Advocare Day 6 - morning

175.6! Every morning when I weigh myself I'm blown away. I knew I'd lose some weight doing this but I never dreamed it would be this fast and this consistent. It's just craziness. Last night I was telling Sean about how I try to remain positive but still mentally prepare myself to hit a plateau or maybe even gain a pound. I'm more than halfway through the 10 day cleanse and things are going great! I'm very pleased with my results so far!

Advocare Day 5 - bedtime

I'm going to take a break from trying to figure out Sean's stupid phone for a bit and talk about my 24-day challenge! Today I felt like I had more energy today. I probably could've done without my 3pm Spark but I wanted it, so I drank it.

I ordered the Omegaplex and a tub of fruit punch Spark. That came today. It'll be interesting to see if I notice anything from the Omegaplex. I've already made some collard greens and kale for the weekend. Plus, we got a LOT of fresh, fabulous salad greens in our happy box tonight. AND we got a recipe for roasted turnips. I'm excited about that because we've gotten several in recent weeks and I have no clue what to do with them or how to prepare them.

I'm ready for the weekend!


Day 5
Breakfast - Apple
Snack - hard boiled egg and approx 20 raw almonds (left my carrots at home today - boo!)
Lunch - turkey burger, roasted delicate squash, brown jasmine rice w/hot sauce. I brought steamed broccoli but it tasted funky. We weren't watching it and the water evaporated and when I went to clean the pot, it had this brown stuff in it? I have no clue where that came from b/c the pot is stainless steel.
Snack - hard boiled egg, spark
Dinner - turkey burger, roasted delicata squash, brown jasmine rice and hot sauce, and sauteed swiss chard
Snack - no snack!

Advocare - My meals so far

At Heather’s request, here is what I’ve eaten so far. Depending on what we get in our Happy Box today, may diet may vary next week. I know that I have Swiss Chard & Collard Greens at home that need eaten so I’ll be eating those for the next couple days! I sure hope we get some more delicata squash because I love it. If not, I’ll be buying some!

I only include the Spark b/c it’s replacing my normal morning coffee and the fiber drink. In addition to those 2 things, my 10-day cleanse includes 3 herbal vitamins before bed and days 4-10 include 2 small probiotic pills ½ before breakfast. I got a promotional deal, but normally, you would also take some Omegaplex supplements after dinner. I ordered these separately and they should be arriving today. The second part of the challenge (the last 14 days) things will be different.

Please keep in mind that I’m still nursing twins in the morning and at dinner and bedtime. So my calories needs are still a little higher than compared to a woman my age/weight/height who isn’t nursing. I just eat as I’m hungry and if I’m still hungry after a meal or snack, I eat more veggies or protein.

Day 1
Breakfast – fiber drink, then half our later an apple
Snack (around 10:30) – hard boiled egg and approx 20 raw almonds, Spark
Lunch - HUGE salad w/canned tuna packed in water w/balsamic vinegar & EVOO dressing
Snack (around 3pm) – hard boiled egg and approx 10 carrot sticks (we don’t do baby carrots), Spark
Dinner – chicken breast (Sean fried it in a tiny bit of oil w/Montreal seasoning), salad w/balsamic vinegar & EVOO dressing and brown jasmine rice w/hot sauce
Snack – apple

On any given day, a typical salad for me may have any combination of these ingredients:
Random greens – romaine, spinach, mizuna, green leaf or anything else we get in our happy box)
Radishes
Cucumbers
Tomato
Frozen peas (thawed)
Artichoke hearts (canned in water)
Avocado
Hearts of palm (one of our favorites but these are a treat b/c they’re like $3.59/can)
Sugar Snap peas

Day 2
Breakfast – fiber drink, then half our later an apple
Snack – hard boiled egg and approx 20 raw almonds, Spark
Lunch - HUGE salad w/balsamic vinegar & EVOO dressing and a chicken breast (same as dinner last night)
Snack – hard boiled egg and approx 10 carrot sticks, Spark
Dinner – chicken breast (Sean fried it in a tiny bit of oil w/Montreal seasoning), salad w/balsamic vinegar & EVOO dressing and brown jasmine rice and hot sauce
Snack – apple

