7 Day Cleanse
This week I did something I thought I never would give in to- a cleanse. My coworkers and I have been motivating each other to lose weight (working for a weight loss study may have been an influence!), so one of my coworkers suggested we do this cleanse to jumpstart this process. I have never been who has believed in drastic or strict diets (hence my previous post on obesity research and avoiding drastic changes for weight loss) but I became convinced that this would be a good way to start making healthier choices- ah yes, I didn't 'practice what I preach,' per say. I decided that trying out a cleanse would be a new way for me to challenge my body and to show myself that I can avoid unnecessary foods and additives as well as to clear out my body. Because this cleanse came with weight loss in just a week I know that it will be a challenge to maintain it afterwards. In doing this cleanse I hoped to work on self control and prove to myself that I can make healthy choices. In my previous post I mentioned that self control may not always be the cause of being overweight or obese for many people, but for my own personal health it's definitely something I need to focus on. I hope that completing this cleanse will motivate me to make better choices everyday and push me to incorporate more fruits and vegetables into my daily diet.
Everyday rules
-No Alcohol for the full week
-10 glasses of water a day (no other drinks)
-Wonder Soup (cabbage, tomatoes, onion, green pepper, celery, carrots, lipton onion mix, water) in unlimited quantities
-No dressings
Day 1--Friday 1/31: Fruits only- no bananas. On the first day of the cleanse I ate an assortment of the following fruits throughout the day-watermelon, cantaloupe, oranges, blueberries, strawberries, mangoes, grapes. I also had 1/2 of a grapefruit for breakfast. I added a bowl of the special wonder soup for dinner. I also started the day off with half a mug of black coffee.
Day 2-- Saturday 2/1: Vegetables only, potato for breakfast. On this day you are allowed to eat vegetables, and start the day off with a potato with a bit of butter. I used a sweet potato and margarine for breakfast with some spinach. On this day I ate 3 bowls of soup, salads, and raw carrots and celery. My salads included spinach, cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, tomatoes, and lemon juice for dressing. Although I wasn't supposed to have fruit on day 2, I mixed an avocado with onion, tomato, and lemon juice to make a avocado dressing for my salad. I also used this avocado mixture to dip carrots and celery.
Day 3-- Sunday 2/2: Fruits and Vegetables. On this day you are allowed to eat both fruits and vegetables- and to avoid bananas. I ate the wonder soup as well as the salads and fruit bowls I prepared on days 1 and 2. I had half a grapefruit with breakfast. I also used the left over avocado mixture on this day as well. Unfortunately this day was also Superbowl Sunday, so no pizza and wings for me!
Day 4-- Monday 2/3: Bananas and Milk. I started the day off with a banana and almond milk smoothie. I used 1.5 bananas, a cup of milk, ice, and a teaspoon of vanilla for the smoothie and I ate the other half of the banana with breakfast. For a midday snack I had a 3rd banana. For lunch I ate a bowl of soup with half a cup of almond milk. In the late afternoon I had a 4th banana with a sprinkle of cinnamon. For dinner I ate a bowl of soup and had a banana with cinnamon after with half a cup of milk.
Day 5-- Tuesday 2/4: 1 pound Beef and 6 whole Tomatoes. I started off this day with a few pieces of meat (pot roast squares) and roasted tomatoes. Because you have to increase your water intake to 14 glasses a day I drank 2 glasses of water with breakfast. For lunch I had a piece of beef with a few pot roast squares and some roasted tomatoes. I also used a tomato (blended tomatoes w/ herbs) as a 'sauce' for this meal. I drank an additional 6 glasses of water throughout the work day. For dinner I ate another piece of beef with some pot roast squares, roasted tomatoes, and homemade sauce. I drank 2 glasses of water with dinner and an additional 2 in the late evening. To season my meat and tomatoes I used a salt free herb and garlic mix and black pepper. Although today's meals lacked variety and were practically the same it was nice getting to eat meat again and to have a significant amount of protein for the day.
