Putting Food Storage To the Ultimate Test

Week 3

2009-01-16T15:13:00.003-07:00

Day 15
Food
Whole wheat toast with apricot jam for breakfast; wheat with canned apricots for lunch; and wheat with tomato sauce for dinner. Dinner was very good. I am discovering that with such a basic diet, the simplest tastes are sooooo good.

Symptons
None! I still feel great and my energy is up!

Day 16
Food
I had toast and jam for breakfast and leftover wheat and sauce for lunch. I also had a few green grapes (We will plant grapes this summer - for sure!)

I became desperate for a different flavor, so after having my bowl of wheat and pears for dinner, I consumed a very small, red baked potato. I don't know if that goes outside my self-made rules, but we actually grew red potatoes this past year, so maybe it was okay.

Symptoms
None.

Day 17
Food
Toast and jam for breakfast (Be careful with the electric knife when the loaf gets very small. Ouch!). Whole wheat toast has become my standby when I am in a hurry to get out the door in the morning. The great thing is that I haven't gotten tired of the taste and it sticks to my ribs until I eat lunch at noon. For lunch I had cooked wheat and canned (bottled) pears. Dinner was a challenge. I had to drive out of town and thought I took enough food from home - whole wheat bread, some bluberries, and a few baby carrots. This didn't last me for the entire trip. I resorted to snatching some lettuce from my sister's hospital food tray. When I had to drive home at midnight, it was necessary to grab something to munch on in order to stay awake. I chose kettle chips. I thought I would be tempted to consume the entire bag but I was surprised to find I was content to eat just a few. I managed to stay awake and then slept like a baby when I arrived home.

My husband says I am losing weight. It's fun when he notices.

Symptoms
Absolutely none.

Day 18
Food
When I stepped on the scales this morning I weighed 139 lbs! I could get to like this. The great thing is that I always feel full - never hungry. This morning I skipped breakfast because I munched on the way home. Lunch was cooked wheat and bottled pears. For dinner I made another whole wheat crust Italian pizza. Heaven.

Week 2

2009-01-09T07:26:00.005-07:00

Day 8
Food
Cherries and cooked wheat were my choice again today. I had four small bowls full. I still don't feel deprived. I also had two slices of whole wheat bread.

Symptoms
My body is still not back to normal, but I feel good. I have absolutely NO bloated feeling - something I frequently get with my regular diet. The rashes itched quite a bit today.

Day 9
Food
I enjoyed cherries and cooked wheat in the morning and at luch, with a slice of whole wheat bread. In the evening I decided to try my hand at making a fluffier whole wheat bread. I researceh on the internet and found one that I thought might work. I sweetened it with honey and made four loaves. Wow! they turned out great! There was a bit of dough left so I decided to try pizza. I rolled out the dough veryt thin, then topped it with canned, crushed tomates, basil from our garden, and drizzled it with olive oil. It was amazingly delicious. My husband even liked it. I became so excited about the pizza that I decided to try focaccia with the remaining dough. I rolled the dough a bit thicker this time and added the tomato and added the tomato and basil, then I grated some onion on top. I drizzled extra olive oil (extra virgin), and baked it at about 350. It was heaven! Honestly - it nearly captured the taste of the pizzas I remember eating during my mission in Southern Italy. Yes! I think I will survive.

Symptons
My body seems to be going back to normal. The rashes are still there, but have quit itching.

Day 10
Food
Breakfast consisted of wheat toast from the delicious bread I made Wednesday evening. I spread a bit of apricot jam on it, too. We canned the jam ourselves last fall. For lunch I finished off the delicious focaccia I had made the night before. No deprivation here! For dinner I experimented by adding beef boillion to cooked wheat. Then I added some onions and canned green beans (from our garden). It wasn't the best meal I have ever had, but certainly tasty, and a nice change. Don't think it will be on the top ten, however.

Symptons
I feel great and my body truly seems back to normal. I am drinking about 32 oz. of water a day. I should probably drink more. I still weigh 142 lbs. I secretly had dreamed of this turning into the next Oprah Diet and netting me $millions.

Day 11
Food
Cooked wheat and pears today - three bowls. I also had a few blueberries. Now I know these are not in my food storage, but we DEFINITELY grow them this summer.

Symptons
My body is functioning normally - yipee! The rash doesn't itch too much.

Day 12
Food
Cooked wheat again - all three meals - with some more blueberries and a few strawberries. No canned fruit today. The fresh fruit was such a nice break but I realize that this would only be possible if I grow these berries in my yard. I will order seeds or starts this week.

Symptons
None. I feel great. Mt energy is up and I need less sleep.

Day 13
Food
Today I ate very little - a slice of whole wheat toast with a bit of apricot jam (which I made in August) was our breakfast. For dinner I had a bit of cooked wheat with steamed broccoli and a simple sauce on top (no cheese) I made it by sauteeing a bit of garlic in olive oil. Then I added crushed tomatoes, dried basil (from our garden), and a little salt. The meal was delicious.

