Day 3 Coffee Detox Evening

Time for sleep. I took a nap earlier; the leg cramps became too much. I'm trained as a massage therapit so I gave myself some great leg massage that helped somewhat, took a hot shower and now I'm ready to get into a comfortable bed.

I was thinking about this detox. A reason I must do this is because I'm determined to get serious about being a Health and Wellness Coach. It's been something I've desired to do for years, since retruning from the Peace Corps. Natural health has always been my belief. But for integrity sake, I have to live my talk.

This experience is making me think. What's interesting is that our bodies are totally ours to control (except in unusual situations of course). Isn't it a wonder that the first thing most people do when they are stressed is start to do what is harmful to their own body?

I started drinking loads of coffee during times of great stress. Even when the situation started to tune down, the coffee drinking increased; up to eight cups a day.

Probably most addictions start this way; a little bit of dabbling in what brings an artifical relief that really shouldn't be a bad thing. Coffee is a worldwide drink. I enjoyed great coffee in Africa, Mexico, Spain and in all States of the US. It's great to bring people together. But with everything, you can go overboard.

Too much of a good thing soon turns to a bad addiction. Now I need to get control of my life again. How many thousands of professional people are in the same position but haven't taken the steps to control their health? All the money in the world can't make you healty if you don't take control of it yourself.

All the money in the world can't take away the pain of the withdrawals. It's a strong reminder to me that the most important thing is to live longer, healthier.

Going to bed - hope to have a better day tomorrow.

Day 3 - Coffee Detox

It's Wednesday and Day 3 of my raw foods cleanse and coffee detox. I guess you could really count it as day 4 if Sunday night counts. I won't rush it.

I'm still feeling the effects of the detox. The headache has gone but I'm feeling wasted. However, I did get a burst of energy this morning and took advantage of that to get in about 20 minutes of exercise. It felt good to stretch and get the heart pumping a bit.

Today, I'm still having leg cramps. It feels like something is crawling up and down my muscles. I wish I could just go get a great massage and feel relief. It's been difficult to sit at the computer to get my work done but at least I can see today. I'm feeling restless. I'm up and down, going to this room to that one. I think it's the body pain. I react to body pain with movement and restlessness.

I'm going to fix my husband some flank steak, rice and salad for dinner. That won't be tempting to me because I'm not that into steak. I'm ready for the big raw veggie salad though. In fact, I just went to the store to get some more fruits and veggies. I've been having a green smoothie in the morning and eating raw all week. I think I'm starting to lose weight.

I think of it as letting go of toxins that want to kill me. It's like a fight. The bad stuff wants to stay on the body and you're fighting to make it leave. It takes will power to keep going. The toxins know this so they torture you to stay put. I'm going to win this battle.

I'll let you know how the day ends.

Day 2 - Coffee Detox

Yesterday, Tuesday, was Day 2 of my cleanse and coffee detox. I thought I was dying. The headache I had kept me from looking at my computer screen, so I couldn't even blog about the experience. I actually didn't realize what was going on at first.

I thought something was wrong with me.

I had chills, my nose was running, I was achy all over. I could think of many things this could be attributed too. Such as the long walks I'd taken with my son in San Francisco over the weekend while playing tourist. Maybe I'd caught a cold or something, but it wasn't that type of sick. The chills were different. I was sweating and a bit dizzy.

I guess something WAS wrong with me. My body was throwing off toxins in my body from the overload of caffeine. I started reading online how caffeine is a drug. I knew this but the actuality of it didn't hit until I had this experience. It reminded me of the scene in the movie "Ray" with Jaime Fox when Ray Charles goes through drug rehab. I felt like a junky getting off drugs.

It hit me that I was having withdrawal symptoms; I just never thought they would be so bad. By late afternoon, I was wiped out and had to take a nap. Mostly , I needed to close my eyes because of the headache. The aches in my body were really bad. I couldn't stand it after a while and took an aspirin. That helped. After having a raw vegetable salad and some fruit I decided to just go to bed early. I couldn't sleep becuase of the body pains. I felt like a wimp but I took an Aleve. It probably has caffeine but I don't know; I just wanted to get rid of some of the pain and go to sleep.

First Day of Detox

I started my coffee detox when I started my cleanse on Sunday evening. After dinner on Sunday around 7:00 p.m., I didn't eat again until Monday evening around 7:00 pm. During that time I only drank filtered water. I've done a fast for several days before but I admit, I always had a bit of coffee with it.

This time, a part of the cleanse is to clear out my system of toxins so that means getting out of the coffee habit. Whether I'll drink any after this is questionable but I'll deal with that later.

By Monday evening, I was feeling tired and dragged out, but I attributed it mostly to not eating all day. I was starting to get a headache and feeling disoriented. All I could think about starting around 5:00 p.m. was taking a shower and getting into the bed. But I was able to eat something at 7:00 so I was also looking forward to that.

I had half a watermelon and a half of a banana after the initial fasting session. It never tasted so good. When you're really hungry, food taste better. When you get full, it starts to lose its taste. I was really hungry because the taste of the fruit never went away. In fact, I thought I'd eaten too much because I started to feel a headache. So I drank loads of water and tried to get to sleep.

