gracecheung604 | write on time: August 1990

Tuesday, August 28, 1990

Day 1

Day One
Starting weight: X
Started planning for Usana Reset Monday night by chilling the water in the Blender Bottle. I like my drinks either really hot or really cold, so chilling the water and bottle was essential. Woke up this morning and dropped in the French Vanilla Nutrimeal Powder and shook like mad. Still not cold enough? Toss in frozen blueberries which thickens the shake slightly and adds flavour too!
I don't normally eat breakfast, but for some reason, this morning, it seemed like the most important thing? Brought the shake to work and kept it in the fridge for most of the morning. Poured out half a cup into a coffee mug and tried to drink it. Yes, tried, I found it way too thick to sip, I used 350ml of water to make the shake, their recommendation is 290-340ml. So I grabbed a spoon and ate half a cup, a spoonful at a time. So now, it reminds me of melted ice cream. However, I could feel myself getting full from just this half, plus a lot of water...I think I had about 1L by mid-morning.
The plan is to finish the last half of the shake this afternoon in the office. So I think I am going to save the Oatmeal Raisin Usana bar for "dinner". You are also supposed to supplement with a serving each of fruits and vegetable, so my dessert tonight will be a giant grapefruit that I bought in Point Roberts over the weekend. 

Ah, as I write this, I realized I have forgotten my morning vitamins. Tore open the package and stared at the pills (combination of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants) awaiting me. Once the package is opened, you get a whiff that is slightly overwhelming.
I am keeping myself busy and distracted by thinking about what I am going to eat on Sunday...I'm thinking Hapa Umi or Ki, definitely something Japanese...we'll see how these cravings change throughout the week.

And I think I will be hitting the sack pretty early...say 10pm? Must stop thinking about food.
Day One - continued
Home after work and still only managed to have one shake the entire day. Filled up on water instead though, I almost feel like I'm drowning. Strange to not want to eat either though, I looked at the nutritional content on one of the Usana Bars (Oatmeal Raisin) and as a snack, it does sound pretty healthy; containing 170 calories, 2.5g of fat (serving size is 50g), 3g of fibre, 16g of sugar and 9g of protein. However, I just wasn't hungry. I realize that the fibre might be a good thing, so I will have half a bar before bed. Never made it to the grapefruit either, just water. Oh, but I did remember to have my PM vitamins! Putting my Blender Bottle in the fridge now for tomorrow...I'm thinking Wild Strawberry!
So I think I'm going to hit the sack early for real...because I can't drink, don't feel like eating but I can go to bed early and read a book! All in all, a good Day One of Reset. Not tired or anything, just feel like I'm eating healthier, no room or desire for junk food, yet.

Monday, August 27, 1990

Day 2

Day Two
Weight: X-.08lbs
So Day Two is here and I realize that I don't need to make my shake first thing in the morning, since I'm not a breakfast person. Instead, I went about my day as normal, drinking more water than usual. You sort of have to, since each of the AM vitamin packs have 6 pills in them. Since I already take a multi-vitamin and my Claritin for allergies, that is a total of 8 pills. I need about 2 gulps per pill, so as you can see, this quickly adds up. Work got insanely busy this morning, so I didn't even have a chance to sit down until about 2pm. And since I decided not to have the fibre bar last night, I could hear my tummy grumbling...so I opened up the Oatmeal Raison Usana Bar. I have been warned that people might not love the texture, but I actually didn't mind it. Perhaps it's because it's the first solid food I had in about 38 hours. Nevertheless, I liked it, but only ate about half of it. I drank water as I ate, and just stopped when I was full.
Headed to Queen Elizabeth Park after work with a bottle of water and got caught up on some reading while catching some rays. By the time I got home around 8, I took my PM vitamins and another few glasses of water.

