Cleansing Time

Last week we had two locations to go to on Thanksgiving day.  My parents at lunchtime and the boyfriend's family at 3 p.m.  I feel guilty saying that I ate at both places.  Including dessert, although I only had a very small sliver of pie.  I did watch my portions and didn't really overdo it on the calories (except for the dessert).  Needless to say I was starting to feel pretty sluggish. 

I started a 10 day cleanse on Sunday.  I'm drinking a fiber drink, taking herbal cleanse tablets and a pro-biotic.  I'm also eating extremely healthy right now.  I haven't had caffeine in 5 days!  No dairy, no simple carbs or processed flour.  Other than a sluggish period every afternoon that I've just had to push through, I'm feeling pretty good.  I occasionally get migraines (I had one Saturday night in fact), so I was worried that going off the caffeine cold turkey would trigger a migraine.  I'm very thankful that it hasn't.

I'm hoping that besides cleansing out the toxins from processed foods and artificial sweeteners, medications and just environmental toxins, that this cleanse will give me a better jump start in weight loss and healthier eating.

I wanted to share some of the menu items I've been enjoying while on the cleanse.

Breakfast:

• Scrambled, hard boiled or "fried" eggs with no butter or oil added,  fresh fruit such as apples, oranges, pears or bananas

•  Super green smoothie made with water, fresh spinach, frozen banana, strawberries, pineapple and cantaloupe.  You can add any fruit you prefer to make this nutritious and delicious smoothie.  Click on the link here to see other options that I have used.  I also ate a handful of pistachios along with my smoothie to get some protein.

Lunch:

• Turkey (yes, had lots sent home with me from Thanksgiving), baked sweet potato with only cinnamon added, fresh broccoli with hummus, fruit such as apples, oranges, pears or bananas.

• Albacore tuna with chopped celery, avocado and pecans mashed together (super tasty!), fresh fruit such as apples, oranges, pears or bananas.

Dinner:

• Protein such as baked chicken or fish (even had a small amount of steak one night), sauteéd mushrooms in olive oil, fresh broccoli with hummus.

• Salad with fresh broccoli, mushrooms and shelled edamame, boiled shrimp, hard boiled egg and small amount of oil based dressing (no cream based dressings).

And I'm drinking LOTS of water all day long.

Hopefully I can continue the healthy eating after the period of cleanse is over.  So far I've really been enjoying my meals and haven't felt deprived. . .at least not too much!  :)

Leave me some comments if you have some menu suggestions for me. . .I'm always looking for some new creativity with my food choices!