clean: week 1, pause to reflect

ruhama asked me a few days ago, “what will you gain from this cleanse, now that you’ve done it for a week? and how often do you anticipate a cleanse?  will you keep any parts of this in your regular rotation (or is that for the end of the experience?)”  excellent questions and a good reminder to reflect.  i think i’ll wait to answer the the second question until i’m at least closer to finishing, but i’ll say that so far, the things we’ve learned from doing this are:

1. smoothies for breakfast are pretty nice and are likely more healthy for us than a bowl of cereal (especially if it turns out that either of us have any gluten sensitivities).

2.  smoothies are also a fast and refreshing supper for those days when we overindulge at lunch and don’t really feel like eating a “real” supper, but feel a need to get something in our mouths–in fact, depending on what we put into the smoothies, they could possibly aid digestion of said large lunch?

3.  planning healthy snacks for mid-morning and mid-afternoon is a good idea.  it keeps me from grabbing junk and helps prevent pre-supper crabbiness.  i knew this before, but i’d gotten lazy about doing it.  this is a good reminder of how crucial it is for me.

4.  i’m no longer scared of cooking brown rice or quinoa.  i still have a preference for the consistency of white rice for many of my favorite dishes, but maybe i’ll feel differently at the end of three weeks??

5.  i don’t have to always put the scraps the happy toddler leaves on his plate into my mouth.

6.  packing mr. happy stuff’s lunch isn’t really all that onerous and saves us a bundle of $$.  it does take a little longer, but i’m more inclined to at least do it sometimes after this experience.

7.  it’s interesting to note what stresses and social factors are eating triggers for me.  food is definitely not only about body fuel for this family.

8.  chicken sausages are yummy!

9.  hunger is not a crisis that must be immediately addressed.  it’s okay to sit with it for awhile, as long as it’s not making anyone fall apart.

10.  i can be more adventurous with my cooking (quinoa!  forbidden rice!  chicken sausages!), even if it means straying away from known household favorites.  yes, it may well be a flop, but maybe, just maybe, we’ll actually like it.

i have to say that i’m becoming increasingly more curious to find out what the results of adding foods back into our diet will be.  what food allergies (if any) will we uncover?  will we be able to have the self-control to add foods back in a calculated enough manner to really tell??