What Did I Get Myself Into!?

Ugh. Dieting. Am I right? It comes with so many tough questions. What's the best diet? What's the easiest diet? How do I stay motivated in a world where cheeseburgers and ice cream exist? Well, this month, I'm setting out to try to answer some of those questions.

Introducing the "Bekah Try-It Diet"

In the name of science entertainment, I'll be testing out a different "fad" diet every week for the entire month of April. I'll share what works, what doesn't work, and what's downright miserable. In the spirit of the "Bekah Try-It Diet," these will be a bit unusual and will all have a surprise element that makes them especially challenging.

Final Moments of Freedom

Knowing I'd be starting the first diet on Saturday, I went all-out on Friday night. I figured the best way to clean out the junk food was to eat it, right? I also weighed and measured myself so I could track my progress. The number on the scale was higher than I wanted it to be, but that helped me stay motivated to go through with this adventure.

Preparing for Diet #1

I wanted to find a diet that let you eat frequent small meals throughout the day. I was also interested in something that had specific things you had to eat, to see if that actually aided in weight loss. I did a lot of research and found the Flat Belly Diet. With a name like that, how could I say no? Here are a few of the rules of the diet:

• 300-400 calorie meals 4x a day (eating every 4 hours)
• Each meal has to contain a Monounsaturated Fatty Acid (I have to google this every time. It's basically fats that are good for you: dark chocolate, avocado, nuts, oils, and did I mention DARK CHOCOLATE!?)
• Drink a half gallon of "Sassy Water" every day. This is water infused with lemon, cucumber, ginger, and mint leaves. It's supposed to calm your system down to get rid of bloat, and OH, by the way, it tastes terrible.

Grocery shopping was a challenge, as I spent more time in the produce department than EVER before. Most of that time was spent googling things like, "What's the difference between mint leaves and spearmint leaves?" and, "What does ginger root look like?" Surprisingly, I left the store within our normal grocery budget. I was very careful to only pull recipes that I knew I could make inexpensively. Maybe it is possible to eat a lot of fruits and veggies without breaking the bank. Who knew? There goes that excuse.

Day #1

I woke up hungry and immediately knew this was going to be a long month. But no fear, right? I could start eating right away to get my 4 meals in!! And my "sassy water," was going to help me stay full! Right?....Right???? It was more of a struggle than I imagined. My meals were filling, but I was almost always hungry just 3 hours later. I started counting down the time for my next meal, because I couldn't wait. Here's what my day's food looked like:

• A blueberry smoothie with flaxseed oil mixed in for my "good" fat (weird aftertaste)
• Whole grain pasta with a little bit of olive oil and salmon (who knew the correct serving of pasta was SO SMALL!?)
• Some vegetable masala with some olive oil (a friend had given this to us as a frozen meal, and it surprisingly fit into the diet. Maybe this week won't be impossible.)
• An apple with almond butter and a glass of skim milk (definitely not ice cream, but I really can't complain.)

(This is the part where I meant to include a picture of these meals, but I kept eating them before I remembered to take a picture. This should give you an indication of the struggle.)  No matter the struggles, I survived. The hardest part was when my husband Joey decided to get Olive Garden for lunch and let me know how good the breadsticks were. Just look at that smug face!

Expectations for the Rest of the Week

I'm most looking forward to getting to eat every 4 hours. I'm least looking forward to some of the "interesting" tastes that come with the recipes for this diet. But I know I can do this. The sassy water will get easier to drink, and eventually, that blueberry smoothie will taste normal to me. I believe it. Disclaimer: I've had a few people reach out with concern for my safety when it comes to dieting. No need to worry: I know my body very well, and I'm only selecting diets that allow for the protein and calories that my body needs every day.