The 2013 Food Lover's Cleanse Diary: Day 11
Sara Dickerman didn't just write the Food Lover's Cleanse--she's an active participant. Follow along with her every day as she reboots her diet. (No juice fasts allowed.)
It was another hectic day of skiing yesterday, this one more successful than the last. I was glad for the eggy breakfast, which tided me over well until my Tupperware lunch of steak salad. I did switch my snack--avocado doesn't travel well, so I had my crackers with a bit of almond butter. And then I'd cooked dinner the day before. I was glad for a hot warm bowl of vegetables with polenta on the side, though my husband picked through it and declared it a little cleanse-y for his taste.
As I was driving back from the mountain, I did a kind of accounting of how I'm doing with all the cravings we've been trying to curb or reduce during these two weeks. For the most part, I've felt more comfortable than deprived, but some of these urges are easier to wrangle than others. I've listed them in order how much I miss them, from least to most.
Coffee/black tea: I haven't dropped caffeine entirely, since I'm still drinking green and oolong teas, but there's a lot less of it in my day. After the first couple days of serious brain fog and headaches, my mood has been good and energy high. The only downside is that since I'm sleeping better, I have less time for middle of the night reading. I still managed, however to finish Louise Erdrich's The Round House which was top-notch.
Sugar/sweets: There are all sorts of ways in which my sugar consumption had crept up in my diet, ways that have nothing to do with delicious dessert: there were the many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches I'd taken to eating for last minute lunches, there was the sweetened cold cereals I put together for quick breakfast, and there were those rando Trader Joe's purchases that left the cupboards cluttered with plastic buckets of, say chocolate covered raisins, or mini meringues. Weirdly enough, I don't miss it much. Maybe it's the small doses I've gotten in the chocolate every couple of days. Or perhaps those sturdy, fruit plus fiber-n- protein breakfasts we've been having (hello muesli!) have really helped my pangs for pick-me-up sugar. Ditto the substantial, planned afternoon snacks. I still plan to bake cookies and enjoy desserts when they're worth it, but I'm hoping that I can tune down the sweetness elsewhere.
Refined starches: This one has surprised me. On past cleanses I've dutifully avoided white bread, pasta and baked goodies, but my desire for them grated at me like dust in my eye. This time around, I certainly found it hard to visit the bakery, but the truth is at home, the white flour cravings took off after the first couple of days, too. Do I expect them to come zooming back once I'm not avoiding refined starches altogether? Yes. But I've got a couple strategies in mind. Among them, during these two weeks, my kids tried and found red rice and white quinoa acceptable, if not lovable. If I can work a couple of whole grains like these into the kid rotation, then it will mean one or two fewer white-starch meals a week.
Alcohol: I miss you. I miss you mostly because I like sharing you with friends. Let's see if I can do that and share a little less of you.
Dairy: I'm a little surprised that this is the craving I still feel most acutely, though it might actually be a craving for saturated fat masquerading as a dairy urge. I want a latte less for the coffee inside than for the luscious foam. I want to use parmesan to add a little umami-salty deliciousness to all those veggies we're eating. And I want Upland Cheese Company's Rush Creek Reserve because it is one of the single most delicious things I've ever spooned into my mouth.
And my most acute craving: spontaneity--okay, this isn't really a dietary craving, but it is what I've missed most. It's clear that planning makes for healthier eating in general, but my desire to wing it an improvise is deep-seated. I'm still trying to work out the balance.