss you cheese, and Super Bowl Sunday you will be honored!

Our menus this week have been unexciting as we had a lot of left overs from the weekend. Tonight was the first night that I made dinner, a veggie pad thai...it rocked!

I did venture into our local gluten free cafe today while running errands, Naturally Free Foods in Smithtown. What a great place! You can shop and eat home cooked Gluten, Dairy, and egg free foods all in one place! The only con I found was it was very pricy!

http://m.naturallyfreefood.com/

I purchased a 5 pound bag of gluten free all purpose flour, it was $24.99! After doing some research, I could have bought the same bag at the company's website for $14.99. I like to support small business, but I will be ordering future purchases online! There were other brands to choose from, but I am following a recipe for gluten free soft pretzels from this brand so I didn't want to mess around on my first gluten free experiment.

I will let you know how they come out!

Until then....have a great day!

Detox Day 6 and 7

So to follow up from my last post, the small addition of gluten definitely aggravated my gallbladder. The next morning I had terrible pain in my lower back and was very uncomfortable. It is crazy to think that such a small amount could affect your body in such a way!

I didn't log what we ate on Saturday, the weekend was quite busy. This weekend I made a gluten and dairy free feast for my husband's family. Below is my menu and a few recipes, all turned out yummy!

Day 6

Daytime food not logged, I do know we didn't stray and I remember dinner.

Dinner
3 egg frittata with onion, mushroom, spinach, and herbs
Oven roasted potato
1/2 apple
1/2 orange
Oj

Day 7

100 ounces water

No breakfast

Snack
Apple

No lunch

Appetizers
Shrimp cocktail
Spinach and artichoke hummus with multigrain gf chips and carrot chips
1/2 glass of wine

Dinner

Citrus glazed chicken
Crushed orange potatoes(substituted Earth's Balance Whipped Organic Butterlike Spread)
Roasted Carrots and Green beans
Red Quinoa and Edamame Salad
Garden Salad with beets and walnuts with GF Citrus dressing
Quinoa salad with thyme roasted grapes and roasted Spinach

Dessert
Almond Milk chocolate ice cream with a banana and blueberries.

Recipe links below. I made a few adjustments to these here and there, but mostly followed these guidelines.

http://www.kayotic.nl/blog/kays-citrus-chicken

http://www.kayotic.nl/blog/crash-hot-orange-potatoes

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetables-recipes/the-best-whole-baked-carrots

Detox Day 5 of 21

Quick notes...

Definitely feel more energy, hunger is more manageable.

Water 60 ounces

No breakfast, wasn't hungry

Snack
Banana
Turkey

Lunch
Brown rice tortilla with rice and beans

Dinner
Chicken
Yellow rice with peas carrots onions
2 Chinese dumplings

I am writing this the morning of Day 6, I'm not sure if it was the gluten in the 2 dumplings or the fact that my daughter was up almost hourly last night but I'm tired and cranky!

Detox Day 4 of 21

Day 4, I haven't caved yet! I'm very proud of myself. I'm usually a diet cheater, so this is a big deal.

I honestly don't feel like I am missing anything. Of course I want cheese, but I'm not missing it just yet ;)

I'm definitely feeling like I have more energy today. I like that, and want more!

Day 4

60 ounces of water

Breakfast
3 egg whites and 1 yolk scrambled with spinach
1 piece of bacon
1/2 banana
1/2 orange

Lunch
5 slices of turkey
Grapes
1/2 cup sweet potato chips

Dinner
Quinoa
1/2 chicken breast
Steamed broccoli and cauliflower
Sautéed green beans

Snack
Small dark chocolate pbcup
1/4 c granola


I didn't feel as hungry today, so I didn't snack as much. So far, 4 pound weight loss. I will take it!

Detox Day 3 of 21

Today I came to realize something I have always known but denied, I am an emotional eater! I use food to make me feel better.

Today was stressful, my daughter (15 months) needed to have blood work done for her 1 year check up, to rule out anemia, and to see if we can get to the bottom of a recurring rash. It was awful!

Her veins, like mine and my grandmother's are super tiny and hard to find, that coupled with the only liquid intake she has is breast milk (they claim she wasn't hydrated enough), made the venture very difficult. After several attempts to find a vein, the tech poked my baby and she was not happy. Her moving caused the tech to lose the vein and she tried to find it, with no luck. My heart is broken that I have to put her through this again.

Upon leaving the lab, we promised her chicken noodle soup, her fav, from our local diner. She fell asleep in route, so she never got her soup, but it did alert me to the fact that I am starting off on the wrong foot with food relationships with her. Food shouldn't be a reward, it should be a necessity. Sure everyone deserves a splurge every now and then, but not as often as we do.

I vow to make a change in my life so her life will be better, hence the detox! The second step to a healthier mommy and daddy!

Day 3

40 ounces Water...I got worse, not better! Tomorrow I will be better, I promise.

Breakfast
1 hard boiled egg
1/2 banana

Snack
Dark chocolate edamame

Lunch
5 slices turkey
1/4 cup strawberries

Snack
Dark chocolate and peanut butter

(don't judge, it was a rough day)

Dinner
1/2 apple
1/2 orange
Quesadilla on a brown rice tortilla with quinoa, mushrooms, onions, broccoli, cauliflower, refried beans and green chilies


Dinner was WAY better than I expected it! Here is the recipe...give it a try!

