Quitting Dairy Cold Turkey & An Athletic Ambition
Part 1/n towards transitioning into an Athlete.
As if struck by epiphany, I found myself desperately wanting to become more athletic in my life. The mere fact that I could perhaps begin seeing myself in front of the mirror much more differently if I began introducing/thinking of myself as an athlete was starting to sound deeply seductive to my ears. My vanity consumed me enough that I began pondering all kind of scenarios where others think and view me as an athlete first and perhaps even think seriously of me.
I wanted to write more about my exercise pursuit getting there. Conquering PRs in all facets of my exercise routine. Diet with discipline more. Get myself in the best shape more than I’ve already achieved. While in making all of this happen, I want to have fun in doing all of this. Cause I am desperate. And my words will continue to fail me in sharing this desperation.
Fine. All this desperation and bravado sounded great to my ears. It wouldn’t be too hard for you to notice in person that I still boasted of a paunch in my abdomen, enough to assume that I looked like I had fathered a kid already, and all that fat was from the stress of a sedentary lifestyle from my IT Job.
In short, I was a Lazy Ambitious Hypocrite.
This athletic dream began with quitting a few items from my life. Almost entirely cold-turkey. And so it began with Dairy.
Some Drama with Dairy
Sometime in March, after a brief spree of Dairy consumption, I vowed that I’ll cold-turkey get rid of all Dairy products from my life and maintain a Vegan food lifestyle for the remainder of the Year. I didn’t write nor announce this transition to anyone fearing I would be ostracised or mocked for my unusual dietetic choices. Dairy has an almost sentimental attachment to most and beverages like coffee and tea are useful crutches for building a conversation with somebody. Quitting dairy meant I would not only be quitting the frequent cafe-latte breaks during office hours, but also getting rid of sweets (most of which have some kind of milk substitute in them) and my beloved pastries.
Only after nearly two months into my non-dairy lifestyle that I decided it was best to assume that people know about it.
But to be THIS resolute in my conclusion of quitting dairy altogether, I experimented with drinking Milk first and see how well I was able to handle it. This experimentation and soul searching phase was long. Arduously long.
For almost an entire year between September 2022 - September 2023 (I call this the “Gym Bro” phase) , I consumed Dairy in various forms. Whey Protein (a derivative of milk) was my favourite. I engaged myself in frequent sweets and candy as well. No matter what kind of discipline and regimented exercise routine I’d maintained during this time, I couldn’t quite figure why I’d developed a weakness in front of things like Ice cream and Milk Cakes etc. I absolutely loved my Pastry and cakes too, and wasn’t missing a chance if Birthdays were around. Birthdays were useful excuses for having all the sugar-rush I wanted for that month.
While I engaged myself in this full blown Dairy consumption spree, my body couldn’t ignore my prevailing medical handicap that I was Lactose Intolerant. Meaning, I never really was able to digest dairy the same way someone tolerant towards Dairy would have.
I suffered from frequent bloating issues, brain fog, and digestion issues even after consuming as less as anywhere between 100-200 ml of dairy in whatever format. Despite all of this happening, I was adamant in my Whey Protein Powder consumption during my Gym Bro Phase. Most gym-goers would swear by their Whey Protein, as it continues to remain a super convenient form of protein to supplement your bodily recovery phase. On heavy-lifting days I went as far as consuming 2-3 scoops of whey protein to fulfil my protein goals for the day.
While all of this reflected in building whatever muscle mass I have right now, it all came at a cost. I was perennially suffering from cystic acne even after going through two dermatologist prescribed courses of Accutane (acne folks will know what I am talking about).
During this time, I also began developing an acute dependence towards my morning milk-coffee or milk-chai without which I wasn’t able to function well for the remainder of the day. On days where I felt more groggy than usual, I went as far as consuming two milk-coffees in the morning, and even a third milk-coffee during the evening to keep spirits high. I never felt satiated enough with enough milk coffee. This amounted to nearly 300-600ml of milk-coffee daily. My dependency for frequent and routine “shots” of dopamine into my blood stream felt like I was not only caffeine-addicted, but also gaining weight from all the fats I was ingesting in my system.
I also began noticing something strange. Something inexplicable about my brain fog and lack of ability to sit down and deeply think about my day with complete focus began bothering me. I couldn’t any longer sit down and critically assess my work or my tasks at hand. Something as basic as sitting down and reading a book began feeling like humongous tasks.
At the time I couldn’t readily pin point this inadequacy to mentally operate to something as harmless as consuming Dairy of all things. It just didn’t seem to make sense.
It was only when I began noticing my abrupt weight gain where I put two and two together. First, I couldn’t breath without feeling very heavy in my chest during my workouts. I felt very heavy. Like VERY heavy. And second, during days when I forget consuming my day’s milk coffee, almost instinctively got many things done.
It became more or less conclusive to me that consuming Dairy product (or in my mind animal pus) would be deeply harmful for my lifestyle.
Some Parting Thoughts
With all of this being said. I don’t wish to proselytize a lifestyle to anyone that they wouldn’t themselves have preferred. It is important YOU know that I am consciously choosing this. Fully knowing that it would impact some of my existing relationships and societal settings as well, which involve Dairy Consumption. A visceral example was my usual milk-coffee with my friends/family.
I also recognise, in progressing through this, it will remain a gradual process with several loose moving parts in my lifestyle that would demand attention and care to.
As some wise person put it “What got you here, will certainly not get you there”. I am convinced my abstinence from Dairy will be a crucial getting wherever my athletic dream would take me.