cleanse: day one.

 going along with one of my new years resolutions (and ultimately a lifestyle resolution - live healthier), i am embarking on a 21 day cleanse to kick start my metabolism and give my digestive system a break.  i have done many cleanses/diets/nutrition challenges/fasts etc etc. and i LOVE them.  i am very competitive by nature and i love putting myself to the test.  this particular cleanse i am taking from martha stewart's whole living magazine.  i picked up the magazine at a local market (i was drawn by the cover art - simple, clean, and inviting) and decided to try their 2012 whole living action plan.  

here are the basic rules from their website:

What's Off Limits During the Plan: 

processed food or beverages, added sugar, dairy, gluten, caffeine, and alcohol

What You're Eating During Week 1: 

fruits, vegetables, and plant-based fats: including nuts, seeds, and oils

What You're Adding Back in Week 2:

seafood, beans and lentils, and organic soy

What You’re Adding Back in Week 3:

gluten-free grains and eggs

they also recommend keeping a food journal (which i, admittedly, haven't done) and kick-starting your metabolism with a pre-breakfast hot water with fresh lemon drink (also haven't done, but i will tomorrow).  after i finish this 21 days cleanse, i will be doing a "carb night" diet that one of my friends recommended.  the basic rules of the "carb night" diet are limiting your daily carb intake by 30 grams and then having a free night once a week to eat what you wish.  this seems pretty easy to maintain, but we will see in 21 days when i try it out.

cleanse: day one - RECAP

breakfast: one grapefruit, 4 carrots, and one inch of fresh garlic.  blended.  

this was very tasty and quite nice.  since i feel a cold coming on, the citrus and ginger was great for that.  it was a little "chewy" for my taste, but this is because i blended and didn't juice.  the magazine gives recipes for juicing.  i dont have a juicer and wasn't planning on going out and buying one just for this cleanse, so i threw the ingredient in my high-powered-wish-it-was-a-vita-mix-blender and made a smoothie of sorts.  after reading further, the magazine directs you to their website for blender-friendly recipes, genius.  i will try one of these detox smoothies later today.

lunch: vegetable soup

i was craving something hot since i am feeling a little under the weather so i went for soup.  grabbed all the veggies in my fridge and my dutch oven and went to town.  this recipe is made up along the way, but i will let you know what went into it.

ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium white onion, chopped

3 celery stalks, chopped

4 carrots, chopped

4 gloves of garlic, diced or pressed

salt

pepper

seasonings (dried herbs of your choosing - i used dried italian herbs)

one 15 oz can of diced italian style tomatoes

vegetable stock (about 4-6 cups, just enough to cover all the veggies)

two zucchini, chopped into half moons

one 15 oz can of corn

some red cabbage (as much as you want)

method: 

heat the olive oil over medium heat in a dutch oven, or whatever stock pot you have.  

add onion, celery, carrots and garlic.  season with salt, pepper, and seasonings.

cook until onions are translucent.  

add tomatoes and stock.

throw in the rest of the veggies.

add more stock if necessary (need enough to cover the veggies).

cover and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes

enjoy!

the soup was very delicious, but damn i wanted some chicken or beans.  haha. for dinner i made a simple salad with organic spring mix and organic jazz apples.  a little salt and pepper and oil with garlic for the dressing. done.

dinner:  spring mix jazz apple salad

simple and delicious!  throughout the day i snacked on raw almonds, apples, and berries.  i am trying to eat only organic fruits and veggies throughout this entire cleanse.  mainly because a lot of the stuff i am consuming raw and i am super lazy about washing produce, gahhh! terrible.  i am pretty confident that i wont die.

happy cleansing!