Back At It Again! 30 Day Juice Cleanse

And I'm back at it, with another 30 day juice cleanse.  I'm on day 2, looking at day 3 in a few hours. Right now, I do have cravings. I am doing smoothies as well. Hoping to taper off smoothies by the end of the week.

I'm hoping to achieve mental clarity. I'm trying to declutter spiritually and emotionally. I was at Lowe's today and turned around and saw and entire row of candy. Like, why? I had to turn my back to it. I would have grabbed something had it be any other day.  But not today, not today.

Am I exactly happy about the next 28 days...not really. I know its something I need to do. First time, I did a cleanse it was for acne. Now that my acne is gone...YAY...I'm more working on looking internal.

But for now, I'm just trying not to daydream about cheeseburgers.

Juice Cleanse: Day 23

It's day numero 23!! I'm still alive and well and feeling just fine.  I started adding celery back into my juice for the great benefits it offers despite the awful taste. It won't kill me! LOL. The only thing that is aching are my knees and mid back and times, which are issues I've been dealing with.  I'm hoping that as I continue this wellness journey those pains will disappear. Plus I think the planking challenge is working my entire middle out that may contribute to the back...I think.  It's not a bad pain at all, so its OK. Plus, I need to stretch more. I don't stretch. I have to do better.

Acne Update
Let's talk about my acne, shall we? After all, that is the reason I started this cleanse.  My acne breakouts and drying up...they are taking their sweet 'ole time but they are drying up.  My skin overall, looks a lot better. But I can't see past the breakouts, so once they're gone I'll do a blackflip (in my head of course!).  So the acne is still a work in progress, but progress is happening. Yay!  My skin on my entire body just feels so super smooth and wonderful, its' awesome. Like a newborn baby!

Rewarding Myself
I set milestones and a rewards system just to give myself something extra to look forward to.  I'm happy to announce that I've earned 4 rewards! yay! I owe myself a professional manicure, homemade pasta and homemade pasta sauce dinner for the family (my reward is having fun making it, even though I won't be eating it) and I get to purchase $40 of oils for myself! Super excited about that. I tried to pick rewards that I know I want and love, like making the pasta and buying oils, etc.. Basically my "rewards" are items on my "want list" so by achieving my goals I get what I want...winning!

A New Start
This cleanse is really just phase 1 of a whole new life.  This is kickstarting my 5k training, new eating habits, new thinking, a new everything.  I so far lost over 25 pounds as of day 20.  I say over 25 llbs because I didn't weigh until day 4 of the cleanse.

Cravings
None! I'm not addicted anymore. I'm not addicted to breads, cheese, pasta, chocolate, sugars. That need to feed on those things are gone. I can be around other people eating them and not have a care in the world. So awesome...that stuff is addictive.

Check out my other blog for my updates on my juice cleanse, I alternate postings back and forth between this blog and my other one.

Juice Cleanse: Day 19

No, I haven't been keeping a daily log of my juice cleanse, simply because there isn't much to tell. It's still an experience, but not as eventful as the first week thats for sure.

I picked up a share of produce from an organic collective. Got organic kale, oranges, cabbage, celery, carrots, lemons, etc... Since I am juicing nothing but organic going forward, that was a helpful kickstart.

My acne is still here, that's a bit depressing since I was hoping it when be gone by Day 20, which is tomorrow. Things seem to be drying/healing up, but they are still present which is a huge bummer. The key may be a colon/liver/kidney cleanse which I will start on next to flush out toxins that remain in my body.

I must say I am proud of myself for sticking with it. When I was on day 2, I didn't know if or how I'd make it to now. But I am grateful for sticking it out because the only way I could get to day 19, was if I successfully completed day 2.

My awareness is so keen. I am thinking so clear and fixing the things that I just didn't really want to to deal with and getting things in order as much as I can.

I realize that every other commercial pushes food in our faces. Laden with bad fats, oils and stuff we don't need. It is constant. I can't blame the media for how unhealthy some people are, but they are not innocent. I just don't think we are aware of the subliminal messages that we get to eat and eat and eat and eat stuff that really isn't that great for us. It's a cycle, and we as a society are stuck. It's only by doing this fast did I see the pattern that was there all along. To anyone that overeats, undereats, binge eats, eats for no reason and/or eats "bad" foods, ask yourself why. I think we will see that our external environment triggers internal levers that make us participate in unhealthy habits. I'm not a health guru by any means but 19 day of this cleanse has given me clarity that I just didn't have and clarity I think many people don't when we as stuck in the cycle of fast and processed foods.

I have, in effect drank more vegetables that I ate probably in the past six months...maybe close to the past year (sad but true) in just under 20 days.  True story. And this is stuff that my body needs to do its best. I've been in effect, starving myself all this time.  Never again. never again.