Getting antsy and not wanting to stay home anymore, I headed over to B's for some company. Waiting for me there were a quarter of sliced apples, some blueberries and three strawberries. I shared the half of my bar with B, after all, he made me my perfect fruit serving! He liked the texture too, "a little more cookie-like than the Oat Bar at Starbucks" was his comment. Although I did give in and had a shot of Goose with some water. One was all I wanted and I dunked some of the fruit in it to give it a bit of flavour. And that's how Day Two ended. No hunger pangs or cravings, yet...
Although I do find myself craving meat...not a steak or anything, more like... Hot Pot... Yes Landmark Hot Pot...hmmm...
B also got me some canned corn and canned sliced mushrooms to take home too, just in case.





Sunday, August 26, 1990

Day 3

Day Three
Weight: forgot to weigh myself! 
Woke up feeling great, it's a sunny day and I didn't have to work. Decided to head to the beach with two bottles of water and another Oatmeal Raisin Bar too. I brought along a Peanut Butter Crunch too for good measure. I had planned to be there for about four hours, who knows what hunger may strike?
I ended up finishing both bottles, one with my AM vitamins and another after sweating in the sun for two hours. And then it happened, I smelled somebody making hot dogs, and my keen sense of smell told me they had put mustard and ketchup on it. I don't even like lots of mustard on my hot dog, but man, that whiff made my tummy rumble. Out came the Oatmeal Raisin Bar, and half a bar later, I was satiated.
Home after a quick run of Safeway for some bean sprouts, broccoli and a grapefruit. Four hours of sun was great but it was time for to work. Checking emails, blogging and so on. No time to be hungry, but I did remember my PM vitamins!
Thinking about having some steamed broccoli for a crunch but who knows...

Day Three - continued
Weight: X-4
If you look at the weight loss above, a lot of that was attributed to sweating it out on the beach. So...after the work was done, I did break down and had some broccoli. However, un-steamed...I just chopped it all up, and dipped it into some oyster sauce. It's really a matter of mind over matter...I just imagined that I was having fries and ketchup. Yes, I have a strong imagination. I did have the half of Oatmeal Raisin bar for dessert. But shhhh....just so you know...actually, what I was really craving was the Porchetta Sandwich from Meat and Bread. 

Saturday, August 25, 1990

Day 4

Day Four
Weight: X-3
So as you can imagine, I was a little disappointed at having gained some of the lost water weight back, but that is to be expected. Your body does like to be at a certain equilibrium afterall. So back to the office today and again, didn't feel too hungry. I did bring my leftover broccoli as a snack. I ended up eating the whole thing by about noon. 
Just took my vitamins and drank a lot of water. After work, I headed over to B's and instead of just sitting around and "not-eating", he decided we should go for a drive to take my mind off "not-eating". So we went to Bellingham, hit the Best Buy because nothing takes my mind off food like tech toys. On the way there and back, yes, you guessed it, I had another Oatmeal Raisin bar (I think I'm addicted to the taste and texture). 
I came home with two styluses (and with any luck, I will never have to touch my iPad again). We also took a stroll through Costco before leaving, but I stuck by the book section and all was okay.
As a gesture of supreme understanding, B hadn't eaten at all in front of me. So as a cheat, we headed to Milestones where I would have "a big glass of zinfandel" and he would eat a little something so as not to faint. Ahhh...it was my fermented liquefied fruit serving. At least we didn't got to Earls or Cactus Club, that would have been by undoing...you can't expect me to just sit there when wings or ribs are on the table, can you?! Good thing we were at Milestones, so I didn't feel the need to eat anymore that night, but I do have to admit, the alcohol hits you a lot faster on an almost empty stomach.

Friday, August 24, 1990

Day 5

Day Five
Weight: X-3.8
Yes! Back down to X-3.8! I was scared that the alcohol would totally wreck the good behaviour so far, but it hasn't. Not to say I recommend this...not at all.
We decided to check out the Trout Lake Farmers Market and decided to buy something for the next cleanse I'm trying. Yes...I'm trying another cleanse. We picked up peppers, blackberries and raspberries. There were lots of other interesting vegetables there, but oh boy, the prices are way higher than I expected. For those of you who regularly shop at these markets, can you shed light on whether these veggies/fruits are really that much tastier?

