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My new blog has finally been created! It's still in the works though...
Come visit me when you get a chance - http://gingersnaps.info

Oh, what a difference green makes!

Last weekend I went with a friend and her family to the opening round of the NCAA men's basketball tournament in Tulsa. I knew it would be a challenge eating even remotely healthy on the first day because we would be there from about 10:00 am to 10:00 pm. It was even harder than I thought! The only vegetarian items available were so unhealthy. I did take my trail mix and had that, but I needed more...so I indulged. I felt so gross soon after a cheese nachos encounter. (I think that "cheese" is just some chemical goo...blech!) I can't even remember now what all I ate throughout the weekend, but it was NOT healthy while at the BOK Center! We did eat out one night and had a really great meal with good protein and veggies, and we had healthy snacks at my friend's place so it wasn't a total bust. The high point was when I found that Quik Trip carries Green Juice by the brand Naked, which is all nature. I was so excited to have some green juice again! Yummy! That's all I had yesterday until about 2:30 pm.

I've strayed quite a bit since the cleanse ended and have only gained back three pounds. I honestly thought it would be worse after this weekend...I had already gained two by then. But starting today at lunch I'm pretty much cleansing again for a week or so. It's really telling when your body feels so different eating a primarily vegan diet as opposed to making allowances for cheese, cheese and more cheese. I'm ready to be green again!

New Blog

For those of you asking (and thanks for doing so!), I will continue to blog. I'm actually working with someone to start a new blog, which will contain more than just diet and exercise content (and won't resemble a journal!). However, I will continue to post here from time to time in the Post-Cleanse section until then.

New Focus

A little post-cleanse update...

As I mentioned, I'm continuing to do what I've been doing over the past three weeks for the majority of the time (so far, all the time...it's only been 1 1/2 days). So, now that I've got a handle on what to eat, I'm ready to focus more on exercise. While on the cleanse I started getting stronger and a bit more flexible with yoga, which I will continue (as I believe it is the most complete exercise), but I'm ready to start running again and I'd like to do some more strength training. When more of your body is composed of muscle, as opposed to fat, your BMR (basal metabolic rate) is higher all the time, so you burn more calories just being alive. The best shape I've ever been in was my first couple of years of college when I lifted weights 5-6 days a week. But I really miss running, especially at longer distances where it becomes almost meditative. In 2008 I ran two half-marathons (6 weeks apart!) and felt such a sense of accomplishment from those. I didn't even train properly for them...I just imagine how I would feel if I had. Today, I'm going to devise a workout schedule including a mixture of yoga, running and strength training (in the form of my P90X videos - only the strength ones). I'm ready to see some body parts tighten up a bit. :)

Last night I started reading a book I recently bought about being happy without being perfect and I'm pleased to say that I've (inadvertently) already taken steps to do that via the cleanse. I still have some work to do, but I'm going to put some of the practices to the test in the next few weeks as I increase exercise. I'm going to focus on progress and take pride in each step, even baby steps. Part of getting over perfection requires catching yourself in a negative, most-likely unrealistic thought...such as "if I eat this cookie, I will blow everything and get fat." Obviously that's not true, but too many of us do that all-or-nothing thinking. My other favorite is when I focus on the one mistake rather that all the good - ex. say I've worked out 5 days in a row and miss a day, and start verbally abusing myself for doing so, instead of focusing on all the progress made in the 5 workouts and simply getting back to it the next day. I know I'm not the only one that does this, but I'm the only one I have to live with day in and day out. :)

Day 21

Well, here it is...the last day of my Adventure Cleanse!

Stats

I've lost 2 more pounds - that's 12 total! (I like the 12 in 21 days inverse number thing.) I've lost a total of 2 inches off of the biggest part of my lower abdomen and a little over 2 inches off of my belly (at belly button level).

Food

I had green juice up until around 2:30, then I had a snack of mango salsa with baked corn chips and a little bit of vegan mock chicken salad. For dinner I made the same vegan pizza I had last night and a side salad.

Thoughts

Over the last couple of days I've shared a lot of what this cleanse has done for me. It's truly changed my life. It's changed my way of thinking about food and about my body. It's given me a sense of peace and confidence and self-love that I was afraid I might never find. It's been about so much more than simply changing eating habits. The Crazy Sexy Diet, which I'm adopting wholeheartedly, is all-encompassing and has led me to start my own research regarding several different subjects - the nutrition/disease relationship, different types of yoga and meditation, and several other self-care topics. I actually bought several vegan recipe books today. I can't wait to get in the kitchen and create some delicious meals!
I honestly do feel like I'm at the beginning of an adventure...just because the cleanse is technically over doesn't mean the adventure is! Quite the opposite. I can't wait to see where this takes me, but more importantly I plan to relish every step of the journey and do my best to live in each present moment. The Crazy Sexy lifestyle isn't restrictive or full of ultimatums - it's a do your best mentality and learn to enjoy each moment. No guilt! Drinks with friends, enjoying certain foods only every once in a while, go for it. Do what's best for you (and believe me your body will let you know if you learn to pay close attention to it). Every moment has something to offer and an all-or-nothing attitude is way too limiting for this redhead! Early in the book, Kris addresses this and how counterproductive it is to feel bad about straying from the new, healthier norm from time to time, that perfection is not the goal. "Perfect is beige. I'm red hot!" Me too Kris! Thanks for the reminder!

If you've followed this from the beginning, thanks for sharing in my adventure! I sincerely hope you find the journey that's best for you and I wish you vibrant health!

Peace, love and veggies!
Jenn

Day 20

Morning

139 lbs bitches! (Mom – that’s an endearing term in this context.) :) Woohoo! Finally! The bad news is that I woke up very stopped up with a sinus headache. I had 4 green apple slices with a teaspoon of almond butter so that I could take some medicine. That’s kind of disappointing since I haven’t had to take my sinus meds in a little over a week. Still, that’s the longest I’ve gone without those meds in years! I continued with my morning routine despite the headache. I actually did more meditation than normal – 15 minutes, guided – 10 minutes of which was focused on the body healing itself and the remaining 5 on self-love. I also took a hot shower after lemon/cayenne water, morning pages, neti pot, meditation and dry brushing. That helped…I made it really hot! I was out of a lot of green juice supplies and would be busy for most of the day doing UIL grading again, so I packed up some apples, gluten free crackers and trail mix to take for the day. As soon as I got to the school (around 10:45), I had one of the apples. Oh yeah, I got some “real” coffee earlier this morning since caffeine helps with migraines, which I was afraid my headache was trying to become. Thankfully it didn't. By the time I got to the school it had subsided.


Lunch

We were provided boxed lunches again at the UIL competition – a veggie sandwich. I ate that, but gave away the chips and cookie and had my nut thin crackers instead. I love that the two people I grade with also have the vegetarian lunch!


Snacks

I had a bit of my homemade trail mix...that stuff is so good! I'll be making that forever!


Evening

Once the day of grading was complete, I headed straight to Whole Foods to get stocked up. I truly love that place! I get a sense of calm and happiness as soon as I walk in the doors. Anyway, I stocked up on all my veggies as well as some new vegan foods to try throughout the week. I may branch out a bit this week with some new options. Technically tomorrow is the last day of my cleanse, but I'm going to continue this lifestyle as the norm, creating room for exceptions. Weekdays especially will be very similar to what I've done over the past 3 weeks, probably 90% so, and weekends will still consist primarily of my new ways with room for exceptions if situations arise that I wish to be vegetarian instead of vegan or eat gluten or have wine or whatever. The point is this cleanse has pointed me in the direction of a lifestyle that I was meant to live. I've never been more certain of anything. I've started doing more and more research regarding the relationship between disease and nutrition, and the evidence is overwhelmingly in favor of a plant-based diet, especially an organic one, and even more so one that is primarily raw (including juicing). Knowledge is power and I am gaining it in this subject area and will continue to do so, as it completely fascinates me and I'm very passionate about it. I don't know where it will lead me in life, but I think there's something there for me...
This was all confirmed as I watched a documentary called The Beautiful Truth, about The Gerson Therapy - a highly successful alternative cancer therapy that has been healing cancer patients since the 1940's, including those sent away from the Mayo Clinic to die. Not surprising, his therapy includes primarily a raw, organic, plant-based diet...and strangely enough coffee enemas. I know! Sounds crazy right?! Try telling that to all the patients that are still alive!
While watching the doc, I enjoyed an Amy's gluten free pizza with non-dairy cheese, to which I added green and red bell peppers, shitake mushrooms, black olives, red onion and fresh tomatoes. I also had some mineral water with lime as a mocktail. A couple of hours after dinner, I made 2 ounces of wheatgrass juice and did a couple of shots of that. I've been taking a superfood supplement, but thought I would do the liquid chlorophyll tonight.

I think my evening meditation will be a bit longer than usual. I feel the need to reflect on my health and marinate in gratitude.

Day 19

Morning

I slept super late today - a little after 7:00! In my defense, I could NOT fall asleep last night...I was overcome with a sense of excitement! About what exactly I can't be sure...nearly completing the cleanse? Life from here on out? All of it? I don't know...but I do feel like I'm in the early stages of a new beginning...

