cleanse & detox

What am I doing this weekend? Well thanks for asking! Actually D and I are going to be doing a weekend cleanse and detox. Yup, you heard that right! So basically here is what's going to happen. I've been wanting to "kick-start" a healthy lifestyle lately (which has been so hard for me the past few months because I am in my "busy season" at work -- which means a lot of late nights and eating convenience food on the go) so I feel like it's showing in my waist line. Not ok. Enter the cleanse and detox weekend. I picked up this book "Look Better Naked" by the editors of Women's Health magazine which gives you a six week plan to basically look, well hot! This begins with a weekend to cleanse your body of all the yummy not-so-good-for-you things to start with a clean slate so to speak.

In a nut shell, the 2-Day Cleanse looks a little something like this:

Breakfast:
Light shake
Blend 1 cup fat-free (soy, almond, rice or hemp) milk
1 cup berries
1tsp peanut butter or flax seed oil
1 cup ice

Snack:
1 cup sliced cucumbers
1 cup green tea

Lunch:
steamed or raw greens (romaine, spinach, mesclun, arugula, kale etc.)
4 oz. lean protein (white meat chicken, firm tofu or fish)
2 tsp oil (olive, sunflower or walnut)

Snack:
10 asparagus spears, blanched
1 cup green tea

Dinner:
same as lunch

Yeah, to some this might look like their regular food plan. But to me, this looks meager and challenging. The shake I know I'll be able to do because I've been drinking breakfast smoothies for the past few weeks and I'm totally down with it! The nice thing with this plan is we are allowed to add spices and fresh herbs to make the meals more appetizing. For example, I think I'm going to add a little vinegar and and fresh dill to make a cold cucumber salad -- that's more flavorful right? We are also allowed 2tsp of oil with both lunch and dinner to use how we want. I'm thinking of mixing that with some balsamic vinegar to make a vinaigrette and fresh herbs to make a dressing for my fresh greens. Lastly, I'm trying to think about how to liven up that meat since we are only allowed to bake or broil it. I'm thinking chicken could be marinated in fresh lemon juice and cracked black pepper. And fish I could experiment with some spices and use a rub. But let me tell, this is going to be quite the challenge....

I'm hoping I feel energized and revitalized after this. Otherwise right now I'm having visions of D and I extremely grumpy and irritable because we're hangry (angry because you're hungry) and end up turning on each other in our starvation state! Haha ok maybe I am being a little dramatic -- but truth be told, we've both been known for getting moody when we're hungry. Hope we make it out of this alive and well!

We're going to Trader Joe's or Whole Foods tonight (crazy kids we are) to prepare for the weekend  and to kick-start the next 6 weeks of healthy eating (which I'll be sharing on the blog next week). Wish us luck and I'll let know how I'm feeling on Monday!

yup, pretty much.

Has anyone else ever done a detox and cleanse, and if so how did it go??

Needing words of encourage here....

Wish me luck!

xo Steph