That was Day 1 of getting off coffee. I hadn't started to miss is yet since I was so focused on just not eating anything.

Caffeine Withdrawal

Sunday evening I started a cleanse. While I don't have to starve myself this week, I'm only eating raw fruits and vegetables. Additionally, I only drink pure water with lemon at the most. That means no coffee.

For some that's not a big deal. For me, it's really serious. Coffee is precious to me. I'm the type that makes it first thing in the morning like it was a companion or something. My coffee intake was up to 8 cups a day. It's not that difficult to reach that level without knowing. Everything related to food in America is super-sized, including the cups we use to drink coffee. So swigging two of the large ones already gives me four cups. Then by afternoon, I'm ready for more. Without realizing it, I consume more coffee in a day than some people do in a week.

Going cold turkey is the only way I know to stop this habit. If you ever wondered if this was a form of detox I can vouch that it is. I have been having the worse withdrawal symptoms ever. In fact, I had to do some research online to be sure I was experiencing something normal in a detox situation because I've never been through this before.

I thought it might be helpful for you to know what it's like to withdraw from coffee addiction. The reason being that I hope you also take the step if you're as addicted as I am. In order to really experience a new start with my health, I have to go all the way to getting better. That starts with letting go of what's been holding me back and coffee consumption is a start. I'll chronicle the next few days and leave a trail of information for you to access when you decide to make the coffee withdrawal.

Easy Steps to Change Your Bad Food Habits

Use the suggestions here to get in the habit of eating healthier.Have you ever really asked yourself the question, “Do I eat to live or live to eat?” It’s amazing how so many people really live to eat thinking any food is better than no food. But what you put in your mouth today will have an effect on you body for a long time.

Certainly you have foods that that you particularly enjoy. These are most often comfort foods that are hard to give up. Not all of these are bad for you, in fact, some can be highly nutritious. But if you make food choices that aren’t the best on a regular basis, here are some suggestions for making changes.

1. Don’t Set Yourself Up. It’s common to sabotage your eating habits when you grab whatever is available when you are hungry instead of stopping to prepare a proper snack or meal. For instance, if you just happen to have a box of chocolate cookies in your desk drawer when you’re ravishing, it’s too easy to reach for them when stressed or you think you are hungry.

2. Stay away from the grocery store when hungry. Being around food when you’re hungry is a key to eating sabotage. You might have the intention to only get a few things at the grocery store but when your stomach us empty, it is easy to abandon the pack of boneless, skinless chicken breasts that have to be prepared for the fried chicken wings at the deli that you can eat in the car on the way home.

3. Don’t snack while cooking. This habit that many of us have can be a real diet killer. It is really bad around the holidays. Depending on how much you snack you could consume an entire meal worth of calories before you sit down to eat the actual meal. Even if you are cooking a healthier meal, you can eat too much before the meal is even served.

4. Change one food habit at a time. Taste is a learned behavior and difficult to change. Don’t force yourself to go cold turkey in giving up foods but take it in steps. For instance, if you enjoy eating full-fat ice cream as well as macaroni and cheese, you know you need to cut back. Don’t drop them both at once; just give up one food at a time. You can start by eating a lower fat version of the food such as a lower fat alternative.

5. Get a Coach. A Health, Wellness or Nutrition Coach can help you to understand how to eat in a way that becomes a new lifestyle, not just for a diet. Coaching can help you get rid of your bad or annoying habits through a series of positive supports provided during your sessions.

6. Make a plan. It is not enough to say that you will change your bad eating habits. That is a vague statement that gets you nowhere. You have to write it down and commit to it. For example, say that you will begin eating whole grains instead of white bread, or using lower fat dairy products over full-fat ones with more calories.

7. Keep a food journal. Record everything that you eat for a week. When you go back to it you may be amazed at all of the sweet, salty or fatty foods you consumed. Use the journal to create a list of the foods that are and are not healthy for you so you can make a plan to make changes.

It's easier to make better food choices when you can be conscious about what you put in your mouth. Do your planning so ou can develop easy steps to change your food habits.

Are You Calorie Aware?

If you are older than 40, it's important to know that your metabolism has slowed down effectively burning less calories than you did as a youth.

Most people are not actually aware of just how many calories are eaten each day or just how many of them get burned up through body processes and activity levels.

Those individuals who are age 60 or older also lose muscle mass and as most of us know muscle mass helps us to burn calories. Without muscle mass, we add poundage to our frame when we eat more than our bodies need.

Men and women who are in their fifties burn 4 to 8% more calories than men and women in their 60s.

Individual who are 40 years of age or older need to be more careful about how many calories they consume each day and more diligent about being able to burn off what we do not need.

If you find that you are gaining weight, make changes now such as increasing your daily activity level, or eating fat-free or light products. Watch portion sizes and drink more than eight 8-oz glasses of water a day.

When counting calories don't forget to count the calories contained in beverages, condiments, and of course desserts.

Does Your Diet Contain Healthy Foods?

You know that eating healthier foods is necessary for longevity, but knowing what to eat can sometimes be difficult, particularly if you've formed bad eating habits over a lifetime.

