End of the Cleanse

Our cleanse officially ended over the weekend. I am still scheduling at least 3 "clean" eating days a week. I ate quite a bit of crap food while we were in Portland, and I definitely felt much, much worse than I have for the past 3 weeks. The only thing that makes a clean diet possible is cooking & eating your meals at home. And it also helps to have someone who wants to eat the same things. There are some things that you can find at restaurants - chicken, veg, brown rice - and you can even make smarter choices in the drive-thru [salad, water], but it is really tough. We went to dinner at a thai place and I tried to find something without soy, egg, peanuts, noodles, rice, fish, beef & non-fried. Then we were at a pub the next night and I settled on a wrap/sandwich with lettuce & chicken in it. Then when Pete got here we ate cheeseburgers & fries with soda. We had omelettes for breakfast. I made coffee. It was all very delicous. But I was sluggish and was actually craving some fresh juice and a glass of water. When we got home last night I made a fruit & almond smoothie for dinner.

This is so good: 1 c. unsweetened chocolate almond milk [Blue Diamond brand], a 1/4 c. of fresh almond butter, 1 c. frozen pie cherries [local/organic if possible], 1 tbl agave syrup. Blend until smooth. Add more almond milk or cherries to make it smooth or chunky. I've also made it with plain almond milk + unsweetened cacao powder. I think it's better with the chocolate almond milk.

Jack LaLanne died yesterday. We have his juicer. Pete & I had juice for breakfast this morning. It was kale, pineapple, apple, strawberry, mango, carrot & beet juice.

There is something weird going on with my vegetables. Everything is molding in the refrigerator. The broccoli, the asparagus, the celery... all dead. Is my fridge too cold? Or too wet? Both? I think I might be opening & storing them longer than I realize, also.

I have a new cookbook for allergen-free baking. The pictures are gorgeous! I took vegan chocolate cupcakes with sprinkles to Annie for her birthday. She liked them! I like them, too. Constance is going to bake some for her sister's birthday this weekend. She's not a vegan, just doing a gluten-free diet for a while.

Pete lost his entire extra-tummy weight and his face is thinner. Guys are lucky this way. He has to tighten his belt more and his shirts just hang on him. No bread, no sugar for just 21 days and he needs a smaller wardrobe! I have lost weight, too. I can tell because my pants are loose and my face isn't so puffy. But I have much more than just a little belly to lose, so the results so far are not as obvious. But I definitely feel lighter. When I get in the car there is more space between me and the steering wheel. My back doesn't hurt! My arms don't bulge out. My ankles are slim. It's not just the food, I really have been going to the gym 3 - 5 times a week too. It's work to change this much. I want to wear a pretty dress. And I want to fit into snowboarding clothes.