WARNING: PLEASE DO NOT DO THIS EXPERIMENT

 

Over the course of a week I starved—sorry—I DIETED following the plans of runway models. If you missed my last blog PLEASE go read that first because it explains a lot of this. I decided to do meal prep in order to avoid having to cook every day, and tried to follow the plans as exactly as I could.

Here is the plan I followed:

Without further ado…

 

MEAL PREP

Meal prep was stressful in a fun way. Of course, I procrastinated everything until about 7 pm. I then rushed to Jewel Osco, raided the produce and the vegan aisles and then rushed home to cook for 3 HOURS from 9-12. I watched some Criminal Minds while I scrambled around the kitchen, and honestly, I took a lot of pride in the finished products. Actually, seeing all the food made me excited to start this experiment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 1

 Breakfast:

The smoothie was not as bad as I thought, although I can definitely tell that the kale is there. I think the moral of the day so far is that no matter what you do kale literally taste like leaves. Anything that you have to MASSAGE in order to ease the digestive process in NOT FOOD in my opinion. But I do not feel hungry…yet. I think sipping on breakfast for like an hour makes it seems more filling than it actually is. 

 

Apple Cider Vinegar. 

It’s disgusting. I almost threw up. Like that stuff better cleanse my soul, clear my skin up, boost my grades, literally CHANGE MY LIFE for it to be worth it. Luckily for me, I have lunch to look forward to… oh wait, no I don’t because for lunch I have kale. 

Damn.

Lunch:

The veggies were really well-seasoned (which says more about me than the recipe) and were satisfying but that KALE. UGH. Like there was salt and pepper and EVOO on it but it’s GROSS. The chickpeas were also very good, which I was surprised about because it was NOT meat. But, its been 2 hours and I’m VERY hungry. I am worried that I will not have the excess energy to actually go work out. So far the cauliflower is today’s winner. But I am feeling myself get irritated.

 

Snack/workout: 

Humus and Carrots=YUM-ish. But thrown in cardio and its a terrible combination. I did not have the energy to go run, I still did but after I had to nap until dinner. People who saw my meals today and knew about the project commented on how I actually look like I’m eating a lot. But here’s the thing, if you burn off about 300 calories through exercise and then your Basal Metabolic rate (based on height, activity level, and weight)* is about 1400 calories a day and you only eat about 1200 calories you are actually in the negatives, and it shows.

 

Dinner:

Oh, this stuff ALMOST made the rest of the day worth it. ALMOST. The pesto made the flavor AMAZING. Also, I had meat for the first time today so that was a win as well. I actually like grilled vegetables a lot which is surprising because I’m not really used to that department. I think one thing I realized in most of my calorie intake is at night. I’ll make a milkshake, or have cake, or ice cream, or candy.  So, am I hungry? YES. very. Am I sore? YES. very

 

 

Day 2

Breakfast:

 I like the whole sandwich thing, it was fast and it had meat on it, perfect for me because my mornings are hectic. However, 3rd period I was so hungry, all I could think about during 4th was food. This whole no snacking in the morning thing is not fun. And APPLE CIDER VINEGAR IS TERRIBLE. I feel like thinking this much about eating and wanting to eat can’t be healthy, although a lot of the models say they view food as fuel*, and when you see it that way it is easier to not have it be so predominant in your life. Maybe that mindset will help. I really hope that it does.

 

Lunch: 

By the time lunch came around I was ecstatic because I needed to be fed. I really feel like adding a whole layer of nutrition to worry about on top of everything else in my life is terrible especially because I do not have time to do anything already. Salmon was really good. I am just so tired. All I want right now is a monster. Unfortunately, that has 27g of sugar.

Snack: 

Peanut butter and Apples, I mean like this is something I eat normally. WHOO-HOO

 

Dinner: 

I did a bad thing. I drank a Starbucks coffee cause my mom got it for me and I was tired and I was not supposed to. But dinner was good. Cumin is a very nice flavor profile. I just cannot get over how very guilty I feel which was bizarre cause it not like I ate a whole pizza, I literally drank a latte and I hated myself for it.

 

Workout: 

BOXING, super fun stress relief, I had a lot of energy after and I feel great. Also, it is midnight right now and I still have homework to do, and if I did not have to spend so much time doing this extra stuff I would have been asleep an hour ago.

 

Day 3

Breakfast: 

”SuPeR fUn StReSs ReLiEf” that’s BULLSHIT. I am just sore. Literally so sore. Plus the Apple Cider Vinegar. Plus it’s snowing? So I had to shovel my car out of the snow while I was sore and now I’m just angry because I am eating a gluten-free bagel, drinking liquid kale and trying not to vomit as I remember the taste of apple cider vinegar. I hate every aspect of this. Thank goodness I can have pasta for lunch today.  

 

Lunch:

It was so good. I think that blending avocado with pesto is an unexpected win. I could barely taste the actual avocado and I love pesto. I felt full and this took absolutely no time to make. No complaints, which is a surprise because so far this log is just one long complaint.