Day 3
Breakfast – fiber drink, then half hour later an apple
Snack – hard boiled egg and approx 20 raw almonds, Spark
Lunch – Baked salmon filet sprinkled with rosemary salt, steamed cauliflower and zucchini sprinkled with garlic garlic (Tastefully Simple) and brown Jasmine rice w/hot sauce
Snack – 2 hard boiled eggs, approx 10 carrot sticks and approx 20 raw almonds (hungrier than normal today), Spark
Dinner – Baked salmon filet (same as lunch) steamed cauliflower and zucchini sprinkled with garlic garlic (Tastefully Simple), brown Jasmine rice w/hot sauce, and some roasted delicate squash
Snack – no snack


Day 4
7:30am – Slam! (never had any Spark the rest of the day)
Breakfast – Apple
Snack – hard boiled egg and approx 20 raw almonds
Lunch – baked turkey burger (homemade) HUGE salad w/balsamic vinegar & EVOO dressing and some roasted delicata squash
Snack – Hard boiled egg (didn’t eat the egg until 4 and then, it was only b/c I never know how late my dinner is going to be b/c of the babies and didn’t want to be STARVING all evening)
Dinner – medium salad w/balsamic vinegar & EVOO dressing, a turkey burger and approx ½ c brown jasmine rice w/hot sauce
Snack – no snack

Advocare Day 5 - morning

I was down another pound today. Technically, the scale said 176.4 BUT I decided to weigh myself without clothes. Since I haven't been doing that all along, I'm only counting 1 lb. I really can't believe that today I'm halfway through the 10 day cleanse! This time next week I'll be into the second 14 days of the challenge and doing things a bit differently.

A few people have asked me if this is a "running to the bathroom" cleanse. No, it is not. And I was a little concerned about that since I don't have constipation issues AT ALL. I'm just going to leave it at that but if you have more questions just ask. I'm not afraid to talk about it! I will say that I'm definitely going to the bathroom more frequently from the additional water I'm drinking. And that's saying a LOT because I'm normally a heavy water drinker.

Also, I was talking to my mom about this cleanse. I was already working on cutting out dairy, so I was pretty much there when I started this. I already limit the carbs we eat and we only white bread when out at restaurants. We only buy whole wheat bread at home, except for special occasions. As for sweets, I did occasionally have those and would definitely go in spurts with them, but they aren't something we regularly keep in our house. Plus, I already eat tons of veggies and complex carbs. So for me, this 24-day challenge is really about cutting out any crap I was already eating, and adding the supplements.

I feel good about making it the rest of the way!

Advocare Day 4 - morning

I have a lot to say but its not easy to blog on my phone so I'll just say this - 178.1! Down 5 pounds! I'm trying not to get too excited but am just focusing on one day at a time. With normal dieting, I often lose 10 pounds and then get cocky and that causes me to slack off and gain it back. No more!

Advocare Day 3 - morning

I was down another pound today - 179.2. Our scale is digital and it tells you your weight to the tenth of a pound. I've never paid attention to that since I can't remember that tenth of a pound in my head. But since I'm tracking this, I'm going to start paying attention to it. I also always weigh myself twice to make sure I get an accurate reading. I'm guessing other people have similar weigh-in rituals?

Today's fiber drink wasn't bad. I won't be drinking it again till Monday (it's part of the plan) and I won't miss it. Although this isn't hard for me, I think about when I'm done with the 10-day cleanse part and can have oatmeal again!

I was reading some comments on one of my current favorite blogs - Fed Up with Lunch: The School Lunch Project. The anonymous blogger, Mrs. Q, is a teacher who's eating school lunch every day for a year. She has learned a lot through this process and now wonders if she has a gluten allergy. One of her commenters said they had some skin issues that actually turned out to be some food sensitivities - even for things like soy, spelt, rye and wheat. This person was already vegan so I can't imagine all the diet restrictions they have! I have never had any testing to determine what my problem is but I'm definitely curious.

We'll see how today goes since Madeline woke up at 12:30. I was a wimp and nursed her back to sleep. I definitely feel more tired than I did yesterday at this time. I only brought 2 Sparks with me to work. I like to save them for 10 and 3 but I may have to have my morning on early today.

Advocare Day 2 - bedtime

Today was great! My energy didn't start to wane until 8 which is an improvement. Dinner was chicken, brown jasmine rice and steamed cauliflower and zucchini. I had hot sauce on the rice. That's a combo I just thought of today and I LOVE IT!!!

Tonight, Sean was snacking on swiss cheese. Then he had a grilled ham & cheese with tomato sauce. It all looks and smells so good! It's funny how much you want something when you can't have it!

