.Detox

Ever come back from vacation feeling like you ate like crap and gained 10 pounds? I tried to justify the fact that I didn't run while I was in Florida on the basis that I walked a LOT when I was outlet mall shopping, at Magic Kingdom, and at Seaworld, however I think that basis is pretty weak. I was so proud of myself for bringing two sets of work out gear (especially since I squished 7 days worth of clothing into one carry on bag and one gigantic personal item), however I didn't go for a run once. For shame!

I've kinda gotten off the beaten path the last 2.5 weeks and quite frankly have become a little lazy. Knowing that I was toning down my training for the rest of the summer made me a little less motivated to do those runs in the wee hours of the morning. I find my running endurance disappears rather quickly if I don't run on a regular basis, so I'm determined to get back running at least 1-2 times a week even if I start off a little sluggish. My eating habits haven't been the best either - I find sometimes that when I eat something bad, I figure that day is a write-off and I don't really care about what I eat for the rest of the day, and that's a big no-no! Today for example, I'm "Detoxing" slightly as I had a fairly healthy sandwich for lunch and have a spinach salad for dinner, as I feel pretty guilty for what I ate yesterday. That being said, everything I ate yesterday was DELICIOUS...but maybe a little too much deep-fried goodness. Yesterday for lunch, some co-workers and I hit up the Taste of Edmonton, which for those of you who don't live here, is an amazing food festival that happens right downtown! You buy tickets and restaurants from all over the city have booths where you can try samples of different types of foods. Everything I tried yesterday was amazing, however I think 3 or 4 of the samples I tried were deep fried (don't get me wrong, that's not all they serve at this festival, those were just the things that caught my eye and they were delicious!). I also had a piece of cheesecake on a stick...because who can resist a piece of white chocolate raspberry cheesecake on a stick?! Then on my way to a concert last night, we had to pass through K-Days, which is another one of Edmonton's summer festivals, and I had half a bag of mini donuts... (mini-donuts are almost as much of a weakness as cheesecake!).

Knowing that this weekend we will be hitting up some festivals, I've decided that I'm going to start of a bit of a detox starting on August 1. I don't believe in fad diets, but what I do believe is eating clean, eating a little bit from all food groups, and of course eating healthy. So this is my plan starting in a little over a week:

- no processed foods

- no sugar

- lots of fruits and vegetables

- lean meats & protein

- healthy snacks

- no soy (my stomach has been bugging me lately so I'm sure my intolerance has something to do with it as I haven't been as careful as I should be!)

Of course, it would be unrealistic (for me at least) to do this 100% of the time, but I'm really going to try and aim for 90%. The key is eating out less, and cooking at home more. I find that when my fridge is stocked with healthy veggies and foods, I will be more likely to cook at home. If the fridge is depleted I'm more likely to go out and get something for lunch or dinner, and sometimes convenience is so much easier than eating healthy. I'm going to try and rid my house of all the bad stuff like chips (although we don't buy a lot, I still manage to find some on occasion) so the temptation isn't there. On top of this, I'm going to aim to run 1-3 times per week depending on the week, but keep my mileage down under 10K so I don't push it. I'm hoping within 2 weeks or so I'll start to feel a difference. Anyone want to join me? I may need a support group!

The important thing to remember is that we are all human, and we are all bound to fall off the wagon once and awhile. As long as we can get ourselves back on track and build that willpower, our goals are definitely attainable!

xo,

-Dianne

PS: Stella & Dot's brand NEW collection got released on Monday! Check it out at www.stelladot.com/DianneCK and let me know if you want to host a trunk show and get some bling for FREE! :)