Update--Day Five

Thanks Ali :-)

So, I'm five days into this thing and on a scale of 1-10 as far as hunger goes, I'm giving it an 8--far better than I hoped. On a scale of 1-10 on convenience I give it a 7, on a scale for taste I give it a 5. Overall I'm quite pleased with it. I've done two shakes in place of two meals and then done one meal that works best of me, usually that's dinner with my family, but yesterday I met my niece for lunch so I did a shake for dinner (and got really annoyed when my children reminded me they needed dinner at 9:00--the nerve!) I really am not hungry. That's not to say I don't want to snack, cause that's what I do, but I'm not hungry and thinking about food all the time which makes it a lot easier NOT to eat.

I was supposed to start the cleanse yesterday, but because I fasted on Fast Sunday I didn't think it would be a good thing to go on a cleanse--which means I drink this special drink but I have no food for 2 days. So I was going to start today, but I had a presentation and found out they are doing a dinner that sounded delicious (a variety of summer salads--yum!) So then I was going to start the cleanse tomorrow but the Stake is having a blood drive and because we vacation in Costa Rica sometimes I can't give blood for a year after each trip (no, it's not because I pay for sex) Soooo, I haven't given blood for years and I like to give blood, it's an important thing to do. I haven't been to Costa Rica for two years, So I can give, but I don't think I can give blood if I'm not eating. Sooooo, I think I will do the cleanse on Thursday and Friday. I'm not excited.

As to how I feel--I feel pretty good. Like I said, I feel full most of the time, and the snack thingys they have, though they don't taste good, really do curb my hunger. I haven't snacked at all until today and that's cause I went grocery shopping and the hummus was calling me. So I had a whole wheat roll with Hummus and a few bites of Mango--but other than that I've done really well which is HUGE because I am such a notorious grazer. The biggest surprise for me is that I'm not craving sugar. I'm a sugar freak, and it's not unusual for me to follow every meal with some kind of chocolate or candy or ice cream. A meal just doesn't feel complete without some sugar--and then I snack on sweet stuff all day. But I honestly haven't craved it. Tonight I had some ice cream and cookies and they were delicious, but I was completely satisfied when I finished rather than wanting more like I usually do. My moods feel a bit more level--but I'm not so sure that's not because I WANT them to be more level or because life has mellowed now that school is out or because of the Isagenix stuff. But, I feel better and I'm happy with that.

I don't think I've lost any weight. My pants might be a touch looser, but they might just need to be washed too. I mean, it's only been 5 days. I'm not sticking perfectly to the 'sensible meal of 400-600 calories' for the one meal I eat. I just eat what we're having as a family and I eat until I get full. Probably a big no-no, but it gives me a little lee-way and I think I need that for now.

So, anyway. I'm hopeful and positive so far. Today was my hardest day. It was a bit more intense, my hubby's out of town, and I was tired--and yet I still handled it pretty well. I am putting fruit with most of my shakes, which is cheating I suppose, but they taste so much better. The Vanilla shakes have cinnamon in it, so today I put in a fresh peach--DELISH! I really don't care for the chocolate shake. It's not sweet, which makes it taste kinda chalky, and the fruits I've mixed with it aren't cutting it. I thought a few scoops of vanilla ice cream and some almonds would jazz it up, but I don't think that's on the menu plan :-)

I'm getting a TON of stuff done in order to keep myself out of the kitchen and I'm all kinds of proud of myself for all the little tasks I've completed. I'm doing a yard sale on Saturday with a friend and so I'm going through all the scary closets and corners of my house to do a good thorough cleaning. It keeps my mind off the two last boxes of girl scout cookies I'm hiding in the closet (gulp!) and I do feel like I have a bit more energy--but again, that could be because May is OVER and I have more time to just be home right now instead of late for half a dozen places.

I'll let you know how the cleanse goes--I'm anxious about that--and I'll be doing a weigh in and re-measure on Saturday since I'll be 8 days into the program--so stay tuned! Thanks for the support and advice, I much appreciate it.