Brown Rice wrap, cut in half
Earths balance whipped organic spread
Refried beans with green chilies
Cooked quinoa
Chopped mushrooms and onions
Olive oil
Chopped broccoli and cauliflower

Sauté chopped veggies in oil until just tender, add beans and stir. Cook until beans start to brown a little.

Spread a small amount of Earth Balance spread on one side of brown rice tortilla and place in a hot non stick pan. Top with bean mixture, pat down until even, add quinoa and press into beans. Place other half of wrap on top. Brown, flip carefully, repeat. Slice into 3 wedges and enjoy!

So yummy, doesn't look great though!

Detox Day 2 of 21

So my day was slightly derailed this morning, which in turn has sort of set us up for a crazy day today.

We slept until 9am this morning (which is usually a good thing) and my precious angel needed to have blood drawn today and the lab closes at 11, resulting in a very rushed shower and get out morning.

Needless to say, we are behind on water consumption today and since we skipped breakfast and snack, with a late lunch to boot...we are hungry today!

Here is the break down:

80 oz water total

Breakfast...no

Snack...no

Lunch
5 slices fresh roasted turkey with tomato in a lettuce wrap
Sliced carrots with spinach artichoke hummus
Banana

Snack
Grapes
Coconut milk hot chocolate (not the best or worst thing I've ever had, but I needed a hot drink and I WANTED chocolate!)

Dinner

Quinoa stir fry with broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, onion, green beans, mushrooms, and 1/2 a chicken breast

Snack

1 scoop of Chocolate Almond Milk ice cream....yes I needed more chocolate!

Note: this stuff was AMAZING!

Detox Day 1 of 21

One of our family goals of 2013 is to become healthier and more active. Our first step we took a few months back by eliminating processed foods and fast food. We committed to only having "take out" twice a month, and never buy anything that had more than 5 ingredients unless the ingredients were all "real foods". I have to thank the blog http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/ for the inspiration!

Our next step is a detox. The holidays always bring a lot of sugar and more food splurges then we typically enjoy. With the help of Joanne Romanelli at Getting Real Health (http://www.gettingrealhealth.com/) my husband and I embark on our 21 day cleanse.

Joanne tailored a cleanse to our needs, I am a nursing mother of a toddler and my husband has a few health concerns to keep in mind. Our cleanse basically consists of a gluten, dairy free diet with lean meats and lots of fruits and veggies.

I will be journeying our experiences on this blog, sharing recipes and tip and tricks I discover along the way. I am excited to detox my body and gain more energy so that I can move on to the next goal...be more active!

Day 1... Not so bad! The biggest challenge is drinking 1/2 my weight in ounces of water...today 60 ounces total...and no I don't weigh 120 pounds!

Breakfast
Daily supplements and vitamins
Banana

Snack
2 hard boiled eggs

Lunch
Salad of fresh tomato and spinach with almonds and a splash of Italian dressing

Snack
1/2 apple

Dinner
Lemon, garlic chicken with capers and onions
Sautéed Brussels sprouts and carrots in coconut oil
1/2 baked sweet potato with cinnamon

Snack
1/2 cup coconut frozen non dairy ice cream
Strawberries

Over all, I think today was a success. I miss cheese and I must drink more water!

Just keep repeating to myself I want to be healthy so that I can be more active with my beautiful daughter. She is my anchor. I don't want to be the mom that sit and watches her play, I wanna play too!

Caramelized Pineapple Pork Chops

Tonight I got inspired by fresh pineapple. I love pineapple, but my husband is not a fan...so I set out to convert him. It worked!

This is a very easy to make dish that doesn't take long at all.

What you need:

2 Boneless Pork Cutlets, trimmed
1/2 a Fresh pineapple, cored and sliced no thicker than 1/2"
2 tablespoons Brown Sugar
3 tablespoons butter
Teriyaki marinade
Salt
Olive oil
Vegetable stock


At least an hour in advance, up to 24 hours, place your trimmed pork cutlets in a glass dish an marinate in a teriyaki marinade of your choice. We like Lawry's Teriyaki Marinade with Pineapple juice.

Heat a stainless sauté pan and melt butter. Once bubbling add pineapple. Sprinkle brown sugar and a pinch of salt over top. Reduce heat to medium high. Sauté 3-4 minutes, basting with the sauce as you go. Flip and repeat. Once caramelized, reduce to low until ready to serve. (Note: make extra...you'll want it on ice cream later with chopped cashews :))

Heat an additional skillet with olive oil, add your cutlets. Brown 4-5 minutes. Flip and Brown other side 3 minutes. Add your pineapples to the top of your pork and add a splash of vegetable stock (or water or other stock...or pineapple juice) and cover for 3-4 minutes or until pork is cooked to your liking. ( you could add the syrup as well but I thought it might be too much, I reserved mine for carrots another night)

I served with steamed asparagus and veggie quinoa. Super Yummy! Enjoy!