21 Day Sugar Detox Update – Day 18 – The Home Stretch
Butternut squash is my gateway drug.
When I started Paleo back in the summer of 2012, I limited my fruit intake because I knew I had sugar issues: two fruits a day, more only if I participated in some sort of strenuous athletic endeavor. My physical reaction when I started Paleo was almost immediate – I felt GREAT and my lifelong battle with insomnia disappeared practically overnight.
Fast forward to fall . . . and the arrival of butternut squash and all the lovely fall squashes and root veggies at my Farmer’s Market. I’d never had butternut squash before. The farmer’s wife suggested I cube it, toss it in some oil – I used coconut – and roast it. OMG. They turn out like little nuggets of caramel-y candy. Heaven. I ate it with abandon. It led to other winter squash, sweet potatoes galore. I’ve always loved sweet potatoes and I was roasting them up half a dozen at a time and keeping them to eat cold out of the refrigerator for snacks. These yummy winter veggies led to dried fruit led to more dark chocolate than probably anyone would consider “moderate.” So, while the wheels didn’t fall off my paleo wagon, that back ones got wobbly and my favorite jeans got tight.
Fast forward again to starting the 21 Day Detox. Hmmmm . . . all those veggies I love . . . they’re either on the No list or the limit list (I have a thing for pumpkin, too). Coincidence . . . probably not. 
Somewhere around week two of the detox, it finally sunk in that post detox, I need to treat these limited and no veggies as I do fruit: eat them in limited amounts as part of my daily fruit allotment. It’s actually a pretty simple solution and I love that. One of the reasons paleo works so well for me is that it’s just so simple. Well, the main reason paleo works for me is that I feel amazing and sleep at night but it’s sustainable because of its simplicity. :)
One note to add: I have added back in a fruit or sweet veggie per day this week. The first two weeks of the 21DSD I had sleep issues for the first time since going paleo. This, having battled insomnia my whole life, is a BIG issue for me. I googled, found reference to a very low carb/increased cortisol/decreased sleep relationship, added back in an extra carb and started sleeping again.
I still miss my wine. I was tempted . . . very tempted . . . last night to just call it quits early. After all, I’ve already learned this amazing lesson thanks to the detox. Isn’t that enough? (I’m good at rationalization. ) But instead, I went to bed.
If you missed it this time around there is a new 21 Day Sugar Detox starting on February 4th.
Hi there. I don’t eat much fruit. Maybe one serving a day. I do, however, eat sweet potatoes. As of Wednesday, I’ve only lost four pounds. Not sure if I’m missing something…
Doing the #21DSD has really helped me see that for my body, the roasted butternut squash, the roasted sweet potatoes ARE like fruit. I mean, the reason I love them is because, roasted, they get all sugar-y so it makes sense.Read more . . .
[...] I learned that butternut squash is my gateway drug. [...]