My stomach hurts and it’s not a hurt that comes from eating healthy whole clean foods, it’s a hurt that comes from ingesting too much fake-sugar chemicalness..
Ugh, I can’t even imagine the # of chemicals floating through my body right now, and I’m not too thrilled about it. I generally like to eat much more ‘whole & clean’ than I am at the moment. But with my limited diet and carb-cycling, in order to 1) stay full enough to not eat my arm, and 2) to make what I eat eatable without adding and carbs or cals, I’ve resorted to eating many chemically laden products. I have mentioned the Walden Farms brand on here a few times, and for a fitness/figure competitor their products are lifesavers, but really they are just flavored chemicals (and some of the products tastes like it too). Same with all the Sugar-Free syrups I’ve been consuming lately. I don’t know what I would have done if I wasn’t allowed to drink coffee through this whole process and the syrups make it a much more enjoyable experience.
I know I could avoid these products, after all, they’re really just easing my ridiculous sweet tooth, but having my coffee in the morning with my Unsweetened Almond Breeze and Sugar-Free Pumpkin Spice Syrup makes me feel a little more like I’m taking part in the holiday festivities. I feel like I’m balancing so many things right now that I don’t have time to conduct trial & error with recipes, and even more importantly I don’t have time for error with any changes to my diet. My cut is going quiet well and you know what they say, if it’s not broken… After these two competition are over and I have time to do more research and experimentation with my diet, I’m excited to come up with combinations and recipes that meet my nutrition and training needs at any stage of contest prep.
So I suppose this turned into a bit of a vent, but I really am thankful to live someplace where there is such a variety of products that make the cutting diet easier. BUT I’m also looking forward to natural, clean, fresh, out of the ground or off the tree eating post-competition.
So that leads me to this fantastic addition to my diet:
When I posted about a coffee-substitute, my mom recommended this. It is made from barley, has 1 carb per serving and tastes awesome! For my first try, I didn’t add any almond breeze but just a tbsp of Sugar-Free Cookie Dough Syrup, and was very pleasantly surprised!
I am now on my 2nd cup as I work on the take-home Final for my Negotiations class… clearly focus is an issue since I’m blogging :p opps!
Fun Links
I totally feel for you. I’m a diet soda addict (er, recovering addict! i’m a few weeks clean now…). But yeah, it’s all chemicals. I mean, it makes this whole “healthy lifestyle” thing totally messed up. Surely eating chemicals isn’t healthy. And yet, the result of eating chemicals (in theory) is a leaner better body? Man I envy your ability to stick with the cutting diet. I couldn’t do it. Food is just way too important to me. I probably take it to far – my bf once said to me “you treat every meal like it’s a religious experience.” Not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing! Ok, your vent turned into my ramble. Good luck!