checking back in after Mark Hyman MD's 10-Day Detox… and answering the "was it worth it?" question

So, it's been a few weeks since I wrapped up Mark Hyman MD's 10-Day Detox and I've gone back to my 'normal' mom/wife/friend roles. From running into a bunch of you at the supermarket, volunteering at school, or just out and about, you all want to know, "so, was it worth it?!!". The short answer? Yes. Absolutely.

If you're just joining me and want to read all the nitty gritty about my 10-day whole foods detox journey start here:

• The {hideous} photo that started it all...
• Day 1
• Day 2
• Day 3
• Day 4 {the turning point!!}
• Days 5, 6 and 7
• and, last but not least, Days 8, 10 and 10
• An update from October 2014-- still going strong! 

But, I will not lie… when I made a batch of my homemade cupcakes with cream cheese frosting for a recent birthday, I wanted to dive in. And, briefly, after I wrapped up the 10-Day Detox, I did revert to some of my old ways.

At the end of the 10 days, I was feeling on top of the world, and thought, "I'm fixed! I'm down 5 lbs and continuing to lose lbs, and feel so, so good!". For a week I didn't want to rock the awesome feeling, and I continued to stick to the plan, to a t. And then, instead of testing the effects of dairy/gluten on my own body through a methodical process Dr. Hyman recommends at the end of the book, I felt so confident that, on a weekend away with my family, I just dove back in. To everything at once-- Coffee! Cheese! Wine! Beer! Treats! I know. I know. And here I was feeling so good, my skin was glowing, my jeans weren't snug... But it took me exactly 48 hours to start feeling like crap again, and to remember just how awesome I had been feeling. And the beauty was, I was able to pick up my book, take a u-turn, and get right back on track. In a way, I am glad I had this blip because I was still kind of pinching myself wondering if it was really possible to feel that different in 10 short days. I had my answer.

So, while I am still figuring out exactly what I can and cannot have food-wise to keep the happy momentum up-- and the weight down-- I am continuing to start each morning with a protein packed smoothie.

For lunches, during this cold, snowy season, I am still favoring soups. I've been experimenting with different derivations of the ones I enjoyed from the 10-Day Detox book. Most recently, I took a bunch of leftover roasted veggies (cauliflower, bok choy, carrots, etc) and blended them up with coconut milk, turmeric, garam masala powder, fresh ginger, some raw cashews and almond milk.

 It was delicious. I had it alongside a spinach salad with hard-boiled eggs for added protein.

And I still have some of the "Green Goddess Broccoli and Arugula Soup" and "Chicken Soup for the Cause" in my freezer from when I made it during the detox and froze it in individual containers for easy lunches. {That's the Broccoli and Arugula Soup pictured above, with some grilled tofu for protein, plus a dollop of sun-dried tomato pesto, leftover from when I stuffed chicken breasts with the pesto.}

I've kept cooking the other recipes in the book that we didn't get to have during the 10 days, and all have been enjoyed by my whole family.

I still do a lot of cooking ahead, just so I can keep all the balls in the air. When I am roasting veggies, I do several different rimmed baking sheets at the same time, be they "rainbow" carrots or

roasted cauliflower dusted with some curry powder. And then I tuck them in the fridge for busy weeknights ahead.

And, I've started looking at my cookbooks and magazines differently, focusing on the recipes I can enjoy, like this miso-glazed bok choy.

Now that I am technically "off" the 10-day detox, but still want to keep the good habits going, for me, it's about whipping up big batches of nourishing foods, much the same way as I cook ahead for our freezer.

And from this point on, I look forward to taking the best care I can of myself… and if I ever swerve off course, I've always got those blog posts to inspire me back on track.

Note: The above links will take you to Amazon. When you click, it takes you to their website, and anything you purchase there will help support swellmom and the full plate blog. Thanks in advance for the support.