Went off to Safeway to get more ingredients for the next cleanse and then headed home. So now, I have one day, yes, ONE DAY, to indulge before starting my new cleanse on Monday.
So home now and just getting caught up on some work. I've munched on another head of raw broccoli with oyster sauce, as well as 5 blackberries and 5 raspberries.
Because I have been on a low-carb cleanse for the past five days, I know that whatever I consume tomorrow should be low to moderate in terms of carbs, because my body won't be ready for it.
Hmmm....maybe I'll go Romer's Burgers...they can "make it green" and forego the brioche bun in favour of a lettuce as bun...
I will blog one more time tomorrow morning to advise of any weight loss (if any) throughout the night.

Thursday, August 23, 1990

Day 6

Day Six
Weight: X-4
So, the Usana cleanse is over...and here is my feedback. For people with more of a sweet tooth versus a meat tooth, this is a great regimen to go on to cleanse yourself. The shakes are flavoured "dutch chocolate, french vanilla and wild strawberry", the bars are similarily sweet being "oatmeal raisin and peanut butter crunch". But for me, I would much rather have savory foods during a diet. So although this resulted in weight loss, I think it's more of a result of my abstinence versus the actual program itself. Is anyone interested in my next cleanse? Am I crazy for attempting another one so soon, thoughts?

Wednesday, August 22, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - Getting Ready

So the Usana Reset is done but now I’m embarking on a new one…Cabbage Soup Diet. Read all about it here. I’ll keep updating for the next six days.
I’ve decided to follow up the Usana Reset with another cleanse/diet of sorts. I’m going to try the Cabbage Soup Diet. For those of you preferring salty versus sweet, this is the way to go. And any diet that has the word “unlimited” in it is the diet for me. Essentially, the diet’s main food is a big pot, no, make that vat, of cabbage soup, accompanied by various foods through the seven days.

T – 2 days
The cabbage soup diet isn’t something you just wake up and decide to do. No no no…you need to prepare for this one, and not just by putting a blender bottle in your work bag. So, on Saturday afternoon, we went to the Trout Lake Farmer’s Market to pick up some veggies and fruit for the 7-day diet ahead.
T – 1 day
So after days of abstaining while on Usana, I'm heading out to Hogshack to meet @BCBerrie, @Adewin, @pawspix for some meaty goodness! We ordered the Jurassic Platter, with Baby Back Ribs, St. Louis Ribs, Dino Ribs and two chicken legs, and FOUR sides! Although we only ate the Baby Back and the Dino ones, we were stuffed! Saved all Four sides, veggies, rice, mashed potatoes and coleslaw for another day!
Headed to Safeway afterwards to get the rest of the veggies required for the soup, so cabbage, onions, green onions, mushrooms, carrots and celery. Also remember to get a package of Lipton Onion Soup Mix. A big bottle of V8 and a can of whole tomatoes rounds out the soup. Dragged everything upstairs and chopped up everything up to bits and tossed into the pot. Three hours later, I will have soup!
Dinner tonight was another mess of meats - reminiscent of Landmark Hot Pot, but we tried a new place called Claypot. And it's All-You-Can-Eat. God help me!

Tuesday, August 21, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - Veggies and Fruit

Day Three
So after loading up on veggies and fruit, day 3 brings you a combination of the two. You can have all the fruits and veggies you want today, but no baked potato! I had a dentist appointment first this thing this morning, so wasn't really in the mood to eat, since my teeth were so clean! Ended up relaxing at home after the appointment, and just having some soup and catching up on sleep and TV. Also headed out to Save-On to get the foods needed for tomorrow, namely Bananas and Milk. This diet makes you work at planning your meals...I brought 3 bananas, froze two and planned to have one au natruel. The secret to freezing your bananas is to peel them first! I peel and then half, but you can quarter too. Put a skewer in them and just pop into the freezer. When you are ready to eat, just take it out and enjoy like a popsicle. Don't knock it until you've tried it!
Oh, slight failure tonight...went over to Earls for wings AND ribs. Hey, it's just a little protein, not like we had bread or something. I do feel bad for cheating with such salty foods, but it's a small treat, and we did plan for it by not indulging in other things. Get over it and keep trucking along to day four!