 

Dinner: 

I’m not excited to eat. I guess it says a lot about me as a person that I am used to getting excited about my food but still. I LIKE happy dancing in the car as I pull in to McDonald’s or lip-syncing with my dog as I make a sundae. So what’s hard about this week is that I keep seeing all this food that I wish I could eat. But, I acknowledge how bad for me it is. Then I feel bad that I want it. I do believe that if I did this long term that feeling would fade because I would adapt to the new way of eating because that is how habits work. I can’t wait until Saturday. 

 

Workout: 

I just going to describe the workouts so everyone can understand what exactly was going on here. So Monday we did light abs and a run. Tuesday some biking and boxing (basic combinations and footwork). “Model Workouts” are made to enhance appearance so lengthening and toning. So little to no weight and the same continuous motion over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. (https://youtu.be/0PHfRy8fkPU) And it looks pretty easy, right?

 

WRONG!

 

 Remember, you are not eating. There are no excess calories in many of these people’s diets. Everything you consume, you burn. That would be fine, but this is NOT my job, I still need energy and have things to do, I do not have 1.5-2 hours to spend on working out per day. So, the food element technically is possible. Even then you SHOULD NOT eat such little amount because food is what gives us energy and no matter what we need to eat. 

 

Day 4

Breakfast:

Sandwich and AVC. I’m so over it. I hate meal times, I want regular bread, I never want to look at ACV again, I do not want to run again. Everything this week has just been irritating me because I feel drained.  It’s easier when the food this week has actually been good, but when it’s mediocre it’s really hard to not just go get a pancake plate from McDonald’s or a homemade buttered biscuit, which Dad made this morning but I had to decline it every though he only makes them once every three months.

 

Lunch: 

Really yummy, and shockingly I did not finish the meal… probably because I caved and ate a ring pop (thanks Ann for the wonderful presentation and treats) but I WANTED it. I just WANTED it so bad.

 

2 hrs after lunch:

I regret not finishing my lunch so much because I have 2 more hours until snack time and I can hear my stomach grumbling, and honestly so can everyone else. It’s stupid because a friend offered me some chips after SHE HEARD MY STOMACH and I, like an idiot, had to decline.

 

Workout: Psych it’s HALLOWEEN.

 

Dinner: 

Dinner was a salad, BUT I got to eat out so I went to Core Life Eatery which is a super good salad/organic food place about 20 minutes from North. Imagine a Chipotle but you are making a salad or a protein bowl. All the food and ingredients are labeled so its really easy to make educated(ish) decisions about your meal. And most importantly to me, it was so. freaking. Good.

 

Confession: 

In addition to the ring pop earlier, I ate a couple of cherry Twizzlers and drank a monster, but only because it was late and I needed the energy. And in case you have not figured out the pattern, yes, I feel like a disappointment for caving.

 

Day 5

Breakfast:

 FINALLY IN THE HOME STRETCH! Breakfast was the same smoothie as Monday, which is really fast to make because I already prepped it on Sunday. I also like this meal because it tricks you into thinking you’re eating a lot because you sip on it for like an hour and a half so you can’t tell that you’re hungry until it’s like an hour to lunch. 

 

Lunch:

You can’t go wrong with salmon. AT this point it’s one of the few things I can enjoy eating. Just 12 more hours.

 

Snack/Workout: 

Carrots and hummus to-go because I worked out then had a hair appointment, which caused me to get stressed out because I was almost late and the traffic was insane. This made me realize part of the reason I usually eat like crap is convenience plain and simple. Like what sounds easier, picking up a container of hummus and a container of carrots then having to put them on ice somewhere (because lukewarm hummus=gross), then trying to balance the containers on your lap to eat while you speed through traffic. OR paying less than $2.50 for a McDonald’s large fry, having it handed to you, and then placing conveniently in the cup holder while you speed through traffic.  EXACTLY.

 

Dinner:

Same meal as Monday and again this meal is SO GOOD. I recommend everyone make this. It’s filling and arguably the best thing I have had all week. But more exciting I’m done!!!! And I am never, ever, ever, doing this again.

 

To conclude, I hope you all enjoyed reading about this journey because I sure did not enjoy embarking on it. It’s been eye-opening for sure because obviously I knew before that its impossible to compare to the people on TV and in magazines but know I just have no desire to. If this is what it takes to have that physique to that standard, I don’t want it. I’m tired, I’m hungry, I feel guilty, I have been annoyed all week, this is not fun. Obviously, I cannot say there are no benefits. My skin is clear, and I am not bloated and that’s really it. I am still glad I did this though because it is important to have this perspective and to understand that those images that are so prevalent mean nothing when compared to the human experience. I hope by reading you got a little perspective as well!

 

Articles:

https://www.vogue.com/article/supermodel-diets-gisele-bundchen-lily-aldridge-miranda-kerr

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2720872/

Why dieting can be harmful