Day 6--Wednesday 2/5: Beef and Vegetables. On this day I ate a combination of ground beef chili, homemade meatballs, a piece of beef, and pot roast squares. For vegetables I ate tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, green peppers, onions, and celery. My ground beef chili included onion, green pepper, a can of stewed tomatoes, 1 tsp each of cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder. The meatballs were oven-baked, and made of ground beef, onion, green pepper, and seasoned with black pepper. I also ate the same salad I ate on days 1 and 3.
Day 7-- Thursday 2/6: Brown Rice and Vegetables & Fruit Juice. Last day! I started the day off with some mango for breakfast- I really wasn't feeling vegetables for breakfast again! For lunch and dinner I had brown rice with an onion, tomato and green pepper stir-fry. I also cheated a bit and added 2 tbsps of teriyaki sauce for flavor. Other vegetables I had throughout the day were cauliflower, broccoli. and zucchini, as well as the salads I ate on previous vegetable days. Although you're allowed to have fruit juice (no added sugar/ natural ones) on this day, I only had cup of orange juice and just drank water throughout the day. I snacked on celery and carrots as well. In the evening I cheated with a mug of chai.
Overall, I am happy I did the cleanse, although the first 3 days were challenging, once I got to day 4 I felt refreshed. I enjoyed days 5 and 6 the most because the protein from the beef in combination with the vegetables made me feel more energetic throughout the day. In these 7 days I lost 6.3 pounds. Although the cleanse was a challenge, the real challenge is keeping the weight off once I am no longer cleansing. I definitely don't recommend this as a routine thing to do and it does obviously has its faults as all diets do (that's a lot to lose in just 1 week obviously), but if you want to start long term weight loss and you don't have any medically related dietary restrictions or limitations, this cleanse may be a good way to start the process of eating healthy and clearing out your system. I learned that fruits can be a great replacement for snacks that are fatty or lack nutrients. Before doing this I realized that I hardy ever eat fruits besides grapes occasionally, and I never buy them at the grocery store. I also learned that contrary to what I always thought, I don't need coffee (especially with cream and sweetener) to survive! Most importantly, I learned that saying that I don't have time to prepare meals to take to work for lunch or at home for dinner isn't an excuse, since I prepared all my meals every evening for the week- the longest I've gone without eating out ever! (Sad..I know). If this is something you decide to do I recommend doing it with a friend or family member, it is definitely easier to avoid quitting or making unhealthy choices if you have someone doing it with you.
Here are some photos of what I ate throughout the week:
Everyday rules
-No Alcohol for the full week
-10 glasses of water a day (no other drinks)
-Wonder Soup (cabbage, tomatoes, onion, green pepper, celery, carrots, lipton onion mix, water) in unlimited quantities
-No dressings
Day 1--Friday 1/31: Fruits only- no bananas. On the first day of the cleanse I ate an assortment of the following fruits throughout the day-watermelon, cantaloupe, oranges, blueberries, strawberries, mangoes, grapes. I also had 1/2 of a grapefruit for breakfast. I added a bowl of the special wonder soup for dinner. I also started the day off with half a mug of black coffee.
Day 2-- Saturday 2/1: Vegetables only, potato for breakfast. On this day you are allowed to eat vegetables, and start the day off with a potato with a bit of butter. I used a sweet potato and margarine for breakfast with some spinach. On this day I ate 3 bowls of soup, salads, and raw carrots and celery. My salads included spinach, cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, tomatoes, and lemon juice for dressing. Although I wasn't supposed to have fruit on day 2, I mixed an avocado with onion, tomato, and lemon juice to make a avocado dressing for my salad. I also used this avocado mixture to dip carrots and celery.
Day 3-- Sunday 2/2: Fruits and Vegetables. On this day you are allowed to eat both fruits and vegetables- and to avoid bananas. I ate the wonder soup as well as the salads and fruit bowls I prepared on days 1 and 2. I had half a grapefruit with breakfast. I also used the left over avocado mixture on this day as well. Unfortunately this day was also Superbowl Sunday, so no pizza and wings for me!
