Tag: New Year’s Resolutions

21 Day Cleanse…Was it Worth it?

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On January 5th, I started a 21-day cleanse, which I described here. I did it. I did not cheat. I loved it. And while I am glad it is over, I am maintaining many better, healthier habits.

Here are my key takeaways.

    1. I feel better. In my head and in my body. I am thinking more clearly, my belly is more comfortable, my early mornings are more pleasurable.
    2. I need a lot less food than I think I do. My “normal” calorie budget is 1,300 per day (according to my Lose It Apps anyway). On average, over the three weeks, I ate about 1,000 calories per day and I was not hungry except on the days I exercised.
    3. With these new eating and drinking habits, I need less exercise. During the past three weeks, I exercised only twice per week, which seems to be plenty both mentally and physically.
    4. I did lose weight, 8 pounds to be exact, which is a lot for me and hard to do in three weeks.
    5. I did not miss alcohol, but I did miss the rituals. I missed the ritual of a glass of wine during a lunch date with a friend (replaced by non-alcoholic beer) and the ritual of a glass of wine in the evening to wind down (replaced by many cups of all kinds of different teas).
    6. My evening beauty routine has improved. Somehow exfoliating and masking and “retinol-ing” go better with three cups of hot tea than with three glasses of wine.
    7. My skin is clearer. I don’t know if this is from the liters of tea (herbal mostly) I consumed, from my more regular use of my Advanced retinol serum (see above), or from the lack of alcohol, or all of the above, but I am definitely more “glowy.”
    8. I spent a lot less money on food and beverage, partly because going out did lose some of its appeal, and partly because when I did eat out, there was mostly lettuce and certainly no alcohol on my tab.
    9. I went to the grocery store twice in three weeks (versus my average of once every two months…). With these new habits, having the right food at home and in my purse at all times is essential to avoid “mistakes due to hangry emergencies.”
    10. I discovered a love for apples. I have probably eaten an apple a day since January 5th (the only fruit allowed on this cleanse) and I plan to continue. They keep the doctor away, are easy to travel with, and are available in American Airlines lounges!
    11. My new rituals and habits have stuck beyond 21 days. I have not added milk back to my coffee. I have not added carbs or sugar back to my diet. I am still limiting dairy. I did enjoy mimosas with brunch and a great cabernet with dinner this past Sunday, the first day “post cleanse,” but I have not had any alcohol since. I will certainly splurge on date nights and on weekends, but these new healthy habits are here to stay – and that is the best possible outcome of these 21 days.

I cannot think of a better way to have started 2020!

January + Reset + Intentions

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In 8 days, we enter the second month of this new decade. Am I almost 1/12th done with what I set out to do this year? I can’t say that I am; yet I can say that I have loved this month so far.

I cleansed. I am 3 days away from the end of my 21-day cleanser (read more here), and I feel lighter, stronger, and healthier than ever (yet also hungry and somewhat unsatisfied…).

I reset. This past weekend was Serious Business, the annual personal and professional development conference ideated by Debra Neill Baker of Neill Corporation. This year’s theme was Reset, particularly applicable to a new decade. My highlight was Neil Pasricha’s admonition that “action creates motivation” (instead of the other way around).

I organized. I handled end of year paperwork, started getting things ready for Aprils’ tax deadline, threw away old bills and bank statements, and purged paper.

I unsubscribed. From so many email newsletters I delete before opening, my inbox feels lighter. And I cancelled magazine and entertainment subscriptions I no longer benefit from.

I recommitted. To my evening skin care routine, and to using my Advanced retinol serum twice weekly. I can’t help but think that there is a correlation between this behavior and recent compliments on my “fresh” and “glowing” look.

I tried something new. My workout rituals involve running and SoulCycle, and have for years. This month, I decided I to add strength training and tried Orange Theory Fitness for the first time. I was mostly in the red, have hardly ever been so sore, yet I have another class booked for this Friday!

Before February arrives, here are some intentions for the next 8 days:

  • Read two more books (which will bring me to one per week)
  • Finalize the Alchimie Forever 2020 budget (yes, I am very late on this)
  • Buy some extra drip colored candles and use some empty wine bottles as candle holders to decorate the mantle (something my parents used to do, which a recent dinner at The Columns in New Orleans reminded me of)

January Detox

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I am all about New Year’s Resolutions. I love making that list and working through it. This year, at the top of my list, is to be and feel healthier. What does that mean, you ask? I am not quite sure… but I know I want to feel better than I did in 2019. Lighter (literally and figuratively). Fresher. Stronger.

To set myself up for success for the next 12 months, I am starting with a 21-day cleanse, a Swiss version of the popular Whole 30.

What does this entail?

  • No alcohol
  • No carbohydrates
  • No sugar
  • Limited dairy
  • Limited fat

I am on day 4, and while I am somewhat hungry, I feel great. No headaches. No cravings. I am eating lettuce, green vegetables, cornichons, tuna, ham, bouillon, shrimp, steak, and eggs. Cottage cheese (only dairy allowed). Apples (only fruit allowed). A little bit of olive oil, and a little bit of mayonnaise (my cheat). Raw almonds. I am drinking a whole lot of tea, and in an emergency, a Coors Edge (nonalcoholic, minimal carbs).

