I'm Running My Life…

Hello you!!! Thanks for stopping by.  Well I’m starting my 20 day full body cleanse (again).  This will be my third time doing the detox and I decided to document my full-body detox as I go through the process.  This detox requires you to do a raw diet and drink alkaline water for twenty days.

Why did I choose to do the full body cleanse the first time:

Well it had been on my radar for years.  I had been doing a lot of research on the topic and hearing great things about doing a cleanse.  So, last year around June I said why not.  I had really been on a health kick for the last few years by watching what I ate and exercising (running) on an almost daily basis.  I wanted something to jump start my insides…because they are just as important as the outside.   I went to my doctor to see if it was okay to start the cleanse and she felt like it was fine.  She did a full blood work up and about a week later my results came back.

I remember like it was yesterday, I was on vacation (well really a conference but we made it a vacation (end of May) and she wanted to see me back in her office, my liver test gave her major concern.  I went back to see her during the middle of June for more blood work.  Here she was talking about ultrasounds and that my skin condition (mycosis fungoides) could be causing my liver to fight against me (scary sheat).  And you know GOOGLE is my friend so that made it even worst.  Well she redid my bloodwork and scheduled for me to have an ultrasound a few days later.  Cleanse was completed by this time and my bloodwork came back clean.  Ultrasound was normal!!!  #WINNING!!!  I really   do think the cleanse played a major part of getting my system back on track (specifically my liver functions).  That day I vowed to do a cleanse twice a year.

What is the full body cleanse:

I’m doing the Djehuty’s Famous Full Body Detox.  This detox naturally cleanses and detoxifies your body.  It aids in weight loss (that’s not why I’m doing it though), enhances the immune system and increases your overall energy level.  This  20-day detox comes with 7 formulas: (1)Blood and Lymphatic Cleanser, (2) Cardiovascular Cleanser, (3) Liver and Gallbladder Cleanser, (4) Lungs Cleanser, (5) Kidneys-Bladder-Adrenal Cleanser, (6) Colon-Intestinal Cleanser and (7) Activated Charcoal. These are potent herbs for detoxing, but effective and safe. They are 100% herbs (no fillers, silica, etc.). They are also encased in a vegan capsules which are great. The program suggest a fully raw food diet.  For more information please check out the website at DHealthstore.com.

Starting Out

I started my detox on a Tuesday.  Typically, I would have started this on a Sunday, but the way my weekend was set up prior to Sunday, did not allow for that to happen.  What had happened was…I went out of town the Wednesday prior to celebrate one of my best friends getting married over that weekend (such a beautiful experience (please see pictures below)).  Since she was moving to Chicago, we headed to her new home that Sunday in Chicago.  I returned from Chicago early that Monday morning and knew that Monday as a start day was not going to happen.

Okay let me just say this, Monday wasn’t going to happen anyway LOL. Being in Chicago, I just had to stop by Garrett’s for their world famous, addicting popcorn.  Hey, don’t judge me 🙂 , at least I got a small bag instead of a large, like I normally would.  So there you have it, the real reason I didn’t start my detox on a Monday was because I had to finish my small bag of Chicago Mix. 🙂 It was worth it too!!!

For this detox, you have to take a total of 30 pills a day and drink a teaspoon of activated charcoal each night. In talking with others about the detox…the thought of taking activated charcoal was a turnoff. Thankfully, the charcoal had no taste whatsoever and is basically used to trap chemicals in your body, so no issues with taking it.  I know taking 30 pills a day seems like a lot (and it is) but it’s really not that bad.  Before I would forget if I took a formula or not and would have to end up pouring the pills out to count to see if I had.  For this go round, I bought  a pill case because I didn’t want to count pills again :-).

I started this detox off ill-prepared.  The only given was that I had two raw cookbooks to aid me in my meal prep and plenty of alkaline water on deck to drink for the next twenty days.  Although I’m not a newbie at raw foods, I did go out and buy a couple of cookbooks to help me with recipe ideas (I struggled with coming up with different things to eat last detox).  I was able to look at some of the recipes while away and had a few things in mind of what I would be doing moving forward during my first week on the detox.

Energy

Ok, so this detox really does have an effect on your energy (I know this from previous rounds). This week though, I was beat. I’m sure that had more to do with my mini vacation versus the detox not kicking in.  I don’t think anything could have kept me from being as tired as I was.  Background: If you know me or follow this blog, you would know that I’m usually in bed no later than 9 pm (yes, even on most weekends).  Celebrating my girl’s nuptials had a sister going to bed way after 2 am (if not later) and getting up just a few hours later. So I’m not able to really gauge my energy level for this week. Hopefully I can tell a difference moving forward.

Food

I have known for quite some time that I was going to do this detox in the month of June. Back in May, I attended a seminar called, “The Raw Truth 2015”, presented by Alive Again!. I was hoping that this seminar would give me the truth about raw foods and also give me ideas for my detox. Well, it did not. This seminar seemed to be more about pushing products than anything else. I did however walk away with something good from this seminar. I learned of a raw restaurant called, Good Life Cafe, located in downtown Columbia.

Since I wasn’t prepared on day one, I decided to stop by Good Life Cafe for lunch. I had the raw Thai burger, a kale salad and fresh fruit for sides.  I also picked up their trio dip (hummus, pimento-less cheese and pesto) served with herb flax crackers to eat later that evening. Oh my goodness, it was so delicious. If you are ever downtown Columbia and want to experience raw cuisine, I really recommend this place.

The rest of the week was pretty simple, I usually find something that I like and stick with that. I had corn chowder soup three times and broccoli soup twice this week. I also made zucchini pasta with a pecan mushroom sauce for dinner and ate the leftovers for breakfast the next day.  I made a raw carrot cake for dessert (and it was so yummy). This week also consisted of me drinking plenty of smoothies for breakfast and sometimes dinner.  I ate plenty of fruit for snacks (not pictured) and drunk about a gallon of water each day.  I was worried that I wasn’t getting enough calories but according to myfitnesspal, I was doing A.O.K in that department.

I did notice that a lot of the recipes were nut based and I was reading that’s where newbies going raw tend to mess up. For the record, I don’t consider myself a newbie but I’m not an expert either.  In researching, I came across an article that stated nuts and fruits (because of high calorie and fat contents) could wreak havoc on your digestive system and cause you to gain weight.  I’m definitely  not trying to lose weight but I’m not trying to gain weight either.  I just want to tone up this body of mine and continue to live a healthier life.  Moving forward, I will not be so heavy handed with the nuts. My second week will be based on more green smoothies, oatmeal and green salads.

Let’s Talk Shit (Literally)

Okay, when I first did this detox last year, I was a little scared because I was worried about having to run to bathrooms (especially in public places). For me, that has not been the case.  It’s really just a normal bowel movement (maybe a darker color than usual because of the toxins.  Now don’t get grossed out but I really get excited when pooping 🙂 (I know that may be too much information) 🙂 but I do.  Looking at your poop is a good indicator of your health.  I mean they even have a chart for it (source).  So, if you are thinking about doing the detox don’t let your poop stop you from giving it a try.

Non-Detox Related (sort of):

Black girls run (BGR!) Columbia had a meet and greet scheduled for Saturday (my first weekend on the detox ) and I was really looking forward to it…except I knew I couldn’t partake in any of the wine.  It was a sip and paint meet up.  I really had a good time being with my sole sistahs off of the pavement and it wasn’t that bad painting without sipping.  I really enjoyed hanging with the ladies and really concentrating on my painting (I’m sure wine would have made that much harder 🙂 ).

Do you detox? If so, how often? If not, are you up to trying a detox?