The heat is unbearable. It’s muggy, the bee’s are out, and the line is unexpectedly long. But none of this --not even the other sweet-crazed customers in front of me -- can or will affect my desire to devour the sweet, gooey taste of Insomnia’s chocolate chip cookies.
The minutes pass by, as well as the customers, and while I’m still standing as the ninth person in line, I take my focus off my sudden dismay, and my eyes wander over to the line to my left, which is undoubtedly competing with that of Insomnia.
It is then I notice that the line, isn’t stretched out for greasy cheeseburgers, or double fudge brownies or even cheesy, greasy Philly cheesesteaks. “The Sexy Green truck’s” line is as long as it is because of its green, organic, and health conscious food.
Today, “going green” has become less of a coined term and more of a movement, that not only involves changing your plastic bag consumption, but also what you feed your body.
And for my generation, “going green” is more than a temporary fashion trend. It’s a lifestyle.
I decide to join the green movement, in hopes of ultimately uncovering the truth about whether giving my body healthier alternatives is in fact the guide to a more prosperous way of living.
With the help of “The Fat Smash Diet” book by acclaimed fitness trainer Dr. Ian K. Smith I begin to prepare for my nine-day detox diet, which strips me of Dominoes pizza, pineapple and coconut Haagen-Dazs ice cream, chicken quesadillas, and Starbucks Strawberries & Crème Frappuccinos.
To start, I skim the book with my roommate Ashley, who has also decided to detox to clear her body of toxins, lose weight and eat healthier.
The introductory chapter of the 160-paged book, is encouraging.
Dr. Ian writes that “The Fat Smash Diet is designed to be a forgiving program that is much about helping people make the necessary lifestyle changes to lead a healthier, happier, and longer life…”
The encouragement and reassurance is good, and as I read on, I begin to feel optimistic about my junk food rehabilitation project.
The second chapter of the book, which introduces phase one of the healthy diet, appropriately bolds the word detox and is filled with haves and have not’s.
Chapter two clearly states the number of meals to be eaten daily: 4-5, food preparation: raw, grilled, or steamed, detox tips: snacking on frozen grapes, never eating within an hour and a half of bedtime, and eating foods high in fiber; and lastly, the list of what is allowed and what is absolutely not.
After subtracting all the foods I couldn’t eat, I’m left with an abundance of fruits, water, and vegetables: excluding avocado and white potatoes. No white rice, no meat, fish, cheese, bread --all types --raisins, nuts, dried or preserved fruits, candy, popcorn, chips, ice cream, juice, soda --regular or diet, coffee, sports drinks, milkshakes, whole eggs, fried food and the obvious, fast food.
Joining the fruits and vegetables that I can have is: brown rice --two cups cooked, beans, low-fat or skim or soy milk, oatmeal --one cup per day, all herbs and spices, four egg whites per day, two cups herbal tea per day, and water.
I finish the chapter, scared, exhausted, and suddenly really hungry, thinking of all the foods that are not allowed.
By the end of reading the list of “Food/Drinks not allowed,” I realize that I would basically be eating nothing for the next nine days, seeing that I have never considered just fruits and vegetables to be “real food."
Ama, another roomate of mine, advises me to explore all the fruits and vegetables that I haven’t tried in order to grant me more options of foods to eat.
Still, with the advice I’m pessimistic.
Dr. Ian, whose “fat smash” dieting plan was used on VH1’s Celebrity Fit Club, states in the book that “dieting is 50% mental,” which can be interpreted to mean that dieting is a process that needs full commitment from both your mind and your body in order to be successful.
So by Saturday, the day before I opted to start my detox project, and with full understanding of Dr. Ian’s detox phase, I pre-detoxed, which in my case, meant I gorged my taste buds with all the foods I wouldn’t be eating for the next nine days.
It was raining, but despite the cloudy skies I made my way down to South Street to savor Philadelphia’s famous Ms. Tootsies’ southern fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, candy yams, cornbread and tropical watermelon iced tea, in what I figured would be the last meal.
To top off the foods that were probably well over my proposed calorie consumption for the week, I exerted all the energy I had left into devouring ½ cup of Haagen-Dazs’ strawberry ice cream, which by day one of detox would be the ultimate sin.
As the rain finally let up and after barely being able to walk, I headed off to the vegetarian’s paradise or, as it is properly known, Whole Foods market.
I arrive at what I feel has to be the healthiest place on earth and quickly stock up on all the foods I can eat. I buy: a bag of mixed greens for salad, tomatoes, mangoes, water, kiwi, bananas and raspberry nectar vinaigrette.
