Sugarfree Me

Mood: 7/10 - Good! Energy: 6/10 - Again, need more sleep.  Withdrawals? Nope. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Rashers & Saussies Lunch - Snack bar & fruit Dinner - Chicken stir fry  Drank - Water & tea So here we are. I have done it.  The Whole 30.  Well, we have done it, speaking properly. Before I move on to less important matters, I want to make mention of my fabulous wife MT, who's 3...erm...24th birthday is on Tuesday. When I first broached the idea of taking sugar out of my diet I did so with trepidation, a lack of conviction, and an absence of self belief. It was a thought, an idea, something which I was determined was a good concept worht exploring but one which I spoke of with no timeframe, no plan and not believing I could actually achieve it. I happened across the Whole 30 purely by mistake. But I am not a believer in coincidence and it spoke to me, and importantly, it spoke to her. Since that point, MT has been amazing. S...

Mood: 7/10 - Happy enough today. Energy: 6/10 - Could use more sleep! Withdrawals? Not in a manner of speaking, but read on. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Snack bar  Lunch - Turkey & carrots Dinner - Steak and chips Drank - WATER WATER WATER WATER Today was a test. The whole 30 should really be the whole 28. I have been on the home straight for about the last 4 or 5 days. If you'd asked me on 25/26, I would have said I was coasting to the finish line. That is all change! In effect, I have let my guard down. I have been ready to be finished for 2-3 days. Mentally, I keep thinking "what's the difference?". I've broken my addiction to sugar, that much is not in doubt. How I will be when it's reintroduced and in what form is to be seen, but clearly, I've not had a thing in 29 days so I can say that with confidence. So what is the difference between 27 days and 30? The only answer I can find that is keeping me honest over the past cou...

Mood: 8/10 - Really good. Nice day at the office, fun with Carra after. Energy: 6/10 - Could use more sleep. Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Snack bar  Lunch - Chicken and broccoli Dinner - Chicken and baby potatoes Drank: 2l water, tea It feels as though I am somewhat stumbling over the finish line. Not in the sense that I am struggling, just that I am ready to move on and Monday can't come soon enough. I feel a very strong sense of readiness, an eagerness to try some rice, some peas, some beans, some coke, some sweets. I want to see what works for me and what doesn't. I want to embrace a new and balanced diet. I have done four weeks and it feel like quite enough, but I said I would do the whole 30, and I will do the whole 30. 

Mood: 8/10 - Really good. Got s**t done in work.  Energy: 7/10 - Good Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Snack bar  Lunch - Turkey sliders & sweet potato Dinner - Turkey steaks, broccoli and chips Drank: 2l water, tea Good day today. In contract to what I expected when this started, I am heading to the finish line with confidence and momentum. I am looking forward to being able to reintroduce some of my favourite foods and condiments, but equally I am excited to find some balance. It feels untenable to continue as is - perhaps if I were big into vegetable I could envision keeping things this way, but I am not into most veg ergo it's a lot of meat and potato for me at the moment. I would like to get rid of some of the spuds for lighter things like brown rice, which in turn would mean I will not feel as bad when we have a treat like a take away at the weekends. One thing is for sure - bread is out. I have always been super sensitive to it -...

Mood: 6/10 - Functional day - washing, shopping, therapy. Back to normal Energy: 6/10 - Reasonable Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Snack bar and grapes Lunch - Turkey sliders & sweet potato Dinner - Steak and broccoli Drank: 2l water, tea So. The elephant in the room. I'm on the home straight! What happens next? That's a damn fine question. I'm not really sure. I had a good therapy session tonight. No childhood memories, no ripped open wounds, and no tears today. Not that those weren't beneficial, but this was an easier, lighter session. Tonight we discussed the fact that perhaps the main factor in reaching out and starting up the therapeutic process for me again was my struggles with sugar. I sent an email enquiring about seeing someone on May 22nd and had my first session in early June. The notion that in 2 months I've gone from contemplating trying to figure out how to even begin to tackle the issue, to now where I have be...

Mood: 8/10 - Happy out Energy: 7/10 - Good Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Snack bar and grapes Lunch - Beefsteak and sweet potato fries Dinner - Chicken, snack bar Drank: 2l water, tea Flew home from Cheltenham with Carra this evening. Had lots of opportunities to have sweets over the past few days and felt soooo tempted at times, but proud that I stayed away. I am tired from our trip but happy to be home. 

