Detox Diet

One of my many symptoms that I experience daily is abdominal bloating, distention, and constipation.  (I promise, this post isn't going to be about poop.  So stick with me here.)  Yesterday I decided to start myself on a "detox diet".

You see, I had gone out to eat on Friday night with my grandparents.  I was starving by the time we got there so everything on the menu looked good.  Being the junk food junkie that I am, I ended up pigging out on "bar food", you know, mozzarella sticks, hamburgers, chips and dip, etc.  Almost all day on Saturday I felt awful.  I was bloated even more than normal.  I decided I needed to make a change.

I researched detox diets online and found some interesting information.  I decided, as hard as it may be, to go on a "gentle" detox diet for a couple of days.  I didn't want to be too strict about it because I think that would be too much of a change for my body to handle.  I hardly eat vegetables and fruit as it is and recently I have been eating what seems like nothing but crap (it's easier and cheaper).  In addition to the fear that it would be a shock to my system, I also didn't think I would be able do the full detox diet.

Basically, the diet consists of primarily fruits and vegetables, rice (brown rice is preferred), beans (which I won't eat),  nuts and seeds (no peanuts or peanut butter), and extra virgin olive oil.  Depending on the source, fish is also allowed in moderation.
Things that are not allowed include sugar, dairy products, eggs, gluten, caffeinated beverages, alcohol, and high-fat foods.

I got almost all of my information from about.com.
Here is the link to the basic info about the diet -
The Detox Diet

Foods you can eat

Foods to Avoid

Now, like I said, I have not followed it exactly.  I cannot eat vegetables without butter, Parmesan cheese, or the like.  I will also not give up my morning coffee completely.  I have not, however, had my afternoon caffeinated beverage yesterday or today. 

Here is my diet thus far...
Dinner last night - roasted broccoli, strawberries, and guacamole (This is where I cheated and ate tortilla chips.  I was cutting the avocados and tomatoes and realized I needed something to eat my guacamole with.. oops!) I ate those three things about an hour apart from each other.

Breakfast today - strawberries and bananas, coffee
Snack -1/2 apple
Lunch - 1 cup of brown rice and 2 ears of corn on the cob (yes, with butter, well, margarine)
Snack - The rest of the guacamole and some chips
For Dinner I plan on having more whole wheat rice and a salmon fillet. I haven't decided what vegetable I will have with it.

I have also been drinking lots and lots of water, but I always do that. I haven't had any sugar what-so-ever.  There is even a small package of M&Ms sitting in front of me right now and I am successfully resisting the urge to eat them.
The most important thing that I've been doing is to always eat when I'm hungry.  I am eating very frequently.

So far, I'm tolerating it fairly well.  I have had more of a headache today than normal and my energy level is low.  However, those are both normal symptoms for me so it's hard to tell if it's the diet or my POTS.

I am only planning on doing this for a couple of days. I have to work on Tuesday and I'm going to need all the energy I can get for that.  If it's still going really well tomorrow, and I have the energy to fix my food ahead of time, then I'll try to continue the diet longer.  Otherwise, I will finish it Monday night.  That will be 2 1/2 days of eating healthier than I usually do in a two week period. 

I will let you know how it goes.