I'm too lazy to keep a food journal.  However, every now and then I have a major cheat on the diet - with disastrous results.  I thought I'd keep track of them here.

So anyway, a week and a half ago, I wanted to finish a project estimate that was going to be discussed the next day.  I figured I'd just stay up and finish it, but it took longer than I expected.  I ended up staying up all night, eating about half a pound of dark chocolate to stay awake.  From a paleo standpoint, I guess that's a lifestyle cheat and a major diet cheat.

Anyway, I stayed awake pretty well, and the client was pleased with the estimate, so I was feeling pretty good.  However, shortly thereafter, I started getting a sore throat.  Then the sore throat was replaced by a head cold.  Then the sore throat came back, I started getting aches in bones and muscles, a cough, and eventually a bit of a fever.

I finally went to the doctor today, mostly because I wanted a strep test and antibiotics if the fever indicated strep.  They also tested me for flu, probably because of the swine flu epidemic.

Well, I had flu all right - I tested positive for influenza A, likely H1N1 or swine flu.  Not only that, though, I also tested positive for influenza B as well.  In other words, I had two types of flu at the same time!

No more chocolate all nighters for me!

Wow that sucks Mr.Dew  Hope you are feeling better.

That's the reason I don't cheat. I am so afraid some ailment or bad food reaction is going to interrupt my training. 

Thanks, guys.  I do feel better.

My strep test came back positive, though.  I had a cold, swine flu, some other kind of flu, and strep all at the same time.

I'm not quite purist enough to refuse antibiotics, so I'll take them and hope they don't mess up my intestinal flora too much.

As for chocolate, I'll have to either give it up or find some of Kallyn's 92% chocolate.  There can't be much sugar in that!

... I'm not quite purist enough to refuse antibiotics, so I'll take them and hope they don't mess up my intestinal flora too much...

Good.  Some people don't take antibiotics because they feel better in a couple of days.  The Streptococcus can appear to go dormant but can cause heart valve damage. It is rare in adults but it can happen.

Gulp.

Well I just had some icecream. I did feel kinda lightheaded afterwards.

Hopefully I'll be fine. I'll just run a little harder tomorrow.

I've noticed other problems with Chinese food besides the ones you mentioned.

Soy sauce - commercial soy sauce is brewed with wheat.
Sesame oil - messes with your digestion if you're not accustomed to eating it.
MSG - nuff said.

And the starch used to thicken stuff is almost invariably cornstarch.  That's also what's used to bread meat usually, too.

I don't actually get sick, never have really. But when I cheat, I wake up the next day with a blocked nose. Although it does seem to be wheat and dairy only, had a few home made chips last night and suffered no ill effects.

I wonder if I should talk about the cake incident, even though it was three weeks ago.

I had been on the diet for two weeks and then fell off for a week. This cheat week ended with Chinese food (chow mein, fried rice, beef broccoli and two pieces of fried chicken) and a single-layer chocolate cake. I ate the Chinese Food and over the course of the evening half of the Chocolate cake. I was full beyond all reason.

Then the next morning, I ate the other half of the chocolate cake. By about noon, I wasn't feeling so hot. By afternoon I was vomiting every couple of hours and couldn't even keep liquids down. I was feeling very dehydrated, wiped out, a buzzing sensation throughout my hands and feet. By evening, I was wondering if this was warranting a visit to the urgent care center. Too late, it's closed. I don't feel well enough to go to the emergency room and wait six hours. Well I'll wait until morning. I tossed and turned in bed until about midnight when I finally drifted off to sleep.

I woke up  some time in the wee hours of the morning with sweet relief, the nausea was gone. The next couple of days, I was worn out but able to eat and drink.

That was rock bottom for me. The good thing that came out of it? Yeaaah, I don't like cake so much anymore.