I make it back to my North Philadelphia residence exhausted, but fully prepared to take on my health conscious mission.
Finally, I reach day 1 of my detox, and at 5 feet, 6 inches I weigh in at 151 pounds. It’s 11:30 a.m. and while I feel like I’m still digesting my southern fried chicken, I start the day off with 1 cup of Quaker oatmeal and sliced mangoes and strawberries.
By mid-day, I already begin feeling faint, and start to prepare my first vegetarian-based dinner.
Brown rice, sautéed broccoli, green and red peppers, and onions finally fill my stomach, and by the end of the meal all I can say is: “At least I’m full.”
Three hours later, I’m experiencing a feeling of discontent, and long for the flavorful cinnamon pretzels, chicken fettuccini pasta and oven-baked garlic bread that I used to know.
Having no choice I resort to my leftover mango slices and call it a night.
It’s 10 a.m. of day two, and all I can think of is how I’m not looking forward to my meals for the day. By this day, I already deem that detoxing is going to be harder for me than expected.
Keeping up the momentum of day one, I prepare my oatmeal, this time accompanying it with Youplait’s low fat strawberry yogurt mousse and head off to my first and only class of the day.
By lunch time, I head to Temple’s Student Center eatery to use one of my five meal plans.
Trying hard to ignore the smell of freshly baked cinnamon pretzels from Auntie Annie’s and hot French fries from Burger King, I rush straight to the salad bar and create a salad with: spinach leafs, red onions, mushrooms, green peppers, carrots, tomatoes, one teaspoon olive oil and low fat raspberry vinaigrette, I grab an orange, pay for my meal and quickly exit the building.
Hours later after my tasteless lunch, I head off to the Johnson and Hardwick cafeteria to find a more suitable dinner.
The minutes pass by, as well as the customers, and while I’m still standing as the ninth person in line, I take my focus off my sudden dismay, and my eyes wander over to the line to my left, which is undoubtedly competing with that of Insomnia.
It is then I notice that the line, isn’t stretched out for greasy cheeseburgers, or double fudge brownies or even cheesy, greasy Philly cheesesteaks. “The Sexy Green truck’s” line is as long as it is because of its green, organic, and health conscious food.
Today, “going green” has become less of a coined term and more of a movement, that not only involves changing your plastic bag consumption, but also what you feed your body.
And for my generation, “going green” is more than a temporary fashion trend. It’s a lifestyle.
I decide to join the green movement, in hopes of ultimately uncovering the truth about whether giving my body healthier alternatives is in fact the guide to a more prosperous way of living.
With the help of “The Fat Smash Diet” book by acclaimed fitness trainer Dr. Ian K. Smith I begin to prepare for my nine-day detox diet, which strips me of Dominoes pizza, pineapple and coconut Haagen-Dazs ice cream, chicken quesadillas, and Starbucks Strawberries & Crème Frappuccinos.
To start, I skim the book with my roommate Ashley, who has also decided to detox to clear her body of toxins, lose weight and eat healthier.
The introductory chapter of the 160-paged book, is encouraging.
Dr. Ian writes that “The Fat Smash Diet is designed to be a forgiving program that is much about helping people make the necessary lifestyle changes to lead a healthier, happier, and longer life…”
The encouragement and reassurance is good, and as I read on, I begin to feel optimistic about my junk food rehabilitation project.
The second chapter of the book, which introduces phase one of the healthy diet, appropriately bolds the word detox and is filled with haves and have not’s.
Chapter two clearly states the number of meals to be eaten daily: 4-5, food preparation: raw, grilled, or steamed, detox tips: snacking on frozen grapes, never eating within an hour and a half of bedtime, and eating foods high in fiber; and lastly, the list of what is allowed and what is absolutely not.
After subtracting all the foods I couldn’t eat, I’m left with an abundance of fruits, water, and vegetables: excluding avocado and white potatoes. No white rice, no meat, fish, cheese, bread --all types --raisins, nuts, dried or preserved fruits, candy, popcorn, chips, ice cream, juice, soda --regular or diet, coffee, sports drinks, milkshakes, whole eggs, fried food and the obvious, fast food.
Joining the fruits and vegetables that I can have is: brown rice --two cups cooked, beans, low-fat or skim or soy milk, oatmeal --one cup per day, all herbs and spices, four egg whites per day, two cups herbal tea per day, and water.
