26 Day Detox

About a month ago, three friends and I embarked on a 26 day detox cleanse. Why, you ask?  Well, we all had our own reasons, but for me, I wanted to get back to not craving sugar, eating more green smoothies (something I wasn't doing as frequently as I used to), and just eating cleaner.  I'm a pretty good eater, but I still acknowledge my weaknesses and desire to  master them.  I knew this cleanse was going to be difficult, but I also knew that I could do it (especially with the help of friends).  We chose a month that none of us were going out-of-town or had a lot going on to make it more do-able too.  Each day we would check in with each other on a group text and help motivate each other and give each other ideas on how to combat cravings and weak moments we might have.  We also split up different tasks like juicing, making recipes, and grocery shopping.  It made it a TON easier!

 

 

I'm not going to lie, the first week was brutal.  No fruit for the first 4 days and then days 5-7 were just green smoothies, but only with certain fruits added in.  As we started Phase 2, things got a little easier and we had some yummy recipes that helped us not feel deprived.  The Purple Heaven cabbage salad was amazing, the millet was delicious, and even the baked sweet potatoes improved as we were able to add butter.  Keep in mind though, that throughout the whole detox, we couldn't eat any dairy (other than the no-salt added organic butter), animal protein (no meat or eggs), no sugar, no salt, no preservatives, and nothing processed, of course.

 

The reason I loved this cleanse is that it takes a systemic way of detoxing your organs and it also identifies possible food sensitivities and allergens.  The cleanse first started with the colon, and then moved to the liver, kidneys, and gall bladder.  We also drank a ton of water, especially lemon water,  and obviously green smoothies everyday.  There were definitely days that I didn't want to "drink" my meal, but for the most part, I stuck to it and listened to my body and what felt good.  We finish this cleanse tomorrow and I honestly don't even want to be done!  I love how I feel, I don't miss meat AT ALL, and I definitely don't have a desire to eat sugar.  Losing 7 lbs was icing on the cake too and I'm hoping that wasn't just water weight.  Most importantly, I think doing something like is such a mental game of self-discipline and self-mastery.  Knowing that I accomplished it and didn't give up in moments of weakness is empowering.  And I love to feel empowered.

 

I'm hoping that we will do this cleanse twice a year to re-set our bodies and our digestive systems and keep things in check!

 

Phase 1 of this detox was pretty tough!  No fruit for the first 4 days was the hardest.

 



I love green smoothies, but 3 days of drinking only green smoothies got old!

 



This crunchy tomato avocado salad was one of our faves.  So yummy! I looked forward to this everyday.

 



 

Phase 3 we added salads and legumes and nuts.

 

Phase 4 was pretty easy because we added more grains (like sprouted wheat and quinoa).  My favorite was the guacamole, of course, with the homemade no-salt tortilla chips!