mission accomplished... sort of

[floatingleaf]

Well... looks like I'm not destined to become a fruitarian.;) Which I kind of suspected, anyway. Surprisingly enough, it wasn't about lack of willpower. I was pretty determined to go through with my little experiment - and when I do set my mind on something, I can be "stubborn as a mule" (as my mother likes to put it). However, my body told me in no uncertain terms that I had ventured into dangerous territory. I mean, I was fine for most of the day, actually, if a little lightheaded; but around 6 p.m. the lightheadedness began to transform into increasing pressure, like an iron band tightening around my temples. I wasn't even so much feeling hungry (I HAD been eating, after all) as I was disoriented and uncomfortable. And I was beginning to panic. I can't even properly explain this reaction - I was at home, after all, and there was food in the fridge, and the only thing keeping me from it was my own stubbornness. But somehow I felt very anxious. And, sadly enough, I couldn't stand to look at fruit anymore (I'd had an apple, a pear, two small yellow mangoes, a handful of grapes, a plum or two, and a small bowl of strawberries & blueberries; oh, and an avocado, which was technically cheating, but probably the only reason I even lasted that long... LOL). I had this acidic aftertaste in my mouth that no amount of hot tea would rinse out and I just... couldn't. So I caved in and had a small bowl of instant grits (which is what I would normally have for breakfast). That calmed me down considerably... for about two hours. Then the iron band around my temples started tightening again. So I said to myself, well, is this punishment or something?... Hell no. So screw it. And I had a small piece of bread with spreadable cheese. Which, at that point, seemed like a huge meal, and blissed me out so much that I happily brushed my teeth and went to bed.:)

Conclusions? I can probably handle eating much less than I normally do, especially in terms of smaller portions, but it has to be relatively frequent, and there has to be some nutritional variety to it. That's just how my metabolism works. I thought fruit was going to keep my blood sugar from dropping too much, since it has plenty of natural sweetness - but apparently it didn't. It took bread & cheese to stop the shakes. Interestingly, my stomach wasn't growling at all throughout the day - like I said above, I wasn't consciously hungry. Still, I felt like I might have to lie down so I don't pass out. Part of it could be a purely psychological reaction - after all, I don't think I'd ever gone a full day without a "proper meal" before. But I also think that my body was telling me not to try this again. It felt extreme - and I am not much of a believer in extreme solutions. I'm all about moderation. So I guess I'd better go back to the sensible approach and figure out a number of small "diet adjustments". After all, it has worked before. I was younger then, obviously... but I am not aiming to reclaim my skinny 20-year-old self anymore either.;) I just want to stop the downward slide of gaining several pounds every holiday season. Surely there is a way to do this without pain and torture, hmmm?...

And now, back to reading vampire porn.:D

Comments

[goddessofchaos.livejournal.com]

I definitely couldn't do a day eating just fruit, but then my stomach isn't really keen on fruit at all =/ Maybe it was just too sugary for your system? Plus fruit is pretty acidic.

They do say that eating very little a couple of days a week is very effective for weight loss, but I guess going for much smaller portions of your normal food is less of a shock to the system.

[floatingleaf.livejournal.com]

Hmmm... I don't think it was too sugary. For one thing, I did not sweeten my tea that day, which I normally do (and I drink a LOT of tea); in addition, I obviously didn't have any cereal/granola bars, which are my usual midmorning snack. So on the whole, I'd say I consumed far less sugar on that day than I usually do - plus, it was all natural sugar, combined with fiber.

I actually think the "shock to the system" was due to the lower sugar intake, as well as to the lack of complex carbs. I've done some online research, and I suspect that my body might have a tendency to produce too much insulin. I actually tend to pass out if I go out in the morning without breakfast (which I never do anymore, for that very reason) - and I was once told by a doctor to at least have a few sips of a sweetened beverage, if not a proper breakfast, if I want to avoid this happening again. I know that people who take medication for diabetes can have a similar problem, but I am not diabetic, nor am I taking any medication - it's my own body causing this, and I need to eat pretty often to avoid nasty headaches, shaking hands, anxiety etc. Which is why I most likely couldn't handle fasting in any form. Smaller, lighter and healthier (but still frequent) meals are the way to go...