Detox Days 8 & 9: Choices, Choices!

I am loving the little things that feel like a treat right now! Roasted red pepper hummus, nut butters, food that isn't cold/raw! I feel like having more food choices is making it harder though. It was so easy when all I could have was raw produce. Now that I can have things that are cooked and have added in nuts, seeds, beans, and gluten free grains, it's harder to decide what to eat and I have to pay more attention to what I choose to eat. I have to really consciously make a good choice and not "cheat". I am finding that as I add in more food I feel more hungry and yet a little bit guilty eating what feels like a LOT of food compared to the rest of the detox journey. I have to keep reminding myself that I need to get back to a normal caloric consumption so I can resume my workouts and keep my metabolism working efficiently. A lack of calories will actually cause your body to burn fewer calories, if continued long term, because your body shifts to starvation mode. This causes fat stores to increase because your body doesn't know when or if it will get more fuel so it hangs on to calories to be used for sustaining life. As I approach the end, the desire for old indulgences increases but I feel acutely aware of them. I never realized how much I was splurging on the weekends or when we're out of town until we were traveling this weekend and I knew I couldn't have anything. I was constantly passing up food items I'd normally give in to, and I wouldn't have thought twice about eating them before. It never seemed like I was splurging but now to see all the foods I would have eaten, no wonder I felt the intuitive need to do something, I just didn't really know exactly what or how. I knew something felt wrong with the way my body was functioning and how I was handling things like stress. My body was holding on to a lot of negative energy and toxins and I'm positive the majority was in my mid-section. This really has been a practice in patience, and the deep connection to my body. I have always been fairly in tune to myself and my needs but now I feel like I have gained a new understanding and a better sense of how to positively affect my physical being when I notice things are "off". Tomorrow: The last formal day of the cleanse! I may take an after picture along with some measurements. I found a nasty before picture from a mini family vacation just a couple weeks ago. ;-)