The Recap of the Week I Give Everything Up

Last Monday I noted that I would be giving up TV watching, and that while I was at it, I was going to give up eating wheat, dairy, sugar and sweetener too.

So it's the last day of this proposed week I give everything up and since cheating on my first day --

I cheated on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Sigh?

Here's the thing -- I did cut down drastically on my intake of television, super-processed protein bars with 6 unfriendly grams of saturated fats each, as well as the extra coffee I drink every morning. I had all but two diet pops instead of 6 or 7 over the course of the week. And while I did indeed fail at this "giving up" experiment, I did manage to remember super healthy old habits of mine like drinking green tea and working out before zoning out in front of the TV. What's more is that I probably read more than I usually do, not counting what I read everyday as part of my job, or what I read to Jimi (picture Hop on Pop, or the four hundredth time I read The Very Hungry Caterpillar. That Caterpillar showed me the way!)

Anyway, I was jonesing and starting to realize what a pain in the ass it was not to eat wheat, especially when pizza is my favourite food. What was I going to bring home on Friday night for dinner? A rice cake topped with tomato sauce? And then there was the birthday party, impromptu trip to Arby's on Saturday -- yes, Arby's, the most special restaurant there is -- where there is no possible way of not ingesting sugar or dairy or wheat unless you eat the meat plain and by itself and that would just be an exercise in masochism.

Morale of the story: really, Nikki? Give up wheat, dairy, TV and sweetener? Time to move to the organic veggie farm, harvest adzuki beans and read crystals to see the future. Then put on your hemp pajamas and get on your high horse to save those endangered whales. Then have a baby and don't tell anyone what the sex of the baby is, cause you know what, that would be the next damn step!

Good night.

The Tuesday in the Week I Give Everything Up

Day 2 has not been without its charm, but compared to my first day of what some have dubbed as "crazy" it was a so-called piece of cake.


Lentil cake, that is.Well, lentil chips, really. I guess some reluctant health food nut finally had enough of the hemp ice cream and wheat grass smoothies and decided it was time to invent something a little bit more like the food they once loved. Anyway, I bought a bag of dill flavoured lentil chips this afternoon even though it's not like I gave up chips, popcorn, and their ilk. But it's not like it makes a hell of a lot of sense to eradicate moo juice and Shreddies from my diet this week but it's cool to eat Doritos.

I digress! Today went off without a hitch. The only thing was that I kept forgetting what I had told myself not to eat -- I wonder if my brain bits require some sort of sweetener to keep them working? Right?

Little Jimi must be catching on. He tried to cram his milk-filled sippy cup in my face after dinner with an impish grin on his little mug. As if, kid! Take your would-be generosity elsewhere. I'm doing an experiment.

Anyway...as for no TV, I had to keep my back turned while Alex watched Wings of War or Hitler's Bodyguard or whatever it was that was on again, and last night I passed the time with a kettlebell workout followed by reading. Good times!

I can't say I in any way feel different yet, but two days in and I'm inpatiently waiting for next Monday.
Any suggestions as to what I should try to go without next week?
See ya!

The Week I Give Up Everything

My PVR died on Friday, despite attempts to reset it and hope for the best. In place of my list of recorded shows I get a box that tells me I'm shit out of luck: "The storage device is not working, so go do something else for a change." Anyway, after sweating angrily over this trouble, I have decided to go cold turkey. I'm giving up TV for a week.

And while I'm at it, I'm also going to give up sugar, artificial sweetener, dairy and wheat. And I'm going to do it "just to see." Yeah, just to see how much my life will change when I am not zoned out watching Gilmore Girl reruns, fighting a thirst for Coke Zero and granola bars, and afternoon trips to Tim's around the corner from my little office for ice coffee. Just to see what may happen to the weird new red patches I have been getting on my hands that don't go away with relentless hand cream applications. Yes, this even means giving up the additive-laden protein bars that have taken over yogurt and berries as my mid-morning snack.

Okay, so yogurt's out for a bit, too...

Anyway, here is how day one went:

AM: took soy milk in my coffee instead. Was at least endeared to my new Dunkin' Donuts go-mug. Not bad, if you don't mind the thought of "milk" coming from a bean.  While we're at it, what is almond milk? Just how does one milk an almond? All the while have I been eating little almond boobs without knowing it?

AM snack: two stale brown rice cakes with peanut butter (natural, naturally). Crunchy. May have lost a semblance of maturity and poise when crumbs became stuck to my new dress and I picked them off to eat. Also, had green tea instead of morning coffeee number 2. And it was green.

Lunch time: ate leftover veggie soup and pack of nuts. And apple. And drank some water. Suddenly, the prospect of not having a bagel if I wanted one is really angering me.

Afternoon:...okay, I caved on day 1. I got my ice coffee with milk and a pack of Splenda. Whatever.

Afternoon: Yeah, and then I had one of those protein bars. So, this is what happens when you agree to go to a meeting after work and...oh hell, enough with the excuses. It's only the first day, right? Ah ha ha.

PM: Dinner was chicken and veggies, no TV except what burned my eyeball when I approached it to turn it off.

Now it's 830, and right around the time I would be hunkering down with my PVR after completing all my mom and wifely duties. Instead I am foisting this new blog post to the world.

Tomorrow will be day 2. Then Weds day 3. Then I wonder what Friday will be like when I don't eat my afterwork pizza. Oh my. At least, at least, at least, I wasn't masochistic enough to give caffeine up as part of my week-long experiment to prove something unknown to myself. In the meantime, I will have to replace dreams of pizza, ice coffee and Coke Zero with water, rice cakes, and tea, and for TV....is Netflix off limits?

I can feel my insides cheering.