Advocare Day 2 - lunch

I guess I should talk a little bit about my goals with this 24-day cleanse. First and foremost, I want to lose weight. I don’t even really know what is typical or average for someone who follows the 24-day challenge as prescribed. I’d like to lose 15. We’ll see. Secondly, I want more energy. Other than one person I know, I’ve heard several stories about how great people feel after doing this – they even wake up without an alarm clock. How great would that be? And last but not least, I’m hoping a cleanse will flush my system of whatever is causing my eczema.

I keep going back and forth about actually admitting my weight. After all, it’s just a number, right? I don’t make a secret of the fact that I’m 50 lbs overweight. So anyone who has a general idea of what a woman who is 5’3’’ should weigh should be able to do to the math. But I’ll save you the trouble and come right out with it – 183. Well, that’s what I weighed yesterday morning. And yes, this is my pre-pregnancy weight. I had lost all my baby weight by the time M&E were 3 months old. So there you have it – 130 is what all those stupid weight charts say I should weigh. But I’d be thrilled w/150. I’m confident this 24-day challenge will be a good kick start for me.

Today's lunch was another chicken breast, brown jasmine rice with hot sauce (unbelievably good), and a small salad (exactly the same as yesterday's minus the tuna). I've only had 1 spark and feel pretty good. My energy is surprisingly good despite only having had 1 spark and NO COFFEE. Also, no headache yet today. That makes me wonder if it wasn't sinus pressure yesterday. I made sure to use the neti pot this morning.

Advocare Day 2 - morning

I decided to just drink my fiber drink normally today and it went much better. But as I was drinking it, I couldn't help but wonder if it's really necessary. I mean, I'm already regular. Do I need more fiber? But the whole point of this is to "cleanse" so I'll carry on.

I was down 3 lbs this morning when I weighed myself. I had pretty much expected to see a loss this morning since I knew I was retaining water from all the junk I had on Sunday. You can't eat a McGriddle, KFC, tons of cashews and corned beef without retaining about 10 lbs of water! At least I can't!

Sean is going to the grocery today to get me some salmon and more fruit for me and the babies (they love grapes). I don't want to bore myself by eating the same thing everyday.

Advocare Day 1 - bedtime

Dinner was another fabulous salad and a chicken breast. Today wasn't bad at all. I definitely feel like this is doable :) I'm so proud of myself for staying away from the donuts. There were a few times this evening that I saw something and wanted to eat but realized I couldn't before it was too late.

I'll probably take a Tylenol early tomorrow and see if I can ward off the caffeine-withdrawal headache. I can't afford another semi-productive day right now.

Advocare Day 1 - afternoon

I have a headache. But I can't tell if it's from lack of caffeine or sinus pressure. I was planning on saving my second Spark for around 3 but I have to leave to go pick up my car (finally) so I decided to drink it early since I needed it. I couldn't focus because of the headache. Despite the annoying headache, I still very motivated!

Advocare Day 1 - lunch

I had a Spark around 10. Normally, all I drink is black coffee, water and unsweetened tea. But the Spark was ok. It reminded me of Tang but made with artificial sweetener. And just like Leisa said, I felt mentally alert. I liked how it made me feel. I'm glad I brought two because I plan on having another this afternoon. I have a mild headache that I can only guess is from lack of coffee.

Lunch today is the most fabulous salad. We got spinach, mizuna, green leaf lettuce and radishes in our happy box. I also have the last tomato from our garden, cucumbers, avocado, green peas, black & kidney beans, artichoke hearts and tuna. I’m wondering about the beans though since they’re on the “favorable carbs” list. I would never consider beans a carb.

Ever since I discovered balsamic vinegar and olive oil for salad dressing, that's all I've eaten at home. And after reading The Kind Diet, I started adding in a bit of ume plum vinegar.

Right now, I feel confident about success.

Advocare Day 1 - early morning

Today I started the Advocare 24-day challenge. And today, there are Krispy Kreme donuts over near the breakroom. Fortunately, it’s early and I’m feeling very dedicated to this cleanse and motivated to give this my full attention. The fiber drink didn’t taste bad but I did almost gag. I think it’s b/c you’re drinking something that has texture. I think I might do better if I just drink it instead of chugging it. I’ve NEVER been a good chugger.

I need to find out if I can have a Spark since I can’t have my coffee. My mentor chic also said no tea (even my decaf green tea) because it has too many carbs. I didn’t think it did but I wasn’t going to argue. Well, I checked and it has zero carbs. So I’m going to revisit that with her.

I'm prepared for dinner and ready to do this!