Holy Moly (Bear With Me)
Okay, well there’s no use pussyfooting around the issue—it’s been forever! A week, to be exact.
Let me explain what’s been going on (in a nutshell):
1) Did the juicefast for 2 days
2) Went off birth control
3) Dealt with some pretty crazy stuff in my personal life
4) Am reading Moby Dick for my capstone class, which requires a lot (read: all) of my time
5) Had a ton of other school work to do
Excuses aside, here’s what really happened (just for the sake of full disclosure).
I did the juice fast for 2 days. Pretty pathetic, right? Well I’m trying to look on the bright side. I did it for two days and it was rough. Now I know everyone says that it’s rough and I was not expecting a walk in the park. I weened myself off any non-plant food a few days before but it hit my system really hard. Like, REALLY HARD.
In case you haven’t read my first post , I have some fun issues with food. In the back of my head, I kept thinking “Mary Clare, this is not a good idea. This is not a good idea. Abort, abort!”
But the overly motivated side of me said “NO WAY! I CAN DO THIS! SHUT UP!”
BIG MISTAKE!
My body freaked out and basically shut down. I was drinking 3-4 (big) juices a day but my body just wasn’t having it. So the intelligent side of me told me to stop and reevaluate the situation (after fits of fear, rage, desperation, sadness, happiness, etc).
I felt all my old feelings about food coming back. Bingeing. Purging. Starving. Etc. I won’t bore you with the details but it was not pretty and actually pretty scary.
So I slowly reintroduced solid food back into my diet and my body hated that too.
And I was a raging bitch sans birth control hormones.
Basically, I’ve been sick and not eating much all week because my system is all out of whack. It really hasn’t been fun. Things are starting to look up though!
That’s why I needed a little break from this blog. I didn’t want to be reminded of my failure or encouraged to do something that was hurting my body at the time.
With that said, I am still planning on juicing—just later down the line or trying it once a day.
So, I’m back to blogging but sadly it won’t be about juicing right now.
Just a personal note: LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. I know juicing ain’t easy the first few days but if something just really doesn’t feel right in your head or in your body, stop and think about things before it gets too bad.
Stay healthy and safe!
And So It Begins…
The juice cleanse began today!
But some other things happened first.
I woke up and saw this:
Yup. Sunshine and no snow. What a bummer. I didn’t have class til 5 anyways so I wasn’t hoping for a snow day, but ONE pretty snow would have been nice this winter.
In preparation for the juice cleanse, breakfast was a Strawberry C Monster. Yums. But a little too sweet for me.
After writing two stories for my fiction writing class and reading Slaughterhouse-Five in its entirety, I was starving. But I kept it simple with oatmeal and a few raisins. Call me weird, but I think oatmeal is beautiful.
THEN! A knock at the door. And yes, it had finally arrived…
THE BIG BOSS JUICER. With a name like “Big Boss,” I really think that needed to be bolded and in all caps.
The juicing began after my class was over and le boyfriend arrived.
Here is concoction number one (“Lemon Lime”):
Yes, I would have much preferred if there was a Stoudt’s beer in there but the juice wasn’t horrible. Not great, but not horrible either.
This was also an excellent time for a photo shoot…
Excuse my no-make-up-I’ve-been-off-caffeine-for-too-long face.
But boyfriend approved of his (insanely) spicy kale, chard, and ginger juice:
Yes, we are nerds. There was a great discussion about what our bathroom experiences will be like the next few days. Sometimes it’s fun acting like you’re 5!
Then, we went ahead and mixed up juice for breakfast. Mine has about ten strawberries, tons of blackberries, two kiwis, and an orange. It tasted delicious. I won’t mind waking up and drinking this one tomorrow.
LOOK HOW COOL IT IS!
SERIOUSLY! It’s like art!
So there you have it. It’s nice having someone do the cleanse with me (he’s probably more excited than I am) and having you all hold me accountable.
I am currently flushed, experiencing weird stomach gurglings, and feel insanely full. I hope the next few days get easier because this is certainly not my idea of fun right now! Although using the juicer made me feel powerful…
Stay healthy & happy!
Long Time No Update
Hey there, tumblr!
I had a crazy relaxing weekend at home. Absolutely loved every second of it. I slept like a baby, loved my mom’s cooking (which ended up being all vegetarian somehow…thanks, mom!), read some books, lounged around, took long walks, wore pajamas most of the time. It was just fabulous and what I needed!