Had to rush through some of my morning routine...and flat out skipped mediation and morning pages, which I will make up for this evening with a 20 minute guided meditation and doing morning pages as well as some other writing I've been meaning to do.


Lunch

Another big ole salad! I pretty much emptied the crisper for this one. Topped it off with the kick ass goddess dressing, cracked pepper and vegan parm-like cheese. Had a few gluten free crackers and a couple of dark chocolate squares for dessert. All so yummy!


**I'm hijacking my own post with some ruminations...warning - possible self-indulgent insight ahead.**

For some reason, I'm having a bit of a wave of sadness or sentiment or something at the thought of this being the last weekend of my cleanse. I think it's going to be a weekend of reflection for me, ending with plans for the future. I've learned so much about myself during this time. It's been a much deeper experience than simply changing my eating habits. I think I truly love myself for the first time in my life! I know...so cheesy, you're looking for crackers right now, but the even better thing is - I don't care! I don't care if you think I'm cheesy or corny or sappy or sentimental or whatever! And for me to be able to say that is downright miraculous! I've spent most of my life concerned with how I'm perceived and it's just too much. It's a weight I'm no longer willing to bear. I feel liberated, free! Maybe that was the excitement feeling I had last night. There are several quotes that I've saved and read over and over for a while now and fully believed but only now am experiencing first-hand -

"The more you honor your commitments to yourself, the more you approve of yourself, and the less approval you need from others."

"The highest quality of life comes when you make your own self-approval more important than the approval of others - when you make what's most meaningful to you more important than what others expect of you."

"Resentment doesn't produce much change. And being accountable for meeting your own needs is the most effective way to get them met."

"Feeling guilty is a signal that our image of ourself doesn't match who we really are."

"In order to get where you want to go, you have to know where you are now. Accept yourself, flaws and all, for who you are."

That last one was a bitch! But well worth it! :)

**Hijack over.**

Snacks

I finished my green juice and had a few Nut thin (ranch flavored) crackers. Those crackers are so freakin' good! I just can't even put it into words! Mmmm!

Evening

Power yoga after work. Yoga is such an amazing workout...I'm not sure there's anything as all encompassing as yoga. It's such a great feeling when you can go a little deeper in a stretch than you could the day before or when you hold a balance pose that used have you stumbling. And every day is a little different - some days one hip is tighter than the other or they're both loose but your back is tight or your stronger in one area than another...it's so interesting to me how/where we hold tension in our bodies from day to day.

Dinner - I made gluten free angel hair pasta with extra virgin olive oil, fresh garlic, tomatoes and basil, added some capers, lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon plus vegan parm-like cheese, cracked pepper and a tiny bit of Celtic sea salt. For a side, I (very lightly) sauteed some garlic and onion in extra virgin olive oil and added some red and green bell pepper, cooking for just a couple of minutes on low heat, topped with cracked pepper and a touch of Celtic sea salt. For dessert, I had just a tiny bit (about the size of a quarter) of dried gogi berries and cacao nibs. That all hit the spot after my workout!

Day 18

Morning

OK...I've got stop obsessing about breaking the 140 lb mark! I'm STILL there! Although, the little needle was slightly to the left of the 140 marker...maybe if I had a digital scale it would say 139.5. :) Seriously though, I know the only way to move past this, is to quit wanting and focus on being grateful for all the weight I've lost and for the abundance of health that I'm now experiencing. I know wanting leaves you in a state of want and being grateful attracts more of what you're grateful for (I've experienced this enough times to know...). It's just such a habit of our society and some habits are really hard to break. So, focus has now shifted to being grateful and continuing to cleanse and reap the benefits of doing so.

Morning routine followed except for morning pages. While I went to bed pretty early, the damn dog upstairs started barking about an hour and a half into my sleep. So, I slept until 7:00 this morning. I emailed the apartment manager yesterday about the situation...hopefully she can help.


Lunch

I splurged on an awesome salad from Whole Foods...such a great salad bar...oh my! I got hungry a little early today. I'm wondering if it's because the last two days I've had harder workouts...not sure. But I'm lovin' the power yoga. Even when it's hard I love it. I almost like it more when I struggle, maybe because I know I'm getting a good workout. I found a good dessert alternative (at least for me) to chocolate, until I loose a few more pounds...sparkling mineral water with lime and stevia. Just like a homemade limeade...almost feels like summer just drinking it. I also bought some Seventh Generation laundry and dishwashing detergent. I promised myself when I ran out of these at home I would switch to all natural products. They have a lavender/blue eucalyptus scented laundry detergent! That's actually kind of funny to me as those are the two essential oils I put in my bath. Speaking of...I also got some jojoba oil to use to make some of my own products at home. I've had a book for a long time called Home Spa, but haven't really done anything but read it. It's actually very cool; it has recipes for at-home spa treatments, including oils that you can wear in place of perfume. I didn't know you're not supposed to place straight essential oil on your skin, which I've done for a few days! You're supposed to mix it with a carrier oil, such as jojoba or sweet almond. Hence, my need for jojoba. Can't wait to concoct my own fragrances, sprays, etc...at home! This is something I've wanted to do for years (especially in my herb gardening days)! I used to be really into growing herbs (and miss it dearly). So, this spring, my balcony will be filled with herbs!

Evening

We had a late meeting at work - bi-annual thing to review last year and discuss this year - so I didn't get home until a little after 7:00. No yoga tonight. I made a veggie sandwich with a few corn chips and salsa. I'm pretty tired tonight (and it's only 9:00 now). It was a really busy workday; I think my brain is just worn out. :) So, I'm going to dry brush, take a hot bath with essential oils, do some stretching, meditate and call it a night. Green dreams all!

Day 17

Morning

The scale is toying with me! I'm still at 140 - that's something like 4 days now at the same weight. I'm so ready to break that number! I haven't seen the 130's in so long...I miss them! :)

So, for today I'm banning chocolate (even though I've only eaten tiny amounts thus far) and limiting nuts, avocados, oils, etc...fats (albeit healthy ones). Also, having real coffee this morning in attempt to stimulate my bowels. (Hey, I stated it as least graphically as I could.) I haven't had much elimination in a couple of days, so hopefully that will help. Also, going to have an apple mid-morning to get some fiber. Usually fiber and caffeine get things moving. Here's hoping! Otherwise, morning is business as usual again...


Lunch

Salad (with the much loved goddess dressing) and miso soup for lunch. The caffeine/fiber combo has helped to stir things up a bit. :) Not quite as much as I'd hoped, but a definite improvement. I barely remember lunch as I got completely sidetracked reading a live blog about the iPad2. :) I'm such an Apple product addict.


Snacks

I purposely left 16 oz of green juice in my bottle this morning to have this afternoon in hopes of filling me up and leaving room for only a small, crunchy snack. I did that most of the first week and that really helped me keep the afternoon snacks smaller.

Evening

Power yoga again. I worked hard during this workout! My legs were shaky afterwards. I can't believe how out-of-shape I let myself get! For someone who was once a personal and athletic trainer, that's just so sad. I have a lot of work to do! I signed up for a 5K in May, so it's time to start running again as well. I need to find a half-marathon later this year...I guess there's always White Rock in December, or DRC in November, or both like I did in 2008.

For dinner, I created the same meatless tostada that I had last night. I was really hungry after my hard workout! Read some more of The China Study, which I've decided should be required reading for anyone with a pulse! :) Dry brushing before a hot bath and meditation before bed...I'm still not very good at meditation, but I'm going to stick with it and hope I get better soon.

Day 16

Morning

I honestly can't believe I've managed to keep this up for 16 days! It really hasn't been that hard...definitely not as hard as I was expecting. I realize now, I was way overeating prior to this! Even the "healthy" stuff! It's strange how I almost can't start the day without my lemon/cayenne water now, as well as meditation and some stretching. I had my normal 32 ounces of green juice throughout the morning, as well as some chai tea and aloe vera water. Pretty much business as usual...


Lunch

A glorious salad (of course) with a new dressing - Annie's Goddess dressing...umm, I may have found a new addiction. This stuff is da bomb! I also had the rest of my Mediterranean quinoa. Made a Whole Foods run after I ate and got a cup of decaf coffee to sip on while shopping. I've really been missing coffee. I bought some to keep at home (organic, decaf), but that doesn't help at the office. I'm not anti-caffeine, especially in small amounts and not being dependent on it, and I will likely resume it in that way once I've completed this cleanse.
Here's an interesting note from the documentary, The Beautiful Truth - "The liver is easily overburdened by the continuous release of toxins and is unable to release the load. Dr. Gerson found that he could provide help to the liver by the caffeine in coffee, absorbed from the colon via the hemorrhoidal vein, which carries the caffeine to the portal system and then to the liver. The caffeine stimulates the liver/bile ducts to open, releasing the poisons into the intestinal tract for excretion."


