More Than Dieting and Clean Eating

We have completed our month of cleansing, detoxing and clean eating.  Wow! I feel so much better than I did a month ago.  And none of the kiddos have been complaining about tummy aches like they were a month ago.  What a difference a month and good, nourishing food makes!

So what did we accomplish besides just feeling better?  Did I have other goals?  How did we do on sticking to our “diet” and accomplishing those goals?  Yep, I’m so glad you asked.  And now here’s the scoop.

How did we do on sticking to our “diet”?

We actually did very good!  And I have to admit-that even surprises me.  I knew we usually eat out once during the weekend, so I planned on having to cheat on those meals.  But by cheat, I don’t mean totally fall off the wagon.  We avoided grains on the first weekend out and we avoided all the obvious refined sugars as well.  I know that in basically all dressings, sauces and condiments there is not just sugar, but high fructose corn syrup so we tried to limit those, but I knew better than to totally ban them.  (That is not a battle I wanted to fight this go around.)  After the first weekend, we did allow bread while eating out, but still avoided all the obvious refined sugars.

Now, I must admit that last weekend we splurged and had ice cream.  Yeah, I know-totally not on the allowed list, right?  And the next day all the kids woke up with congested heads or with a slight sore throat.  So even in totally falling off the wagon, we all learned a huge lesson.  Your food affects how you feel!  I knew that all that sugar caused us to feel bad and our bodies were reacting to it and trying to get it out.  Which brings me to the second question.

Did I have other goals in detoxing and clean eating?

Yes! I had two huge goals that went well beyond our month of watching what we ate.  The first goal was to teach my kiddos to choose and enjoy healthy meal options.  Having three kids, we have our one that is picky and hardly likes anything I cook.  (I really thought I cooked pretty good until I had her.  :/ )  At home, they are all expected to eat what is cooked.  Yes, that means even if they don’t like it they have to eat (some) of it.  But when we go out to eat they usually get to choose what they want-with us having the final say.

I wanted them to learn to choose and enjoy the healthier options when we eat out.  And surprisingly, they did.  Now, I don’t expect them to always choose the best options.  I don’t always choose the healthiest option.  But at least they do realize now that those options do taste good.  So with a little more “encouragement” from us, the healthier options just might become a regular occurrence.  Now that is a lesson that will stay with them a lot longer than month.

My next goal built on the first.  I wanted my children to learn self control-not giving in to their desires.  Food is powerful, but so are fleshly desires.   Learning to deny your desires and choose wisely the things that are beneficial for you and not just things that feel good for the moment is a crucial life lesson.  Especially when you add peer pressure to the mix.

During this month of clean eating, when we’ve seen friends around us eat not so healthy food that looks oh so tempting, I’ve had to remind myself and my kiddos that sometimes in life we have to choose what is best for us and not just what seems good for the moment.  Although at the moment, I’m pretty sure that didn’t really help quench their desire for the sugar coated donuts and desserts, but at least they are hearing it.  And ultimately, they know that we felt pretty yucky in December, but just a week or so into January we were all feeling much better-so they can feel the results whether they admit it or not.  This is just a small building block in the lesson of choosing what is best, even if it’s harder or we’re alone in our decision.

Well, there you have it-my overview of our month of detoxing and cleansing and the food and life lessons we learned along the way.  So how are we doing since we’ve officially ended our diet?  Have we kept up our good eating habits or gone back to eating the SAD way?  Well, we’ve actually done pretty good.  We are more accepting still of healthier options at home and when eating out.  I’ve finally ordered some more wheat berries so we can have freshly ground wheat.  No, I haven’t started my sourdough yet, but my plan is to get that started by spring.  Until then I’ll at least soak or sprout my wheat.

I must admit that every meal may not be the best (check out my Instagram for what we ate this weekend).  But overall we are all more aware of eating healthier and if we can choose just a few more healthy options a week then that’s progress-and I’ll take progress!

Keep Choosing Healthy and Herbing It Up!

Brigett 

How about you?  Are you sticking to your resolutions?  How are you choosing more wisely when it comes to meals and teaching your kids to do the same?  I’d love to hear your secrets and tricks in the comments below!