It reminded me that it’s okay to take time for me. And it’s important too. I’m always trying to do stuff for other people but often forget about myself.
I left home early this morning to beat the snow back at school. Well, I beat it by a long shot. It just started snowing here 2 hours ago so I could have had almost another whole day at home! Oh well. Getting back earlier allowed for me and le boyfriend to shop for the…
(wait for it)
juice fast/cleanse/whatever you want to call it.
Like a lot of you out there juice fasting, le boyfriend and I saw “Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead” and didn’t need much else to convince us. Right now, we are aiming for seven days. If either of us want to continue past the seven days, we shall see! But for now, I’m aiming for a good week.
Let me just say I was amazed (AMAZED) at the amount of produce I got for $30. Kroger was having some incredible produce sales but it was seriously awesome how much produce I got for $30. Le boyfriend spent $26.
This is what my fridge looks like:
Yup. Jam packed. And there is a whole bowl of fruit sitting out on my counter
Tuesday is now the official start day for the fast and I am SCARED. But really excited. I’ve already started weaning myself off coffee but I don’t eat any processed food or meat so I think the transition will be slightly easier for me.
Other than that, I’ve had a wonderfully lazy Sunday.
Mango Tango Odwalla for “lunch”…
Lots of green tea drinking…
…in a mug I painted myself a few years back. It’s huge and I love it.
And now I’m off to do some yoga/stretches before bed and watch the snow for a bit.
Happy Sunday night & stay healthy :)
Thank You!
To all those lovely tumblr people who offered suggestions on vegan/vegetarian cookbooks, THANK YOU! Your suggestions were awesome and now I have a lot of researching to do.
Sorry to be so MIA this weekend. When I get away from school, I like to just hang out with my parents and my books with as little distraction as possible.
But I am back in the ‘Burg and will begin blogging with a vengeance.
Also, my juicer has been ordered. Either I’m crazy or this is a great idea…I’ll find out starting Wednesday!
Question for Vegans/Vegetarians
Any vegans/vegetarians out there have cookbook recommendations?
I know there are SO many recipes online but nothing really beats holding a physical book in my hands (sorry, English major moment).
Any help people have would be greatly appreciated :)
Message me or reply!
Home, Sweet Home (and I need some help!)
Home, Sweet Home
I decided to take a trip home for the weekend.
Every now and then I need to leave school behind and get away for the weekend. Fortunately, I am close enough to my school that a quick drive cures all ills and I can be back in the comfort of my bed and room.
Although, I must say…school feels more like home sometimes. It’s a really annoying predicament, especially since I’m graduating in two months. I feel like I never really figured the “two separate lives” thing out.
Which brings me to some other points…
That’s why I’m getting into yoga again. I want to unite my “selves” and figure out who I truly am. I know I have found great peace through yoga before when it comes to body image and self image so I’m excited about the possibilities.
I haven’t felt like myself in along time and I think a lot of that has to do with being on birth control. I know women blame a lot of issues on birth control but I can’t help but notice some correlations: mental breakdown = after 6 weeks on birth control, escalated weight gain despite working out and eating healthy = continuous since starting BC. I am on a low-dose, progestin only formula. I’ve been taking it since late August/early September. I’m desperate for a change and I feel that going off birth control will make me feel a lot better about my commitment to healthy living.
But the big question for you all women out there is…what are/were your experiences going off birth control? Bad side effects? Craziness? Good things?
An Homage to Good Tea (and good food)
So I have to brag a little.
I’ve always loved cooking but I’ve recently become obsessed with roasting vegetables.
Holy mother of all things holy, roasted vegetables are AMAZING.
My go-to recipe of late has been campari tomatoes and brussel sprouts. All I do is spray them with a little non-stick olive oil spray, sea salt, and pepper and I’m good to go. Pop them in the oven at 425 for 10-15 minutes and then I am in HEAVEN.
Yea, they smelt so good, I had to take a peek while they were cooking.
This, my friends, was my amazing dinner last night. Spinach with fat-free feta & sundried tomatoes, chik’n scallopini (LOVE gardein!), and amazing roasted veggies. It took me about 20 minutes to eat this because I wanted to savor every last bite. The campari tomatoes were so sweet—like eating dessert! Look at those colors!
