Thursday, October 30, 2008

Kicking the Habit


As I sit down to sip my hot, organic lemon-ginger tulsi tea (take that Starbucks), I am reminded that today marks my 30th day without coffee and chewing gum. When I first decided to give my two vices the boot I had some serious doubt that I could survive without either one-especially gum. After the initial withdrawal symptoms from the coffee, the transition wasn’t so bad. Don’t get me wrong, there are still times when I am captured by the smell of a fresh pot of coffee and find myself staring longingly into the pot. And I do miss my kiwi-mandarin Trident gum, especially when I’m craving something sweet after lunch. Now that I’ve successfully completed 1 month free of coffee and gum, I feel like I can do anything!

When I started the Holistic Nutrition Education program at Bauman College, I quickly became aware of the potentially harmful effects of all sorts of junk that we put in our bodies. In my case, it was the sorbitol and other synthetic chemicals in chewing gum coupled with the absorbent amounts of caffeine, in the form of coffee, that were the main culprits.

The Good News: For the first time in a LONG time, I did not have menstrual cramps this month. This makes it all worth it! I remember the pain last month all too well and am thrilled to not have to re-live it. And, lucky for my friends and family, not chewing gum all the time has resulted in no more burps! OK, maybe a few tiny ones here and there.


Today's Meals:
Breakfast 8:45AM
3 Eggs scrambled w/ Kale and Tomato
1 piece of Bacon
5 Macadamia Nuts
3.5 protein/1 carb/ 8 fat (?)
Lunch 11:45PM
3oz Turkey breast
Fresh Tomato w/ Hummus
1 Peach
Peanut Butter
3 protein/1.5 carb/7 fat

2 comments:

Trevor said...

Remember you can always chew Xylitol gum! Xylitol does not promote dental cavities, is a low-calorie alternative to sugar, has no known toxicity, and has even shown effectiveness as a treatment for osteoporosis!

Ev said...

Way to go! I've also had a gum w/ stevia, though I cannot for the life of me remember what it's called. It wasn't very tasty and it was none too soft, so I would say for the health of your jaws, skip it :) Hurrah on the no caffeine. I was recently reminded of the insulin response that caffeine triggers and I thought that I will have to give up coffee, at some point too. I've done it before and you're right, once you get over the hump, it's not so bad. Hell, I quit smoking, drinking and other horrid things, coffee can't be that bad. Once again, you are amazing and tenacious, Miss Connie.

Your genes load the gun but your lifestyle pulls the trigger. -Dr. Houston