June 24, 2008
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quantum wellness ... or, in praise of cheeses.
I don't generally like to make announcements about what I'm going to do because you can be sure that, if I proclaim it, I will FAIL. Does anyone recall my big spring cleaning project in March/April? I PLANNED TO SPRING-CLEAN THE ENTIRE HOUSE.
I did the laundry room and three-quarters of the kitchen.
Um, yeah.
Well, despite that massive FAIL, I'm going to go ahead and share my present intentions, and that is to do a cleanse. In reality, I eat pretty damn healthy most of the time ... I avoid gluten. I stay away from nitrates. I eat loads of organic fruits and vegetables, locally grown when possible. I include lots of GOOD FATS in my diet, like avocado, salmon, and olive oil. I don't drink soda, diet or otherwise. Sweets aren't my thing, so sugar and high-fructose corn syrup rarely touch my lips (or enter my digestive system). I also do not care for french fries and whatever other deep-fried foods are ingested by the public en masse. Ooh, and one more thing ... I'm already dairy-free and have been for ten years.
Unless you count CHEESE.
That said, I do have two cups of coffee each morning and, generally, another one (OR TWO!) in the afternoon. Then, there's Stella Artois and Newcastle, and I tend to drink one (OR TWO!) with supper each night. Yummy-hoppy goodness. (In the words of Homer Simpson, "Homer no function beer well without," or "Here's to alcohol, the cause of—and solution to—all life's problems.") (An aside: When theother23 is out-of-town, we both go on the wagon. When he's not, we both have supper with our beer ... I mean, beer with our supper.) I'm sure that I commit other sorts of dietary infractions, which I don't intend to entertain at this moment, but their absence will be glaringly obvious once I omit them from my life, albeit temporarily. Or, not.
So, I've been thinking about this for a few months. LITERALLY. Then, I watched an episode of Oprah with guest, Kathy Freston, author of Quantum Wellness
. Ah-ha! I knew immediately that I wanted to follow her guidelines for the cleanse. I ordered the book from the library but, unfortunately, most of the library branches in the Southcentral system have not yet received their copy, so I'm still waiting ...
A few days ago, Dooce blogged about doing the cleanse as well. I mention this simply because I don't want to look like a copycat blogger. The fact that we are both starting the cleanse in June of 2008 is merely coincidence.
ANYHOW, I'm going to buy the book today (rather than wait on the library copy) and I intend to start the cleanse on Friday or Saturday of this week. (Maybe I can wean myself down to one daily cup of coffee before then to make THAT transition easier, as the caffeine will potentially be the biggest challenge. That and FOUR-YEAR AGED CHEDDAR.)
Is anyone else interested in doing this? Is anyone else ACTUALLY GOING TO DO IT? If so, let me know. I need other people to SUFFER with me while I attempt to get back into shape, like I was five years ago ...
My other Quantum Wellness posts:
Comments (26)
this cleanse would turn me into a raging twat. i admire your courage!
oh wow. i saw part of that oprah and that cleanse sounded tough. i generally eat whatever i want, and while that tends to be at least mostly healthy, it's still whatever i want without many if any restrictions.
that said, my mom is already not eating cheese and chocolate and my brother (although he doesn't live in town) is celiac and can't have gluten. so my familiar is familiar with this business of cutting things out. still. i think i lack the self-discipline.
I am really intrigued by this and read Oprah's blog when she followed the cleanse. I am really proud of you for committing to this and commend you.
The teen went vegan for a short time (although it seemed REALLY REALLY long at the time). It's incredibly, incredibly hard. It can absolutely be done, but it's hard (especially if you are a 16 year old vegetarian who doesn't like vegetables or beans or peanut butter. I KNOW.). I think if it were just me that I could do it, but it is difficult with all the kids around. I argue with myself in my head about it even, and say, of course it would be hard, but it would be good for them and why are you allowing them to dictate what you eat, etc.
I eliminated white rice and white pasta from my house this month. That was huge for me. We eat a lot of both of those things even though we always eat whole wheat bread and buns and rolls. Why white rice and pasta? I asked myself. I also ordered some whole grain baking mix and will not buy Bisquick anymore (we go through a lot of pancakes at my house) and that is going to be huge when the kids figure out that Bisquick is gone forever. So that will be my July - six kids telling me all month long that their rice tastes "weird" and why are the pancakes brown? I bet by August they don't notice anymore.
Small battles.
I do wish you well with your cleanse!
Good luck! I did a cleanse - lasted 5 days. It was a different one, though. Now I am just eating really healthy. No sugar, no wheat, no bad fats. I feel good.
@BettyC - I have been both vegetarian and vegan several times during my adult life. I don't have too much trouble with it and I always feel better when I'm not consuming animal products. Cheese just tastes so good. I miss it already. I think I'm going to eat aged-cheddar cheeseburgers every day this week ... Maybe.
And, oddly enough, I have no trouble with starchy stuff ... I don't really like or crave bread, rice, pasta, etc. It makes me feel icky.
