#411

So, what is the grand life change I've embarked upon? Well, mainly organization. I sat down yesterday to write a list about the major "domains" in life I felt were important. These included:

• general home storage and organization (i.e. clothes, closets, kitchen cabinets)
• finances
• important files (i.e. taxes, receipts)
• fitness (i.e. exercise, mindfulness)
• diet
• reading habits

What categories would be on your list? It's kind of fun to think about.

Changing too many things at once is a sure fire way to sink yourself, so I've prepared in most areas but am only going to take action in the fitness and dietary realms. (The most obvious and unoriginal, I suppose.)

I felt really gross around Thanksgiving, which I interpreted as spiritual boredom rather than an I-ate-too-much moment. In a frenzy of energy, I hit upon the idea of completing a dietary detox. Obviously, that's a taboo topic among us medical folk, but I sincerely felt an unbalance in my protoplasm. My requirements for a detox were pretty simple:

1. Food had to be included, i.e. I would never endorse the Master Cleanse
2. Short duration (I am weak in the will power department)
3. Could not require supplements
   

After a random web search, I found this "elimination diet" proposed by Gwyneth Paltrow (of all people!) from her website, GOOP. It's a 7 day eating program based on the "Clean program" developed by a cardiologist. I am in no way endorsing detoxes or even the Clean program, as it relies so heavily on supplements. Tom and I have been arguing about nutraceuticals lately as he finds them a fascinating business opportunity. Ironically, or maybe not so ironically coming from a training physician, I have a substantial amount of distrust for supplements but not medicines. In the end, I was simply looking for a weeklong healthy menu.

I went to the fancy supermarket yesterday and spent $61 for 2 days of food. Ouch!!! I encountered all sorts of strange things like agave syrup, coconut water, and protein powder. I made sure to eat as much fried food as yesterday, as well as a candy bar. I'm serious about this, though, and I've even given up coffee. (Which is huge by the way.) So how has day one been so far? I woke up with a nasty headache and my stomach has been grumbling as I have only substituted on water and tea for the past 3 hours. But it's time to make a shake now, so maybe things will perk up. At bottom, this is no more than a Japanese-style eating program, with a reliance on mirin and miso.

Also, I decorated for the holidays. Thought some pictures might lighten the mood. This blog's becoming a downer...