I finish the chapter, scared, exhausted, and suddenly really hungry, thinking of all the foods that are not allowed.
By the end of reading the list of “Food/Drinks not allowed,” I realize that I would basically be eating nothing for the next nine days, seeing that I have never considered just fruits and vegetables to be “real food."
Ama, another roomate of mine, advises me to explore all the fruits and vegetables that I haven’t tried in order to grant me more options of foods to eat.
Still, with the advice I’m pessimistic.
Dr. Ian, whose “fat smash” dieting plan was used on VH1’s Celebrity Fit Club, states in the book that “dieting is 50% mental,” which can be interpreted to mean that dieting is a process that needs full commitment from both your mind and your body in order to be successful.
So by Saturday, the day before I opted to start my detox project, and with full understanding of Dr. Ian’s detox phase, I pre-detoxed, which in my case, meant I gorged my taste buds with all the foods I wouldn’t be eating for the next nine days.
It was raining, but despite the cloudy skies I made my way down to South Street to savor Philadelphia’s famous Ms. Tootsies’ southern fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, candy yams, cornbread and tropical watermelon iced tea, in what I figured would be the last meal.
To top off the foods that were probably well over my proposed calorie consumption for the week, I exerted all the energy I had left into devouring ½ cup of Haagen-Dazs’ strawberry ice cream, which by day one of detox would be the ultimate sin.
As the rain finally let up and after barely being able to walk, I headed off to the vegetarian’s paradise or, as it is properly known, Whole Foods market.
I arrive at what I feel has to be the healthiest place on earth and quickly stock up on all the foods I can eat. I buy: a bag of mixed greens for salad, tomatoes, mangoes, water, kiwi, bananas and raspberry nectar vinaigrette.
I make it back to my North Philadelphia residence exhausted, but fully prepared to take on my health conscious mission.
Finally, I reach day 1 of my detox, and at 5 feet, 6 inches I weigh in at 151 pounds. It’s 11:30 a.m. and while I feel like I’m still digesting my southern fried chicken, I start the day off with 1 cup of Quaker oatmeal and sliced mangoes and strawberries.
By mid-day, I already begin feeling faint, and start to prepare my first vegetarian-based dinner.
Brown rice, sautéed broccoli, green and red peppers, and onions finally fill my stomach, and by the end of the meal all I can say is: “At least I’m full.”
Three hours later, I’m experiencing a feeling of discontent, and long for the flavorful cinnamon pretzels, chicken fettuccini pasta and oven-baked garlic bread that I used to know.
Having no choice I resort to my leftover mango slices and call it a night.
It’s 10 a.m. of day two, and all I can think of is how I’m not looking forward to my meals for the day. By this day, I already deem that detoxing is going to be harder for me than expected.
Keeping up the momentum of day one, I prepare my oatmeal, this time accompanying it with Youplait’s low fat strawberry yogurt mousse and head off to my first and only class of the day.
By lunch time, I head to Temple’s Student Center eatery to use one of my five meal plans.
Trying hard to ignore the smell of freshly baked cinnamon pretzels from Auntie Annie’s and hot French fries from Burger King, I rush straight to the salad bar and create a salad with: spinach leafs, red onions, mushrooms, green peppers, carrots, tomatoes, one teaspoon olive oil and low fat raspberry vinaigrette, I grab an orange, pay for my meal and quickly exit the building.
Hours later after my tasteless lunch, I head off to the Johnson and Hardwick cafeteria to find a more suitable dinner.
After scanning the cafeteria for 5 minutes I come to the conclusion that this is no place for a detoxer, and find myself resorting to the only vegetarian based dish: salad.
Needless to say once again I am happy to be full.
I end the night with 30 minutes on the elliptical and a hot shower. Before going to sleep I weigh myself and find that I am four pounds lighter! Weighing in at 147 pounds. No meat, fast food and sweets in my diet and I’m already losing weight, the unfortunate part is that my mind is losing it too.
I end day two feeling like there are no options that can satisfy my taste buds and resort to sleeping to cope with the lost.
By day three, I surprisingly wake up on my own at 7:30 a.m.
I go on to mirror day two’s breakfast and lunch menu, but the highlight of the day comes when I blend one banana, two slices of pineapple, one slice melon, eight strawberries and one whole mango into a fruit smoothie drink.
I finish the cup and within minutes my body feels healthy.
The sudden boost is unexpected, revitalizing, and boisterous and serves as the sunshine, after two whole days of rain.
I end the day with 30 minutes of exercise, energy to spare, and a new outlook on what I thought to be a death sentence.