I got a little up close and personal…
YUMMMMMM.
Dessert was a new try—Siggi’s yogurt. I saw it at the grocery store and said “why not.” Let me tell you a little something about Siggi’s. It’s incredible. Uh-mazing. It has almost no added sugar. I love me some Chobani but the added sugar really kills me sometime. I feel like it’s too much! Siggi’s was perfect. And there were chunks of ginger in it! Real chunks! So worth the $1.19 price tag for a treat :)
After dinner consisted of chamomile tea (thank you, sinus infection) and a pear. I am living up to my childhood nickname, “Fruit Bat.”
Well, I’m off to read and sleep.
Happy eating, sleeping, and living!
I’ll Have a Double
“I’ll have a double” are words I might have once uttered. Now, however, I am stuck with a sinus infection and double ear infection. And it’s my TOM. Thank you, mother nature.
It’s just as miserable as it sounds. I am usually really anti-drug but a throbbing, dull pain in my right ear that continuously got worse pushed me to decide to hit up Emergicare and figure out what was going wrong. Soooo.. I have a double ear infection with a sinus infection. I’m feeling faaaaaantastic!
Let me be clear—I am a horrible sick person. Horrible. I am a moany, groany, whiney, baby about it. I hate being sick and hate being off my routine. Needless to say, apart from walking to and from class and campus, I haven’t been getting in any workouts. :( Majorly bummed about that. I hope to get back on my running game this weekend!
Eating wise, I’ve been doing pretty well. Making sure that I am getting enough vitamins and fluids while also listening to my body has been hard but I’ve been keeping a watchful eye on my diet. Pho with boyfriend this evening certainly helped as well. What is it about pho that is so incredibly soothing?
On another note, they weighed me at the Emergicare center and I had a mini mental breakdown. I had to talk myself out of it because I realized the following things:
1. I am fully clothed.
2. I am sick.
3. It’s my TOM.
4. I haven’t been working out daily.
What positive things do you do when you realize the scale is not at the number you’d hoped for?
Here’s to being healthy and back on my feet in the next few days!
Cold-1, Mary Clare-0
I am currently fighting off a nasty cold. Or sinus infection. Or something that is nasty and involves nonstop nose blowing, headaches, and fatigue.
I haven’t had too much of an appetite but I am trying to keep my strength up.
I’ve been guzzling green tea like it’s my job.
Also, catching up on my New York Times from this past Sunday.
I’ve also been trying to eat lightly and cleanly. Cue Dr. McDougall’s low-sodium lentil soup, Laughing Cow light garlic and herb cheese wedges, Trader Joe’s low-cal light wheat bread, and Trader Joe’s sundried tomatoes with oregano.
Also, catching up on Yoga Journals. Being an English major allows little to no time for pleasure reading.
I feel as if I’m about to drown in the amount of water I’ve been drinking, but I’m okay with that. I am determined to make this cold GTFO.
I have a relaxing oceanside weekend planned and I don’t want this cold to ruin it.
I kept breakfast this morning really simple, black coffee and an apple pie Larabar.
Because Assessment Day (not Valentine’s Day…thank you university, for your bizarre class holidays) brunch was with boyfriend. I thoroughly enjoyed some organic banana walnut pancakes and soysage with jasmine green tea.
Now I’m off to take one of those nasty assessments and continue fighting the evil cold.
Stay healthy!
A New Leaf
As a fourth eyar English major, I should really stay away from cliches. I know better. But I love the visual of turning over a new leaf. Just think about it for a second. Something about it seems so calm and natural.
So that’s exactly what I’m doing! Turning over a new leaf. Starting over. From scratch.
To get you guys up to speed, here’s what’s happened in my life since August:
1. Was diagnosed with a mental health disorder.
2. Found love (or perhaps it found me?).
3. Started my last year of undergrad.
4. Spent a lot of time with family—learned what’s really important in life.
5. Made a lot of new friends and strengthened the bonds with the old ones.
6. Gained weight.
7. Lost weight.
8. Got serious about getting and staying healthy.
To be honest with you all, I’ve been eating healthy and exercising for about the last 6 weeks. I just wanted to make sure it was going to stick before I worked my way back into the tumblr/fitblr/whatever community.
So here I am.
On Valentine’s Day.
And this year, I am my own Valentine. I love me. I love everything I have become and am becoming.
