Whole Food Cleanse 2

So I did a whole food cleanse about a year ago and had some pretty decent results. Due to a combination of no times, medications and over indulging I feel the need to cleanse once more. Also still trying to lose the extra pregnancy pounds that won't shift. You can read about my  post pregnancy journey here. This time I'm starting from scratch. A salt water cleanse to get rid of all the toxins, then a whole food cleanse for 4 weeks. I'd love to juice cleanse in between the two but unfortunately cost prevents me once more. Please read up on salt water cleanses before you partake in case you have ailments that are incompatible with that level of salt and dehydration. You will poop, a lot, soon after drinking the salt water so make sure you have an empty stomach, no plans for at least a few hours and drink plenty of filtered water after the initial salt water.

The Cleanse

Salt Water Cleanse
I fasted on this day before the salt water cleanse and just drank lemon water until I did the cleanse in the afternoon.
Dissolve two teaspoons of non-iodized sea salt (such as Pink Himalayan sea salt) in one quart (four cups) of warm water.
Add lemon juice to improve the taste, if desired.
Drink the mixture as quickly as possible on an empty stomach.
Drink plenty of filtered water and wait for the BOOM. Seriously...don't go far from your toilet for a few hours.
Drinking a litre of salt water is kind of nasty so you can do it in juice such as this Dr. Axe one, if you like.

3 Day Juice Cleanse
Any juices you like. I'm partial to apple, orange and carrot as a base and then adding greens and I love adding ginger and mint. As long as there is a bit of fruit in it you can't go wrong and add whatever you like and it should taste good but ideally you want mainly green vegetables.
Also drinking plenty of water.

Whole Food Cleanse
Pretty much exactly what it says, only whole foods for 28 days. Canned or frozen is acceptable if you cannot find the fresh article but fresh is always preferred. Nothing at all processed or that you couldn't make yourself from SCRATCH scratch. More information on my first blog on the subject here.


This is what actually happened...

Goal weight being 132lbs (my optimal weight). I'm not expecting to get there just with one cleanse but I am hoping to lose up to 5 lbs and give me some momentum to keep going with a predominantly whole food diet. My main forms of exercise are walking, running, yoga and pilates. While fasting from food entirely (salt water and juice portion) it's important to drink plenty of water and not do too much physical activity so yoga is perfect for those first four days. You can in theory juice cleanse for quite some time if you're game, I'm not very good at the long term ones but there is great information at Joe Cross' website.

First Week...

Salt Water Cleanse
Started off pretty well. Went the full day with out food, just water. Then I did the salt water cleanse in the afternoon and pooped for about 2 hours on and off of course! Then I was feeling very lethargic and struggling a bit so by about 8pm I caved and had a fresh juice (kale, apple, carrot & lemon), an orange and handful of blueberries.

Juice Cleanse
The first day of the juice cleanse I had 1/2 litre of juice at about 7am (kale, pineapple, mint,orange, cantaloupe & cucumber). At 9am about 1/2 litre of juice (carrot, apple, orange & kale).
At 12pm I had about a litre of juice (beets, celery, radishes, kale, apples, pineapple, ginger, mint & cucumber). I'm fast running out of ingredients without the means to purchase more right now so I think it will just be a two day juice fast.

Isn't it gorgeous when your fridge has this much color!

Well third day in and I totally caved, last night actually. After juicing all day I had a quick afternoon snack of avocado with carrots and radishes and then I had the taste for food and made roast vegetables for dinner (potatoes, asparagus, radishes, garlic, butternut squash & onions with Tarder Joe's Everyday Seasoning, Himalayan salt and pepper). On a good note, I was 144lbs when I weighed myself this morning so I may not have stuck to what I wanted to do but at least it's working! Haven't done any exercise yet either.

So in the first week I've lost 5lbs and went for a 5km walk/jog once. I'm not a breakfast person if I can't have avocado on toast so I've been having left over meals, smoothies, juices and I made a porridge out of super grains (millet, buckwheat & quinoa), banana, cocoa nibs (which actually I'm not sure are allowed because of caffeine??) and nut milk.
I've been eating foods such as;
Simple Lentil Soup
Baked Vegetables with seasoning, like Trader Joe's Everyday Seasoning (all vegetables at 375-400F for root vegetables 60-90 minutes & for others 30-45 minutes.
Smoky Baked Cauliflower

Emily's Chickpea Salad
Healthy bowl - Tempeh, Kale & Super grains (quinoa, buckwheat & millet) with a tahini sauce

Baba Ghanoush with vegetable sticks has been seeing me through the snacking well.
Raw Nori Wraps
I used the nori wrap fillings for romaine wraps the next day...

Second Week...

Monday Went for a 45 minute walk on the first morning and had lentil soup for breakfast.

Tuesday
Had smoothie for breakfast one morning of 1/2 block silken tofu, 1 banana, 1/2 cup pineaple, fresh mint, hemp seed hearts & chia seeds.
Mad healthy tacos with Romaine lettuce leaves as the taco, homemade mango salsa, black beans, corn, guacamole & shredded fried king oyster mushrooms.

