Something unexpected...

Hello All:

Yesterday was a cheat day. I spent the rainy weekend cleaning, finishing some odd jobs around the house, made a heathy veggie soup with organic veggies, and some whole wheat pizza crusts to freeze, went to the gym ...all those good things. So Sunday rolls around and I'm hanging out with a friend and her daughter and we decide to have lunch. I've been having this hankering for a RedRobin burger and fries and decided that I would treat myself. I order a beer, I order my burger and settle in to enjoy. mmmmmmmmm how delicious. I didn't even finish the whole thing and I was stuffed. I go home and settle down on the couch for a movie with my happily distended stomach, and a couple hours later I head to bed.

Then it happened...

My body, who had recently been nourished on super healthy high fiber, low sugar, nutrient rich foods completely rebelled. I felt like crap. No it wasn't indigestion, and I was not running to the bathroom all night but I felt that burger like a rock in my stomach until about 6am this morning. I could even smell it coming out of my pores when I took a shower at 630am. I was mildy nauseous all night and I think I slept about for about an hour. I sweated off an on all night too. I look like utter crap today and feel like I'd been beat up during the course of the night. On top of that I think I drank a litre of water in the course of the night.

So sitting here and reading posts on my lunch break, scarfing down spinach salad and green tea, and feeling the rock slowly move through my intestine I found myself thinking...it totally wasn't worth it. This is new for me. It totally was not worth it! I think of RedRobins and I start to feel sick again. I remember eating crap food like that 4-5 times a week and never batting an eye. It's amazing to me how, once you start feeding your body the things it needs, it will reject so violently these processed, high fat, high sodium foods.

I've had the same reaction by eating junk food,  It's all that trans fats making it's way through your body. 

I realize I can't eat that way anymore so I settle for a compromise. When I feel like a burger and fries I eat a grilled chicken burger with baked fries or a baked potato and a side salad.  It's cheating, but I'm not eating as much fat and I have less of a reaction afterwards.

I had a similar experience recently - had what used to be a typical share of pizza (3 slices) and spent the rest of the night in agony.  I was genuinely shocked to realize how much my stomach had shrunk/system had changed in only 6 weeks of healthy eating!

I hear ya and our bodies really know how to fight back when we feed the wrong thing.

At least you know now and will make good decisions next time based on this not so pleasant exprience!

i totally hear you.  i had dinner with my b/f's family, and his dad made homemade fish and chips--so basically everything was battered and fried.  it tasted great, but that night i felt like crap. i could just feel the grease sitting in my stomach and i was totally nauseated.  it made me feel good about myself though, because now, i don't like eating those things so much.

Hey Mmarcin,

I TOTALLY hear ya! I did this over the holidays, back in December - everyone enjoys my Christmas cookies, and I always whip up a bunch of 'em to put me in the holiday spirit - for coworkers, family and I had to, of course, make some for my sweetie! Well, I have been following a pretty low-sugar plan since March '06, with a few tiny "cheats" here and there....

...let me tell you. I ate 3 (ok, it was actually 4!) of my famous chocolate-chip-and-dried-cherry oatmeal cookies, and they were delicious (if I do say so myself). I felt almost "drunk" with the sugar. Then guess what? The "hangover" set in - I got a terrible headache, felt woozy, and like your Red Robin burger, those cookies just sat like a ball in my belly.

Now I know, I CAN have a treat - but my body simply doesn't want or need FOUR cookies at once - one'll be more than enough, and taste better because I won't be over-doing it!

Aren't our bodies so smart sometimes? ;-)

Our bodies are smart and I definitely feel I need to be nice to mine today. I'm thinking lots of fiber and fresh veggies to help the burger rock vacate the premises....so to speak.

It does make me wonder if I actually was used to feeling like crap during those years where I ate crap almost daily.

cchristinyc, I love your comparison to the hangover. That is what this feels like. Excessive water consupmtion, headaches and body aches, nausea.

To make matters worse a co-worked just plopped a cupcake onto my desk. Thankfully in my current state it is completely unappetizing and I'm sure it will find a good home in another colleagues stomach :)

I remember eating chinese food after about 4 or 5 months of all veggie low fat/sugar and it gave me a galbladder attack and had me on the couch for 2 days.  The body really does rebel once you get back healthy again.  Every now and then I can have a few fries or I get a dessert or something but I am very leary of most overly fatty foods now. 

I also try to go for alternatives that are not so bad.  I can definitely see it in my skin when I eat stuff that isn't so great also.  It's the bodies way of detoxing to purge that stuff through the skin ... bleh. 

LOL@ "burger rock"

just wanted to echo "I know what you mean" !

but the sad fact is, if we used social pressures or whatever to start eating that way again, the day will come when that Red Robin burger will be just as delicious as it used to be.

So take advantage of your new-found freedom from junk food AND don't start down the slippery slope of letting yourself indulge.

