Regimen

Health is not a race.

Today, I throw everything I did for the last month out the window.

Let’s just say I feel like garbage at the end of this cheat day. I may eat like [the new] normal tomorrow and forget about the “celebrating.” It’s not authentic or worth it. I didn’t realize how great I felt until now.

Here’s what my cheat day looked like:

• Breakfast: 1 Venti Iced Vanilla Latte, 1 cinnamon swirl coffee cake
• Lunch: Pepperoni pizza (4 slices), Sugar Free Red Bull
• Snack: Leftover pizza (2 slices)
• Dinner: Buffalo Wild Wings - 8 boneless chicken wings, potato wedges, ranch dressing, 2 tall Blue Moon beers
• Snack: Popcorn, large Mr. Pibb (at a movie)

I wasn’t feeling too bad until after dinner, where things went downhill quickly. My digestive system/stomach is aching, churning and upset with me for eating this way.

Today, I throw everything I did for the last month out the window.

First thing this morning, I went to Starbucks. I’m not as big a fan as I used to be, but during the summer I love a cold, iced beverage. So I bought an Iced Venti Vanilla Latte and a Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake. These are my default choices at Starbucks. It’s what I always get. And today is a cheat day, so I’m doing whatever I want.

So I take a sip of this latte and cannot taste any coffee. None. There must not be any espresso in this thing, right? It’s quite possible I just took a sip from a cup of raw, liquid sugar. I haven’t had a hint of sugar in 30 days and now I’m drinking it in its purest form.

And I don’t like it. It’s too much. Do I really want to reacquaint myself to sugar? If I’m cheating with anything, do I even want to cheat with sugar? A funny thing is going on inside my brain. I know that I am supposed to like this because I have liked it in the past, but that feeling isn’t matching up with my current feeling.

I gaurantee people go through this on a regular basis. They really don’t like the junk food they are eating as much as they think they do. But it’s the norm, so they continue eating. This is exactly what brought me to doing the Paleo Challenge in the first place. I knew I didn’t really like what I was doing. 

Food is a mental, emotional game. Discipline yourself to learn what good choices are and make them 9 out of 10 times. You will not be sorry.

Killed it! Tomorrow I celebrate.

• Breakfast: 3 eggs, 3 bacon strips, coffee
• Lunch: Chicken salad (chicken breast, 1 crushed bacon strip, lettuce, cucumbers, red onions, avocado/olive oil dressing), iced green tea
• Snack: 3 hard-boiled eggs, 1 apple, almonds
• Dinner: 2 chicken breasts, asparagus, blueberries
• Snack: 1 apple, almonds

I almost had bacon for dinner, too, in favor of day 30 of 30. But I held back. Wanted to finish in control. Restraint. Calm strength. Determination. Perseverance. Discipline. Half-seriousness.

I tried the brussel sprouts again for dinner and they were just awful. Terrible. I couldn’t eat more than two. I really want to like vegetables more, but it’s tough to get outside my comfort zone (tomatoes, peppers, onions, asparagus, green beans, cucumbers and broccoli) without gagging. I guess my comfort zone could be worse. I won’t pretend to like a wide variety of vegetables. Most I have tried are boring and rotating a select few gets boring, too.

• Breakfast: 3 eggs, 3.5 bacon strips, 1 banana, coffee
• Lunch: 1 hamburger, asparagus, cucumbers, iced green tea
• Snack: 1 hamburger, 1 apple, almonds
• Dinner: 2 hamburgers, 2 brussel sprouts, blueberries
• Snack: 1 Larabar, coffee

A lot of beef today. Trying to work with what I have in the freezer. Tomorrow will be all chicken.

Working on a big summary of my 30-Day Paleo Challenge that I will post tomorrow or Friday. Also some information about what’s next! Get pumped!

• Breakfast: 2 eggs, 3 bacon strips, strawberries, coffee
• Lunch: Chicken salad (chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, cucumber slices, avocado/olive oil dressing, iced green tea
• Snack: 1 Larabar, almonds, blueberries
• Dinner: Steak, shrimp, 1/2 lemon, 1 banana