Wednesday
Had smoothie for breakfast one morning of 1/2 block silken tofu, 1 banana, 1/2 cup frozen blueberries, fresh mint & hemp seed hearts.
Lentil Soup for lunch
Left over healthy tacos for dinner.

Thursday
Had lentil soup for breakfast, snacked on baba ghanoush & carrots for lunch, mixed bean chilli for dinner. Strawberries for dessert.

Friday
Went for an hour walk, had a smoothie for breakfast (banana, 1/2 non-dairy milk, 1/2 water, mango, spirilina & hemp seed hearts), for lunch had chilli and for dinner had Raw Stuff Avocados. I think I need to incorporate a lot more exercise since I'm still hovering at 143lbs.

Saturday
Finally at 142lbs! But starting my period so could go up before I go down again.
Today I had a smoothie for breakfast, Raw Stuffed Avocados into a salad for lunch and guacamole with carrots & cucumbers for dinner. Been finding no calorie soda water like La Croix or Bubbly great for sweet cravings and to keep the appetite at bay.

Sunday
Had a smoothie for breakfast, Simple Lentil Soup for lunch, juice for snack (beets, romaine, carrots, oranges, apples) and for early dinner yellow squash noodles cooked in a little coconut oil with nutritional yeast (was actually for toddler but he rejected it and I didn't want to waste it - so delicious!)  Later I made Plantain burgers buns and used a Dr Praegers Kale burger.

Third Week...

Monday
Smoothie for breakfast, chilli for lunch, baba ghanoush with carrots for snack and stuffed acorn squash for dinner (I stuffed it with potatoes, red peppers, mushrooms & onions).

Tuesday
Smoothie for breakfast, stuffed acorn squash for lunch, stir fry for dinner (tofu, lotus root, bok choy, basil, green onions, Thai chilli, ginger, garlic & coconut aminos). Strawberries for dessert.

Wednesday
Smoothie for breakfast, for lunch fried plantains with guacamole & raw chiptole mayo and a side of kale with balsamic vinegar and for dinner left over stir fry.

Thursday
Down to 141lbs so pretty happy with that result so far. Considering I've done barely any exercise. I did 20mins of yoga today. Smoothie for breakfast, sorry I forgot what I ate the rest of the day!!

Friday
Smoothie for breakfast, carrots & cucumbers with hummus & baba ghanoush for both lunch and dinner with nuts as snacks. Did 30 minutes of a new yoga routine today and was definitely a lot more challenging which is great! The app was called "Pocket Yoga".

Saturday
Smoothie for breakfast, bowl for lunch (super grains, tofu & kale with tahini sauce), chili for dinner, strawberries for dessert.


Sunday
Down to 139lbs!!! So excited! Smoothie for breakfast, roast vegetables (beets, potatoes, garlic, asparagus & radishes with a sprinkle of Trader Joe's Everyday Seasoning) for lunch & chili for dinner).
I did 30 minutes of yoga again.

Fourth Week...

Monday
Smoothie for breakfast (banana, mango, mint, spirilina, hemp seed hearts, chia seeds, 1/2 cup macadamia milk, 1/2 cup water), for lunch left over bowl from Saturday, dinner left over roast vegetables. a 45 minute walk for exercise.

Tuesday
Smoothie for breakfast, lunch was chilli, dinner just snacked on fresh fennel & baba ghanoush. Did 30 mins of yoga.

Wednesday
Smoothie for breakfast, for lunch I had sauteed garlic mushrooms, blanched kale, tempeh (marinated in coconut aminos. smoked paprika and liquid smoke), avocado and boiled corn, dinner I had left over chilli. Did 30 mins yoga.

Thursday
Smoothie,  for lunch baked acorn squash stuffed with mashed potatoes (olive oil, salt, pepper & macadamia milk), fried zucchini noodles  & chilli, for dinner left over tempeh dish from Wednesday. Did 30 mins yoga.

Friday
Smoothie for breakfast, lunch was left over acorn squash, dinner was cauliflower soup. Went for a 45-60min walk.

 Saturday
Smoothie for breakfast, cauliflower soup for lunch, home made crackers & "cheese" ball for dinner and for dessert strawberries & blueberries with orange blossom water. Did 30 mins of yoga.

Sunday
Smoothie for breakfast, Cauliflower soup for lunch & dinner. Home made crackers & "cheese" ball for snack. So I've stagnated at 140lbs but I'm pretty happy about that considering how little exercise I've been doing.

Starting measurements;
Weight 148lbs
Chest 37"
Waist 35.5"
Hips 40.5"
Thighs 23"

Ending measurements;
Weight 140lbs
Chest 36.5"
Waist 34 "
Hips 39"
Thighs 22.5"


I ended the cleanse with a Chia Seed Cleanse;
1 apple
1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds (ground is easier to digest than whole)
1 cup water
1 tablespoon chia seeds

Blend everything together except the chia seeds.
Pour into glass and stir in chia seeds.
Wait 5 minutes for chiaa seeds to expand and drink.
Again, don't go anywhere for a couple of hours ;)