By day four, I wake up at 8 a.m. without the help of an alarm clock, and find myself adding banana slices to my oatmeal and accompanying it with sliced apples and oranges.
It’s still early and I find myself on the Internet not only searching for vegetarian dishes to eat, but also to find fruits and vegetables that make a difference outside our bodies as well.
I stumble upon the site carefair.com, which offers news, tips, trends and information about skincare and beauty.
It is there I find skin care cleansers that use cucumbers, tomatoes, lime, yogurt, avocado and carrots all of which provide our skin with needed antioxidants, vitamins and beta-carotene, and can serve as a natural cleansing solution.
Before heading to school, I get the urge to relive the energy and excitement of the previous evening and opt to make another smoothie. This time I go out on a limb and mix 1 half tomato, 6 cucumber slices, melon, cantaloupe and a half banana.
I fill up my glass, and surprisingly the taste is not unbearable. Minutes later I feel the spark I desire and my body feels as though it can run a marathon.
With the added energy I finally head out, completing my day with a salad and orange slices.
It’s day five and not only am I feeling good, but this morning I woke up at 6:30 a.m., no alarm, no fatigue.
By 10:40 a.m. I head downtown with my added energy for some shopping and walking exercise.
On this fifth day, Whole Foods becomes my Ms. Tootsies, Dominoes Pizza, and Ruby Tuesdays’ and I later find myself back at the store on South Street searching for new veggie treats.
I buy two fresh cobs of bi-color corn, French green beans, three red potatoes, kiwi, water and lunch from the side bar, which included: red potatoes, green beans, and red peppers.
Christy, a cashier at the Whole Foods market informs me that customer attendance has increased within the last couple years, which with my own reasoning, I attribute to the increasing desire to be healthy and stay in shape.
By my departure, it begins to rain heavily and I rush off to catch the subway for my 30 minute ride and 15 minute walk back home.
The sudden boost is unexpected, revitalizing, and boisterous and serves as the sunshine, after two whole days of rain.
I end the day with 30 minutes of exercise, energy to spare, and a new outlook on what I thought to be a death sentence.
By day four, I wake up at 8 a.m. without the help of an alarm clock, and find myself adding banana slices to my oatmeal and accompanying it with sliced apples and oranges.
It’s still early and I find myself on the Internet not only searching for vegetarian dishes to eat, but also to find fruits and vegetables that make a difference outside our bodies as well.
I stumble upon the site carefair.com, which offers news, tips, trends and information about skincare and beauty.
It is there I find skin care cleansers that use cucumbers, tomatoes, lime, yogurt, avocado and carrots all of which provide our skin with needed antioxidants, vitamins and beta-carotene, and can serve as a natural cleansing solution.
Before heading to school, I get the urge to relive the energy and excitement of the previous evening and opt to make another smoothie. This time I go out on a limb and mix 1 half tomato, 6 cucumber slices, melon, cantaloupe and a half banana.
I fill up my glass, and surprisingly the taste is not unbearable. Minutes later I feel the spark I desire and my body feels as though it can run a marathon.
With the added energy I finally head out, completing my day with a salad and orange slices.
It’s day five and not only am I feeling good, but this morning I woke up at 6:30 a.m., no alarm, no fatigue.
By 10:40 a.m. I head downtown with my added energy for some shopping and walking exercise.
On this fifth day, Whole Foods becomes my Ms. Tootsies, Dominoes Pizza, and Ruby Tuesdays’ and I later find myself back at the store on South Street searching for new veggie treats.
I buy two fresh cobs of bi-color corn, French green beans, three red potatoes, kiwi, water and lunch from the side bar, which included: red potatoes, green beans, and red peppers.
Christy, a cashier at the Whole Foods market informs me that customer attendance has increased within the last couple years, which with my own reasoning, I attribute to the increasing desire to be healthy and stay in shape.
By my departure, it begins to rain heavily and I rush off to catch the subway for my 30 minute ride and 15 minute walk back home.
By the evening of day five, I not only devour my fruits and vegetables, but use them as natural cleaners for my skin.
I crush tomatoes; and using the tip from carefair.com, apply the pulp to my wet face. I leave it on for an hour as directed and relax in a bath.
I rinse it off later to find my skin feeling clean and cool. I see that the tomato pulp has eliminated the excessive oil off my face, and left it feeling refreshed.
By the end of day five I weigh in at 141 pounds, still have more energy than my 5-year-old nephew and feel relaxed and revived.
