Congratulations! You’ve made it!

Reflecting on the Sugar Detox

You completed the sugar detox! This is no easy feat. Reward yourself with a non-food item. Don’t go running out to Dairy Queen to buy a double peanut butter parfait! Gorging on “NO” foods after the detox is likely to make you feel sick and demolishes the progress you have made these 10 days. At this time, it’s best to reflect on where you started from and where you are at now. What motivated you to do the detox in the first place? What lessons can you take away from this experience?

Food Sensitivities

For those of you who are using the detox to identify if you have a food sensitivity, you’ll want to stick to the detox for a full month. The next step is to add one of the “NO” food groups (dairy, for example) back in to your diet after the full month. You’ll add dairy back in to breakfast, lunch and dinner; then stay clear of dairy for 3 days sticking to the detox protocol. If you are sensitive, you a reaction can appear immediately or may metabolize within three days. Sensitivities may include (but are not limited to): body pain, skin rashes, headaches, brain fog, and digestion issues. It’s important to test one food group at a time; otherwise, it’s tough to root out the cause of your sensitivity.

Next Steps

As for a general diet, I believe in following the Paleolithic diet guidelines. If you follow these guidelines you will be eating more nutrient dense, whole foods and staying clear of processed, nutrient-void “foods”.  Check out Nerd Fitness’s beginner guide to the Paleo diet.

My Guide to Paleo

I would like to share a couple of personal notes about the paleo diet.

Eat Your Veggies

It is easy to get a little carried away and make the paleo diet a meat-centric diet. Most of us don’t consume enough vegetables, so load up on them at every meal and you will feel great! Also, paleo treats are still treats. Paleo desserts are made with honey, maple syrup and fruit. While these are naturally occuring sugars, they are still sugars! It is best to have these as a once in a while as a treat, but not with every meal of the day. Limiting these treats will keep your blood sugar stable.

Find Your Why

Now this is where it gets individualized. Take the time to reflect and ask yourself, “What are my personal goals and what can I maintain?” If you have discovered that you have a food sensitivity, it is best to avoid that group as much as you can. Remember to look at every label, as there are many hidden sneaky, sneaky ingredients. If you would like more help with how to individualize your diet, you may want to consider workshops and health coaching.

We all know what it is like to be addicted to sugar at some level but some of us are more attached than others. Ask yourself, “Am I an ‘all in/all out’ kind of person?” Is this addiction causing you harm and/or is it quite possibly endangering your life? If so, I would stick mostly to the detox protocol until you find a better balance.  You are not alone and there is help. Please don’t hesitate to ask me about health coaching or guiding you to other resources.

Making It Your Own

A lot of people have found that living the paleo diet lifestyle on a percentage base has worked for them. It really is a lifestyle, not just a diet. Depending on your lifestyle and your goals, you can choose 10, 15 or 20% non-paleo indulgences with goals to move to a smaller percentage. When you do dip into the non-paleo percentage, be conscious about your decision and check in with yourself to make sure this is really what you want to eat and you’re not eating out of emotional stress or social pressure. Some items are best never consumed and changing your perspective on that “food” can help. For example, food that is in a package that never rots and/or has unnatural colors, is not food. The only issue with the percentage approach is some people (like me) are all in or all out. Being at 20% can open the floodgates and it’s hard to rein it back in. Experiment, be aware and find what works best for you. You are the captain of your own ship.

What About Carbs?

Another approach is counting carbs. I went to a weekend seminar “Beyond Diet and Exercise and Why We are Fat” and again, the first lesson was to get blood sugar levels under control. At the seminar they suggested that people count carbs, recommending an allowance of 60 grams per day. This approach gives a strict guideline but leniency on how to spend your 60 grams of carbs throughout the day.  The 60 grams could be that beer at the end of the day, a couple of bananas or mashed potatoes ect. Counting carbs also makes you more aware and connected to your food choices.

You might say to yourself, “I don’t have any health issues, why would I want to eat like this?” The answer is that while you might not have any ailments, you certainly don’t want to set yourself up for any either. Also, consider the idea of unlocking a new level of health and performance that you didn’t even know existed.  Constantly spiking your blood sugar and eating nutrient-poor foods wears on your immune system, leaving you more susceptible for autoimmune and other illness and diseases. Once you have acquired an ailment or disease, the path to recovery can be a very long and hard. It is best to avoid this path altogether.

 

Congratulations again for making it through the detox and taking this step for your health. I encourage you to keep doing the research to keep you motivated and inspired. Never stop growing, learning and exploring all that life has to offer. Enjoy the journey!

Cheers!

Jenn

“The way you think, the way you behave, can influence your life by 30 to 50 years.”

-Deepak Chopra