Snacks

Around 3:30 I had a little of my homemade trail mix. Then around 4:15 I had some gluten free crackers (the ranch flavored nut thins - so yummy!). I might've had a few too many...they're so good! Oops! :)


Evening

Power Yoga! I avoided the back stuff that might have caused the problem last week. It was a tough workout, but I'm definitely getting a little stronger and more flexible (for the most part). After working out, dry brushing and a quick shower, I had a friend come over to try some apple/beet juice and watch Annie Hall (one of my favorite movies!). While she had juice, which she loved, I made a tostada kind of meal - corn tortila (basically a broken taco shell) with some guacamole, pico de gallo, lettuce, vegan cheese and salsa verde. So freakin' good! Had a few chips and pico on the side. I had intended to make this with black beans as well, but I was out, so I did a shot of amino acid juice before eating. :) Then we each had 3 bites of dark chocolate. Halfway through the movie I made us some fresh Ginger Ale as a mocktail. Awesome evening - good food and drinks, great movie and wonderful company! Hard to beat that.

Meditation then bed...Green dreams all!

Day 15

Morning

Still holding strong at 9 pounds (lost). I've lost an inch off my waist (at the belly button) since last week - that's an inch and a half total. And I've lost 1/2 inch off of the biggest part of my lower abdomen since last week - that's also an inch and a half total. I'm pretty happy with those results...but still so ready to get down a bit closer to my goal weight. Patience grasshopper...I know, I know...Speaking of grasshoppers, I look forward to my green drink each morning. Who would've ever thought that would happen?!

I slept a little late this morning due to the headache from last night...took me a while to fall asleep. I woke up at 7:00 and did everything but my morning pages, which will have to be evening pages today.

Lunch

Leftovers rock! I ate a little of the vegan, mock chicken salad, a quinoa dish and a beautiful salad. I think when this cleanse ends, I'll still stick to this lifestyle for the majority of the time, especially during the week. I like to have a routine...when I don't, things tend to go to far in the wrong direction. Plus, it's so nice to be proud of taking care of yourself and accomplishing something - weight loss, better health, getting stronger, more flexible, more relaxed, more confident, more open...the list goes on.

Snacks

I had the tiny bit of the mock chicken salad that was left with a couple of crackers. Then I had some awesome trail mix that I made, comprised of sunflower and pumpkin seeds, a mixture of raw nuts - macadamia nuts, almonds, cashews and walnuts - and cacao nibs and dried gogi berries. I went pretty light on the nuts and let the seeds and sweet stuff make up the majority of the mixture. Cacao is full of antioxidants and gogi berries are also high in antioxidants, minerals and amino acids. Both are sweet and yummy, especially mixed in with the nuts and seeds. I added a touch of Celtic sea salt and boom! Delish trail mix!

Evening

Yoga - 50 minutes. I'm getting a bit more flexible, except for my inner thighs, which have always been tight. I feel a little stronger as well. I think I'm ready to do the power yoga tomorrow night. I'll just go easy on the back exercises. I'm really ready to start running again...I've got to figure out how/when to work that in soon as well.

Dinner - I made an awesome veggie sandwich on gluten free bread with some corn chips and salsa on the side. A couple of dark chocolate squares for dessert made it a near perfect meal for my tastes.

I did my "morning" pages after dinner. Kind of strange doing them at night, but I think they're important, so even when I miss them in the morning, I'm still going to find time to get them written each day. I need all the help I can get with mental clutter! :) Next was dry brushing before a nice hot bath with lavender essential oil, and meditation afterwards...such a great way to wind down.

Green dreams!

Day 14

Morning

Ahhhh sleep! What joy! I slept until nearly 9:00 today! A month ago I would've considered this pretty early for a Sunday. Now it's sleeping in. :) I did a guided meditation after lemon water and morning pages. I seem to do better with guided meditations than when I do them on my own...maybe that's just how it is for newbies. Without some guidance, I still have a really hard time not thinking. That's such a foreign concept! I have such an active brain. I'm sure it's exhausted and would love for me to meditate longer...I just have to figure out how to make it work for me. My back is pretty sore from the massage yesterday, which I fully expected. Yoga will feel good today! I'm down another pound - 9 total. So close to breaking into a range that I haven't been in since 2008 and I'm so ready to get there! Today is another juice/smoothie fast day. I'm hoping that will take me there. Although, since it's Oscar night, I will end the fast around 7:00 and have some healthy munchies.

Two days in a row now, Kris Carr has been in my head! I have the urge to purge and have that planned for today. No, not throw up kind of purge, clean out every closet, cabinet, drawer kind of purge. When I read about Day 14 in CSD this morning, that's exactly what she proposed! Kinda freaky! She did that to me yesterday too.

Evening

Wow! I worked hard all day cleaning house and purging. I have 7 bags of stuff to donate now! My back and neck are so sore. Hot bath and stretching were a must.

At the beginning of the Oscars I had some yellow corn tortilla chips (found some baked, organic ones)...I didn't know that corn chips were cool to have on the cleanse...in moderation of course. I had these with some fresh pineapple salsa from Whole Foods. Oh so yummy!

Around late afternoon I started getting a headache that worsened throughout the evening. Not as bad as many headaches I've had in the past, but nothing I took seemed to get rid of it. Maybe it's a detox headache. I had a few little breakouts on my face over the weekend too...maybe it's all just detox related. Didn't meditate before bed due to the headache and staying up to watch the Oscars.

Day 13

Morning

I got up at 7:30 this morning to do most of my morning routine...changing things up a bit for a 9:00 massage appointment. I started with meditation, then the neti pot, next I made my green juice and read today's CSD page (so timely...just what I needed to read this morning). :) After my wonderful massage (good Lord, was I tight...definitely going to make this a monthly treat for my bod), I did my morning pages and had my lemon/cayenne water. I'm supposed to be meeting a couple of friends for a picnic by White Rock Lake at 12:30...I sure hope the sun decides to join us! It's still a bit chilly right now!

So, how crazy is this?! The scale that I was cursing yesterday must have heard me because today it said I was down 4 pounds from yesterday! That's crazy! I've decided yesterday was just a weight/scale anomaly. The net net (good God, I've been in marketing too long) is that I've lost one pound since Thursday, which makes much more sense...not sure what was up with those other three pounds...just glad they're gone!

Lunch

Sure enough, the sun made an appearance at our picnic...so did the wind. All in all it was really nice though. There's nothing like enjoying a beautiful day outside with friends! I got a salad, some Mediterranean quinoa, and vegan, mock chicken salad from Whole Foods. All very yummy.

No snacks needed today. Instead, around snack-time, I went to Bed, Bath and Beyond and got a few nice, new kitchen supplies - a strainer that extends across the sink, a bamboo cutting board, a mandolin for slicing veggies different ways (the one I got came with four different blades - can't wait to try it out), some of those green reusable bags for storing veggies, and a set of fit & fresh brand containers - two little ones that fit in a bigger one and it comes with a thing you can freeze to keep everything cool; also the little boxes have measurements on them. But...I'm still on the hunt for a Bento box! I've found some really cool ones online...probably should just order one.

Evening

I broke out the leftovers from lunch before catching a hilarious movie (Cedar Rapids) with a friend. I can't even tell you how much and how hard we laughed! So much fun!
Prior to the movie I talked to her a bit about The China Study and I realized I need to keep all that to myself, or put it here or discuss it with folks who are interested in the same thing...at least until I can express myself better. I knew I'd be okay discussing it with her (she's very open-minded) and she was great about listening to me ramble on. But it later occurred to me that the topic of nutrition and it's correlation to health is almost as explosive as bringing up religion or politics with most people...somehow it strikes at the very core of who we are and defensiveness ensues. I don't want to instigate that! Just want to spread the peace, love and greens!
Think I'll do some dry brushing and take a long hot bath with a book now.

Day 12

Morning

Frustration station! The scale is evil! It says I've gained 3 pounds! 3 pounds in 1 day! How is that possible?! Even in my most gluttonous state, I never gained that much in one day! It's so much for such a short time (and I don't look any different), that it makes me think it's water retention and/or a sign of being "backed up"...I haven't had much action in that area in a couple of days. That better be all it is. It was so disappointing to see that this morning. :( I'm trying not to be obsessive about it, as I know that does no good, but it's hard not to let it get to me. Also, I must remember that the primary reason I'm doing this cleanse is health, weight is secondary, and it's still a total of 4 lbs in less than 2 weeks.

Followed my normal morning routine after bitching and moaning about the weight in my morning pages. I love them for just that reason. It's a great place to whine! Apparently this is too today! Sorry! :)


Lunch

I was going to bring left-over lentil soup from last night with my salad to work today, but after the encounter with the scale this morning, I made the salad a bit bigger, added some chickpeas and left the soup at home. Just finished salad and 3 bites of dark chocolate.

I just realized I haven't taken my sinus/allergy pill all week! I can't remember the last time I did that...not sure I've ever done that. That's pretty freakin' awesome! Maybe that will make up for the weight... :)

Evening

Yoga after work...my back is feeling much better. I didn't even take an anti-inflammatory today. Still pretty tight, but luckily I have a massage scheduled for 9:00 a.m. tomorrow - can't wait!

