How To Design Your Own Weekly Cleanse, and Why You Should.
In the past, I have been a weekly cleanse addict, with varying results. I have tried Dr. Axe’s Salt Cleanse, and I cannot recommend it so I am not linking to it. It did nothing for me but make me feel sick, lots of abdominal pain and bloating; and I did it on an empty stomach as per requirements. I have done smoothie cleanses. I love smoothies, however, drinking them for every meal for more than a day made my body feel sluggish and frankly, I was starving.
Starve yourself no longer, my friends. There is a better way, and I learned all about it from Lorene Sauro. Be sure to read part two of Lorene’s cleanse also.
8 Reasons You Should Create Your Own Weekly Cleanse
- You eat healthy food that you enjoy.
- You don’t starve yourself.
- It’s one day a week, and easy.
- You will become energized.
- Your gut will thank you, so will your liver.
- It’s safe for the whole family because it does involve eating real food.
- It’s an easy day ahead prep and no slaving over a hot stove involved.
- It’s not expensive or a fad “diet” type deal.
Points to Help You Create Your Own Weekly Cleanse.
Your Cleanse should consist of raw food.
When I say raw food, I do not mean raw animal products! I am talking raw fruit and veggies, nuts, seeds, and raw dairy.
Your food must be nutrient-dense.
Your cleanse needs to contain fiber.
Juicing does not count as fiber. Juicing removes the fiber from your otherwise healthy food that your body needs. All that is left behind is liquid fructose.
Embrace fermented foods.
Each Monday My Family Does the Weekly Cleanse
I was surprised that my kids got excited about our new “normal” Monday menu. My family is used to eating whole foods, but typically when I introduce a meatless day, they aren’t too excited about it.
I want to take a moment to mention that I eat my meals in “reverse.” In other words, I eat my more substantial meal in the morning, a lunch-sized meal, and a lighter meal in the evening.
Why is that, you ask? My other half doesn’t get home from work until 8 pm most evenings. There is no way I am going to bed at 10 pm on a full stomach.
I have been eating in reverse for the past two months, and the results have been remarkable. I wake up feeling rested and have more energy. According to my partner, since I started eating this way, I don’t toss and turn all night.
My Normal Weekly Cleanse and Some Recipes
With Loren’s examples and explanations, I was able to create my own meal plan easily, based on the foods my family will eat and loves.
I always drink my morning fire tea and 1/2 to 1 gallon of water every day. During my cleanse day, I limit myself to 1 cup of black coffee with a dash of cinnamon.
Breakfast (Pre Workout 6 am)
Raw Buddha Bowl with Raw Ranch Dressing
Raw and Grain Free Buddha Bowl
This recipe can be made a day ahead on your prep day. If you are starting with your veggies already prepped, it will take you 10 minutes or less to put this together.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Riced Cauliflower and Broccoli mix
- 2 cups Mixed Greens
- 1/4 cup Marinated Cucumber and Red Onion Salad
- 1 Carrot Shredded
- 1/4 cup mango chunks
- 1/4 cup pineapple chunks
- 1 small Orange segmented
- 1/2 cup Red Bell Peppers, cut into strips
- 2 teaspoons Chopped nuts of choice I use shelled pistachios!
- 1/3 Avocado Sliced
Instructions
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I like to rice my cauliflower and broccoli in advance. You can rice your own using a food processor or blender. Pulse until it looks like rice. Measure out 1 cup and put into a bowl.
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Add the rest of the ingredients from the salad to red bell pepper strips in sections next to each other in the bowl. Food should be pretty, and you are dealing with a rainbow.
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Top with chopped nuts of choice and avocado. Finish with Raw Ranch dressing.
Marinated Cucumber and Red Onion Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cucumbers
- 1 red onion
- 2 tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar Use a complient Vinegar if you are doing Whole30.
- .5 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger grated
- 1/8 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
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Peel and slice the red onion into thin slices. Add to a bowl and pour in Red Wine Vinegar.
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Quarter the cucumbers and dice. Add to the bowl of onions and stir lightly.
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To the bowl, add in your Olive Oil, grated ginger, pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste.
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Allow salad to marinate for at least 15 minutes before eating.
Raw Ranch Dressing
Make ahead, lasts in the fridge for 10 days.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Raw Greek Yogurt Use paleo mayo instead to make this recipe Whole30 Compliant and Paleo
- 1/2 cup Almond Milk You can use any type of milk of choice
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion flakes
- 1 tsp dried dill
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp dry parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
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Put all ingredients into a blender cup, blender pitcher or food processor. Blend until well mixed. Store in the fridge in a glass jar.
Morning post-workout snack (730am)
1 small orange, 1 cup of mixed fermented vegetables, 2 tablespoons paleo hummus.
Lunch (noon, pre-yoga)
Zoodle bowl. You can use what ever raw zoodles you enjoy. I use a mix of cucumber and carrot zoodles, a handful of grape tomoatoes, and a drizzle of olive oil sprinkled with fresh basil.
Supper (6 pm, I enjoy eating with my kids every night!)
Berry Bowl – Simple cup of mixed berries, drizzled with coconut cream, and a dash of cinnamon and raw dark cocoa powder.
Snack (8:30 pm, because I enjoy eating with my partner too)
1/2 cup greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon almond butter, 2 tsp raw honey, 8 pitted cherries
Emergency Snacks
For those moments away from home where you just must have something to eat NOW, my Homemade Larabars. Fermented veggie mixes are also good to keep on hand for a snack if you are hungry during your cleanse.
Final thoughts about the Weekly cleanse.
First I want to thank Lorene for sharing her knowledge so freely. Keep in mind, the weekly cleanse is not a license to eat crap the rest of the week. You want to continue to eat whole foods, cooked or raw. If you are new to cleaning up your diet and making an attempt to eat better foods, keep going with your effort! Maybe we can do the Whole30 together in January. We can cheer each other on across the finish line.
Your Turn!
Have you ever done a dietary cleanse? Are you inspired to create your own weekly cleanse the way I was inspired to do so after reading Loren Sauro’s posts? I would like to hear your thoughts and ideas in the comments below.
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