Mood: 7/10 - Happy out Energy: 6/10 - Need more sleep! Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Snack bar and grapes Lunch - Beefsteak and jacket potato Dinner - Beefsteak, sweet potato and brocolli Drank: 2l water, tea Busy day today. Got up early and went to a wildlife park with Carra. Have found it hard doing these types of things because when you are out and about for long stretches, your options for eating that fall in line with this diet are minimal. That said, I managed to have a great morning wandering around seeing Lions, Zebras, Camels, Horses etc before a ride on the CHOO CHOO as Carra calls it, then heading home for a lovely evening having great chats with my cousin Camille. I'm very conscious now that the home straight is at hand. We are 7 days away. I've been tempted the past few days. The kids have been having a lot of sweeties and that and it would be very easy to cave. I get the thought of "well no one will ever know". But ...

Mood: 8/10 - Really great day.  Energy: 8/10 - In very good space. Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Snack bar and bananas Lunch - Beefsteak and jacket potato Dinner - Chicken and sweet potato fries Drank: 2l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea Really fun day today. Slept a little late then went for a walk in Cheltenham park. Have been here before but still, didn't fully recall how extraordinarily beautiful it is! Went for a walk for an hour or two in the park and mostly just hung out with the kids. It is hard to be disciplined when you're away. There are temptations everywhere. But I am on the home straight so so I am not overly tempted. 

Mood: 7/10 - Mixed bag today but ended on a high!  Energy: 7/10 - Good to go today. Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar. Lunch - Turkey & sweet potato Dinner - Sausages & snack bars Drank: 2l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea.  I write you from Cheltenham in the UK this eve. Today was a looooong day. Four hours in work and a very productive morning at that, followed by a couple hours at the funfair with MT & the girls, then home, bathed Carra, packed our bags and flew to Bristol, rented a car, then drove for 75 minutes to get to Cheltenham. Arrived here just before 11. Feel a great sense of satisfaction this evening. It requires patience and good organisational skills to get a 4 year old through security, on a plane, across the water, through the other airport and find a rental car without exchanging a cross word but I managed it. It was a really fantastic evening. Carra's excitement every step of the way was infect...

Mood: 7/10 - Enjoyed being in the office again today, was in good space. Energy: 7/10 - Felt happy enough today. Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar. Lunch - Venison burgers & sweet potato Dinner - Steak, brocolli and chips Drank: 2l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Hadn't realised I ate literally the exact same food today and yesterday. How exciting.  I feel human today. Carra and I are going away tomorrow and this has given me something to look forward to, a break from the focus on my eating pattern. We are going to stay with my cousin Camille and her son Oliver, who is 6 months older than Carra, and they are best buds. They live in Cheltenham which is a lovely little town in England. I get on great with Cam, we think alike and I love getting into long chats with her. Being parents of young kids and from the same family, we are in similar places in life so it's really grounding being around her. And Carra loves Oliv...

Mood: 7/10 - Amongst the living folk in the office today. Needed adult company after yesterday with the kids. Energy: 6/10 - Better sleep, good energy. Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar. Lunch - Venison burgers & sweet potato Dinner - Steak, brocolli and chips Drank: 2l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Completely forgot to blog today and doing it at 3 minutes to midnight, having stopped myself half way up the stairs to bed. I have nothing to write but I have to write because discipline means you don't miss a day. I felt good today. I was really productive this morning in work and I enjoyed the afternoon. I had a nice evening with the girls and I again felt the benefit of unburdening myself, a lightness was there with me today and I want to cease it, hold on to it. The evening was capped with a wonderful game of footie in which my BELOVED Seattle Sounders trailed 0-3 at home to DC United after 50 minutes yet still someho...

Mood: 5/10 - Felt low today, as much due to lack of sleep and cranky kids as anything. Energy: 4/10 - Bad night with the baby. Withdrawals? None. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar. Lunch - Chicken stir fry with sweet potato and brocoli Dinner - Chicken stir fry with sweet potato and brocoli (yes, again) Drank: 2l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Deep breath. Wednesday I see my therapist which means this is always the hardest blog to write. I noted last week that having dug deep into my past and unburdened myself somewhat, I felt the better for it over the following days. Of course a therapy session being an hour, you can only really scratch the surface, so this week very much picked up where last week left off, which was heavy.  I feel as though it is safe to say the root of the anxieties and the pain that I once drank every day to avoid and which I've tried to escape with a litany of methods ever since comes from the 3 year period between ...

