My Life WITHOUT Coffee

For the next few weeks, should you choose to accept, you are going with me on a terrifying adventure.  It will be fraught with hard work, exhilarating highs, deep cavernous lows and probably quite a bit of whining (on my part, but quite possibly yours as well).  I'm starting a new plan today.  I'm getting back to my true, organic self (and hopefully losing some weight along the way).  I'm going to follow the Fat Flush Plan, which focuses on eating vegetables, lean protein, and fruit.  But no caffeine.

That means no coffee.

While following this plan (and I'll get to why I want to do this in a bit) I will have to cut out many things.  For a while. I will have to cut out the handfuls of animal crackers I eat throughout the day.  And the chocolate-covered blueberries.  I will have to stop eating the peanut butter and jelly crusts off of Max's plate.  I will have to not eat my left over fried rice from Chang Mai Thai that has been taunting me every time I open my refrigerator.  But, by far, the biggest sacrifice will be giving up my coffee. 

I gave Weight Watchers a try for six weeks.  I lost no weight.  None.  Zero pounds.  Pants are still tight.  Wasted six weeks of the nine leading up to my Arizona trip.  I think the new Weight Watchers points system is a crock and I don't recommend it at all.  According to my points, I could have eaten pretty much anything I wanted and stayed within my range.  Well, eating whatever you want doesn't usually lead to weight loss, so I guess I'm not too surprised that I didn't see any results.

Five years ago, after Max was born, I did the Fat Flush Plan.  I didn't lose a ton of weight, not right away, but I lost some.  I'm not gonna lie, I am doing this plan so that I lose weight.  But when I did it before, something unexpected happened.  I started thinking about what I ate.  I started paying attention to ingredients, thinking about exactly what I was putting into my body.  I realized that I like vegetables.  I learned to try new foods!  In other words, and I hate to sound overly dramatic here, it changed my life.  It really did.  I'm hoping that's what happens this time, too.

I blame Lily for my tumble off the healthy wagon.  I was able to maintain a healthy weight for three and a half years.  Then I got pregnant and (I've written about this many times before, I know) decided that I was going to have one last fling with food.  For the last 18 months I have been meaning to get back to eating healthy.  It's been on my "to do" list to only buy foods that I believe are made from real ingredients and not preservatives and fillers, but I get to the grocery store and it's easier, cheaper, to just grab what I need off the shelf and be on my way. 

Last week I thought about starting the flush, but once I decided that I was going to do it, I got angry.  I was mad that it had even come to that.  I didn't want to make the changes I know I need (and actually want) to make.  But over the past week something in me shifted.  I feel ready.  And in telling you that, I feel held accountable. 

I wasn't planning to tell you about this process.  I thought that it would bore you (and it probably will).  But then I remembered that this is my blog.  And I started thinking that it will be good for me to write about it, good for me to share how I'm feeling, good for me to hear any feedback you may want to share with me.  Don't worry.  I'm not doing anything crazy.  This is about health.  Weight-loss, too.  But mainly about getting back to healthy.  It's not some crazy diet, it's me working towards making the changes in my life that I believe are necessary.

So, along with pb&j crusts and handfuls of animal crackers, I will be giving up coffee for the next two and a half weeks. After this one last cup, flavored with hazelnut creamer and tears.