I decided to combine yesterday with today's post because nothing major happened yesterday. I woke up feeling less physically weak than the days prior and my energy levels continued to improve throughout the day. I even went out walking during the evening in that ridiculous snow storm for 40 minutes. No noticeable detox symptoms other than my tongue seemed to be clearing up.
Yesterday's energy levels continued today where I woke up feeling good. Today was the Pastry Chef Showcase wherein twelve pastry chefs and their companies compete for a People's Choice award and the Professional Pastry Chef award. You can read more about it here.
It was a full day for volunteers starting at 8:45am to 5:00pm. We started our day with a tour of the Ranchmen's Club, a luxurious club with walls decorated in expensive artwork and mounted animal heads. The event was to take place on the third floor and the chefs insisted on taking the stairs. Normally, I would not have been opposed (I prefer the stairs, actually), but during this fast, I was definitely lagging behind everyone else. Our three main tasks for the day were to direct and help competitors set up, direct guests to the third floor, and assist the Club staff in clearing plates and keeping the venue as clean as possible. The first two tasks were no problem as I did little moving and there was always a big cushy chair nearby. However, during the last task, I encountered some issues. It must have been the strain of carrying stacks of plates, but I started experiencing chest pains. The sharp pain radiated out along the front of my chest every time my heart beat. I retreated into the volunteer room to sit and rest but half an hour later, the pain hadn't subsided. I made the decision to go home before the event was over. At the very least, I got to participate in the funnest parts of the event (there was only clean up left). I went home, drank some water and laid down. I felt better soon after and my energy returned.
While the chest pains were alarming, they are not unheard of during a water fast. Many people who go through a water fast also experience chest pains at around day 6. I was not very concerned as they didn't become severe. I think that must have been a warning sign from my body to tell me to rest and to stop moving around so much.
I didn't drink that much water today because 1) while I was volunteering, I was so cold I didn't want to drink water (my lips were almost completely blue) and 2) my body did not feel like it needed as much as other days. Water consumption is very important but drinking too much is also detrimental. It puts unnecessary stress on the kidney to process more liquid. I had always knew drinking too little water was bad, but I never though drinking too much was also bad.
An interesting observation I made today was in regard to my desire for food. I have noticed that while there is no food present, my mind might develop a desire for something (sometimes it felt like my stomach rumbled in response). Lately it has been for broccoli, rice, or congee and not so much the chocolate cake and cookies I had desired before. But here's the twist, once I am around people who are eating, I lose the desire completely. This struck me both at lunch time while the other volunteers were munching on sandwiches and chips and while I sat with my boyfriend during dinner at a busy restaurant (we confused the waiter when my boyfriend took the whole plate of food for himself :P ). I will continue to ponder as to what this means to me and my relationship with food but I believe this still indicates that I am not ready to break my fast.
Here are pictures of most of the twelve dishes. Unfortunately I cannot tell you what is in each dish as each one had a giant list of ingredients.
 |
| A dessert based on Halloween candy |
 |
| SAIT's plated dessert |
 |
| Manuel LaTruwe's dessert |
 |
| Brulee's plated dessert |
 |
| I believe this is a beet cake |
 |
| Crave Cupcake's peanut butter dessert |
 |
| Sheraton Suites, winner of the Professional Pastry Chef award |
 |
| Whippt's apple pie, winner of the People's Choice award! |
 |
| A beautiful chocolate piece by Sheraton |
 |
| A mini chocolate centerpiece by SAIT |
Inbetween sweets, guests were encouraged to cleanse their palates with wine, beer, and cheese. In the centre of one of the rooms, there were cheese boards heaping with a huge variety of cheese and breads. It was demolished by the salt-craving crowds.
 |
| Heaps of cheese no match for over-sugared crowd |
Summary
Water drank today: 1 litre
Weight change today and yesterday: -2.6 lbs
Total weight change: -7.2 lbs
Overall feeling: Good energy levels which led to me over-exerting myself during the afternoon, but energy levels returned after some rest. Probably my best day in the fast so far.
Almost all the dishes I cleared had the majority of the dessert leftover. I feel there is often a battle inside me to simply eat until satisfied and the childhood belief that I should clear my plate. Nevertheless, I was sad to see the garbage bin full of partially eaten treats.
I believe that the belief of clearing your plate, while based on good intentions, often leads to overeating. Many people have lost the knowledge of what is a serving size and simply eat everything that is placed in front of them, sometimes way past the point of feeling full. Do you have a similar struggle?
No comments:
Post a Comment