Day 4-- Monday 2/3: Bananas and Milk. I started the day off with a banana and almond milk smoothie. I used 1.5 bananas, a cup of milk, ice, and a teaspoon of vanilla for the smoothie and I ate the other half of the banana with breakfast. For a midday snack I had a 3rd banana. For lunch I ate a bowl of soup with half a cup of almond milk. In the late afternoon I had a 4th banana with a sprinkle of cinnamon. For dinner I ate a bowl of soup and had a banana with cinnamon after with half a cup of milk.
Day 5-- Tuesday 2/4: 1 pound Beef and 6 whole Tomatoes. I started off this day with a few pieces of meat (pot roast squares) and roasted tomatoes. Because you have to increase your water intake to 14 glasses a day I drank 2 glasses of water with breakfast. For lunch I had a piece of beef with a few pot roast squares and some roasted tomatoes. I also used a tomato (blended tomatoes w/ herbs) as a 'sauce' for this meal. I drank an additional 6 glasses of water throughout the work day. For dinner I ate another piece of beef with some pot roast squares, roasted tomatoes, and homemade sauce. I drank 2 glasses of water with dinner and an additional 2 in the late evening. To season my meat and tomatoes I used a salt free herb and garlic mix and black pepper. Although today's meals lacked variety and were practically the same it was nice getting to eat meat again and to have a significant amount of protein for the day.
Day 6--Wednesday 2/5: Beef and Vegetables. On this day I ate a combination of ground beef chili, homemade meatballs, a piece of beef, and pot roast squares. For vegetables I ate tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, green peppers, onions, and celery. My ground beef chili included onion, green pepper, a can of stewed tomatoes, 1 tsp each of cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder. The meatballs were oven-baked, and made of ground beef, onion, green pepper, and seasoned with black pepper. I also ate the same salad I ate on days 1 and 3.
Day 7-- Thursday 2/6: Brown Rice and Vegetables & Fruit Juice. Last day! I started the day off with some mango for breakfast- I really wasn't feeling vegetables for breakfast again! For lunch and dinner I had brown rice with an onion, tomato and green pepper stir-fry. I also cheated a bit and added 2 tbsps of teriyaki sauce for flavor. Other vegetables I had throughout the day were cauliflower, broccoli. and zucchini, as well as the salads I ate on previous vegetable days. Although you're allowed to have fruit juice (no added sugar/ natural ones) on this day, I only had cup of orange juice and just drank water throughout the day. I snacked on celery and carrots as well. In the evening I cheated with a mug of chai.
Overall, I am happy I did the cleanse, although the first 3 days were challenging, once I got to day 4 I felt refreshed. I enjoyed days 5 and 6 the most because the protein from the beef in combination with the vegetables made me feel more energetic throughout the day. In these 7 days I lost 6.3 pounds. Although the cleanse was a challenge, the real challenge is keeping the weight off once I am no longer cleansing. I definitely don't recommend this as a routine thing to do and it does obviously has its faults as all diets do (that's a lot to lose in just 1 week obviously), but if you want to start long term weight loss and you don't have any medically related dietary restrictions or limitations, this cleanse may be a good way to start the process of eating healthy and clearing out your system. I learned that fruits can be a great replacement for snacks that are fatty or lack nutrients. Before doing this I realized that I hardy ever eat fruits besides grapes occasionally, and I never buy them at the grocery store. I also learned that contrary to what I always thought, I don't need coffee (especially with cream and sweetener) to survive! Most importantly, I learned that saying that I don't have time to prepare meals to take to work for lunch or at home for dinner isn't an excuse, since I prepared all my meals every evening for the week- the longest I've gone without eating out ever! (Sad..I know). If this is something you decide to do I recommend doing it with a friend or family member, it is definitely easier to avoid quitting or making unhealthy choices if you have someone doing it with you.
Here are some photos of what I ate throughout the week:
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