Dinner - made a creamy, avocado based dressing to have with some raw veggies and my CSD quinoa. I realized I had some decaf coffee, so after a hot bath, I made some with 3 bites of dark chocolate. I've never had much of a sweet tooth, but having the dark chocolate feels like an indulgence that reminds me that I'm not depriving myself of anything.

I started reading The China Study before my evening routine and OMG...it is a MUST read. It's considered the most comprehensive nutrition/health research ever conducted. It contains multiple research efforts that spanned over 40 years! And it's all conclusive - we can actually prevent and reverse disease...with a plant-based diet. It's really cool because he's not preachy, he simply states the findings of decades of research. What's really interesting is that he (Dr. Campbell, renowned scientist) grew up on a dairy farm and spent the early part of his career trying to prove the benefits of animal protein...he was absolutely startled by his findings...that's part of why he continued the research for so long. To me, it's empowering - maybe the most empowering information we'll ever have. I won't go on and on (even though I'm so excited and passionate about this topic!), but I will tell you one really interesting statistic regarding our flailing health care system - physician error, medication error and adverse events from drugs or surgery kill 225, 400 people per year (as of 2000...no telling what it is now!). That makes our health care system the THIRD leading cause of death in the United States, behind only cancer and heart disease. (National Vital Statistics Reports 50(16), 2002) Personally, I'd rather take my chances with me taking care of myself and stay out of the health care system as much as possible!

Green dreams!

Day 11

Morning

Wow! I really slept in this morning - 7:00. (If you know me, that statement is really funny!) I was simply tired, plus it's a rainy day. Maybe getting tired earlier and needing more sleep is my main cleanse symptom. So, I had to skip morning pages, but I covered the rest of my morning routine. Due to the cucumber shortage I had to modify my green drink this morning...so I added an apple. It was really good! Apples really cut the green taste - great for newbies. I was looking through the Rawlicious book last night at some of their green juice recipes and I love how they have stages of getting used to the taste. They start with more palatable ones to get you used to it and gradually you can work your way up to juices with darker greens. They also provide tips on how to cut the green taste. I perused the recipes in this book last night before bed and I can tell it's going to be my go-to vegan book. I highly recommend it for anyone even considering dabbling in veganism. Remember, you don't have to go vegan to eat that way part of the time, a lot of the time or even just occasionally. A lot of people seem to have an all or nothing attitude about food, which is just silly to me. Why not try different things and figure out what works best for your body?! Plus it's just fun to be adventurous and branch out - eat a weird sounding veggie you've never heard of. Good times! :)

So as usual, I had juice and decaf tea throughout the morning. Also I took a superfood pill (actually 5 of them!) Amazing Grass makes a really good superfood supplement that I'm going to use on days when I don't have time to juice wheatgrass.

Lunch

I brought the cilantro, veggie soup I made the other night. I had that and some Wholly Guacamole with celery sticks and a couple of gluten free crackers. Finished it off with some dark chocolate (with a hint of orange).

I made a Whole Foods run and while this store had conventional cucumbers, they were out of organic. So, I guess I'll have to break out the peeler for these. I picked up some cashews and macadamia nuts to make some nut cheeses, for which I now have recipes (I'm sure there are a ton on the Internet as well). I'm really excited to learn how to make vegan cheese as cheese is one of the few things I miss. Due to my chronic sinus/allergy issue I really need to have a cheese alternative - dairy reeks havoc on mucus (basically it causes you to create more - blech!).

After taking another anti-inflammatory and doing light stretching and using a heating pad off and on, my back feels much better.


Snacks

4:00 I was going to have crackers and hummus, but I only had two crackers left..so, I ate that and then had some whole, raw almonds and walnuts.


Evening

After work, I went for a 45 minute power walk through downtown Dallas. It was so freakin' windy! Which was kind of good since it made the walk an even better workout. I did dry brushing before a hot shower and got ready to make dinner.

Dinner was awesome! I made lentil soup, salad, and one of the quinoa recipes. My boyfriend came over to eat with me and loved it all. Proof that one doesn't have to be all or nothing when it comes to food. He is not a vegetarian but enjoys all kinds of food. He had never had quinoa (nor heard of it) before and he devoured it, along with everything else. We topped the meal off with some dark chocolate that had hazelnuts and currents in it. So yummy! My new fav! The only bad thing was that we ate kind of late (for me)...we didn't get started until a little after 8:00. Hopefully I was mostly digested before going to bed. :) Did meditation before bed as usual. I guess I'm halfway through the cleanse now! I think I'll end today like I began it...with a big Wow!

Day 10

Morning

I let myself sleep until 6:30 this morning…just needed it. Besides, I knew it was a pony tail day, so I didn’t need much getting ready time. :) Shortly after crawling out of bed and moving around, I realized I have re-aggravated an old back injury. Damn! (Years ago I pulled a piece of a spinous process off of my spine and it was incorrectly diagnosed. It calcified back to the spine but never properly healed so I struggle with it from time to time.) I’m thinking I did the power yoga too soon and not enough stretching last night. The good news is it isn’t debilitating (which it normally is)…I stretched quite a bit this morning and used my heating pad. Otherwise, I followed my morning routine, except that I made my juice before getting ready and drank it while putting my makeup on so I could take an anti-inflammatory for my back. Even after getting up at 6:30, I left the apartment only 10 mins later than normal and traffic was kind to me today, so I still got to work at my normal time…5 mins early actually. On the way to work, I was listening to KXT and Tutti Fruti came on. Now, a couple of weeks ago, I probably would’ve changed the station and thought, “Tutti Fruti at 8 in the morning?! Really? Why?” I can happily answer that now – because it’s fun! I sang along with Little Richard and we had a good ole time. That made me think about fun music that I own and love, so I popped in some slightly more intelligent, fun music – Ben Folds – and he entertained me for the remainder of my drive. Pretty darn good commute this morning.

All of this got me thinking…where is my breakdown? I always hear about people getting extremely irritable or sad or angry or something when going through a cleanse as the body is ridding itself of toxins. I haven’t had that. I’ve had some fidgety, restless moments (quite a few actually), I’ve gotten tired earlier than normal, but nothing major. Am I doing it wrong? Or is it because 2010, for me, was pretty much an emotional breakdown all year and I just don’t have any of that left?

Oh yeah...forgot to address the Magnesium Citrate...it finally started working this morning...really well actually. :) Also, I'm down another pound. Yay! I can't wait to fit into the "other" jeans in my closet...you know the ones...those you used to wear and can't bear to get rid of because it would mean you've succumbed to weight gain and so you're stuck with the three bigger sized jeans you rotate now.

Lunch

I had miso soup (added zucchini and skitake mushrooms) with my salad today, as well as a few gluten free crackers. I got full really quickly. Not sure if it's the jeans I have on (kind of tight in the waist) or just that my digestive system has been through a lot this morning. :) Why can't I remember to take the stupid digestive enzyme pill before I eat?! I took one at the end of the meal anyway...it's not like anything has had time to digest. I don't know what to do to get myself to remember to take those! Maybe when I look at my Organically Grown "bracelet" from now on I'll be reminded to take that supplement...
I think I'll have some decaf chai tea and a piece of dark chocolate for dessert now...

Snacks

Amazingly, I didn't really get hungry in the afternoon...I only had 3-4 gluten free crackers dipped in hummus.

Evening

There's nothing like a good dinner with a great friend! I met my friend at a local vegetarian restaurant. He's quite the carnivore so it was interesting watching him study the menu. He finally found something he was willing to try, and really liked it, I might add. I had falafel. Yummy! It came on pita bread and with ziziki so I guess those are two small cheats (there wasn't much sauce and I didn't have much pita). Wait! No cheats - not using that word because it induces guilt and nothing good comes from guilt (especially over something like this!). Instead I will reflect on all the healthy changes I've made over the past 10 days and be grateful.

After dinner, I made another Whole Foods trip. Time to restock the green juice veggies. Would you believe it? They were completely out of cucumbers! I needed 8! I guess I'll have to make yet another run tomorrow at lunchtime. I managed to get everything else I needed, including nutritional yeast. This weekend I'm going to make my first vegan cheese! The checkout girl got me pretty excited about this as she was relaying some of her favorite recipes. She even told me about a vegan cheese they carry that melts and is great for nachos! Can't wait to make that...with black beans maybe...

When I got home I checked my mail and found a nice surprise. I had completely forgotten that I ordered a couple of books from Amazon - Rawlicious and The China Study. I've had The China Study on my reading list for years but have never gotten it because, I think, I didn't want to have to face the truth regarding our collective eating habits and I didn't want to make the necessary changes to create a healthier lifestyle. I guess, like most folks, I figured it was just too much work and we're going to die eventually so what's the point. But now I know the answer - the point is quality of life! Feeling alive and vibrant and clear-minded instead of bloated and groggy or headachy is completely worth making changes, no matter how gradual. Just my opinion...Anyone can find "facts" to support their point of view (vegan or carnivorous), but no one can take away one's personal experience and how healthy eating habits make them feel, which is truly amazing. I already feel lighter and brighter after only 10 days! No wonder all the Vegan books I've read have testimonials from people feeling dramatically better and in many cases ridding themselves of illness.