What am I hoping to accomplish?

  • Prove (to myself) that I can do it, that my willpower and self-control are stronger than any cravings I may have
  • Lose a couple of pounds
  • Reset my metabolism
  • Shift my cravings
  • Refine my rituals

For this cleanse to have long-term benefits, I have realized just four days in that it is all about the habits and rituals. A glass of wine when I get home to unwind. Cheese and crackers every time I am in an American Airlines Lounge (which is many times per week), sometimes even when I am not hungry. The list goes on. And that’s why this cleanse is 21 days. It takes 21 days to change a habit.

Step 1 to feeling and being healthier: changing some of my habits, refining some of my rituals.

4 days in, 17 days to go. And then forever healthier.

50 days left…

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There are 50 days left in 2019. You read that correctly. 50.

I can’t believe it, I have not yet accomplished all I set out to do this year, I am not ready for 2020 to be here, and I am slightly freaking out about this. Then again, I have 50 days. So here is what I am doing between now and then:

  1. Holiday gifting planning. Yes, I am starting now, and this is possible the funnest project ever.
  2. Compiling a list of everything I have accomplished so far in 2019. It feels good to see that while I am not close to checking off everything on my goal list, some goals have indeed been achieved.
  3. Starting my “2019 year in review” project, something I tend to do early January (looking backwards). This year, I decided to do this earlier so that I can still course-correct if there is something that needs to happen before 2020 that has not yet been put in motion.
  4. Daydreaming (not planning) about 2020. Letting my brain imagine things that can be next year, so that when the actual planning begins (later in December), I will have some creative, out of the box ideas.
  5. Reviewing my financials. Personal and professional. So that I don’t have any surprises come December 31st, and can make adjustments where need be, if need be.

How are you preparing for a successful end of 2019?

Get Out of Your Own Way – and Get Healthier Now

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I just returned from Serious Business, the leading conference organized by Neill Corporation, and the brainchild of Debra Neill Baker and Carol Augusto. This year’s theme was “Get out of your own way,” a powerful reminder that despite our best intentions, we are sometimes our own worst enemies…  

One of the keynote speakers was Ben Greenfield, who spoke about habits to enhance health and longevity, as reported in the book Blue Zones. This resonated with me particularly strongly as I recently read the book Ikigai, which touches on the same theme, and am in already struggling to keep some of my New Year’s resolutions.

The list of healthy habits below may not be new information, but I know I get in my own way, and needed the reminder. Here are Ben Greenfield’s healthful recommendations for cleaner, better, longer living.

  1. Don’t smoke. (If not for longer living, do this for better skin)
  2. Avoid sugar and vegetable oil.
  3. Eat dark colored fruits and vegetables, like purple cabbage and blueberries. (And put them on your skin too!)
  4. Eat legumes.
  5. Implement 12-16 hours of intermittent fasting in your routine, to help your body “clean up the trash.” That may mean giving up breakfast…
  6. Go to the gym, yes. But beyond that, incorporate low impact movement every day. (Walking or gardening come to mind) 
  7. Ensure you have a strong sense of community. (When is the last time you called your best friend?) 
  8. Possess a strong life purpose, what the Japanese call “ikigai”. 
  9. Ruthlessly eliminate the sense of hurry to minimize stress.
  10. Engage in a spiritual discipline, religion, or the belief in a higher power.  
  11. Remain reproductively useful. (Yes, he did tell the audience to have more sex) 
  12. Drink a little every day, mostly wine, preferably red.

Celebrating 2018, Looking Forward to 2019

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Growing up, one of my favorite traditions was our family New Year’s Eve dinner. My parents, my three sisters, and I were most often somewhere in the Swiss mountains. The table was nicely decorated, the food lovely, and the atmosphere festive. My favorite part of the evening, however, was a tradition I remember my mother starting. We all (youngest to oldest) were asked to share what we were most proud of having accomplished this year, and what we were looking forward to in the New Year.

Somehow this tradition provided closure and appreciation for the year coming to a close, and also introduced the concept of New Year’s resolutions in a fun and casual way. Often times the conversation led to memories from the same conversation the previous year – and to laughs about what we thought would be our highlights versus what were our highlights. This tradition, as most traditions do, created a sense of continuity and family. For me, it became a ritual.

December 31st has since been a day of reflection, gratitude, closure. It is also a day of excitement, a day of butterflies in the belly. Tomorrow, I start anew.

Thank you 2018. It wasn’t always pretty, yet I am proud of my work accomplishments (teamwork, revenue targets achieved, a new product launched), and of my personal accomplishments (in my marriage, in my friendships, in my relationship with myself).

2019, I can’t wait to meet you. I am looking forward to the books I have not yet read; to the runs, I have not yet run; to the challenges, I have not yet faced.

Wherever you are right now, I hope you take a moment to reflect on your accomplishments this past year. Take a moment to pat yourself on the back for thriving, or for surviving. And to set your intentions for 2019.