it tastes just like… cardboard.

It’s been about a month now, and I’ve been sticking to it. The new diet, that is. Maybe diet is the wrong word; it’s more like feeding scheme. I’ve been oh-so-good at procrastination all these years, certainly in the area of diet and exercise. I’m still procrastinating about going to see the (recommended to me by a friend) nutritionist, but at least I’ve somehow managed to make some solid and radical shifts in the way I eat.

First off, the cold-turkey stuff. No more added fats; butter, oil, cream, etc., excepting a little cold flax oil on a salad now and then. No more bread and pasta; actually, I’m aiming for no more wheat at all, at least no more gluten. No more fruit juice. No more starches; no potatoes, no rice.
My dairy intake is now limited to non-fat organic plain yoghurt, and the very rare serving of cheese. Now that I’ve been training myself to see fruit as sugar, and sugar as massive low-quality caloric intake, I’m pretty much right off of fruit. I’m trying to get in a few servings of fruit per week, but always combined with a protein. For fruit, I’ve been sticking to dried mulberries, blueberries (very few!), and apples.

Now, for what I have been eating. Raw veggies; these are “free”. I prefer “crunchy” over leafy or mushy; I must be eating 10 raw cucumbers a week, along with cauliflower, grape tomatoes, carrots, and fennel. During this period, I have discovered that I am indeed allergic to celery. I’ve also become a fool for raw organic almonds. I’m not (yet) a vegetarian, but I’m seeing more easily how I could become one. I’ve stocked my freezer/fridge with boneless/skinless chicken breasts and trimmed lean pork loin chops, pre-cut into 1/2-size portions and individually wrapped/frozen.
Alone with what I don’t eat, and what I do eat, I’ve been paying much attention to when I eat. My (largely successful) goal has been to eat 5-7 times each day. I am learning to keep food with me at all times; the moment I begin to feel the least big hungry, or feel my energy dropping, I’ll drink a glass of water and eat a dozen almonds, a cucumber, or a carrot. Even better, I’m trying to make myself eat before I feel any hunger, regularly every 2-3 hours.

Naturally, I’m eating out much much less these days. When I do, I’m scanning the menu for health. So far, the one real “cheat” I allow myself is sushi; it’s too expensive to bulk up on, and I figure good sushi is not such a bad indulgence.

Still, there are those times… Craving bread has been the worst. Not just bread, but dough. I’d give most anything for a consequence-free pizza. Bagels. Bagels with cream cheese. Huge sandwiches. Uhg. It’s in these moments that I’m finding myself most-tested… And so, as I am right this moment, I can be occasionally found eating my fill, bulking up, eating, chewing, and swallowing just for the feel of it. Today’s weapon of choice? Air-puffed millet, dry out of the sack. Yeah, not so indulgent after all, but it stuffs my face just fine.