Day six starts with a bang, and I’m no longer anxiously awaiting the end of my detox.
My dependency upon junk food has decreased dramatically and I no longer feel the need to turn to such foods, to satisfy my taste buds.
I wake up feeling well rested, and ready to begin my lightly scheduled day.
I come home later, anxious, excited and ready to prepare my dinner --compliments of Whole Foods.
I crush tomatoes; and using the tip from carefair.com, apply the pulp to my wet face. I leave it on for an hour as directed and relax in a bath.
I rinse it off later to find my skin feeling clean and cool. I see that the tomato pulp has eliminated the excessive oil off my face, and left it feeling refreshed.
By the end of day five I weigh in at 141 pounds, still have more energy than my 5-year-old nephew and feel relaxed and revived.
Day six starts with a bang, and I’m no longer anxiously awaiting the end of my detox.
My dependency upon junk food has decreased dramatically and I no longer feel the need to turn to such foods, to satisfy my taste buds.
I wake up feeling well rested, and ready to begin my lightly scheduled day.
I come home later, anxious, excited and ready to prepare my dinner --compliments of Whole Foods.
I take out the groceries bought from the previous day and get to work.
To begin I pull out a medium sized pot, fill it with water, and place it on the stove on high to allow the water to boil. I wash the two cobs of corn, pull the husks off, wash off the strands between the kernels and place both cobs into the boiling water.
From there I wash my three red potatoes, cut them into moon shaped slices, place them in a pan and pop them into the oven. Lastly, I prep my French green beans. I wash, cut, and put them in the pot of corn and wait.
Fifteen minutes later I’m ready to add the finishing touches and begin by draining the water out of the pot, shaving the kernels off each cob with a knife, and taking the potatoes out of the oven.
I proceed to mix the potatoes, corn, and green beans with black pepper, paprika, basil, parsley, and two teaspoons of olive oil.
To accompany my finished meal I make a salad with lettuce and tomato, add some raspberry nectar vinaigrette and end my cooking session.
Half an hour later, I’m full, content and amazed at how delicious my cuisine turned out. No meat nor salt, and the meal was just as fulfilling.
It was then, on day six that I began to fathom life without meat.
I realized that there are thousands of recipes that don’t call for meat and are equally delicious, which I found out on my late night search on the Whole Foods website.
Roasted asparagus with garlic, creamy spring asparagus soup, savory greens stir-fry, and garlic-roasted fingerling potatoes with buttermilk-yogurt herb dressing just to name a few of the alluring meatless cuisines.
By the end of day seven and eight, I weigh a consistent 142 pounds. I realize that I’ve put more fruits in my body in a week than I have in a month, and acknowledge that, that alone has made a difference to my health.
As my detox comes to an end, I reminisce about the last few days, which felt more like a blessing than a burden; and realize how this experiment has truly changed my outlook on food and most importantly my health.
My energy was boosted, I didn’t feel sluggish, my “morning breath” was non existent, my skin was brighter, my mind more focused and my body felt better than it had in months.
Nine days ago I couldn’t imagine not being able to demolish a plate of spicy barbeque pork ribs, or savor a soft sugary cinnamon pretzel, but today, on the final day of my detox, I feel miles away from the foods I love and quite frankly, not in desperate need of them.
I’ve learned nutrition tips from Wholefoods.com that will register in my mind every time I seek a meal. Like: shopping for food on the perimeter of the grocery store because that’s were all the fresh produce, meats, and unpackaged foods are, avoiding packaged, canned, processed and frozen foods -- as they are packed with sodium, preservatives, added sugars, and ingredients that you cant even pronounce, and to always read nutrition and ingredient labels.
Dr. Ian’s detox experiment not only allowed me to cleanse my system, it allowed me to seek ways of bettering my health.
So not only did I “go green,” introduce more fruits and vegetables to my diet, and eliminate the junk and unhealthy foods, I ultimately, bettered my life.
The feeling that I’ve gained in my body is hard to let go and because of that I plan to continue my massive vegetable and fruit intake, kick the soda to the curb, and put the fast and high calorie foods in the backseat.
In the end, I can candidly say that “going green” isn’t just a seasonal fashion trend, or a catchy phrase, or even a environmentalist only club, it’s an ongoing healthy lifestyle that can either shape what you wear, the products use or the food you eat and it’s by far the most prosperous way to live.
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ReplyDeleteJune was article was very inspiring! I enjoyed every bit of it. This article is the motivation that I needed to carry on! Thank you.
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