Mood: 8/10 - In really really good form. Energy: 7/10 - Had a major dip in the afternoon but that's to be expected with Bay keeping me up. Withdrawals? Nah ah. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Fruit Dinner - Steak and chips Snack - Grilled chicken and brocoli & a nakd bar Drank: 2.5l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Past the halfway point but not quite on the home stretch, I must admit my motivation is minimal when it comes to the diet right now. Much like yesterday, I find myself wishing I could reintroduce a small amount of rice, a little sauce for my meat and veg and the odd diet coke when water is tasting bland. But plough on I must.  I do feel more balance beginning to come into my life at the moment and that is fantastic. I reconnected with a couple of friends in the past few days that I hadn't seen in a long time and just being social and chatting and coming out of my shell a bit has been good for me. My confidence is definitely up. ...

Mood: 7/10 - Happy day! Energy: 5/10 - This feels like a recurring theme. Good in the morning, bad in the evening! Withdrawals? Seem to be a thing of the past. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar Lunch & Dinner - Sausages, burgers, potatoes, steak, chicken (WE HAD A BBQ!) Drank: 2.5l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Today was a good day! What I have noticed now is I have other routines and patterns. My morning coffee and my morning coke have been replaced by a morning peppermint tea and a morning water & lime. My late night binge on ice cream, chocolate & sweets is gone, replaced by a handful of grapes. Honestly, a part of me is tempted to ditch the whole 30 and go back to normal, since the stuff I am missing from my daily diet now - grains, rice, legumes - feel like they'd be more beneficial to me than eating as much potato & sweet potato as I am (I can eat veg as well but there are few vegetables I actually like). Spuds kind of b...

Mood: 7/10 - Really good today.  Energy: 5/10 - I slept loads but not enough after a late night. Withdrawals? Seem to be a thing of the past. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar Lunch - Sausages & rashers  Dinner - Turkey burgers & chips Drank: 2.5l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Today was a cool day. I slept in after a late night out last night and once I got up, we were straight out. We went to Clonfert Pet Farm in Kildare so the girls could have an afternoon feeding the animals, jumping on the bouncy castle, going on the swings and slides, and munching ice pops...which we couldn't do! :) Came home then got everyone ready and up to bed before settling in watching UFC for the evening. If this seems like a nothing happening blog, that's kind of the point. It was a normal day. I felt good, happy and balanced. 

Mood: 7/10 - Best day yet. Feel relatively normal. Energy: 5/10 - Need some sleep Withdrawals? None! Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Skipped it. Oops. Lunch - Sausages & sweet potato Dinner - Chicken wings (no breading!) Drank: 2.5l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Today was a different day. I can feel the difference in things now. The first thing I have noticed is the impact of sugar on me. The Whole 30 bars ANY source of fake, processed sugars. There are things you can eat with sugar in them. They specifically name a couple of health food bars which are ok, the nakd bars I've been eating amongst them. Fruit is also allowed. When I began the program, I was hesitant to have any of these things. I felt like to get the benefit, I needed to remove all sugars in their entirety. Having read the book, I came to understand more about the way the body processes sugars.  I was kind of under the impression that because the sugar composition is the same in f...

Mood: 6/10 - In good form today. Feel like any physical withdrawals are gone. Energy: 6/10 - Much improved today. Feel like I'm living a normal life. Withdrawals? None! Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar. Lunch - Steak and brocoli Dinner - Burgers and sweet potato Drank: 2.5l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. Today was the most normal day so far. Effectively it felt no different to any day before I started this whole thing. I wasn't hugely energetic but nor did I feel particularly tired. I put in a really good shift in work, getting a ton done and came home, cooked dinner, played with the kids, put Carra to bed. I accomplished everything that I would like to today and I did it without any processed sugars or caffeine, and without any headaches or exhaustion. Progress! I am feeling a little more relaxed and positive after what had been a few dark days. It's good to get things out in the open and that has felt productive for me. MT was ...

Mood: 5/10 - Started ok but tapered off. Energy: 4/10 - Exhausted today. Withdrawals? Not so much. Ate/Drank: Breakfast - Nakd bar. Lunch - Chicken stir fry & sweet potato Dinner - Venison burgers & chips. Drank: 2l water, 4 cups of peppermint/detox/camomile tea. So after my emotional evening combined with staying up far too late to watch Conor McGregor eat Floyd Mayweather up on the stage in Toronto, I was pretty wrecked today. I went to bed close to 1am. At this point I should mention something I haven't covered enough - I am sleeping much better. It still takes me a while to nod off, but no doubt that the lack of processed sugar, heavy carbs and caffeine in my system makes it easier for me to rest. That's been great. However, I sort of thought last night "well, since I'm sleeping ok, I'll stay up a little late and be fine". And I was. Until lunch. Then I went quickly downhill.  Not much to say today really. Thursdays and F...