My back is still a little sore up so I took a hot bath and did some stretching before meditation and bed. Pretty tired tonight...

Day 9

February 22, 2011

Morning

I woke up at 12:30 last night thinking it was almost time to get up. :) I had to pee like crazy! As soon as I crawled back in bed, excited to get back to sleep, the dog upstairs started going crazy. The weird thing is the dog only seems to bark late at night, when the owner is home and on weeknights. And it doesn't sound like a playful bark, it sounds pissed off. I still haven't gotten any ear plugs yet...maybe I'll do that today at lunch. Luckily, the barking didn't last too long and I fell back asleep.
I got up at 6:15 and was still feeling "backed-up". After my lemon/cayenne water and morning pages, I consulted the CSD book and sure enough the notes for Day 9 said I would probably be feeling constipated. Apparently the juice fast day gets the gunk moving, but not all the way. Lovely! Time to get real - time for a natural enema (just distilled water). I know they're creepy but you gotta do what you gotta do, and I need some relief, so that's my big plan for tonight. I know, I know, ladies aren't supposed to poop or pass gas or burp (or apparently be human), but the fact is, we do...grow up and get over it. I want that shit out of me! :) Kris suggested something called Nature's Calm. Love the name! Must do some research on that today. I'm assuming it's just a natural laxative. Now back to our regularly scheduled program...

Meditation - check
Neti pot - check
Dry brushing - saving for tonight before a bath (I like that combination)
Green juice - check

I added an apple to my morning routine to have something to munch on. Apples are a little piece of heaven to me! Decaf tea throughout the morning including a ginger tea that's good for digestion.

I'm not really experiencing any true detox symptoms - headaches, breakouts, etc...does that mean I wasn't as toxic as I thought? Or even more toxic and it hasn't had time to release yet? My face is a bit shiny...maybe that's something. I hope it doesn't all hit at once! From what I've read, I'm past the hardest part but could still experience some detox symptoms. Guess we'll see!

Lunch
Dammit! I forgot to take my digestive enzyme before eating. I took it in the middle of lunch anyway. Another fabulous salad for lunch today...I only had a little bit of quinoa left so I also had some celery and crackers dipped into guacamole. Wholly Guacamole makes these awesome 100 calorie snack packs with all natural ingredients. So tasty! Unless your on a really strict low-fat diet for health reasons, such as pancreatitis, there's no reason to cut out good fats, which avocados are. Of course, limit these, but don't be afraid of them. They actually help you better eliminate all fats and they're essential to your brain. Carrots and/or celery dipped in guacamole is a great snack, whether you're on a cleanse or not. Yummy, filling and healthy! Hard to beat that.

I ran to Walgreens at lunch and returned with Magnesium Citrate (a natural laxative used before a colonoscopy...may not need the enema now) and ear plugs! I also picked up some liquid Vit B12. They come in little bottles like 5 hour energy now. I may be crazy, but I'm taking a couple of sips of the MC here at work...not much, just a small amount. :) Here's hoping!

Evening

No action with the MC yet, but I only had a little at work. I wonder how soon I can have some after eating... had a wonderful dinner! I made gluten free angel hair pasta with olive oil, covered by fresh garlic, tomatoes, basil, a couple of squeezes of lemon, and topped it off with lemon zest, Celtic sea salt and ground black pepper. For a beautiful side, I made red and green bell peppers and onion sauteed in a bit of olive oil and garlic. I topped this with Celtic sea salt and ground pepper as well. Didn't cook this very long or very high in temp, in order to retain the nutrients of the veggies. Since I'm technically supposed to be finished eating three hours before I go to bed, I thought it best to come home and start cooking ASAP. I managed to finish eating by just after 7:00, so that worked out well.

My body is pretty sore from the power yoga yesterday, especially my back...wait no, it's everything. So, I did a round of dry brushing and took a long, hot, lavender epsom salt bath, and finally finished reading CSD. (I also drank the rest of the MC bottle.) After preparing my food for tomorrow, cleaning the kitchen and doing the neti pot I have to say I'm pretty darn tired. Going to do some stretching since I skipped yoga tonight, meditate and go to bed. Hope I don't need the ear plugs I bought, but if I do, I sure hope they do the trick.

Green dreams! Peace out.

Day 8

February 21, 2011

I can't believe I made it a whole week! I've never stuck to something this comprehensive for an entire week! Pathetic I know, but true. I'm very proud and more determined than ever to complete 21 days.

Morning

Woke up at 6:05 and followed my normal routine -

-lemon/cayenne water

-morning pages

-meditation (12 mins)

-net pot

-dry brushing

-16 oz green juice

I miscalculated my weight loss earlier this week (I'm blaming it on brain fog) - I've lost a total of 6 pounds as of today. I've lost 1/2 inch off of my belly (belly button level) and a full inch from the biggest part of my lower abdomen (that's the part that needs the most work!).

-decaf teas throughout the morning...I finally found a decaf chai tea...all is right with the world now. But I won't lie - I miss coffee. I need to get a good decaf one...

Lunch

12:30 - my new standard lunch - big homemade salad and a quinoa dish (the CSD one is still my fav. I've started playing with it though and adding in a couple of other veggies.) I was so excited to chew again! I feel like my jaws got a workout after my big, crunchy salad! :)

A word (or more) on salads - Salads get a bad rap. They're often preceded by a "should" when ordered, as in "I should really get a salad, but..." There’s a certain freedom and fun, (not to mention creativity), to building a gorgeous salad as long as you have a lot of veggies to choose from and try different dressings to change it up. The CSD book has many good dressing recipes. My frig is crazy stocked with veggies right now and I almost feel like I’m shopping when I open the door each night to build my salad for the next day. After perusing my choices I pick and choose whatever I’m in the mood for or whatever color combinations I think would look best or I just throw pretty much everything into the bowl (those are usually my favs) and switch up the dressing from time to time. Flaxseeds are a wonderful, healthy topping in addition to chickpeas for protein and I always spruce it up with cracked pepper before I consume. Ok, I’ll hop off my pedestal now, just remember – when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.

Took my supplements with lunch. I forget to mention them, but I take them each day. There's a digestive enzyme that is recommended to take before eating, but I can never seem to remember it...I also use aloe vera juice 2-3 times a day (a tsp in a glass of water) and I usually forget to mention that as well...maybe I'll post my checklist here...

Snacks

3:30 - 16 oz of green juice
4:00 - a few gluten-free crackers. It turns out my favorite crackers are gluten free - Blue Diamond Nut Thins (almond flavor). Yay!

Evening

Rodney Yee's Total Body Yoga DVD rules! It's challenging without being overwhelming and it's a really good workout - plenty of strength and flexibility moves. I think it's about 50 mins long...not sure. I did that when I got home from work and then had the soup I made yesterday with some crackers and hummus. I added some avocado to the soup, which made it so much better. I drank a lot of water throughout the evening and I gotta be honest, I felt constipated for the rest of the night. Yuck!

I did another round of dry brushing before taking a nice hot bath and did 12 minutes of meditation before bed, which was hard because I still felt so full...maybe it's the water...

Day 7

February 20, 2011

Today is juice fast day!

Morning

I went to bed a little before 11:00 last night and went to sleep fairly quickly, which is amazing for me! I owe it all to the breathing/meditation last night. I still can't get over that! I got up at 8:00 this morning and had my lemon/cayenne water and wrote my morning pages. Then I did a 20 minute guided meditation. Next I did a series of yoga routines (all in all about 50 minutes). Still tight, but feeling a bit stronger. Trying to patient with myself, but I'm so ready to get stronger and more flexible. After yoga I made my beet/apple juice because I'm out of a lot of my green ingredients. Trip to Whole Foods to get stocked up for today and the upcoming week...I'm going to be buying a crapload of green veggies! :)

While at Whole Foods I spent quite a bit of time in the supplements section...but this time looking for new face/body products - lotions, soaps, etc. Last night I read the section in CSD regarding what we put on our bodies. I've often been concerned with what I put in my body, but not on. The skin is our biggest organ and whatever we put on it, it absorbs, so why have I never thought to check the ingredients of the skin care products I use?! I cleaned out the medicine cabinet and shower and did some major replacing today. There are so many natural products available now, it's fun to pick and choose your favs. I've never been into perfume (most of it doesn't really smell good to me and is overwhelming), but I have worn a fruity body spray for quite a while...but it has officially been replaced with essential oils. Primarily lavender...but I may get something like orange or lemon as well. I love lavender! So, I spent a portion of my morning stocking up on healthy, skin care products as well as green veggies.

Lunch was around noon - 16 oz of green juice.

I was pretty busy cleaning and doing laundry and such today, so I never really had time to get hungry. I just made sure that every few hours that I had some green juice. I also had my 2 oz shot of chlorophyll, aka wheatgrass. After reviewing the info in the book, I didn't have as much juice today as suggested, but I feel fine. I'm actually pretty energetic (especially my mind!). I made a veggie soup with cilantro to have for the next couple of days.