Monday, August 20, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - All the Fruits You can Eat!

Day One
So in a sharp contrast to Usana, where you are limited to what you can eat, this diet is the reverse...you can eat a lot of things, and you have to drink a lot of soup. Today was the fruit day, so theorectically, you are allowed to have copious amounts of fruits, but nothing sweet or high in fat like bananas, avocado and so on. I didn't put a lot of peppers in my soup, so I could actually munch on them throughout the day. I also discovered my love of broccoli, raw and with a side of oyster sauce. I almost don't feel like I'm dieting! After having done this diet several times, I have found the best way to reheat the soup. The secret is to reheat the amount you want to eat in a smaller pot. This way you can experiment with various additions (tobasco, lemon juice, worcestershire sauce, paprika) all without affecting the whole pot (negatively).

Sunday, August 19, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - All the Veggies plus a Potato!

Day Two
Now day two is your unlimited veggie day...so I added something new to my soup, I put in more celery and carrots and also sliced in more portobello mushrooms. Added a tons of cayenne and paprika and made my soup nice and spicy, and yes, hearty too! You are also allowed a baked potato today with a pat of butter, but since I've been cutting down on carbs already, I didn't even crave the potato...so I just loaded up on soup instead. Another fairly boring work day...but it's a day off tomorrow, so I'm still staying up and watching tv!

Friday, August 17, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - Bananas and Milk

Day Four
I can't believe I actually remembered to bring my frozen goodies...I didn't buy any milk, know full well that I wouldn't drink it. I was tempted to have a tea misto from Starbucks to satisfy the calcium but I hae been doing so well without tea, that I decided to see if I could extend this streak. I did have one of the banana halves, and also brought some papaya with me to the office to give the day some variety. But honestly, the best part was the soup. Spicy and hearty, this hits the spot everytime. Just a cup and a half and I'm set for a few hours. No other cheats today, and did everything to the letter, because tomorrow was my treat day! You're allowed 10-20 ounces of beef and some tomatoes, along with your soup. If you're the type to plan ahead, today's the day you should be grilling that steak! Since I'm not in the office tomorrow, I didn't worry about packing a lunch.

Thursday, August 16, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - Porchetta, Oysters, Sashimi and Weiners!

Day Five
Oh my, totally slept in. Am attending the Power of Women conference at Rogers Arena, slated to start at 8. I woke up at 10! Needless to say, I missed some of the morning speakers. I made it down there to catch the last morning speaker, and then headed for lunch with the BFF. There were a ton of people at Chambar, Medina and even Dirty Apron. So...I convinced her to head to Meat and Bread...and also convinced her to get the Porchetta. We also tried their daily salad...and it was quinoa today! So good. I got the sandwich but skipped the bread. I was just there for the protein.
After the conference, and in search of more protein, we headed to Buck a Shuck at Goldfish Seafood. There were three of us and we got two dozen. Hey, for some of us, this was dinner! Afterward, we headed back to the cabin in Point Roberts and proceeded to really feast! We had planned ahead and ordered some sashimi! Oh heavenly.
After feasting on the sashimi, we started a fire in the pit and roasted some marshmallows...and some hot dogs. Hey, still meat so it's allowed!

Wednesday, August 15, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - Barbecue!

Day Six
Woke up and made a quick breakfast with cooked ham and sunny side up eggs. Yes, just protein and no carbs. Sat around and relaxed for the afternoon before heading back into Vancouver. Packed up all our leftover groceries and went on our way. I had a yummy family barbecue to go to, again, all meats...chicken, salmon and steak. It's like they knew I was on a diet. There was also a platter of cheddar cheesed broccoli and cauliflower, which was interesting but paled in comparison to the meats!

Tuesday, August 14, 1990

Cabbage Soup Diet - it's over!

Day Seven
Well, today was not really a diet day. You're supposed to just eat brown rice and soup, but by now, I think we decided to call it quits. I still have some soup leftover, so will likely finish that next week. I was making lunch for a few new friends today, and I think my not eating what I cook could be seen as a little suspicious!

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