Symptons
None - except I started craving what my family was eating.

Day 14
Food
Mysweet husband made wheat bread and kept out some dough, so I was able to make another focaccia. I topped it with crushed tomatoes, basil. and onion. It was my meal for the entire day. The onion was very bitter though. That was a disappointment. Maybe next time I will use sweet onions.

Symptoms
The rash has stopped itching. I weigh 141 lbs!

Getting Started

2009-01-03T16:00:00.014-07:00

I have decided that if I am going to suffer through this, I am going to really make it count. Next week I will see my doctor and ask for blood tests so that I will have a good comparison. I am in fairly good health for my age. I sometimes bicycle, and last spring I took my first ever ballet class, so I'm not bedridden or anything. I do have occasional bouts with low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), so it will be interesting to see how that goes. My husband says that to track this experience well, I should occasionally record my weight. Hmmm . . .this is where I may draw the line.

Here's my food diary so far:

Day 1
Food:
Two cups of cooked wheat with molasses and Rice Dream
Two bowls full of Tabouli
Symptoms:
None. I felt full and great.

Day 2
Food:
Two cups of cooked wheat with molasses, Rice Dream, and 1/2 cup of canned pears
Caprese salad (Roma tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, and olive oil.
Two small bowls of Tabouli)

Symptoms:
I felt too full. The digestive process seemed slow and I felt a bit sluggish.

Day 3
Food:
Two cups of cooked wheat with molasses, Rice Dream, and 1/2 cup of canned pears
Homemade Italian pizza.
(I must clarify here. I didn't fully decide to commit to this experiment until after we ate dinner. Besides, it was New Year's Day. One must never pass up real Italian pizza. This is going to be hard.)

Symptoms:
A little bloated with a little bit of diarrhea (I hate this word - so undignified. From now on I will write it d******a.) Something is going on inside of my body!

Day 4
Food:
One cup of cooked wheat with canned chili sauce courtesy of the kitchen of my dear friend, Lynda.
Two small bowls of Tabouli
One bowl of warm cooked wheat with rice milk, molasses, and pears - mmmmmmm.

Symptoms:
I had to hurry to the "ladies' room" shortly after I awoke this morning. Quite a bit more d******a and a bit of discomfort. Will this work? Is the end near? As my mom always said "It will feel better when it quits hurting." I know she is right (and so wise). Anyway, later in the morning I felt quite good and "clean" inside. Tonight my abdomen feels like it has had a workout, but no discomfort.

Earlier today the thought hit me "Do I really want to publish these intimate experiences for all the world to see?" If it will help one of the sisters in Relief Society buy wheat, then "Yes!"

Day 5
Food
Throughout the day I had four cups of cooked wheat with molasses and canned fruit (pears and apricots from our trees).

Symptoms
I awoke with a small rash on the top of my right foot. A friend told me that this indicates a cleansing going on, as toxins attempt to exit the body. Wahoo! Goodbye toxins!
Other than that, I felt great and the "process of elimination" seems to be returning back to normal. (Boy, there just doesn't seem to be a delicate way to talk about this.) I didn't sleep well last night, and and in the middle of the night I awoke chilling - just couldn't get warm - almost as if I was in mild shock. It was a bit unpleasant.

Day 6
Food
I had cooked wheat and pears for breakfast. For lunch I had some Tabouli leftover from a couple of days before - and an orange. I justified eating the orange by thinking that maybe I would have some left over in my refrigerator after a disaster. An apple probably would have been closer to my guidelines. Oranges would never grow where I live. Later in the afternoon/evening I had three small bowls of wheat with canned cherries. Last fall I wondered if canning the cherries was a good idea. As I was looking through my canning shelves for variety, and after enjoying those sweet delicious cherries with my cooked wheat, I decided that YES, it had been a great idea. Resolve: Can more fruit varieties next fall.

Symptoms
The morning was difficult. I thought things were going back to normal but the morning "go" was a bit unpleasant. Maybe I need to drink more water. I still have a small rash on my right foot, but it is not getting any worse. Except for the morning unpleasantries, I felt great throughout the day. I slept like a baby!

My husband brought home some bathroom scales Saturday night. Ugghhhh. "If you want to do this right, you need to track your weight," he says. So I stepped on. 142 lbs. Hmm.

Day 7
Food
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner consisted of cooked wheat with canned cherries. I thought the lack of variety would bother me, but so far it hasn't. So glad I bottled those cherries! Also, my sweet husband made some 100% whole wheat bread. I had a slice fresh out of the oven and it was delicious. I have to admit that it was a nice change.

Symptoms
"Things" are still not back to normal, but not bad. The rash is still on my right foot, and now there is a small one on the top of my left foot. I will try to drink more water. My energy is up and I feel great.