Did dry brushing once, neti pot again in the evening as well as meditation and basically read and wrote throughout the evening. Wonder of wonders - the only time I turned on my TV the entire day was to do my yoga video. It's amazing what you can accomplish when you leave the big black box off! I'm not sure I've ever been this productive on a Sunday.
I feel pretty selfish, but I guess I'm going to allow myself to be and hope those around me will understand. (After all it's only 21 days out of years...) I really need this and I think it's best if I not put myself in situations that are not only tempting, but trigger reactive behaviors still lingering. I'm hoping by the end of the cleanse, bad habits won't be as tempting as they once were.

As Kris says, Peace and Veggies!

Day 6

February 19, 2011

Morning

My first weekend day on the cleanse! And I took advantage of sleeping in. I really planned to get up around 7:30, but I didn't set an alarm (on purpose) to let my body catch up on whatever sleep it needs. Apparently I was off by an hour. I woke up at 8:30. I got about 10 hours of sleep! But I really needed it...don't feel guilty about what it did to my morning. I actually had to work today (not my normal job) - judging a writing contest for a UIL competition for DISD. I love when I'm asked to participate in those. It's so interesting to read a kid's point of view on life! So, I didn't leave myself enough time to do all my normal morning routine. Basically I skipped my morning pages (will do them later in the day and I forgot to dry brush), but I did my lemon/cayenne water, 10 minutes of meditation, used the neti pot and drank 16 oz of green juice. Oh yeah, I lost three more pounds today! That's seven total!

Lunch

Boxed lunches were provided to us and I had ordered veggie one ahead of time, but the bread in the veggie sandwich wasn't gluten free. I was pretty hungry so I allowed myself this cheat. I didn't eat all the bread anyway. I brought some gluten free crackers and raw nuts to eat with it in place of the provided chips and cookie.

Snacks

A few nuts in the afternoon (didn't check the time as I was so busy grading papers).

Evening

5:30 Finished the remaining 16 oz of green juice

6:30 WF's cilantro pesto tofu and the CSD quinoa recipe (made a fresh batch of this yummy grub!) I might've eaten too much too quickly - very full!

Used the neti pot again this evening since everyone around me is having a hard time with allergies and I've been a little stopped up the last couple of days. I didn't get any dry brushing done today and I only wrote one page of morning pages while proctoring the contest. But...I had an amazing meditation experience. I did a yoga breathing practice that's supposed to be really good for sinuses (as well as lungs) called kapalabhati. Basically you exhale forcefully through your nose (quickly) and passively inhale, more as a reaction to the exhalation than anything. It's done very quickly. I didn't do it very long before getting high - on oxygen! It was awesome! I started it after about 6-7 minutes of regular meditation and I did more meditation afterward, and it's the first time my mind didn't wander. My whole body was tingling and felt totally alive...it's hard to describe in words. I know how this sounds, but I don't care! Don't knock it 'till you've tried it. Peace out.

Day 5

February 18, 2011

Morning

So I went to bed last night at 10:30 (aimed for 10:00 but couldn’t make it) and I was so tired and ready to fall asleep…but I couldn’t. I finally got really close and then…the dreaded upstairs neighbor (who, in sound, resembles an elephant), starting doing something and then his/her dog started barking. The barking went on (off and on) for at least an hour and a half. I have nothing against dogs, but I can’t wait for the day that I live in a place where I don’t have to listen to someone else’s dog bark all night just because we share a wall. And this is a big dog with a loud, deep bark. Honestly, my neighbor is much more obnoxious than the dog. Strangely and sadly, the only time the dog is an issue is from about 10:30 to 12:30 each night. Not good! I already have enough trouble sleeping! So, I’m buying some good, comfortable ear plugs this weekend to sleep in.
I still managed to get up at 6:05 (I think my anger finally woke me). I followed my checklist as usual -

-lemon/cayenne water

-morning pages

-10 mins meditation

-neti pot

-dry brusing

-juice – wait…let’s stop here for a minute. Last night at WF, I bought some wheatgrass to juice (2-4 oz twice a day) so I wouldn’t have to use that power. Wheatgrass contains chlorophyll (among other wonderful minerals and aminos), which oxygenates the bloodstream – basically it’s the superfood of superfoods. It takes a LOT of wheatgrass just to make 2 ounces of juice! I’m not even sure I had a full 2 ounces. Preparing myself for the worst, I downed it in two shots, but it wasn’t that bad…it had a bit of a sweet taste. Not that I want to sip on it; I’ll definitely continue to do it in shots. After that, I made my green juice and put it in my new BPA-free 32 oz bottle. I loaded up a smaller, similar bottle with water and headed off to work, feeling much more awake than when the day started. Here’s where it gets weird…I started drinking the juice in the car (which had a much stronger ginger flavor today, although I don’t think I used more than usual), and suddenly started feeling really nauseated and like I needed to burp. This stayed with me for the entire 30 min commute. On both elevators at work (parking lot and building), I realized how horrible it would be to get stuck in an elevator and have to puke! Or worse, to get stuck in one when someone else throws up! Uber yuck! Thankfully, that didn’t happen to me, but the feeling continued through the early morning, so I put the juice in the frig and stuck with water. After a couple of bathroom trips (no puking) and a couple of burps, I finally started to get a little hungry around 10:30 and got back on the juice. I had some Chai Tea around 10:00, which I think helped soothe my tummy. (Today was going to be no caffeine day, but forget that!)

Also, all morning my sinuses were stopped up. I went for two days in a row without meds (which is amazing for me), but no third day. I took my pill in the morning with my tea.

Basically here’s how my morning felt – brain was very foggy and I was sleepy…I thought maybe this was the draining day…

Lunch

I forgot to mention my new “bracelet”. Yesterday morning when I was washing veggies to juice, I pulled a rather large, yellow rubber band off of a bunch of celery and put it on my wrist just to get it out of the way. I completely forgot about it and noticed it later in the morning. In green letters it says, “Organically Grown”. I thought it fitting for this project, so I kept it on to remind me to continue with all aspects of this cleanse and also to remind me to take care of myself. So, after struggling a bit this morning, looking at my bracelet gave me a little perspective on what I’m doing with this whole thing. My brain was still a little fuzzy, which is likely evident in my writing, but I knew that was part of the deal. The first week is supposed to be the hardest and this is really the first day I’ve had any issues.

Lunch – salad and the quinoa recipe from CSD (I really love this recipe. I could eat this meal for lunch pretty much every day.) I know eating the same thing day after day doesn’t sound very interesting or exciting, but for me, it works well on work days. It’s easy to prepare and I always have something healthy to eat. Lunch is usually when I either write or read (unless I actually have to work), so while I enjoy the food, I also enjoy the time to do something I love. The meal becomes secondary. So, repetitive lunches are cool with me. The weekends are a different story! Oh yeah, had two little pieces of dark chocolate with a hint of orange…perfect end to my lunch.

I miss coffee. The guys next to me always get coffee after lunch and it smells so good today. I’ve had a couple of cravings today…haven’t really had that up until now.

Snacks

3:00 – 10 raw nuts (almonds and walnuts)…still sleepy, yet fidgety…I’m not loving today. Still not as bad as a day with a sinus or migraine headache, or overcome with depression, so I guess there’s a bright(ish) side.

4:45 – Just remembered I have green juice left – 16 oz. Amazingly I wasn’t even hungry. I learned a little something about juicing from the manual that came with my machine – if there’s something that you want to taste more of, put it in first. So, I made sure to put most of the pear and cucumber slices in first. If I recall, I put the ginger in at the very beginning and as I said earlier, it has a very strong ginger flavor today, almost spicy…like me! :)

Evening

Did yoga after work. Still very frustrated with how out-of-shape I let myself get.

Dinner - WF's cilantro pesto tofu and a quinoa dish from WF (the one from CSD is much better!), but I'm in a bit of a hurry to meet a friend for a movie, so this will do.

After the movie I was so tired - I came home, got ready for and went to bed immediately. Didn't do meditation...I don't think I could've stayed awake for it.

Day 4

February 17, 2011

Morning

I slept pretty well last night, but I did NOT want to get up this morning! Didn’t get out of bed until 6:15 (notice it’s increased by 5 minute increments each day?)…can’t go past that though! There’s too much to do in the a.m. to lose more than 15 minutes. So, now I know I can get up anywhere from 6:00 to 6:15 and still get everything accomplished. I’m seriously considering investing in one of those lamps that comes on slowly over 30 minutes until it’s at its brightest, and setting it to start at 5:30. I think that would help this former night owl have an easier time waking up.

Down the list I went -

-lemon/cayenne water

-morning pages

-10 mins meditation

-neti pot

-get ready – including dry brushing (sometime I use loofah gloves so both hands can get involved…it’s almost fun now)

-no new weight loss – still down 4 lbs and I’m happy with that, but ready to shed more, especially from my tummy!

