We survived Wave 1 of the New Sonoma Diet – which is the most restrictive of the ‘waves’ but not truly restrictive when you consider the amount of food we were able to eat.

Wave 1 lasts ten days and is intended to retrain your body to accept and enjoy healthier, unprocessed, foods. To be honest, once I shopped for all the ingredients and stocked the fridge, I was quite impressed. It looked GOOD! Nothing went into the cupboards except some cans of beans, dried fruit, nuts and dried herbs. Everything else was fresh – veggies, fruit, yogurt, cheese, meat, fish.

Oh, and wine. Cannot forget the wine.

Trust me – the recipes are phenomenal. We haven’t had one dish that wasn’t flavorful and filling. Even if you’re not looking to ‘go on a diet’, you might want to browse through the cookbook – The New Sonoma Diet Cookbook.  Daily menus are set up with recipes and their page numbers – the thinking has already been done for you though you can mix and match as you please within Waves.

Every meal has been an adventure – and, there was never a scrap of food left on the plates (take that as a sign of the deliciousness of the food or the hunger we felt at mealtime – either or both would be right.).

Of course, portion sizes are smaller than the American “Supersize” we’ve grown accustomed to, and the ratio of veggies to meats or grains has been adjusted. That might be the biggest change of all for me. I was used to serving pasta, rice, bread or potatoes with nearly every dinner. Carbs were a big part of the meal yet now I realize none of that is necessary for one to feel satisfied, though it’s a nice treat in moderate amounts.

All that said, this diet is not for anyone who is short on time. Meal prep, for me at least, seemed to take all day. I barely left the kitchen before it was time to return and start again. To be fair, this was all new to me, and I didn’t give myself enough time to read all the info before starting, so maybe there are hints in the book for less time-consuming ways to deal with meal prep. I don’t know. What I do know is that everyone in the family was happy with the meals and the outcome.

In ten days, our average weight loss was 4.5 pounds.

Yes, we all grumbled about not being able to nosh on cheese crackers or some other not-good-for-you mid-day snack. But once we got thehang of it and realized how to space out the snacks we were allowed to have – the occasional mozzarella cheese stick, an ounce of nuts, celery and nut butter, cottage cheese or yogurt and fresh berries – we found we weren’t as ‘hungry’ as we were ‘bored’. We’re snackers because we feel like doing something other than work. Grabbing a handful of chips during break time provided us with a quick fix. We simply had to retrain ourselves to avoid dipping our hand into a box of something and, instead, prepare a snack. It took time and discipline but it’s been well worth it.

Did I mention that the only day I wound up with a migraine during this 10 day wave was the day after we cheated by going out to dinner?  There’s something to be said about the wholesomeness of fresh foods. I’m happy we started this. I hope to organize myself better so I’m not so reliant on ‘the book’ and can prepare  healthier meals and menus on my own.

Until then… onward with Wave 2! Fourteen Days… or until target weight is reached.

Wave 3, then, will be maintenance – which we all know is a lifelong process.

Onward!