It’s now almost three weeks since I started the Food Diary and the changes I’ve felt are amazing. Initially sceptical, I’m now convinced of things I’d always suspected but never wanted to admit.
The first week I suffered from a lot of headaches, general moodiness and a lack of energy. I put it down to the fact that Monday three weeks back I had a wisdom tooth pulled and was taking pain-killers for it, plus that week I’d a lot of general stress in everyday life, in addition to the builders tearing down the house next door and generally causing a lot of ruckus. I began to be more conscious of how I was eating, adding maqui and gubinge to my breakfast cereal every day and eating more salads. By Friday evening I was still feeling irritable and headachey, though I was still eating evening meals as I generally would: homemade pizzas and tacos, often with a beer or two.
By Melbourne Cup Tuesday of the second week, I’d started to feel a bit better, though still extremely groggy. Looking back at the food diary entry for that day, I consumed coffee, buckinis, two kangaroo suasages, a chip butty, Mexican food and a lot of beers…it’s unsurprising that by Wednesday morning I was hungover, groggy and jumpy. I felt ill and distracted all afternoon at work. A bowl of rice, beans and salsa in the afternoon was the only solution. An evening meal of a couscous salad with asparagus, avocado, cucumber and tomatoes saw me back on the right track. Thursday was coffee, poached eggs, beans on toast, and pasta in the evening, and Friday I still felt headaches and mood swings with my energy constantly waxing and waning. With maqui + gubinge on buckinis deluxe w/ rice milk for breakfast, a half packet of kale and a green smoothie for lunch, and a spot at Omid’s Nettle kitchen in the evening, I felt fantastic by Saturday morning.
A big weekend followed, featuring everything from green smoothies and omelettes to a sausage sizzle and organic lamb, culminating in a vegan gluten fest for a friend’s birthday dinner at Enlightened Cuisine (allegedly the Dalai Lama’s favourite Melbourne restaurant!). I nevertheless felt good and in a positive state of mind by Monday morning. This week started out with my typical breakfast of buckinis, maqui, gubinge and rice milk, a white mulberry smoothie and half-packet of Kale Chips for lunch and a parsnip soup + salad in the evening. I was feeling great…but restless. By 10pm I had so much energy I just felt there was something missing. Very frustrating! Tuesday followed with the typical buckini breakfast, and I’m feeling great and light. A green salad with tuna & a boiled egg in the afternoon and one taco + a half-burrito for dinner…but again I’m feeling restless, antisocial and really bored. I’ve too much energy and I don’t know what to do with it.
Wednesday and I’ve gone two days without coffee for the first time in years. Not out of any desire to remove caffeine from my diet, but simply because I felt I didn’t need it. For a long time now I couldn’t face the day without a coffee in the morning plus numerous cups of black tea and sometimes another coffee or two during the day, just to keep going. So I have a coffee on Wednesday morn and feel the difference in my concentration: sharp and focussed. I follow the morning’s typical breakfast with a small green smoothie and a Mexican pie in the afternoon. By late afternoon I’m restless, full of energy and short-tempered. For the past five years I’ve not done any serious training except for bouts of running for a month or two when the belly threatens to get out of control. For the last two years I’ve been talking about going back into regular training, and now the time is right. I head in for a trial session at a city gym around 6pm. It’s intense and gruelling and exactly what I need…the perfect positive solution to all this extra energy I’m harbouring. Afterwards I feel absolutely amazing. I sign up for membership and head home to a dinner of salad, a poached egg and salmon.
Thursday and I have my buckinis with gubinge and a generous helping of maca powder for breakfast followed by training. Two slices of toast with hummus and a salad of leaves, carrot, avocado and olive oil for lunch and my concentration for the afternoon’s work is beyond anything I’ve felt without caffeine since I don’t know when. For dinner it’s tacos with salsa and avocado followed by rehearsal with my band. By the time I get home I’m absolutely exhausted, yet three weeks ago it’d be unthinkable for me to undertake an hour of intensive training in addition to band practice in one day. I just wouldn’t even entertain the idea.
Today, Friday 11th November, I’m absolutely full of positive energy and heightened concentration. A green smoothie for breakfast and my body aches from the last two days of training, but in a good way. I’ll take a day off to recover and get back to it next week. Three weeks in, things are starting to make themselves apparent with proof that this is working: finally I’m getting fit again, and feeling energy without stimulants. The first few weeks were difficult. Even though I was still drinking alcohol, caffeine and having the occasional unhealthy meal quite regularly, it seemed the increased quantities of healthy foods were forcing some of the toxins out, which would also account for the headaches. What’s more, the food diary was acting like a little Good Angel on my shoulder to counteract the Bad Angel that says “eat the pizza, just get a fish’n’chips, fry up a sausage or two!”. When you have to write things down, you think a little bit harder about it…two days of sausage sizzles, organic spit roast lamb and heavy Mexican food looks a lot different on paper than it tastes in the moment!
This is just the beginning, and we can’t wait to hear how you guys are getting on! The deadline for your submissions from the original Food Diary post has been extended to December 8th, so you still have a month to get on to it! What’s more, we’ve added in more free goodies, so take a look if you want to take part. We can't wait to hear from you guys! On we go!
