It's time for our monthly coffee date, co-hosted by my friends Coco and Deborah. Stop by their blogs to visit the rest of the linkup.
In the meantime, pull up a chair and let's catch up. It's been a busy month!
If we were having coffee, I would tell you...
My detox was successful. For two weeks I focused on eating healthy food & drinking enough water while eliminating the foods that are most likely to cause inflammation (soy, dairy, gluten, eggs, corn, peanuts), as well as caffeine, alcohol, and (added) sugar. It was challenging but satisfying, and the first two days were especially tough.Things I noticed:
- I slept much better - I got 8-9 hours of sleep each night during the detox!
- I had more energy
- My "brain fog" reduced notably
- I lost three pounds and one percentage point of body fat
Things I hoped for that didn't happen:
- My rosacea didn't change noticeably; I was hoping it might calm down a bit with all of those inflammatory foods gone
- Phlegm didn't change either; I thought I might have less mucus in my sinuses
- I didn't have an "off-the-charts" phenomenal level of energy like some people seem to experience, just a modest increase
It's been another two weeks since the end of the detox, and so far I've added back eggs and peanuts. I've lost another pound, too. Four pounds may not sound like much, but for a vertically challenged person like me, it's almost a whole dress size! My clothes are fitting much better.
If we were having coffee, I would tell you...
My fondness for Pret A Manger has grown this month. I've always enjoyed the food at Pret and tend to treat myself to lunch and snacks there on the days I have to commute to DC for work (90 minutes one way... whomp, whomp).During the detox, I realized allergens are clearly labeled on everything and they have so many options that fit into a restrictive elimination food plan.
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If we were having coffee, I would tell you...
I purged more subscription boxes. In March I told you about purging many of my subscription boxes. This month I continued that purge:
Now I'm down to Stride Box and an occasional Picky Box. I think I'll be able to let go of those soon, too.
- Hello Fresh and Blue Apron had been on hold since March; I went ahead and canceled them since we haven't missed them.
- Stitch Fix went on hold. My long-time stylist left and I don't have the patience to go through the learning period with another stylist. I stuck it out the first time this happened and it took 3-4 fixes before the new stylist really understood my style and what fits me.
Now I'm down to Stride Box and an occasional Picky Box. I think I'll be able to let go of those soon, too.
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| This was my final fix from Jenn in April. The box I got last week was way off. |
If we were having coffee, I would tell you...
If we were having coffee, I would tell you...
We should catch up more often! Let's plan to have coffee again on July 7.
That is great that your detox went so well. Great feeling! Who has time for podcasts?? Thanks for linking up today for the coffee date
ReplyDeleteI like to listen to podcasts during that long DC commute :)
DeleteI did a detox like that at the beginning of the year. It was really good for me! However, May got to be overwhelming and I decided that I needed to focus my energy other places. When I let those things back into my life my resting heart rate went up over 10 points and I don't sleep as well. I'm sorry to hear that some of the things you were hoping for didn't happen! That's frustrating but I am sure there were still benefits!
ReplyDeleteWow, 10 points! That really tells you something. I hope that June is less overwhelming.
DeleteThere were definitely still benefits to the detox, and I haven't given up hope on the others. I hope with more time of clean eating I'll see some more progress. Two weeks is a short time to undo all of the inflammatory damage I must have done over the past few years.
I'm glad our cleanse went well even though it didn't fix everything. I never got into subscription boxes because the ones I'd like most are the ones I need the least -- the snack boxes. I've been debating trying Hello Fresh or the like. Interested to see you quit!
ReplyDeleteAlthough I ultimately quit Hello Fresh & Blue Apron, we used them for 16 months and liked them. Eventually we got tired of them, though. They are worth trying out, and easy to quit if you don't like them.
DeleteI'm impressed with the detox. Great job and good to know what changed and what didn't...not that I plan on doing one any time soon.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the podcast suggestion. I'm going to try it out.
I hope you enjoy it :)
DeleteSo glad you detox went well! So impressive
ReplyDeleteThank you, Patrick! It was mostly about eating food as close to its natural state, just like you suggested last month. It was unsettling to realize how much processed junk I was eating.
DeleteI am weak. I couldn't give up caffeine or alcohol. When my liver enzymes were elevated from my RA meds, I had to give up alcohol for a while. It was fine, but I missed my wine. I did lose a couple pounds tho. Good for you for sticking to it!
ReplyDeleteYou aren't weak, Wendy! You gave up wine while you needed to. Now your levels are good and you can enjoy it again.
DeleteI have not tried Stitch Fix, but I'm not sure it would be a good "fit" for me LOL I used to do fashion consulting (very part time), and with my art geek sense of style I don't know if I really have a specific "style" a stranger would be able to figure out. At least that's my excuse LOL Great job on your detox...I did a mini detox last fall (I think?) where I drank only plain water (no added flavorings were allowed) and omitted foods with added sugar. It was surprisingly easier than expected, but I didn't really notice any substantial results. I probably should have done it for a longer time period.
ReplyDeleteThat's cool that you used to do fashion consulting, Kim! It definitely sounds like you would be a better style consultant for yourself than someone from Stitch Fix would be. I think I'm going to rely on picking things out from Zappos and Amazon Fashion for a while, knowing I can send them back for free if they don't work.
DeleteYou might not have noticed any substantial results from your mini detox because you didn't really have much in your body that needed detoxing. I suspect if it wasn't hard to avoid added sugar, you were probably already eating pretty healthily.
Congrats on a successful detox - that takes so much discipline to commit to, kudos!
ReplyDeleteI have never tried Stitch Fix - I currently do StrideBox and Hello Fresh and they're great for me, but getting new clothes is definitely appealing!
Thank you, Janelle! It is fun to get that StrideBox in the mail every month. They often have some cool things. I like the way they put a new adjective in front of your name each month on the mailing label, like "brisk" or "quick."
DeleteI have zero subscription boxes but they pull me...It's probably too dangerous for me! Love that you included a podcast too- I will have to check it out- sounds great!
ReplyDeleteSubscription boxes can be dangerous! It's been a real process to wean myself off some of them.
DeleteI am looking forward to checking out the two podcasts you mentioned this month. Especially Girls Gone WOD. Sounds cool!
Glad your detox went so well! I am about to put my Stitch Fix on hold - they keep changing stylists and I don't have the patience. The Living Experiment podcast sounds interesting - going to have to check out!
ReplyDeleteChanging stylists is so frustrating. I don't understand why the new stylists can't seem to get what I like and what fits by looking at my old fixes and what I kept/liked. I've gotten 48 fixes over the years - that's a lot of data!
DeleteLosing 4 pounds is amazing. Kudos to you for being dedicated enough to stick to the detox plan.
ReplyDeleteThank you Lacey & Meranda!
DeleteI would love to try a detox but I have to be honest and say that I just cant give up my wine for that long. Lol It's what keeps me sane! I really have been thinking of trying Hello Fresh or Blue Apron ...which did you prefer? The only subscription box I have right now is StrideBox and I really enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteWe liked both Hello Fresh and Blue Apron fairly equally. Each week I would look at the recipe options for both of them and pick the box that had the more appealing recipes for that particular week. We probably chose Hello Fresh a little more often than Blue Apron.
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