-juice – back to the green juice. Let’s “talk” about the green juice for a minute…I know most people cringe at the thought of it, but here’s my perspective – First and foremost, I’ve tried several and the one in CSD is much more palatable than most. My theory is because of the two cucumbers, two pears and the bit of ginger. (It also contains kale, romaine lettuce, celery, broccoli stems and I add sprouts and dandelion.) It does take some getting used to, but didn’t your first beer? That wasn’t good…it didn’t become good until a taste for it was acquired. I’m actually getting pretty used to the green juice and I look forward to it, mainly because I know what it’s doing for my body, but also because it’s refreshing. I picture all my organs smiling as I pour it down my pie hole (now green juice hole!), where in past I imagine they were angry with me for quite a while and then more recently, most likely were just sad and wondering why I treated them so poorly. :(

-Throughout the morning – green tea (1 cup caff) and lots of water as usual (a tsp of aloe vera juice in one of my water glasses). My stomach didn’t growl at all until after 11:00 (an hour later than the last three days).

Lunch

12:30 – You guessed it – an awesome, homemade salad, with a tiny bit of quinoa/chickpea leftovers and some gluten-free crackers with hummus. Ah yeah…hummus!

Snacks

Didn’t even feel the need for a snack until 4:15! - Had the remaining 16 oz of my green juice. At 5:00, I had 12 raw nuts (almonds and walnuts)…needed a little something for my yoga workout.

Evening

Yoga after work...man am I tight! And sore as well, after only one day. So pathetic! I love my Rodney Yee videos though...can't wait to get back to the power yoga one. I highly recommend his videos if you can't afford a yoga studio or are nervous about taking a class, whether due to lack of experience, tightness or the dreaded farting scenario. However, if you've never done yoga, I would suggest starting with a class to ensure you learn the proper technique.

Dinner was a trip to Whole Foods with my man. His plan was to take me to the Raw Bar, which is no longer. So, we created meals from the huge salad bars and took them home. I got several different veggie dishes and some cilantro pesto tofu (one of my WF's favs). We each had 3 little squares of Green & Blacks organic dark chocolate (with 70% cocoa) for dessert. So yummy and so good for the body!

Another round of dry brushing (with the loffah gloves) before a hot bath. I think I'm starting to get addicted to dry brushing. :)

Did my 10 minutes of evening meditation...still having a hard time slowing/focusing my mind, which I know is all the more reason I will benefit from it, but it's frustrating to have such a busy mind.

Day 3

February 16, 2011

Morning

Slept a little better, but still not really used to 6:00 am…make that 6:10 this morning. I made a checklist yesterday and now my morning is getting to be more routine, which is easier for me –

-lemon/cayenne water
-morrning pages
-10 mins meditation
-neti pot
-get ready – including dry brushing
-juice – this morning I had to make a different juice because I’m out of some of the green juice ingredients. So, I consulted a couple of my juicing books and found one with green stuff (kale, broccoli, and I added dandelion) in addition to carrots, one apple, and one beet. Looked gross, but taste good! I’m making a Whole Foods run at lunch and going to build a big, beautiful salad there…love their salad bar! Oh yeah, lost another pound, down 4 total!

-Throughout the morning – green tea (1 cup caff), herbal tea (berry detox – so yummy!) and mixed a tsp of aloe vera juice in with one of my glasses of water. (completely forgot about that the other days). It’s known as an immunity booster and helps with digestive issues. If you use it, start off in very small doses as it loosens the bowels pretty quickly. :) Won’t go into detail, but I’m already feeling lighter.

I experienced some hunger this morning , most notably by a growling stomach, but I’m having zero blood sugar issues and no weakness or feeling drained. So, as long as those symptoms don’t exist, I know the growling stomach is just a feeling of discomfort from a tummy that’s used to getting stuffed at will. The whole scenario kind of reminds me of a crying child that’s bawling simply for attention but nothing’s actually wrong. As the adult, you have to pay close enough attention to know when something is really wrong or when the baby just wants some attention.

Lunch

A salad does not have to be comprised primarily of lettuce/spinach. I just had created the most amazing one from the Whole Food’s salad bar! It was a rainbow of veggies – greens (romaine, spinach, kale), cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes, carrots, bell peppers of every color, mushrooms, purple cabbage, chickpeas, and a few soy nuts; added some dressing and pepper and bam! Awesome lunch served! I made so much that I already have my afternoon snack ready. The only down side of the Whole Foods venture was the supplements section…turns out not all Whole Foods are created equal. They don’t all carry the exact same supplements. I was looking for some Braggs amino acids (called for in some recipes) and some E3Live (Superfood supp) and couldn’t find either, but I’ve seen them at another store. Off to the Lakewood store tonight…

Dinner

Had some organic miso soup from Whole Foods at home, so I made that and added some zucchini and shitake mushrooms. I also made a Mediterranean quinoa recipe from the CSD book. Both were so freakin’ delish!

I did yoga right after work (before dinner) and OMG am I tight! It’s embarrassingly bad. I didn’t even do a “hardcore” routine…so sad. Oh well, what are you gonna do?! Keep doing it and be excited about the progress. As a certified perfectionist, control freak I have to constantly remind myself – progress, not perfection! Sometimes I think perfection is as dangerous an addiction as drugs…

No time for another Whole Foods trip tonight. After yoga and dinner, I did another round of dry brushing and took a long, hot shower. I was amazed at how smooth my skin was, especially my legs, after the shower. Usually I’m jonesin’ for the lotion because I’m so dry after shaving, but tonight, even before lotion, my legs were so smooth. The first time you dry brush, it’s really eye opening to see all the dead skin cells we’re carrying around. Blech! This is definitely something I can keep up with long term. After the shower I prepared my salad for tomorrow and cleaned up all the juicer parts and took my supplements and read a bit more from CSD. I won’t lie - this cleanse is time consuming if you do all of it. Preparing your food is the biggest portion of it, but there’s a lot more to do if you stay on track with everything. A small price to pay I guess for 21 days! I mean 21 days…in the grand scheme of things...that’s nothing. I just hope most, if not all of these habits stick in the long term. :) Off to meditate and go to bed (by 10:00). Hey! I just realized I didn't take my allergy/sinus pill today and I can still breathe. Awesome!

Day 2

February 15, 2011

Morning

I didn’t sleep as well as I would’ve liked, especially since I was so tired when I went to bed last night. I kept waking up in the middle of the night, kind of sweaty. Gross! Not full-on night sweats, but just a little sweaty. When I finally did get up (at 6:05), I was very tired. On a normal day, I would NOT have gotten up, but I can proudly say that I did today. I perked up a bit when I weighed and saw that I lost 3 pounds (from yesterday)! I’m sure it’s mostly water weight, but I don’t care…it made me feel like I’m heading in the right direction. I fixed my lemon, cayenne water and then proceeded to write my morning pages, which went a bit slower than usual. Next I did 10 minutes of meditation (had a really hard time with a wandering mind this go-around). Had my beet, apple juice while getting ready, which included something I forgot yesterday – dry-brushing. Heard of it? It’s a great way to loosen dead skin cells as well as awaken your lymph system (which helps builds your immunity). But most importantly, it reduces cellulite! I’ve done this before, but as is par for course, haven’t been consistent. It’s kind of an interesting sensation. You start at your toes and work your way up going in circles (very softly in sensitive areas). Man, the back of my legs need this more than I care to admit. Blech!

After that I made the vat (well, it feels like that much!) of green juice. I need two new bottles to carry this to work in, with 16 oz in each. My current bottle is 24 oz with a very unsecure lid. (I’m leaving green splotches everywhere I go.) I poured the rest, which was still a bit more than 32 total ounces, into my Wonder Woman mug (appropriate, right?!) and sipped that on the way to work, finishing it off at work. Shortly afterwards, I had a cup of Chai tea and later in the morning, detox berry herbal tea. I’m going to do my best to follow the “nothing but liquids before lunch” advice. I forgot to take my supplements this morning (Vit B, Vit D, a probiotic and an Omega 3), but that’s okay, I’ll take them after work. I think I forgot to mention those yesterday…There are actually a couple more supplements that I need to buy…

Lunch

12:10 - Same lunch as yesterday – yummy salad prepared by yours truly and the quinoa/chickpea grub from Whole Foods. A piece of gum makes a pretty good dessert (since I don’t have much of a sweet tooth). However, I’m allowed some dark chocolate in small portions if needed. I keep some at work and at home just in case. I’ve decided I’m going to create a checklist as I realized that I forgot to use my neti pot this morning. I can do it tonight, but I still think it would be easier if I had a check list…besides I’m a Virgo…we thrive on checklists!

Snacks

3:00 pm – 16 oz of green juice (this time with only a heaping tsp of wheatgrass powder…better make it a small teaspoon tomorrow…or better yet, maybe Whole Foods will have some actual wheatgrass when I go by after work). Also, had 3 gluten-free crackers, and about an hour later 8-10 almonds/walnuts.
Still a little tired but not falling-asleep-at-my-desk kind of tired. Also, I’ve had no blood sugar spikes or drops. (I might have failed to mention that I’ve struggled with hypoglycemia pretty much my whole life and have been adamant about eating certain things at certain times to prevent crashing.) So far (and I’ve heard this before), no issues following this kind of diet. That says a lot to me regarding the standard American diet (or SAD as Kris Carr points out…because, let’s face it – it is SAD!)

Dinner

6:00ish – Homemade cabbage soup with gluten-free crackers, also some hummus and green pepper strips.