I commend you for the changes you are making. I wanted X to do the cleanse with me too, but she'd never give up cheese ... or meat (although she was a vegan from age five through seven, by her own choice). She's totally up for going gluten free though.
wow. Yeah. I have been thinking about this a lot. I have no issues giving up the food, I think I could do that. You know, it's the diet pepsi. I have a severe caffeine addiction. SEVERE. the cleanse could be the best thing that ever happened to me but I do feel like my withdrawal symptoms would be bad and that I'd have to make a game plan. All that being said, I await blog posts regarding your journey. maybe I can get there!
@soNOTcool - I see way too many teens that think that going vegetarian means that they eat cheese pizza and nachos for all meals. It makes me nuts when people have strict food rules and have no interest in nutrition or preparation of food. So by "hard" I meant that arguments and attitudes escalated during the Vegan Phase. You are making a very conscious and informed chocie - that's different. Share your recipes!
i'd join you, but i need the occasional loathsome cheeseburger to inspire my art.
But i'm with you on that nutrition kick (mm, salmon, avocados), it just turns into a limp once in a blue moon when I NEED CHOCOLATE NOW.
but good luck. : )
@BettyC - I'm thinking that I might use 'pulse' to blog my meals. Or, maybe, twitter. I'll keep you posted!
i REALLY wanna do this. i will miss cheese immensely. but only for three weeks right? it doesn't help that i just went grocery shopping. speaking of cleansing, we went to a salad master cookware dinner, where they cook with no oil, water or egg. the food was fabulous! it's all about keeping the nutrients in your food when you cook. of course it costs an arm and a leg but i really want the stuff it was amazing. maybe i will just by the damn book and follow it the best i can. i'm a sucker for wine and cheese. i love bread too but have been pretty good about not buying it. if stuff isn't in the house i don't go get it. we'll see.. i'm off to find the book!
Gosh, I haven't had caffeine since October of 02, ish...It's been a long time.
@firephly - Oh, PLEASE do the cleanse with me. That would be SO awesome.
@Viewtiful_Justin - That is amazing. Good for you. I hope to let coffee back into my life, in small doses, after the cleanse is over. If I don't ... I'll feel kind of guilty about the expensive coffee maker that I purchased last year.
Yeah, that's true. I didn't really cut caffeine out for any reason, moral or dietary. I just got really sick once and decided that since I hadn't had any for a while, I'd just keep it out. And I find that I think more clearly and remember more now.
At least your cleansing with good quality beer!
Oh, I could never, ever, ever give up the aged cheddar. favoritest food ever. And beer. could never give that up either. no way. It hurts to think about it.
@soNOTcool -
i am gonna do it! ray says he will too but we'll see how long he lasts. he's usually good about eating whatever i make (i think it's because he doesn't have to make it!)
hey... I will buy that expensive coffee maker.. I have been looking for a good one! This way you won't have to ween back in.. see?
I have no idea what this cleanse is.. i am intrigued tho.
There's no way I'm doing the cleanse. But what I find coincidental is your mention of Dooce. I was listening to an interview with her on KUER (Utah public radio station) today. Thanks for directing me to her blog.
I wouldn't even be able to think about lasting, even though I could probably use it... There's no way we could afford it, though - and forget about getting everyone to go along.
Good luck though...
I admire your determination.
Good luck. My daughter saw a nutritionist who told her to think about going gluten-free. She tested negative for celiac though. We may try it later this summer. My son was recently diagnosed diabetic, and at the Children with Diabetes conference we went to, they had a whole gluten-free buffet, it didn't seem so bad after seeing all the choices.
@PhotoQuilter - Gosh, I don't know if you're aware, but both X and I have type 1 diabetes. (We now use insulin pumps.) If you ever have any diabetes-related questions or need someone to vent to, feel free to contact me!
@soNOTcool - Jimmy just started on the Minimed 722 pump a few months ago - it's been awesome. Kira tested negative for the antibodies. I was dx'd type 2 a week after Jimmy was dx'd type 1...we were in the hospital and he was practicing testing blood, tested mine and I was over 250. Talk about a crazy week! He uses novolog 1:11 ratio. I've been a sponge this past year, learning everything I can about diabetes. Now I have another source
Thanks
@PhotoQuilter - Gluten free isn't bad once you get used to it. I find it's helpful to focus on what I CAN eat rather than those darn biscuits and gravy I miss. *grin*
@soNOTcool - good luck!
@PhotoQuilter - We both use MiniMeds too, and X has the 722!! We've been really happy with the pumps and have not had any problems within the two years that we've used them.
That's crazy about being diagnosed at the same time!
I've done the lemon juice/cayenne pepper/maple syrup cleanse fast whateveritsreallyis before. I did feel amazing afterward but a friend who is a dietitian said its bad because it doesn't give you enough calories. I'm about to start working out again and I may be interested in doing a cleansing fast to jump start the process... I'll check it out.
RYC: No, I haven't been blogging anywhere else. I've been around... thinking about blogging and reading other blogs but not actually blogging myself. My usual. = )
I was a Vegan for a few years too, and that was the best I've ever felt. It's neat when you only eat things your body actually uses because you can tell when you need to refuel (because you get tired). I do miss that. I would have a really hard time without my beer (Sweetwater Blue... tastes like blueberries! I love Stella too though) and my coffee. Some days it's the only way I don't kill the kids I'm paid to watch. = )
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