"Nothing works. My hormones are out of whack."
"I've tried everything."
"I just can't lose the weight."
All the different refrains we hear (and have even given ourselves) over the years as the weight goes up, our energy levels go down and sheer frustration sets us off.
We started the 21 Day Detox several years ago after I read several articles and books and threw out to Corry, "we should try this..."
So we did.
This year, we decided, why not invite a bunch of other people along for the ride between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Perfect time to do a Detox, right between the holidays.
Things I didn't do during this detox:
- Count Calories - nope
- Get on the scale - nope
- Starve - nope
Things I did do:
- Water - yes
- Lemon-Cayenne water - yes (sometimes I had to remake this as I'd accidentally left someone's coffee K-cup in the coffee maker. Lemon-Cayenne Coffee is NOT appetizing.)
- Veggies - yes
- Alcohol - no
- Sugar - no (I don't do sugar normally, but made VERY sure I didn't have any hidden sugar anywhere either.)
- Gluten - no
- Fasting - yes
- Low impact cardio - yes
- Visualization - Yes (stay tuned ~ more coming on this!)
- Isometric Abs - yes (Cstay tuned ~ more coming on this!)
Because we've done this before, I knew what I needed to cut out and when, so I just started with taking out the red meat, pork, sugar (the hidden ones) and alcohol - yes, right from the start. I made sure I was doing low state/steady cardio for 30 min a day, nothing crazy - we're talking a 30 min indoor bike ride every day.
The Scale
I didn't get on the scale until WAY later. I knew what my weight had been, so stressing myself out with numbers - I just chose not to. To be fair, I can get neurotic about those numbers, I learned that years ago when I'd weigh myself every morning just to see how the foods from the day before effected my weight, not realizing that stress, water levels, etc also caused the numbers to change. Now I know, so I just choose not to check the numbers, instead I rely on how my clothes fit, how my face looks in the mirror, etc.
Intermittent Fasting
I am NOT a foodie, so fasting works out well for me. Some days I'll eat between 11am-6pm, others between 3pm-6pm. Sometimes it's 3 meals, others it's one big one. I'm never starving. I just eat when I'm hungry. I also tend to forget when I get busy. (Yes, I know...forget? Such is the way my brain and body work.)
I think because I was also VERY busy, I just didn't get wrapped up in what I could or couldn't have, I just took out the things I needed to, made sure I was eating the things I was supposed to and getting enough fluids. Check out this post for more on Intermittent Fasting.
Results
Result? Today, down 25lbs. I did finally get on the scale because I was curious. My shirts were WAY loose as were my leggings. My winter vest zipped up with room to spare. My face looked better on a video meeting too.
Best of all? My brain feels like it's engaging better. For me, that's huge.
And of course, I didn't mention ANY of my results to anyone until just recently. LOL - that's because I hadn't stepped on the scale to give anyone numbers.
So, if you're frustrated, hate the scale, tired all the time and your brain isn't working, you might want to try the detox. Just note, your results are going to be YOUR results. Mine are mine.
The first time I did the detox, I lost about 8lbs, but I was also stressing over doing every little thing right and didn't tweak it for how my body and brain work. I was over thinking in all, but I also needed to do it that way the first time. I needed to wrap my brain around removing the toxins (sugars, wheat, alcohol, red meat, pork, etc.) so that I could figure out good meals, timing and working it all into my lifestyle. And, when I was ready to do it again, matching up my lifestyle, adding in the isometric abs and visualization...that's what made it all 'click' for my body.
Want to learn more about the detox - click here!