It reminds me of my ex husband when he gave up smoking -- and his best friend gave up about the same time. Well after a couple of years of non-smoking, they stupidly dared each other to smoke just one.  They did -- neither enjoyed it.  Then they stupidly dared each other to smoke one pack.  They did -- and they both became chain smokers again.

The body becomes addicted to what is not good for it -- so don't even go there.  Don't give it the slightest chance.

Once you get to the point where you have lost your taste for it, and the cravings are gone -- DON'T be stupid by re-introducing it to your body.

That's why I'm opposed to the "have a little bit of junk food so you don't feel deprived."  You need to get rid of all junk food in order t not feel deprived because by its very nature, junk food makes you crave more.  Why fight to control the cravings when you can get rid of them?!?  It makes no sense to me.

That is what happened to me exactly on Friday! I had wings and some fries! I felt horrible all night. And you're right, it wasn't worth it.

"Never again!" I said. Never again.

Good point manewell. I do notice that when I have some sugar or some junkfood I'm more likely to crave it later.

However I do have to disagree with you, respectfully of course :), with regards to indulging. I've tried to lose weight so many times and I failed within the first week or two because I subscribed to the perfectionist theory of dieting, which is absolutely no bad food, and 5-7 days of exercise no exceptions. Then I would fail and become depressed and eat, and then became more depressed etc. and the cycle continued. In this way I never lost more than 1-2 pounds in a go before I gave up.

I lost my first 50 lbs despite allowing myself treats everyday. I saved up calories so I could have a chocolate bar at night. If I went overboard I got back on the wagon the next day and did my best. No food junk or not was prohibited.

Gradually my diet has changed to the healthier one it is today full of fiber, veggies and fruits, whole grains etc...but I still have dessert and I enjoy it. I can eat 1/2 cup of ice cream and stop. Yes I may crave it again, but I have strategies to get around that, and if I cave and have another half cup I get back on track the next day.

For me it's not a matter of having junk so that I don't feel deprived. For myself it's a matter of not making foods prohibited completely which sets me up for failure.

Everyone is different and everyone needs to do what works for them. I'd love to promise that I'll never eat junk food again but, at this point at least I don't think it is an expectation that I can live up to.

mmarcin, of course you can disagree with me.  (grin)

I have found that there are so many great tasting foods that are good for you, and if you start eating them, then you are thoroughly satisfying your taste buds and your body's nutritional needs. 

I very much enjoy all the food I eat and I feel no deprivation at all -- I don't eat anything because it's good for me -- I have to enjoy it.  The apple I now have gives me as much eating pleasure as the ice cream I used to not be able to live without.  The whole grain cereal gives me as much eating pleasure as the sweetened cereals I use to snack on. 

If you are feeding your body the foods that are right for it, your tastes and preferences change.

But they will not change easily if you continue to eat the junk food --

I have no feelings of deprivation, no stress eating, no cravings, no nagging urges to binge. 

as a psych major I have to say that I think "giving in" and having that unhealthy meal like a redrobin burger is really good for you after eating healthy for so long. Because you felt sick it gives redrobin a negative association for you and in the future you will be much less likely to want to eat it because of your bad experience. These experiences are good b/c it reinforces your good behavior and encourages you to keep eating well! I'm sure it sucked, but it will probably help you in the long run.

I had that happen after 6 months of eating nothing but whole grains.  I had white Italian bread - because it was so good I had lots of it, and it sat in my stomach all night.  Never again!

You can also get veggie burgers, turkey burgers or chicken burgers at Red Robin.  Leave off 1/2 the bun and don't have the fries.  They do have a tasty rice w/ beans or veggies.  It does irritate me that they don't post their nutritional info.  It's not on their website and when I emailed them to get it, they still won't share it.  All they said is that they would be happy to prepare my food any way I'd like.

Nothing beats that Bonzai Burger. 

You are wise manewell :)

Same thing with me and the food from the Golden Arches.  BLECH!  I can't even eat a kid's meal anymore. 

Cheers for the great imagery!  I'll think about your "burger rock" next time hubby and I go out to eat anywhere and I'll order a salad.  :)

So how is it that your body can accept eating grease, chemicals and rubbish with little or no physical discomfort, just because that's all you put into it?!  Wouldn't you think that the more of this stuff you put into yourself, the worse the symptoms would be?  And I don't mean merely weight gain, but just in these posts it has been described as nausea, "burger rock" and even a gall bladder attack... I find it really incredible that our body can be so resilient, not to mention adaptable.

I just started my diet, and I'm currently having the opposite effect... the drastic increase in vegetables has given me the worst gas, the restricted caloric intake leaves me constantly thinking about food, my bowel has been in overdrive as my system is getting cleaned out... all in all, I feel pretty icky right now.  Please tell me this will change soon - this is only day 3 for me - when can I expect to feel the benefits?

Vancouver76, I went through the same thing, and still have the gas issue to a small extent, but I have found that taking a live acidophillus culture has helped me tremendously.  You should be able to by it by the pint in any health food store, or the organic foods section of your more upscale grocery chains.  I buy strawberry, and take 2 tbls two or three times a day.