Day 2

First to share a few things I learned yesterday.

#1. It is hard to drink as much water as I should. I estimate I drank about 64 oz of water, maybe a little less. Here is what is written in a recommended PDF file:

How Much Water Is Enough?
So, are you drinking enough water? A non-active person requires half their
body weight in ounces per day. For example, if you weigh 160 lbs, you would need to drink 80 ounces of water per day. For every 25 pounds you exceed your ideal weight, add an extra 8 ounces of water. An active person needs 2/3 of their body weight in ounces per day. So if you weigh 160 lbs, you would now need 106 ounces of water/ day. 

Now without giving away my actual weight (I'm still nervous about sharing too many details) I should be drinking much more than 64 oz. However, drinking what I did yesterday resulted in way more bathroom trips than I was comfortable with. That is my issue. I'm sure I'll eventually deal with it, but right now, I'm not liking that side effect.

#2 This is a big tip that I came up with . If I eat my main meal midday then that means I don't have dinner with my family. I've decided to try this as much as possible to follow the schedule, but some nights I do want to have dinner with my family. So I'll switch out my shake meals on those days. In the meantime for the nights I don't eat with my family, the easiest way to resist temptation and to not feel deprived of the food they are eating is for me to cook something for them that I don't like. So last night I made them a tuna fish casserole. I hate tuna. Made it much easier for me to resist that temptation.

#3 Coffee. This is a big one for me. I know ideally to really follow this schedule and cleanse my body of toxins that prevent me from losing weight, I need to get rid of the caffeine. However, coffee for me is much more than just a caffeine hit. It is part of life. It is what I do in the morning to spend time with my husband. A ritual. Getting up and making coffee and sitting in the morning drinking coffee with Les before we start our day has been something we have done for years. Afternoons we often take a break and reconnect again over coffee. I love to go out with friends and meet in a coffee shop to visit and catch up on life. So how do I give this up??

I have been trying for the past two weeks to cut back. I quit having my afternoon coffee and have only been drinking coffee in the mornings (usually two cups). With the first day of the cleanse I confess to drinking one cup of coffee. Only one cup.

Today, day 2, I poured 2/3 of a cup of coffee in my mug, and then promptly forgot it on the counter when I headed out the door to my water aerobics class. By the time I got back my sweet hubby had dumped my coffee down the drain. He's trying to be helpful. But by 12:30 my entire head felt like it was in a vice grip. I just couldn't stand it anymore, so when hubby made coffee for his afternoon cup, I had one too. The headache quickly subsided. Now I know that what I'm feeling is caffeine withdrawals. And I know I need to work through this. But I also know myself and I think this is the key to success for me. If I cannot think, move or even breathe because of pain in my head, I'm going to look at this program and put all the blame on the program. Which, of course, would be wrong and ultimately self-destructive.

So I will try not to drink coffee. I will try to work through the pain. I will try.

Day 2 is almost over. Time to head home and make dinner for  the family. I had lunch early because my water aerobic class had their monthly birthday potluck this morning. I ate salad, roast chicken, fruit, and only one slice of Gerta's wonderful bread. Considering I usually eat two slices and take home two more to eat during the day, this was a HUGE sacrifice for me. Gerta is from Germany and makes the best homemade German bread. Her pretzels are even more amazing. Thankfully it was the bread she brought today. Oh and I had carrot pate. Talk about a wonderful low calorie food! Grated carrot mixed with lemon juice and sunflower seeds and eaten on a leaf of romaine lettuce. And one tiny piece of Miss Amy's fudge brownies. Just a tiny piece. Again, usually I eat 2-3 pieces of this delicacy! So I survived my first potluck on the cleanse. Considering Guam is the place where fiestas abound (fiesta = FOOD) it is something to be concerned about.

Tonight I have a ladies night out to watch an interesting play at the university. No food involved. I'll bring my water and an Isa-Delight to slowly savor.