The Start of My Fresh Face Program

I'm glad I have a job that gets me to learn things besides makeup and beauty. I was hired for a project by a health and wellness company to do makeup for a coaching program that they have. This is my second time to work with them actually and I've had a good experience of meeting new people and picking up a thing or two to learn before I go.

I met nutritionist Dr. Claude Chauchard this week, since he was the coach to be filmed for the week. He specializes on anti-ageing and slimming, so I thought the program would be all about skin care and all that. During the filming, I was able to pick up the words "pomme" and "fromage" (French words for apple and cheese, respectively) and I thought to myself, "What are food terminologies doing in an anti-ageing session?" So while doing retouches and during shoot downtimes, I asked Dr. Chauchard about why food terminologies were included in the program. He does specialize also in slimming and anti-ageing and this was a program that targets you from the inside out, so in short, being healthy first. It was quite interesting as we both were chatting and quite interestingly, he was giving me advice on what foods are good and what practices should be avoided. Yesterday, he gave me one of his books, which had his 30-day age-preventive diet program.

I asked him too if he could sign the book for me and I'm glad he did.

I have no qualms about eating healthy food and vegetables. In fact, I'm quite fond of healthy food. However, I don't know how to really go about it. Plus, with my lifestyle and lack of time to actually take time to cook and all, I sometimes end up ordering oil-ladden takeout food or just rushing to the nearest fast food joint for fries and burgers. I guess this book tells me this is how to start it. As I have an open mind to different food styles and tastes, fast foods included, I guess I should keep an open mind too to foods and diet programs that could help improve the quality of my life. So why not try it right? After all, I have nothing to lose (except probably a few pounds and inches).

Normally, I get reactions like, "You don't need to diet! You're thin already!" In fact, I just got like quite a handful of reactions when I got home with a grocery bag full of vegetables, fruits, tuna, salmon, and whole-wheat bread. However, I didn't think of it na lang as dieting. I thought of it as a new eating adventure, just like going to a new restaurant. Aside from the 30-day program the book has, it has a 4-day trial program that claims to improve not just our skin and the cells of our face but also our metabolism. I guess it's just to see how we react or fare first before we go through the 30-day program.

Come to think of it, I've been evaluating how I eat lately and I go to a fast food joint approximately 5 times a week, sometimes even twice a day. It's not that I want to, sometimes I'm left with no choice. Seeing what I put inside my body I've realized that quite a number of it is actually junk, and these junk foods aren't called junk without a reason. They destroy you from the inside. Not only that, it would reflect on how we look. I've noticed that if I've had too much chips or chicharon, I bloat horribly. I remember the last time I had a super bundat meal full of grease, fat, and salt. I felt full yes, but it wasn't the kind of full that I want. It was the kind of fullness that had me bursting at the seams. I honestly didn't like it and I felt like throwing up. Too much of the bad stuff reflects on my skin as well. I've noticed too that I get all oily and sometimes pimply with all the junk too. Water too is also one thing I sometimes neglect. I've once been admitted for dehydration and I haven't learned from that still. During the course of time, I learned that when I'm hungry, I'm not really hungry but I could be thirsty.

Okay, so back to the program. I'm now starting on the 4-day program and I'd like to blog it as well to share everyone my own experience as well as to encourage me to go on as well. It's also to evaluate too how I'm doing. I've asked some of my friends, Fritz and EJ if they'd like to join me as well so I get male opinions too.

Before I started the program, I read the menu. The program starts on the evening before Day 1 and ends lunch on day 4. So one day is sort of broken into two. Before I started though, I eased in slowly into the habit so as not to shock my instant-everything system. First thing was getting used to the taste of dark chocolate. I'm really into the milky sweet chocolate I'd wolf down so the bitterness of cocoa was something new to me. Also, the diet required me to drink a large glass of water first thing upon waking and ideally for every hour. Since I'm not heavy on drinking water, most especially plain water, I started easing myself on that too.

Food choices were relatively easy. The protein sources were mostly oily fish like tuna and salmon. I'm fond of seafood and I'd definitely prefer sashimi over a plate of lechon any day. Vegetables and fruits I have no problem either, more on fruits though, as I gag at the thought of eating an orange in whole form. I'm glad I could juice the orange, as I prefer taking my oranges in juice form rather than fruit, as the fruit skin annoys me. I'd then have to get used to cheese though, in little amounts and the texture of whole wheat bread, which I find quite dry and mealy than white bread. But then, it's just for 4 days. Let's see what happens.

Of course, this diet would mean a lot of effort. I need to make time for this. When I got home from work a while ago, I still had to get out the pots and pans and prepare the food and then still I had to clean up before I went to bed. When I'm outside and mealtime comes, it's not anymore just going to the nearest food place. I have to be careful in where I eat, what I eat, and how I eat. I'd have to monitor as well when I'm about to drink water, my snack, and even thinking of varieties on how to spice up and keep the menu interesting yet still staying within the diet rules. But hey, it's fun, at least it's something new. Now back to my diet proper shall we?

I started this evening when I got home since the four-day diet would start on the evening before day 1. The menu calls for 1 cup of vegetables and 8.75 ounces of salmon (or any other oily fish) with olive oil and lemon juice. I should eat the meal between 7-8 p.m. so I had to make sure I got home at that time. I chose tuna for my protein source, and cooked one can with garlic and extra virgin olive oil and squeezed some lemon juice to taste. I had blanched green beans for my veggies, and whoop-de-do I finally blanched them perfectly.

It felt quite weird at first that I was eating this without rice. After the meal, I didn't feel like a boulder was placed inside my stomach. I was full but not full to the point of throwing up, despite that I kept drinking water. This one I like, since I really don't like the feeling of a heavy stomach at night, especially since I'm just about to wind down and go to bed.

And speaking of bed, it's time to hit the sack. Doctor requires at least 8-10 hours of sleep each night. I'll see you tomorrow for day one!