It has been two weeks since I made the decision to abstain from flour and sugar. Here are my thoughts on planning, cravings and hunger, energy and weight loss.
Planning: Since this was not my first time giving up flour and sugar, I knew that at first I would feel hungry. One thing that always makes me feel full is a big, warm bowl of soup. I made a large batch of a vegetable soup that is tasty and filling so that I was sure to be full after lunch. When I make a large batch of soup, I freeze it in one cup containers. If I made a large batch of soup once a week, then eventually, I would have a variety of veggie packed homemade soups in my freezer. Then, all I had to do was take a container out of the freezer and lunch was ready. I always top my soups with some sort of seed such as chia, hemp, pumpkin or sesame. Then I finished off my lunch with an apple. For dinner, I had some sort of protein with tons of vegetables, ½ cup of something like potatoes or rice and a big salad. This might sound boring, but I have enough veggie packed dishes in my repertoire that I was always making something different. Then if I was still hungry after dinner, I would make popcorn. I found this great popcorn called Little Pops that is really dense and filling, which I pop on the stove. In the realm of snack food, popcorn is high in fiber, low in calorie and carbs, and minimally processed. It also doesn’t spike your blood sugar like other snack foods. As a transition option, it is one that I felt okay including. I only ate it after dinner if I was truly hungry.
Cravings and Hunger: During the first two weeks, my cravings weren’t bad. My resolve was strong, and it seemed easy to abstain. What was most challenging was figuring out what to eat when I was hungry. Some days my body craved that full feeling that you can only get from processed carbs. There were afternoons that I did not feel completely satisfied. I would wait until dinner, and if I still felt hungry after dinner, then I would eat popcorn as I mentioned before.
Vitality: My energy was low during these two weeks. A group of women had started to meet to workout in the mornings before work. Sometimes these workouts made me feel sick to my stomach. However, I figured my new eating habits were causing my body to detox and that the exercise was circulating those toxins before they were eliminated. During the second week, I also felt extremely itchy. I had no rash or hives, but I itched all over my body. I was also breaking out. Again, I attributed the itching and acne to detoxing and knew I could ride it out. In retrospect, I should have been taking supplements to help flush out the toxins.
Weight Loss: At the end of two weeks, I had lost four pounds, and my waist was one inch smaller. While I would have loved to announce more dramatic results, I was pleased that I was heading in the right direction.