This final day came with a new challenge. This was the first time I was unable to bring my own food to a meal.  I chose to bypass the “dinner” of heavy hors d’oeuvres and ended up watching my business companions enjoy their drinks and appetizers while I watched. Was that hard to do?  Surprisingly, no!

Abstaining from alcohol, dairy, meat, sugar, and bread made it easy to look at those selections as the dangerous choices they are!  I am hopeful that these 25 days marks a permanent turnaround in my eating habits. In those tough moments when those cravings and hunger pangs appear, I am now committed to remembering how much better I feel now!

Breakfast-

One avocado with a dressing made of cilantro, lime, olive oil, garlic, and apple cider vinegar.

Green smoothie with one lemon, spinach, water, spring mix.

Lunch-

In the hotel room, I brought out my Ziploc bags of cukes and tomatoes with cilantro, lime, olive oil, red wine, and apple cider vinegar. The lentil soup was still delicious and very satisfying. Lunch was a pleasant experience, eating in the hotel room at a small table by the couch overlooking the city. The experience was pleasant mostly because I stayed away from the cookies, chocolate-covered peanuts, and snacks on the concierge level.

Snack-  Coffee latte and seven cashews. This is my first food in 25 days I ate off-plan. I wasn’t very happy about my choice, but it turned out to be a good thing because of our dinner situation.

Dinner- This was difficult since we had to meet a business acquaintance for a drink at 5:30.  Dinnertime for me is 6:00.  If I skip dinner I might get ravenous, especially if the evening meant more drinks after the show we were attending.

I didn’t get dinner this evening, but the latte/cashew choice helped sustain me with the late lunch. Aside from the latte and nuts, I was a good girl, watching my table mates have drinks and hors d’oeuvres. It actually wasn’t hard; the pungent smell of processed meats on the charcuterie board was overwhelming. It’s interesting that I had an aversion to the smell. I think the month with no meat had a lot to do with it.