I Quit Sugar for Life (57 page)

☐
Lemon and Cinnamon Lamb Shanks with Gremolata (see
here
)

☐
Slow-Cooked Barbecue Pork (see
here
)

6. INGREDIENT TO BUY AND TRY:
Apple cider vinegar (from health food shops and most supermarkets). Have a tablespoon in hot water when you wake and, if you have
any kind of digestion issues, before other meals during the day. Monitor how it affects your digestion and appetite. Does it make a difference? If not, use the rest of the bottle in the place of
other salad vinegars, in the Slow-cooked Barbecue Pork recipe (see
here
) and other recipes in this book.

WEEK TWO

This week let’s get any niggling cravings dealt with.

1. EXERCISE EVERY DAY THIS WEEK.
Try at least 4 of the suggestions on pages 36–7 to make this happen. It need only be 20 minutes of walking, but for this
week do it every day.

2. SWITCH AT LEAST THREE CAR OR PUBLIC TRANSPORT TRIPS TO A WALK.

The school pick-up or the dash to the corner shop for example. Did it work for you? Do the same trip again next week if so. Once a regular trip is easily done as a walk, it can become a
habit.

☐
Trip 1

☐
Trip 2

☐
Trip 3

3. EAT AN EXTRA TWO SERVES OF GREENS A DAY.

☐
Try these side dishes, see
here
(two serves)

☐
Sneak some greens into a meal (one serve)

☐
Have a Green Glowin’ Skin Smoothie on page 76 (two serves)

4. TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
Eat breakfast in a jar. This week prepare at least three of the breakfasts in the Totally Tote-able chapter (see
here
). Establish which works for you. Make two servings at a time and consume on consecutive days.

5. INGREDIENT TO TRY.
A new kind of oil that you haven’t tried before. Visit a health food shop to find macadamia oil and coconut oil for adding to your
vegetables. At the supermarket or deli, try an infused olive oil – truffle, garlic, chilli – or look out for other interesting safe oils, like avocado oil.

This week is about upping the ante on flow and resourcefulness.

1. STOCKTAKE YOUR FRIDGE.
Clean out everything – yes everything – and repurpose it (see the Brilliant Leftovers chapter on page 187 for ideas on how
to use your leftovers), freeze it (see
here
), make a green smoothie or a mish-mash meal. While you’re at it . . .

2. MAKE A FRIDGE SURPRISE.
Your mission – should you choose to accept it – is to not have to buy any new ingredient for this one meal (see
here
). Hint: My Grounding Roots Winter Soup (see
here
) provides a good template for making a mish-mash leftovers soup.

3. EAT THREE MEALS A DAY ONLY (STOP SNACKING).
To do this successfully and not go crazy with hankerings mid-meal, try all of the below this week (one at a time
to see what works best for you):

☐
Buy a jar of organic, cold-pressed coconut oil and eat 1 tablespoon at the end of the meal, see
here
.

☐
Focus on having a bit of extra fat with every meal. Add a tablespoon of butter or oil to your vegetables
or salad.

☐
Eat your (sugar-free, nutrient-dense) snack
with
your meal.

4. TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
An eating experiment. Give one of the following techniques a crack to see if it suits your eating style (try it for two weeks, then
try another if it doesn’t suit and you’re still curious). But be sure to read up on the science behind each approach first, and heed any health advice I or other sources suggest. Also,
be honest with yourself. If it doesn’t feel right, abort and move on. I suggest doing them in this order:

☐
A 14–16 hour fast (see
here
)

☐
Limiting gluten (see
here
)

☐
Limiting carbs (see
here
)

5. INGREDIENT TO TRY.
A ‘daggy’ or unfashionable food item. Perhaps one of the following (you can turn to the Index to find a recipe):

☐
Sardines

☐
Swede, chicory, kale, daikon, Brussels sprouts

☐
Secondary cut of meat (shanks, chicken thighs)

WEEK FOUR

Just some more experimenting that takes things to the next level . . .

1. DO A BULK-COOKING SERIES
starting with one of the following (adding your own twists to extend things on and on). Start on a Sunday afternoon so you can get
organised.

☐
A whole organic chicken (I’ve outlined how I do it on the next page). Use this as a template to do
something similar with the options below.

☐
Lemon and Cinnamon Lamb Shanks (see
here
), which can be made into Lamb Shank One
Pot Pasta (see
here
), Shanky Shepherd’s Pie (see
here
) and perhaps a leftover lunch.

☐
Full-fat organic plain yoghurt to make cream cheese and whey; perhaps building to make your own mayonnaise
or sauerkraut, or Gingerade (see the Ferments chapter,
here
) and the Yule Mule Cocktail (see
here
).

2. MAKE A DRESSING AND EXTEND IT.
Try one of the following:

☐
Make Dressing in a Jar (see
here
) and extend it to make two extra flavours, storing
each one in separate jars that you can roll out over your Great Grated Salads (see
here
)

☐
Make the Whey-Good Mayo (see
here
) and extend it to make two extra flavours
(you’ll need to have made the cream cheese and whey to do so).

3. TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
Get calm and balanced. I truly believe flowing, dense wellness for life is about getting balanced and happy with yourself and how
you’re conducting your own orchestra. Quitting sugar is a really good first step as it gets you clean and clear. But keeping things on track requires little refinements. Can I suggest you try
any (preferably all) of the below as you get time:

☐
An infrared sauna

☐
Meditating (check at sarahwilson.com for tips)

☐
No stimulants (coffee, tea, cacao, cocoa)

☐
Going to bed by 10 pm

☐
Cooking gently. Use the cooking process as a time to get mindful. Heat your food low and slow.

INGREDIENT TO TRY.
Sauerkraut. This stuff is the bomb. You can make your own, of course, see
here
. Or you can buy in speciality and
health stores. However: ensure it’s fermented in brine or whey (the ingredients should only be vegetables and salt and/or whey) and not pickled with vinegar and sugar. See if it enhances your
meal and gut happiness.

What now? Repeat from the beginning if you like, experimenting further, instilling deeper habits. I wish you well . . .

OH, THE FUN YOU CAN HAVE WITH THIS CHOOSE-YOUR-OWN-ADVENTURE CHALLENGE!

To play, It entails starting with one (bulk-cooking) dish, then dragging out the various leftovers, scraps and by-products from there.

An organic chicken ain’t always cheap. But you can make it work for you by extending it to create a number of different meals.

2
I then take the leftovers to make the ROAST DINNER GRATIN (see
here
) for the next day. Makes: 1
serve.

3
I freeze the remaining portion and use it to make the CHICKEN POPS (see
here
) at a
later date. Makes: 4 snacks.

4
The carcass from the roast is then used to make LEFTOVERS CHICKEN STOCK (see
here
). Makes: 1.5 litres (6
serves).

5
Some of the stock is used to make SWEET FENNEL AND BEETROOT LEAF SOUP (see
here
) the following
week.

6
Some of the stock is used to make VIETNAMESE CHICKEN CURRY (see
here
).