Day 16

Better choices than the past on Patti's Plate today, but not fitting for a Nutritarian. Today was a special day. My husband and I had an appointment in the San Diego area, so we took the opportunity to visit our son in Carlsbad on the way home. He has been living there on a "student budget" for the past year and was excited to be treated to dinner. He suggested a restaurant that he had been wanting to try and after eating there, I know why. The food was really delicious. I perused the menu for quite some time before deciding on an entree. There were really not a lot of choices for a Nutritarian. I didn't want to make the dinner about me and a sudden dietary change so I did the best I could. I decided not to care at all about oil and I also decided as long as I was staying away from meat, I was still better off than before. I ordered salad with a mushroom, onion, olive appetiser as my entree. Had I just had that, I would have been proud of myself. However, we started the meal with mussels and squid. Although, Ted ate most of it, I definitely ate my share.

Day 15

I made a golden split pea soup in the crock pot on Sunday. I cooked it the entire day, and the peas were still hard by dinner time. I puréed them somewhat and refrigerated them. On Monday I put them back in the crockpot for another day. By dinner, though still not perfect, they were edible. Today, I came home from work, tired and hungry.     Being able to warm the soup in the microwave and produce a hot satisfying bowl within 3 minutes made me realize how important it is to have healthy comforting food easily accessible at all times. If I didn't have it already made I may have been tempted to have a piece of cheese. I knew a stick of celery certainly wasn't going to do the trick. And.....the soup finally tasted good.

Day 14

Today is the completion of my second week. Rather than write about the food I have been eating, I prefer to take this day to write about how I am feeling. I'm definitely feeling the change of eating in a healthier way, however the change is not as radical as I hoped it would be after two weeks. I am still aching when I walk. I think that is the main symptom of poor eating that I have been trying to fix. I understand age will cause aches and pains, as well as being overweight. I am hoping to fix the weight issue by eating better, but I guess there isn't much I can do to turn back time without a time travel machine. I haven't dropped a size yet, but since I was trending upward lately I'm satisfied that my "fat" clothes are fitting better. Eating for health rather than for weight loss is definitely a new experience for me. When I started this Nutritarian diet two weeks ago, I didn't think I would last two hours. Eating high nutritional food is oddly sustaining.

Day 13

This weekend has definitely been difficult. Last night was "Saturday night."  I was a perfect Nutritarian all day until the evening. Then,  my husband started with the questions. "So, what are we going to do tonight?"  I guess I could have said, "nothing!" But.....I chose not to. I am a pleaser. If I had said "nothing", he would not have been pleased. So we spent about a half hour discussing our options and settled on staying home but getting take out from California Chicken Cafe. He picked up Vegetable soup and a chicken wrap. Yes, I had chicken last night. It was the very first time in 13 days that I actually ate something from an animal. I actually ate an animal. Well.....it was  chicken. Does poultry really count? I would have preferred a steak. I had a couple of pieces of diced chicken instead.  I should get some credit. Anyhow it was delicious. I ended the night satisfied, but a little guilty.

 

Day 12

I immediately got back on track this morning with fresh fruit for breakfast. Watermelon is saving me. I just don't get tired of it. Another thing I don't get tired of is almond butter. The almond butter that I buy from Whole Foods is made from almonds and nothing else. There are absolutely no additives. I've made it myself in the past, but buying it is so much more convenient. I cut up a crispy pink apple this afternoon and dipped it in the almond butter. It not only tasted great, but it really helps to curb my sugar cravings. Now, if I can make it through dinner as a Nutritarian, I'll have another day under my shrinking belt!

Day 11

I haven't eaten a romantic meal with my husband in 11 days. Why do I equate fattening meals with romance? Well, it's the idea of a date. The meal usually starts off with a drink, and then slowly moves to a salad and entree, all the while lingering over conversation and discussing all aspects of our life. Tonight was different. First of all, I was not completely ready to give up one night of being a Nutritarian. I wavered back and forth between staying strict to my diet and being a fun partner. My relationship won out. (The one with my husband, not food) oh, wait a minute - maybe both. It's hard enough to abstain from meat, bread and oil. To do so and lose the support of your mate is hard. He would have probably been fine to eat and drink heartily alone, but I would have felt bad. It's probably just another hurdle to get over. So.....I broke Dr. Fuhrman's 6 week plan. Still, I did not eat anything like I would have in the past. I ordered a large salad with vinegarette on the side and a cup of lobster bisque. This is going to be a long week end.

 

Day 10

Today has been a very tough day living as a Nutritarian. It didn't start out that way. I woke up early, had a lot of energy, and ate an apple with delicious natural almond butter from Whole Foods. A couple of hours later, I had a snack of ice cold juicy watermelon. I thought I was well on my way to completing another successful day. Then, fatigue and weakness set in. I couldn't bear to make a salad with "no oil" dressing. The thought of eating it was just too unpleasant to go through the effort of making it. I had a couple of errands to run so I decided to stop by Whole Foods on the way back and pick up something ready made and healthy. It really wasn't that easy. There were tons of Vegan items that looked somewhat appetizing, however when I read the labels, they almost always had some sort of oil added. Now if I was on weight watchers, or most other "diets" this really wouldn't be a problem. But Dr. Fuhrman doesn't want us to eat oil in the first 6 weeks of his plan. He believes that all oils, even olive oil are really empty calories that lead to disease. I walked around the store and got more and more discouraged. Finally, I went to the bean aisle and bought a package of black beans. I decided to go home and make a salad and struggle through lunch. But.....I got lucky. I heated the beans, added some fresh salsa, and a really good balsamic vinegar. In a matter of minutes, I had one of the most flavorful soups I have ever eaten. Seriously, it was that good. I also made a romaine salad with avocado dressing. By the time I was finished I was full and hopeful again that I will make it through another day.