-Took supplements

-Meditated 10 minutes before bed

Forgot to do the neti pot… :(

Day 1

February 14, 2011
Happy Valentine’s Day! This is my first day (in a very long time) to show some self love.

Morning

I have never been an early riser. I’ve been known to hit the snooze button for well over an hour and often get up at 8 or soon after, crash around and then speed to work arriving a little after nine. Not cool…especially at a new job. It’s usually because I have wine the night before and don’t go to bed until midnight and then can’t fall asleep until God knows when. So, then I’m basically dragging the whole day only to do it all over again. (Just to be clear I don’t drink every night, but I do enjoy vino way too often.) So, today when I woke up at 6:00 a.m., I was happily surprised! I started with a cup of hot water with lemon (I used a quarter of one) and a dash of cayenne, as instructed. Next, I settled down to write my “morning pages” (see The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron –she rocks!). I won’t go into too much detail because you should check out her work, but morning pages are 3 full stream-of-consciousness pages to be completed first thing each morning, even if it’s just “I can’t think of anything to write” over and over. It helps clear out the cobwebs to make way for fun, creative stuff to flow. I’ve done these off and on for about 10 years and every time I do them consistently, wonderful, serendipitous things happen to me. Why I ever got lax with these is beyond me…oh wait…no it’s not…it was probably the whole wine/no sleep thing…Sigh…As I began to write I looked at the dark brown drapes covering the bedroom windows and thought I should let some sunlight in. Those of you who get up at 6:00 a.m. are now laughing at me (as you should be)! That’s what I did when I pulled back the curtains to darkness (it is February after all). I can’t remember the last time I was up that early. Normally when I awake, the sun is in full swing. :)

Then I did (a long) 10 minutes of meditation. Kris’s advice to start simply by counting each breath from 1-10 and then over again until the timer goes off is helpful, but it still felt like longer than 10 minutes and I struggle with true abdominal breathing…using my chest too much. But I know I’ll get better with practice.

Next it was time to face my old friend, the neti pot. If you don’t know what one is you should do some research, especially if you have sinus/allergy problems (which I have been saddled with since childhood). It’s been used in the Far East for centuries (the West is always so slow and reluctant to try anything other than popping a pill…). I use a ¼ tsp of sea salt in a cup of lukewarm, distilled water. After securing my hair in a ponytail, I pour half of a cup in the pot, lean my head over the sink sideways, left nostril down, right one up and go for it. Of course I do the other side next (just like exercise) and then blow and blow. Creates a beautiful picture, huh? If you’ve never done it, give it a shot…if for nothing else, to experience the strange sensation. :)

After completing the sinus cleansing, I made a beet, apple juice in my fancy, schmancy juicer (beets are good for the liver and God knows mine needs all the help it can get!). I’ve made this one many times before and really enjoy it. It’s actually quite a beautiful drink! Sometimes I pour it into a wine glass. :) I sipped on that while getting ready. Then right before leaving for work I made the green juice that is the staple of the Crazy Sexy Diet. The recipe is supposed to make 32 ounces…mine was more like 40. Not sure what happened there…this is Texas…maybe all the veggies are just bigger here. So, on the drive to work I drank that and finished up about 24 ounces for breakfast (saving the rest for the afternoon).

Because I’m a coffee and tea drinker, I’m not quitting caffeine cold turkey. I did that once in college and the headache was a whole new kind of hell. Best to wean oneself off of it… So, when I got to work, I had a cup of Chai tea.

I felt really good all morning…much more energy than I usually have. I started to get a little hungry around 10:00 so I had a mixture of almonds and walnuts (raw), about 8-10 total.

Lunch

Lunch (around 12:15) was a glorious salad that I prepared yesterday – tons of veggies with spinach and romaine lettuce and flaxseeds, with pepper and balsamic vinegar/olive oil dressing to top it off. I also had a little quinoa/chickpea prepared dish from Whole Foods. It was mixed with zucchini, green onions and parsley and flavored with something so yummy (need to replicate it at home)!

Snacks

At 3:15 I had an afternoon snack of 16 ounces of green juice. I thought I would be smart and add a packet of a Superfood powder (primarily composed of wheatgrass)…probably should’ve just used a couple of teaspoons…wow! The juice turned forest green and was so thick! But I made a commitment to myself and I’ve let myself down way too many times in the past, so I drank it. All of it! When I got to the bottom there was still quite a bit of the powder, so I poured some water in with it (you’re supposed to mix it with juice, for which, the reasoning became incredibly obvious after a few sips). I only managed a little bit of this mixture. Live and learn, right?

A couple of hours later I was still hungry so I had some celery sticks (cut in half and then into 2-3 inch pieces) dipped in hummus. Hummus might be sent from heaven! I only need a small amount to keep me content. One thing that’s already becoming apparent (and technically I already knew this from other detoxes/fasts) is that hunger pains aren’t always really about hunger…discomfort at not being fed more fat maybe but not hunger as in starvation/you’re in danger kind of hunger. I doubt many employed Americas have experienced that. It makes me realize how much we take our abundant food supply for granted and how I can’t even begin to imagine what truly starving is like…and for that, I am eternally grateful. I once heard Angelina Jolie say something to the effect of feeling guilty or gluttonous after visiting starving children so she actually started eating quite a bit less…enough to be healthy but she stopped being over-indulgent (which definitely shows on her frame). I think I understand now.

Dinner

My boyfriend took me to dinner for Valentine’s Day and being the open-minded guy that he is, he willingly took me to a vegetarian place. We had an amazing appetizer – spinach, artichoke dip with vegan cheese. I did cheat and have a couple of very small pieces of bread as that’s all the dip was served with, until I realized I could just eat it with my fork (thick and yummy). For dinner I ordered a sandwich with avocado, cucumber, tomato, romaine and mayo (not sure if it was vegan) on quinoa spelt bread. So delish! It came with corn chips, of which I indulged a few in the afore-mentioned dip. Water with lime for a drink and all-in-all pretty proud of myself! It wasn’t a perfect cleanse-type meal, but pretty close. It was a nice night with my man, who, by the way, bought me two beautiful bouquets of flowers. Batting eyelashes now…

After my beau left, I fixed my salad for tomorrow, got ready for bed and meditated another 10 minutes before going to bed. I managed to get to bed by 10:30…pretty good for V-day.

Intro

Welcome to my Adventure! (which actually began on 2/14/2011...just didn't have time to create the blog until now)

Here's a little background...


While I’m not suffering from some major disease, I have had a couple of struggles throughout my life that have really made creating new, healthy habits difficult as they both leave me feeling lethargic – depression and sinus/allergy problems. Regarding the latter, I’ve actually had sinus surgery and it helped a lot, but I still have allergy problems that cause my sinuses to get stopped up easily and I take a prescription decongestant/antihistamine pretty much every day (and have for nearly 30 yrs!). Depression…well it just plain sucks. It makes you only want to indulge in vices (especially booze, food and TV). I’m also teetering on the edge of the healthy weight mark for my height, so I’m striving to lose about 15 pounds.
Basically, I’ve been putting my body through the ringer for quite some time and I’ve finally gotten fed up with it enough to do something! What the hell took so long?! Having certain beliefs (regarding wellness) and living opposite of that is soul-sucking. I just can’t do it anymore. Time to let the vices go and create healthy habits that represent who I really am!
After stumbling onto the amazing information presented in a very easy-to-digest and entertaining format by Kris Carr on her website, crazysexylife.com, I have decided to take action. I ordered her truly inspiring documentary (Crazy Sexy Cancer) about her diagnosis of stage 4 cancer at age 31 and all the lifestyle changes she’s made to keep the cancer in check. She was diagnosed on February 14, 2003. So, as a bit of nod to her I’m starting my Cleanse on Valentine’s Day. Her most recent book, Crazy Sexy Diet, is a comprehensive look at the effects of what we put into our bodies…OMG…eye-freaking-opening! I still haven’t completed the book as I just received it this weekend, but I’ve skimmed all that I haven’t read yet and I’m continuing to read it in depth. There’s a lot that I need no convincing of (the effects of meat, dairy, and sugar, for example), but all the info regarding Ph in the body is fascinating. Science really is sexy!
I’ve made plenty of changes throughout my life, many related to diet, but this cleanse is going to be much more comprehensive than anything I’ve ever done. It’s not just my diet that’s changing – while on the cleanse, I’ll be following Kris’s other guidelines regarding exercise (I’ll be focusing primarily on yoga and walking/running) and meditation as well as using my lovely neti pot on a daily basis. The last two are activities I’ve tried to incorporate into my daily schedule many times before but have never succeeded in being consistent. This time I AM determined to create these habits! I believe in the benefits of meditation 100% yet I don’t do it (the same goes for all of it – the neti pot, exercise, eating well). I’m treating this whole experience like a mandatory lifestyle rehab, and I’ve created this blog and told everyone I know simply so I’ll have to be accountable. Even if no one else truly cares if I succeed, having to report what I’ve done each day and how I feel about it is perfect for my Virgo nature. Let the Adventure begin!