I miss you, my dear wheat bread.
Acupuncture, yoga even Feng Shui. No, I’m not talking about the hobbies of some spiritual yogi , I’m talking about me. I’m not sure exactly how it happened, but I’ve recently turned into a sage burning, crystal buying, lavender spraying, wheat free eating, universe asking optimist!
I’ve even *gasp* meditated!
Me. Lisa Steinke, er, Dannenfeldt. She who used to be, well, a lot more intense and would have never thought she could lie still for five seconds, let alone five minutes. But there is one problem I have as I lie on my blue mat, arms outstretched, breathing in and out. I can’t seem to keep my mind from wandering. And no matter how hard I try, one thought keeps creeping in. No, not Josh Duhamel without a shirt on. Or my baffling girl crush on Kara DioGuardi.
I keep thinking about…
WHEAT!
And even with my new “zen-itude”, it’s hard to remain peaceful and calm and focused on your freakin’ breath when you’re slowly but surely STARVING TO DEATH on your new gluten and wheat-free diet.
And I can be one angry bee-yotch when I’m hungry. And there ain’t a crystal or a lavender tea on this planet that can save anyone in my path when I haven’t eaten. (Sorry, honey!)
Because, P.S., EVERYTHING has wheat in it. Everything.
Which you don’t realize until You. Cannot. Have. It.
Want a hamburger? Sor-ry. The bun isn’t in compliance.
Craving a sandwich? Oh well. That would require bread.
Want pasta? Too bad. Unless you want RICE spaghetti. YUM-ME!
And don’t even get me started on going out to eat. Um, waiter, I’d like the tuna fish sandwich, hold the bread and mayonnaise please. (Yup, it’s in mayo too). Woo, hoo!
So why am I putting myself through this wheat-free hell if it’s so, well, hellish? Because I do feel better. And I am starting to find things that I can consume other than fruits and vegetables (if I even look at another banana I might hurt someone). I’ve discovered wheat-free a.k.a. “rice” tortillas that I make with rice cheese (um, yeah, I don’t do dairy either) and black beans (no wheat in those!). Ooh, how exciting! A tortilla-free, cheese free quesadilla!
But did I mention my skin looks great?
Namaste!
xoxo, Lisa
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Lisa, keep up the new attitude – you REALLY will feel better. I lost 122lbs and have kept it off since 2002. I haven’t had a chocolate bar or a piece in cake in 8 years! Food changes ARE hard – whether its wheat or sugar or anything else and sometimes, I find myself wanting to go back to my old habits (thankfully, I never seem to feel that pull back to the sugar -but I crave Big Mac’s – even all this time) but when I do end up “giving in” it feels crappy. So, stick to the blue mat, the meditation and the rice pasta (its actually decent tasting) and YOU will definitely see a difference. OM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tina– OMG! Congratulations! And thanks for the support. I know it will be challenging, but have no doubt my new eating habits will be worth it! Ommmm!
Lisa, I secretly want to think I could give up wheat. I want this “translucent” skin you keep telling me about. But I gave up cheese and coffee in a feeble attempt to support you. Is that enough? Xo
Liz, yeah, it’s enough. I can’t even get Matt to stop drinking milk with dinner. ;)
I love milk…and my midwestern mother told me it would make my bones strong. You can’t throw away 35 years of corn-fed upbringing!!!!
But you look great, and the sage smells good…so I’m cool :)
Matt, I know how much you love milk! In fact, I think we could buy stock in a dairy farm…
But don’t worry, I get it!! Milk+potatoes+meat= happy husband.
Hey Lisa! I know it’s hard, I have a friend who made the switch a year ago. Anyway, looking for a bread substitute that’s not bad? Check here. I’ve tried it and it’s pretty good.
http://blog.julianbakery.com/2010/02/14/what-is-buckwheat-benefits-of-buckwheat-is-buckwheat-gluten-free/
Good luck-Sharon
Sharon, thanks so much! I’ll check it out.
What is it about the midwest and milk? My inlaws drink it with their meals too!
Liz–I don’t know. But it’s an obsession.
Good for you, Lisa! It is tough to make these kind of changes. About a month ago I went Vegan. It was challenging, but not nearly as hard as I thought it would be. Does take more planning when I am going out to eat. Not eating eggs and dairy is tough, but I always thought going gluten-free would be a lot tougher.
Kudos to you!
Roxanne, I just got back from Whole Foods and hundreds of dollars later, I’m fully stocked. Congrats to you too. It’s definitely not easy, but I can say I feel 10 times better! Thanks for the comment!