A few days later...

How have I been doing since I ended the SPPP? I actually have done ok. That is until my husband left on his business trip.

I am physically tired taking care of everything while he is gone and I haven't done so well on my veggie intake all because of prep time and planning. I have pretty much stayed away from 'bad foods' and I still have a smoothie in the morning. My smoothies have more spinach in them than ever and they are actually green.

Anyhow, if I grab some type of fast food, I have stuck with salads and chicken. I have found my stomach 'smaller' and I can't eat as much as I used to. However, today I ate this and all of it. Yummy Cheetos. Personal bag. All gone. But, instead of having the feeling of disappointment and resigning myself to 'I ate something bad so I might as well eat ____', I am just going to proceed with my plan of a bean and kale soup and be ok to slip up. I am no longer allowing this to become a reason to forget all my hard work and eat badly for the rest of the night or weekend! I have learned it is about making choices and making more good choices than bad.

So here is me raising my water glass to good choices!

The Day After

Dad: "So, what are you going to eat now that this is over? Everything?"
Me: "I hope not."

What will I be eating? Here is lunch. Cauliflower, asparagus and some chicken. And it taste really good :-)

Day 19-21 Standard Process Purification

Is it really over already? Is it FINALLY over?

Those are my two thoughts. I can't believe day 21 is here and I can't believe day 21 is finally here.

My final words on the SPPP.

Struggles: fatigue, tired of food selection, difficulty with special occasions
Success: 'feel' better, sense of accomplishment, big learning opportunity

During my prep, I listed three things I hoped to accomplish while on the SPPP: energy, overall better health and weight loss. I can say I did accomplish a bit in every category. While I experienced fatigue, I can now realize it was different from my lack of energy before the SPPP. While I took naps, especially during the last few days, I no longer lay around or move as slow as a snail because my body is working better. I also had a physical and discovered I have low blood pressure. That can be a huge contributor to my fatigue. I will be slowing adding things back into my diet and see if this has an effect on my BP.

Secondly, better health has been accomplished. I feel lighter and it isn't because of a huge amount of weight loss. My stomach doesn't feel heavy and doesn't struggle to digest. I just feel better!

Lastly, I hoped to loose some weight. Some is the key here. I have not lost any past the original 7 lbs. I am ok with that because I haven't been able to exercise and that will help me loose more.

Where to go from here? Not back the way I came :-)

Day 17 & 18 Standard Process Purification

Day 17 and 18 have been tiring again. I bought some protein bars and added handfuls of almonds as well as the chicken but it hasn't made a difference. What happened to the good feeling? I see the doctor next week and I can't wait to ask him how to proceed. I have heard of other people who visited their doctors every week and I could definitely see why that could be helpful.

I used this recipe for some great butternut squash.

Roasted Butternut Squash

3 c. cubed butternut squash
2 T. balsamic vinegar
1 t. smoked paprika
1 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. onion powder
1/4 t. pepper

• Preheat oven to 375.
• Toss all ingredients in a medium bowl.
• Spray a cookie sheet and spread squash in single layer.
• Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. Turn squash and bake for another 20-30 minutes, until desired crispiness.

Day 15-16 Standard Process Purification

Life is busy! Job, kids, husband, eating, exercise. My mind is full.

I keep forgetting to take my green food pills! Last night I started to go to bed and remembered so I took 5.

Food:
Like mushrooms? Like artichokes? I have a delish recipe for you! I ate this for dinner on day 15 and lunch on day 16. I think it was even better the second time around!

Mushroom and Artichoke Soup Allrecipes.com
I did not have to make any changes for meat but I did use veggie broth since I did not have any vegetable base (I don't even know what that is!) and I used all fresh mushrooms) I also recalculated it for 12 servings versus 50. My modifications are in blue.

This picture is the bottom of my bowl. This soup has a lot more substance to it but I had already eaten most of it when I remembered to take a picture.

Ingredients

• 1 (14 ounce) can canned quartered artichoke hearts
• 3 tablespoons and 2-1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 3/4 pound thinly sliced shallots
• 3/4 small red onions, chopped
• 3/4 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons and 2-3/4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon and 2-3/4 teaspoons rice vinegar
• 3 cups water
• 1 can vegetable broth
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1-1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1-1/2 portabella mushrooms
• 3/4 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 3/4 pound carrots, sliced
• 2 tablespoons and 2-3/4 teaspoons capers
• 2 tablespoons and 2-3/4 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Place artichokes in a food processor, slice thinly and set aside. It works well when using a 3 millimeter slicing disk.
2. Using a extra-large stock pot saute onions, garlic and shallots in olive oil and set on low. Cook for 15 minutes.
3. Sprinkle flour over onions and cook for 1 minute. Stir in vinegar and cook for approximately 3 minutes, in order for vinegar to evaporate.
4. Stir in water, vegetable base, salt, pepper, cayenne, nutmeg, thyme and sliced artichokes and cook for 25 minutes.
5. Add dried mushrooms along with the water they soaked in, fresh mushrooms and carrots. Let cook for 15 minutes.
6. Stir in capers and parsley, season with salt and serve.

Protein:
I have added an extra shake to my diet and I have had a couple protein bars and added a handful of almonds a couple evenings. I am feeling better. So if you are doing this purification, heads up you may feel a big downturn for protein after a couple weeks.

The End:
I can't believe I only have five days left. I haven't done this without cheating but I have really changed a lot of habits and said no MANY times to things I wanted to eat. I just started reading the book Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst amazon.com. I will talk more about my plans for the future and how this book is helping me make those plans.

Day 14 Standard Process Purification

I am in the down swing. It is really harder to hang on to the complete, pure SPPP eating. First, I am questioning how healthy this is for long term. I am so tired! I will be adding the extra protein into my diet to see.

Secondly, I am tired of raw veggies. I went out to eat lunch with my husband and ordered a salad. It had a small piece of grilled chicken, two slices of egg and a small scoop of crumbled blue cheese. I ate it up! I was so happy to have something different to eat! I am now looking at my green, green salads and thinking, ugh, not again! A couple of new recipes are needed and a few less raw veggies. I know it says half raw but I am rawed out. I purchased portabella mushrooms and have a soup recipe that looks yummy. So look out for that to come.

This is my desk and this is my arsenal.

I have three cups I refill with water and my hot raspberry tea is a nice addition to the water. Plus it is FREEZING outside. I feel cold to the core!

Day 13 Standard Process Purification

I do not believe I am eating enough protein. My father has special diet restrictions and is required to have 80 grams of protein a day. He is bigger than I am but I have only been eating one SP smoothie with two rounded scoops a day which has a mere 10 grams of protein.

I have been getting so tired. I mean, come home from work, do only the absolute necessary duties, lay on the couch and let the kids run wild type of tired. I have taken several naps and I NEVER take naps. That is not normal. I thought it was because either my cycle or because I have become a little physically active with my restricted diet but now I think it is because I need protein. Lucky for me....I love my smoothies. Here is a picture of one of my smoothies. It is a little brown from the lack of fruit and the spinach but it is oh so yummy. I can handle having another smoothie a day. I am not struggling with the 2 veggies to 1 fruit so I will see if this helps me feel better.

No special recipes for today. I added 3 oz of chicken at dinnertime. Lovin' the zucchini and red cabbage stir-fry.

Victories for the day: Family played games and ate popcorn. I snacked on some strips of red cabbage and cauliflower.

Had a friend gathering at McDonald's after church tonight and I could have eaten some greasy something but instead I ordered a delish salad. I did have ranch dressing but did not use the entire package. I peg it a victory. I no longer want to live all or nothing but to celebrate the times I choose better than worse.