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Thursday, August 18, 2011
The End Of The Challenge: How Did You Do?
by Erika Nicole Kendall
If you’ve been following since the beginning, you’ll know that today is day 7 of our 7 Day Clean Eating Challenge.
Some might be jumping for joy, others might actually be kind of sad.
Don’t be.
This challenge serves lots of purposes and while some questioned why it was only a week long, I think that is the most important purpose of all.
Many of us don’t really know what “cleaner eating” looks like, let alone “clean eating.” If you are anything like I was, you were heating and eating everything from the microwave. Oven’s got cobwebs in it, skillets still shiny like they’ve never been used… ’cause they’ve… never been used! I went cold turkey from processed food living to raw veganism just because I needed the reality check. The limited amounts of sugar, fat and salt that were in my fruits and veggies were just enough to keep my mind and body just right. They were made specifically for that purpose by the Earth, so why not let them do their job?
Taking a week to try out a new lifestyle – as opposed to a month – teaches you a lot, hopefully. It teaches you that you have to prepare for the conversion. You have to prepare your options. You have to have recipes on deck – or at least recipe resources – to choose from. You have to allow yourself to slip up a little, and allow yourself the time to learn from your mistakes.
This is a big part of what I wrote about yesterday – this isn’t simply a temporary diet type thing. This was a test of a lifestyle change – trying to create something you could live with eternally, and be happy (and healthy) with for the rest of your life.
So tell me… how’d you do? Are you carrying it on? Did you notice a weight change? What challenges did you face? Need any advice? Tips? Let’s hear it!
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Hi Erika,
I wasn’t a 100% “clean eater” this week, but I was certainly a much “cleaner eater”!
I made sure to eat clean for breakfast every day, but since I like sandwiches, lunch on most days wasn’t clean and dinner wasn’t eiher since I used canned veggies on some days.
But guess what? I cooked more this week than I probably have in the 17 years that I’ve been married! I’m not a great cook, or even a good cook for that matter, but I’ve challenged myself to learn how to cook the basics and cook them well.
But being the loving folks that they are, my family ate my meals any way and even went back for seconds!
Thanks for the challenge and this wonderful blog!
PS: Can you please post the recipe for your healthy mac-and-cheese? It looks DELISH!!
—cjbrownsc
The first few days were easier than the end because I was ill-prepared and procrastinated about grocery-shopping, but I love the concept and will continue with clean-eating.
—mdot