20 Days in; 8 More to Go

20 days ago, Frank and I embarked on an elimination diet journey. No gluten, dairy, soy, corn, sugar, alcohol, or caffeine. It was sudden, and we were ill-prepared. One Thursday morning, he said, "Oh, today is the start of elimination diet. You don't have to do it, but I'm starting." I could have said no. I could have held tight to my "I love sugar too much" mantra, but instead, I said, "Um, ok." And so it began.

Of course, Day 1 was easy. No coffee this morning? No problem! And for lunch, we'll eat chicken and brown rice and sweet potatoes! So healthy! We scrambled to make a dinner that followed our new guidelines - we came up with ground turkey and brown rice. Strange, and kinda gross.

By the next day, we were starting to gather ourselves, and came up with a shopping list so that we could feel more organized and not so miserably starving. And on Day 3, we felt like death. Headaches, body aches, fatigue, irritability - every terrible symptom of withdrawal. It's pretty crazy how addicted our bodies get to sugar, fat, wheat, caffeine, alcohol, etc. I was miserable, and all I wanted was a donut.

I will save you from reading the entire span of 20 days of cravings and recipes. But I will say that by Day 5 or so, I felt great, and have ever since. Sure, I've had a few days where all I can think about is a chocolate chip cookie, or shoving 14 slices of pizza into my face, and chugging 8 beers, but those things come and go, and can usually be side stepped by a delicious glass of coconut water and perhaps some bean chips. That sounds like a joke, but seriously, Beanfields brand of bean and rice chips, Pico de Gallo flavor, might as well be chips made of crack. They are just as good as Doritos, and way better for you. So there.

I am pretty surprised by the amount of energy I have every day. There are bits of me that think "how could you go back??" I feel my body slimming down, my skin is clearer, and I don't feel sluggish after eating. I'll just have to find a balance.

I'm excited to have a cup of coffee in the morning again. I don't think I'll be cutting that out for good - my one cup a day is just fine. More than anything, I'm excited to know that there are so many other healthier options for so many food allergens. Not that I ate that poorly before, but I'm happy I've given my body the break. 8 more days, and we start introducing one food at a time. I do wish it could be pizza, but that will come in due time.

Til then, I will merely dream of this: