"Be what you are. This is the first step toward becoming better than you are."
It's been 7 days since my last post. I meant to write each day, but the days got away from me and now, here we are, on day 9. I won't go through each day since my last post, but will give you a summarized version to show how I got to today.
Days 3, 4, 5 were pretty much cut-and-paste from days 1 and 2. As the week progressed, and since I am tracking my calories, I was realizing just how little I was eating. Now, you've seen my pictures, it looks like a lot of food. However, in calories, on some days I was barely breaking 1000. Did you know that 2 cups of spinach has 5 calories? Or that an entire zucchini has less than 10? Even with the grains and proteins, I just wasn't getting the calories my body needs for proper function. I was head-achy, kind of spaced out, not really myself.
My body uses about 2900 on a day without exercise, and a deficit of over 1500 calories per day, day after day, just didn't work for me.
So, I made a decision to modify my plan. This 28-day kick start is just that, a temporary flush of my body to get into optimal fat-burning mode for a long-term weight loss goal. Would I be a failure if one week in, I couldn't hack it any longer? Maybe. But, I chose not to label myself that way. I decided not to be hard on myself. I decided that modification was certainly better than completely stopping what I was doing. It would be really easy to transition completely to my regular weight-loss diet, very healthy and beneficial in its own right. But, I really want to give this my full effort. So, I added back wheat and vinegar into my diet. Both in very limited amounts, but adding them back in gives me the little boost I needed and more flexibility in my diet. I know it means my detox won't be perfect, but it will still be good for me. I have to be confident in my decisions and know that for me, it was the right one to make.
So, here I am on day 9. I started a detox cleanse drink yesterday. I put a bottle of it into 32 oz of water and it gently works to really detox my system, internally...if you catch my drift. You can break it up 2-3 days per week, or do 7 straight days. It's completely natural and should really enhance my results. Did you know that the average person carries around 15-20 pounds of eh-em, material in their large intestine? Gross, right? Here's to getting the crap out of our lives...literally!
So far, I've definitely noticed some physical changes. My stomach has visibly flattened, my arms have slimmed, and I don't have that blown-up feeling like I used to. My whole body feels less weighed down, less full. It's hard to fully explain, but it's really just a lighter feeling. My clothing is looser and my stomach isn't doing that muffin-top thing like it was.. I've gotten a lot more rest which I know is helping as well. My skin feels great and my complexion is clear. This is likely a combination of using some great skin care products from Arbonne, along with the internal detox...definitely an inside and out attack, which I am winning!
I didn't weigh myself or take measurements when I started. I know I should have...but so it goes. I know "about" what I weighed, and did take lots of pictures at least.
On a personal note, I am excited to share that I'm in qualification for District Manager with Arbonne and should reach it this month. The film I co-produced "LA Paranormal" is showing at the Idyllwild Film Festival this month and is getting some great buzz. I really think 2011 is gonna be a GREAT year. Looking forward to what's in store!
Until tomorrow....
