We have since finished up with the 21DSD, but I wanted to keep you updated on our journey and how things went. Here are my major observations from week two on the 21 Day Sugar Detox:

• Our cravings and moods were much improved! We got used to eating the allowed foods and didn’t seem to be craving anything different. I think we felt nourished overall and this kept everyone in better spirits.
• Adding extra carbs was helpful and necessary for us. I think this is a big part of our improved moods. We mostly added sweet potatoes (although I found they upset my stomach) and rice as our starches and we didn’t hold back on the apples and bananas. We could have gotten a little more creative with our extra carbs but frankly, I wasn’t up to much more creative thinking!
• The most tiring part for me is meal planning and kitchen clean up. Since we couldn’t really eat any prepared foods, I felt like I had to have every single meal and snack planned to make sure we would stay on track. This is mentally exhausting! Add that to all of the actual meal preparation and the extra clean up and I was really wanting a break from all the work by the end of Week 2.
• The 21DSD can be challenging if you’re on the go. We began to get tired of packing every single food item. I think my hardest meal was lunches, since sometimes I take the kids out to places where we don’t have access to heat up leftovers, so I had to plan out cold lunches for many of our days. I had to make sure to remember to bring enough to nourish all of us, which often times did not fit into our small cooler bag.. just a small detail, but it became inconvenient at times.

So what did we eat this week?

Breakfasts

• Tomato Basil Quiche with Bacon, p.104 (I left the bacon out and cooked it separately)
• Eggs with Sausage or Bacon and Veggies
• Pumpkin Pancakes, p. 98 (seen in the cookbook photo above)
• Veggie and Egg Scramble, Omelettes or Frittata

Lunches

• Leftovers
• Sandwiches with Buttermilk Buns- we really enjoyed these! (p. 166 in the additional cookbook)
• Salads with leftover chicken or salmon

Dinners

• 10 Minute Sliders with Sweet Potato fries and leftover Buttermilk Buns, p. 96 and 166 in the additional cookbook
• Salmon Cakes (from Practical Paleo p. 310) and green beans
• Meatballs with marinara and veggies
• Salmon and Red Pepper Sauce with zucchini, Green beans and some rice (shown in the photo above)
• Mustard Glazed Chicken Thighs (p. 114) with roasted veggies
• Taco Salad

Snacks/Treats

• Homemade Applesauce (using my small batch method)
• Apple Ginger Green Smoothie, p. 49 in the additional cookbook
• Almond Butter Cups, p. 206 (Beware- these are not sweet at all! Totally different taste than a typical PB cup)
• Pumpkin Spice Smoothie, p. 51 in the additional cookbook
• Savory Herb Drop Biscuits, p. 188 (I added cheese and made them kinda Red Lobster-style)
• Yogurt with nuts or bananas (my favorite combo is yogurt, banana, almond butter, cinnamon and a little splash of vanilla)
• Full-fat cheese
• Carrots and celery with almond butter or mashed avocado
• Antipasti-type stuff- olives, pickles, cheese, salami, etc

(Unless otherwise noted, the page references are all from the 21 DSD Book.)

I’ll conclude shortly with a post about our third week. Spoiler alert- we don’t make it the whole way to 21 days. Nobody’s perfect! Thanks for following along with our journey!

So let’s get right into it! Here are my major observations from a week on the 21 Day Sugar Detox:

• Everyone had a few grumpy/moody moments in the first week. I told you I’d give you the real talk- good, bad and ugly- so here we go! The kids had their meltdowns early on. In the first three days, they asked a lot about juice (they typically get a splash of juice in their water cups), about treats and about stopping to eat at restaurants while we were out. I was prepared for that, so I don’t feel like it shook my resolve much. After all, we never really warned them anything major was changing. My husband and I reached our point of contention later in the week (see the next point), where he was not feeling satisfied after meals and I had a few major crying sessions because I felt like he wasn’t on-board with the plan anymore. Not sure if my stuff was more pregnancy/hormone-related or sugar-related, but we reconciled and we’re continuing on with the plan. Which leads me to the next point..
• We’ve noticed our family needs more carbs! We are on the Level 2 Plan with Energy modifications, but I don’t think I added enough extra carbs to compensate for the pregnancy or for my husband’s body type. Kids need extra carbs, too. So we’ve compromised and added in a few of the ‘Limit’ items from Level 1 like rice and quinoa to add to our carb intake.
• I had a few very tired days. I think Days 2-4 were the worst, but I just felt completely wiped out. A few other detox symptoms showed up (runny nose, scratchy throat), but the fatigue was the most noticeable for me. Again, this could be due to the pregnancy or the fact that I have been doing so much more work in the kitchen. Which leads me to..
• There are so many dishes! Get ready to wash, wash, wash.. and then wash again. We don’t really use paper products in our house, so all of our dishes and towels are in constant rotation. I’m also using a ton of pots and bowls and kitchen tools. I’ve mentioned before here that dishes are not my thing, so I guess I’m really committed to this plan to endure all the extra washing!
• Our tastes are changing already. The things that used to taste more sour are now tasting sweeter- I’m getting closer and closer to actually enjoying the taste of a grapefruit! The kids are relaxing their preferences, too- they’re eating a lot more vegetables and not complaining as much about preparations (example- they used to prefer their scrambled eggs and veggies separated, but now they will eat them combined).