These few easy tips help you remember which foods to eat in order to have a healthier eating lifestyle.

1. There are six basic food groups that you should select your daily menu items from. The food groups are: whole grains, vegetables, fruits, milk and other dairy products, protein, and lastly the group containing oils. A well-balanced diet will provide your body with all of the nutrients it needs to maintain health.

2. The food items in the whole grains group include whole wheat, brown rice, oatmeal, whole grain barley and millet. You should do your best to avoid eating refined grains which many breads, pastas, and breakfast cereals are made of.

3. The food items contained in the group known as vegetables include a variety of colorful vegetables. Remember that the deeper the color of the vegetable, the greater the concentration of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants are contained in the food item. Dark greens, orange vegetables, broccoli, kale, mustard greens, butternut squash and sweet potatoes are good examples of these darker colored vegetables.

4. The fruit group contains foods that are more enjoyable to eat and we do so in many different ways such as eating them fresh from the garden, canned, frozen, dried, whole, cut-up or pureed. We can even make fruit juices from fresh fruits. Fruits can dress up a salad or become a tasty after school or mid-afternoon work break snack.

5. To stay healthy choose low-fat dairy products. Nowadays you need to be sure that your dairy products do not contain rBST (bovine growth hormone) by choosing organic dairy products. Individuals, who are lactose-intolerant, can choose lactose-free and lower-lactose dairy products, such as the harder cheeses, and yogurt so that they can get the calcium they need in their diet.

6. Protein is a very important ingredient in any healthy diet and to get enough protein from a variety of sources choose from fish, poultry, eggs, beans, peas, nuts and seeds. Try to minimize your selection of red meats that contain higher levels of saturated fats.

7. The oil group provides an excellent and necessary source of healthy fatty acids in your diet and should not be avoided. High quality fats from olive oil, avocado, raw nuts and seeds, coconut and fish are all important parts of a healthy diet.

8. A healthy diet needs to contain vitamins, which are organic compounds that our bodies need for normal growth, and to maintain good health. Certain vitamins are not good to take in too large of quantity, for instance, fat-soluble vitamins like A and D tends to accumulate in our bodies and become toxic when we ingest large amounts of them. Water-soluble vitamins like vitamin C are flushed through the body on a daily basis, so there is no concern for these vitamins. Mineral is inorganic substances and is also necessary to include in our daily diets in order for our bodies to function properly.

Children, pregnant women and boomers especially benefit from a well-balanced diet that provides for all of the needed vitamins, minerals and oils that the body needs.

9. Water is another very important ingredient to healthy eating. Water is essential to the proper function of our bodies. The typical individual should drink at least eight 8-oz glasses of water each day. Individuals who are overweight, pregnant, breastfeeding, or very active should drink more than eight 8-oz glasses of water each day.

Add Legumes For a Healthy Diet

Legumes are a healthy and very versatile food that are in the vegetable group. They have been a part of healthy diets all over the world for more than 10,000 years. You've heard of legumes if you know about soybeans. Other common legumes include black-eyed peas, chickpeas, lentils, black & red & navy beans, and also kidney beans.

Legumes provide many essential nutrients that the human body needs for growth and cell building. Legumes contain nutrients such as protein, carbohydrates, iron, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, potassium and B vitamins. Legumes are also high in dietary fibers, are low in saturated fat, and are cholesterol free.

Legumes are seeds that can be eaten fresh or they can be sprouted, dried, or ground into flour.

Legumes contain many nutrients that are important to preventing heart disease, cancer, obesity and other chronic diseases. Legumes are nutrient-dense and nutritionists recommend that we eat several servings each week of legumes.

Tips for adding legumes to your healthy diet:

When purchasing legumes look for those with deep colors.

Soak large, or dried legumes such as beans and chickpeas in room-temperature water overnight in order to rehydrate them before cooking them. They will become soft as they soak.

Use legumes in soups and casseroles. Use pureed beans in dips or spreads. You can also use chickpeas and black beans in salads.

Legumes are a great source of protein for vegetarians.

To add flavor to beans season them with garlic, onion, spices, salsa, even cheeses to bring out the flavor in any bean dish. There are many varieties that you may not have tried yet such as garbanzo beans, adzuki beans, broadbeans, butter beans, mung beans, mungo beans, snow peas, winged beans, yam beans, yellow or white beans.

You can teach your body to overcome the unpleasant side effect (gas or bloating) of beans in your diet by slowly increasing the amount you eat over a period of weeks. You can also slow cook them to reduce the gas-forming compounds. If you add a little baking soda while cooking them this will also help. When eating legumes it is important to drink a lot of water to avoid constipation.

You can add legumes to salad, soup or casseroles. Beans are great in chili too.

Legumes add taste and texture to your healthy meals while they reduce your risk of heart disease. Soybeans are the basis for tofu and are definitely part of a healthy diet.

Enjoy fresh or roasted soybeans as a snack or meal after you have boiled them in lightly salted water for 15 to 20 minutes.

You can add soy flour (grounded roasted soybeans) to baked goods but caution should be used to NOT replace all flour in a recipe with soy flour because soy flour lacks gluten, which is needed to help dough to rise.