I am currently doing a special detox. It lasts 28 days. I have done it before and it was good for me. Not a massive weight loss but I have noticed visible health improvements. I am still wheat free most of the time. During the second and third week of the detox I am allowed a bit a of a bread and eggless pasta. The bread was homemade from rye and spelt flour. I realised that wheat makes me feel heavy. When I am on detox I do not miss bread or flour products really and I suppose that is a good news. The detox also does other things for me. The meals are set so I do not have to think about what to cook. I have more energy then usual which I need at the moment. So this was a short update on my wheat free adventures.
Update: 2019 – I have repeated this detox several times. Did not loose weight but felt very refreshed afterwards. Did not have sugar craving for about three weeks and did not feel like coffee. Felt energy surge at least for few weeks.
First I must confess. I did break my wheat-free experiment for one week. The reason is – being at home with my parents, not cooking for myself, and simply being lazy…But it was only 1 week. I thought I will look at it positively and see what is the effect. I can honestly say I did not have any “reaction” and did not feel any changes. I think the week was too short to make any difference. If anything I was bit more tired. Also, and I should mention it here, I just finished detox which did not include any wheat or sugar. So I felt pretty good in general. I will mention the detox later as it is one of the things that worked for me…Anyways week on white bread did not harm me. Did I enjoy it? Maybe a little 🙂
So I did try it at the end. When I finished my regular detox which I will mention in some other post and thought to myself: “How to keep this good thing going?” I did feel lighter and fresh and did not want to loose that lovely feeling. I did read about wheat on the net and did worry about my daughter that she might be allergic to it. Fortunately she is not and neither am I. But I thought to myself. Going wheat free will not hurt. I will see for myself if something happens or not. Of course, my main motivator was and idea that it will help me to loose weight.
After three months of wheat-free diet I have observed the following: I look less bloated in the mirror, I do not have swelling in my legs in the late afternoon and my gums stopped bleeding. I am very happy about these results, however when it comes to weight loss – I did not loose any weight. My T-shirt is looser around the waist but only I know it. People around me did not notice anything. Do I look more toned? No. That will have to be sorted with exercise – but I kind of knew that. Do I have more energy on this diet? Sadly, no. I am still dependent on my cup of coffee.
I will carry on for another three months and see if I have some more profound results. Now I have another detox ahead and that I hope will motivate me to carry on this little experiment of mine. So far my verdict: yes, it will make you healthier but no, it will not make you loose weight.
Update: I am trying to avoid white wheat as much as I can but I do occasionally crave it and give in. I have a white toast or white pasta about once a week. I wish whole wheat or rice pasta was enough for me but sadly not. Also I am thinking that what makes me bloated after eating wheat is actually the yeast in it. It is just a theory at the moment but I did note that even whole wheat or spelt bread sometimes does not agree with me. So for me it might be the yeast not the gluten…
Update: 2019 – I think it is very hard to go wheat-free for long period. I do try to use various flours and recently become to love spelt. Buckwheat flour unfortunately has and aftertaste for me. I know that lots of people recommend wholewheat flour – for me it is just too heavy and dense. I do best on yeast-free products – can really see the difference and spelt products are good for me too. I recommend to reduce wheat consumption as I know that eliminating it all together is difficult 🙂