Cinnilla Nut Mix and Herb Biscuits, Chicken Pot Pie, Veggies about to be roasted.

So what did we eat?

Breakfasts

• Buffalo Chicken Egg Muffins (p 100, we omitted the buffalo sauce and added cheese instead)
• Eggs with Sausage or Bacon and Veggies
• Orange Coconut Smoothie (p 93)
• Banana N’Oatmeal (p 46 of the additional cookbook)
• Veggie and Egg Scramble or Frittata

Lunches

• A lot of leftovers! (This works well for our family.)
• Salads with leftover chicken or salmon

Dinners

• Mini Mexican Meatloaves with Herb Cauliflower (p 118, p178)
• Cilantro Shrimp Stirfry with Caulirice (p 122 of the additional cookbook, p 172)
• Shepherd’s Pie
• Mustard Glazed Chicken with Sweet Potato Fries and Asparagus (p 114)
• Balsamic Braised Beef, Mashed Butternut Squash (p 128)
• simple broiled salmon with lemon juice
• Chicken Pot Pie (p 66 of the additional cookbook)

Snacks/Treats

• Cinnilla Nut Mix (p 192) or other mixed nuts
• Grain-Free Banana Granola (p 200), with milk or yogurt
• Yogurt with nuts or bananas (my favorite combo is yogurt, banana, almond butter, cinnamon and a little splash of vanilla)
• Full-fat cheese
• Carrots and celery with almond butter or mashed avocado
• Antipasti-type stuff- olives, pickles, cheese, salami, et
• Vanilla Coconut Popsicles (p 196)
• Savory Herb Drop Biscuits (p 188)
• Hard-boiled Eggs
• Kale Chips (p 190)

(Unless otherwise noted, the page references are all from the 21 DSD Book.)

We are already into the second week of our journey and things are continuing to go well. I’ll be back soon to share more details. Please feel free to comment with any questions you may have, I’d love to share any answers I can.

Happy Friday, darlings!

The ol’ Oven Love family is embarking on another nutritional adventure. On Sunday, we’ll be starting the 21 Day Sugar Detox, created by Balanced Bites author and nutritionist, Diane Sanfilippo. For all the details on the 21DSD, check out Diane’s website and her two books, The 21 Day Sugar Detox and The 21 Day Sugar Detox Cookbook (I checked mine out at my local library, notice the pen marks in the photos?). This is not a detox in the traditional sense, so it’s completely safe for pregnancy.

Why? Why subject my poor family to another experiment? Ha!

Well, since we moved across the country a few months back, things have slowly fallen apart in the nutrition department. GAPS fell to the wayside when we arrived in our new house- I just couldn’t keep up with the preparation, I was newly pregnant with baby #3 (aka TIRED) and I didn’t know where to source our food. I tried to keep things paleo-style, but that started to fall apart, too. We started eating more grains, which was fine in moderation.. and then we spiraled down into treats and eating out and all kinds of nonsense. You know how these things go.

Now, here I am, just a few months from having a new baby, and I’m feeling the push to get back on track. My carb and sugar cravings have been driving my food choices and I am not comfortable with that! I do not want to be controlled by food or give food more power than it deserves to have in my life. Christ is the one that should drive my thoughts, actions, and choices- not the treats calling from the pantry.

Sugar cravings were no problem for me after a week or two on GAPS, so I know I can benefit from the 21DSD. We are following Level 2 with Energy modifications for my pregnancy. Level 2 includes full-fat dairy, which I think will help the kids to cope better with the short term change.. they love their fruit, so I’ll be glad to have milk and yogurt as options for them. I’m looking forward to kicking these cravings and getting my gut balanced before baby comes (babies get their first beneficial bacteria from mom in the birth canal, it’s very important for me to be balanced!).

I’ll be sharing our experience here for each of the three weeks on the 21DSD. That means you’ll see all of our meals and hear about our experiences- that includes my husband and kids, too! I promise to share the good, bad and ugly. So look forward to at least some description of us completely melting down.

Happy weekend- I’ll be back soon with an update!