On the 16th of May I started a 30 day clean eating program. I had been thinking of doing this plan for the better part of two years, since I started using Arbonne products myself. I imagined it would be many things before I started. I imagined it would suck, to be honest. I wanted to do it so that I could improve my health and over all well being, but I thought it would be hard and I would hate every moment of it. The program is gluten free, soy free, dairy free, starch free, vinegar free, and organic as much as possible.
The reality so different than I thought it would be.
I was told that the first week would be the hardest. People often suffer from withdrawals from the things that we are cutting out. I breezed right through it. My problem with healthy eating has always been my lack of desire to cook for myself. When I had a family to feed, it was different (and they did the dishes), but other than a big holiday meal, I have never really bothered to cook much for myself. My program came with simple meals, and I have even begun modifying them to make them easier and better suited to me.
The first few days I had moments of hunger, between meals or right before bed. I would have some water, and they subsided and were very easy to manage. Since then, I have actually struggled to eat enough calories in a day. I started eating about 1300 calories per day, but the last two days when I didn't feel the need to snack I didn't even hit 1000. I am trying harder now to consume more calories, even when I'm not hungry, so that I can stay in a good healthy range.
I thought when I started that I would count the days to the end when I could finish and eat the foods that I cannot eat now. But already I am thinking I will continue a lifestyle similar to this one when it's over. I lost weight and inches, and by not doing anything more than eating well.
I would recommend this program, and clean living in general to anyone. I am so blessed to have discovered Arbonne and their pure, safe, and beneficial products. My skin has never been better with their skin care products, and my insides have never been better with their nutritional products.
It's now been almost a month that I've been trying to eat 80/20, and I am doing very well. I have not had any particular reactions to the foods I've added back, but there are foods that I don't enjoy as much as I remembered. I have struggled a little, but mainly owing to the fact that I've been on the road for almost two weeks during the last three weeks, and not always with a refrigerator and microwave available in my hotel, so finding healthy options was not always simple. But the important thing I've learned about that is that I prefer healthy to the unhealthy options I did find (even though prior to this I would have sought out the meals that I'm no longer enjoying).
My 40s are going to be the healthiest years of my life.
