Hello Friends!
So today is the fifth day of the Optimum Health Challenge, a.k.a. the elimination diet! This week has been very interesting for me. I’ll just come right out and say it, the first two days were NOT fun! I drank green smoothies until I was blue (or green) in the face and I unwittingly did not taper off my caffeine intake before the detox began which had some negative consequences.
So here’s how it went down:
The elimination diet that I am following begins with a two-day smoothie cleanse and emphasizes green veggies being the main component of these smoothies. So, Monday morning I woke up and had my first smoothie consisting of an apple, a pear, a few leaves of cabbage, a few leaves of kale, a handful of spinach, a small piece of ginger, parsley, and filtered water. The first one wasn’t THAT bad! And I wasn’t THAT hungry after slurping it down. So the day continued and I drank some more of this kind of smoothie. It gets kinda foamy/fizzy as it hangs out in the fridge and definitely becomes a little less palatable...
Anyway, towards the evening, while at work I got a major migraine headache. Light sensitivity, nausea, the whole shebang. I went to bed very early and woke up Tuesday with remnants of the headache. I made another smoothie and drank it, but I still felt pretty bad. By that evening I was feeling a little better and managed to get through work alright. By then I was just really proud of myself for surviving!
I actually began attributing the migraine to caffeine withdrawals after speaking with a few people and doing some searching on the web. All the symptoms matched and I do consume a pretty large amount of caffeine on most days.
*This is why I recommend tapering off your caffeine intake before going cold turkey off the caffeine. Take into consideration any tea, coffee, or soda that you may be drinking…the caffeine adds up!
The next few days were awesome! I broke my fast on Wednesday afternoon with a spinach salad. I’m pretty limited right now in terms of being able to have salad dressings, so I went plain with some high-quality, cold-pressed, organic olive oil drizzled on the greens with broccoli sprouts, sunflower seeds, cucumbers, and avocado. It was spectacular!!!!
Eating simple, healthy, deliciousness is actually VERY easy if you’re willing to let go of some of your attachments to food and get your butt in the kitchen and make something great for yourself! It’s fun! It’s EMPOWERING!
So, I’ve had some ups and downs over the past week, but I’m almost six days into the Optimum Health Challenge and I feel soooo good. I’m big on teas and coffees, so I’ve been sipping a lot of water throughout the day to replace those delightful beverages and staying hydrated all day makes me FEEL REALLY GREAT. I also have tons of organic herbal teas, such as rooibos, peppermint, and chamomile to sip on while relaxing in the evening. These teas are great for replacing any evening bevvies that don’t make the cut while doing the elimination diet (i.e., wine, liquor, beer, diet decaf pepsi!). Some of these herbal teas are also very good for digestion, which is really beneficial during a detox!
I'm leaving you with a recipe that I absolutely love and, with a few changes, it meets all my dietary requirements while I’m on the elimination diet. I recommend trying this satisfying recipe and then you will see that YOU CAN do an elimination diet or YOU CAN incorporate healthier choices into your daily life without sacrificing ANYTHING!
ENJOY!
Coconut Quinoa Pilaf
Serves 4
2 cups quinoa
1 can coconut milk
2 cups of water
1 bunch green onions, sliced
1 medium red bell pepper, diced small*
3 to 4 cloves garlic, crushed
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 to 1 tsp crushed red chili flakes*
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1. Rinse the dry quinoa in a fine mesh strainer under warm running water. Quinoa has a natural saponin coating that repels insects and birds and can create a bitter taste. Rinsing the quinoa with warm water removes the saponin.
2. Place rinsed quinoa into a medium saucepan with the coconut milk, water, sliced green onions, diced red bell pepper, garlic, sea salt, and chili flakes. Cover and bring to a boil, then turn heat to a low simmer and cook for about 20 minutes.
3. Remove pot from heat and let pilaf cool in the pot fro about 10 minutes. Then add chopped cilantro and gently fluff with a fork. Serve hot.
*Omit ingredients if following WLN Elimination diet.
This tastes great with a roasted sweet potato!
