Febfast update - Day 12

Howdy folks – I have made it to Day 12 of Febfast, and can safely say I am feeling slightly less yukky than I was two days ago thank you for asking.

I don't really adhere to the whole 'detox' ethos/philosophy/trend (frankly, if you poo and wee, you are already 'detoxing' thank you 'Doctor' Woo-woo), but going cold turkey on sucrose, fructose and sugar substitutes (both natural and chemical) has seriously messed with my energy levels.

Up until two days ago I was utterly knackered, bushed, stuffed and plain flat-out exhausted 24 hours a day, as well as nauseous, head-achey and listless. Add some weird hallucinatory dreams, sharp neck pains and painful stomach cramps to the mix and it's not unlike being knocked over by the ‘flu. It was just too hard to get dressed, wear make-up, fix my hair and tap on a keyboard.

Is this real? Could there be something in this? Is sugar really so-called ‘white poison’?

I have been assured by friends and colleagues who have given up sugar that the symptoms are to be expected and will go away once my body adjusts to the combined lack of stimulant and drastic drop in calories. I keep getting told I will feel ‘marvellous’ in a few days. I certainly hope so.

In the meantime, a few observations I’d like to share:

• There’s nothing like a fast to make you crave other stuff – like cheese, cheese, cheese, cream, salt, smoked salmon(!), cheese, and more cheese. I have rediscovered my love affair for Danish Havarti, Greek Kaseri, Dutch Gouda and Swiss Gruyere. Yum.
  

• Avocado tastes good on ANYTHING. Especially when smashed up with fetta and lemon juice.
  

• Health food shop breads are bloody expensive but if you get a good brand, bloody delicious! Wupperthaler is still the best, and makes great toast – and cheese toasties. Mmm…cheese.
  

• Check the labels on EVERYTHING. AVOID anything that has ‘sugar’ in the ‘added ingredients’ but don’t fret if you see ‘sugar’ in the nutritional values table.
  

• Rice crackers are delicious with a good-quality deli, sugar-free (or better, yet – home-made) hummous.
  

Meanwhile, I’ve hardly noticed the lack of alcohol. Bizarre.

Febfast update - Day 3

Welcome to the first Febfast update. Today is Day Three, and so far, so good.

Temptations? Yes. Lapses? No.

Most of you are probably thinking "I should think so, it's Day Three!", but bear in mind, Sunday (which was Day One) usually means carbs-heavy breakfasts and weekend treats.

Sunday Yum Cha at Gold Leaf in Preston was a challenge – it meant sticking to steamed seafood and pork dim sum and laying off the condiments and dipping sauces. Dinner at Slim Venetian’s was a multi-course extravaganza – with no dessert. Monday night was Moofie Night at Cinema Nova with Muddy K – Choc-top denied!!!!

And I didn’t do a ‘last hurrah’ blow-out on Saturday night either…

Seriously, it will be interesting to see how the next 26 days pan out.

Booze-free is easy. The benefits (financial, social and physical) are obvious and immediate, especially after the inevitable ickiness that follows the holidays or an indulgent vacation.

Sugar’s the real killer – it’s in more stuff than you realise. The weird thing is that it is added to so many savoury items and staples - most commercial breads, crackers, ‘savoury’ sandwich spreads and condiments, even flavoured tinned tunas (yep!)…

I shudder when I recall last Feb was spent rampaging through NYC’s delis, markets, doughnut shops, diners, bodegas, restaurants and bars, scoffing crème-brulee doughnuts, NY cheesecake and chocolate Babka and quaffing lethal cocktails, Malbec and craft beers.

In the meantime, if you feel so inclined, please visit my fundraising page and leave a donation or just a message of support if you haven’t already.

https://secure.febfast.org/registrant/FundraisingPage.aspx?registrationID=846914&langPref=en-CA