Right now I am looking forward to the next 11 day of this cleanse. Going to focus on detoxing the organs I mentioned above. I'll post about that as well. I know I need to drink more water even though it seems like I'm ALWAYS drinking it! I also started going to the sauna to help my skin detox, so I hope to keep this up as well.

I must say I feel fabulous, I really do.

xoxo

Healthy Resolution #1

Each day I'm on this juice cleanse starting today which is Day 6, I'll be making resolutions for a much healthier lifestyle.  I'm learning so much about food, health, fitness, etc... its crazy. There is a lot of conflicting information out there but one thing is a consistent message: processed foods are bad. They have too much salt, sugar and other stuff I can't even pronounce and the body doesn't need.

So here goes:

RESOLUTION #1:  

Significantly reduce intake of processed food. Buy whole foods and make as much as possible. This includes sauces, pasta, etc..

Pantry Beauty Cures

Over the past year I've been researching and learning more about natural remedies to common ailments and just how common items we have in our pantry help with overall heath in general.

As an acne sufferer, I finally quit all the Rx prescribed by the doctor that over the long term weren't good for me. I also learned that some of the OTC acne treatments may help with acne, but have really harsh ingredients for your skin overall, so I gave that up too. I'll chronicle my experience with some of these things at a later date. Right now, I want to share my holy grail items that i adore for their wonderful benefits for the body that have worked for me.

Ginger
I was a bit slow in getting on this bandwagon. I received a Go Ginger moisturizer sample during a giveaway they had and my skin looked awesome...no breakouts...nothing. I ran out and didn't replenish and a few

months later my skin started to erupt. Now, I'm not saying this product was keeping the acne at bay entirely but what I have come to realize is the power and goodness of ginger.

Why is so great: Ginger has anti-inflammatory properties among other things. So it can be used to treat inflammation from a myriad of sources. Ginger aids in digestion and helps accelerate the removal of toxins from the body. It's super high in Vitamin C and helps soften the skin and lessen signs of aging.  It is also thought that ginger can help with ovarian cancer, the prevention and the treatment.

How I use it: Ginger Tea. Twice a day I make ginger tea which I steep peeled and chopped ginger pieces in hot water. I may add lemon and/or honey depending on my mood. Ginger can also be applied directly to acne to help lessen inflammation.

Side Note: I need to get some more of that Go Ginger moisturizer! It's really good stuff.

Lemon
Lemon has been a mainstay of mine for quite sometime. Its a great sweeter and can be used in face and hair the power of the lemon, check it out!

masks. It boosts the immune system, cleanses the liver and helps fight infection. Here's a great article on

How I use it: In water every morning. I use it in my ginger tea often. I use it in my honey facial mask. I use it alone to help clear up dark spots on my skin from acne scarring. Yes, lemon juice can lighten marks, but please don't let your skin be exposed to the sun. I use it a lot during winter and when I'm in the house. If you expose your skin to sun after using lemon on it, there could be more harm done that good.  Be aware. I use only real lemons, not juice out of the bottle. If you can swing it (and you find a sale) opt for organic.


Honey
Yassss honey! Honey is EVERYTHANG! Yes, "thang"!  No, not the honey out of the little honey bottle that you can get for a buck. That stuff isn't raw 100 percent honey. Here you want to spend a bit more for raw honey that you can find at your local grocery or health food store.  I've heard the benefits of Manuka honey praised to the heavens, and at the price I haven't coughed up the funds to purchase it. I will give it a shot just to see if its worth the hype.  I recommend grabbing the raw honey it may cost anywhere from $5-$15, but its worth it. Honey helps prevent cancer and heart disease. It is also anti-bacterial and anti-fungal which is great for the fight against acne. There are many varieties of honey that have their own benefits. Honey is great for hair and skin as well. Honey helps retain moisture and softens and smooths hair. Same for skin, plus since its
anti bacterial it can attack the crap that helps to cause acne!

How I use it: I use a honey and lemon mask on my skin 1x a day right now after washing. Fresh lemon and raw honey and let it set sometimes up to 30 minutes, no less than 15 and rinse off with cold water. My skin loves it and though it hasn't cleared up my acne totally, there has been a great improvement to which I contribute this concoction.  I'm a hair mask junkie and I use honey in my deep conditioning hair mask that I make.  I also use honey in my green smoothies, in my tea and sometimes I'll just take a big spoonful and swallow just for the health benefits.  Honey is my liquid gold!


I'd highly recommend these good for you and good to you items to add to your beauty regime and in your dietary intake. I have a feeling I'll be posting more about these items quite often.  Next time, I'll be talking about more pantry beauty cures including Apple Cider Vinegar and Coconut Oil.

Juicalicious

2014 starts my 30 day juice cleanse...on Jan 2 to be exact.  I've started juicing now to make the transition a bit easier.  I don't think we realize how much crap we put into our bodies...even if we don't mean to. I also think a lot of ailments are diet related.  Personally, I am on a quest for acne-free skin and I believe I have an allergy to dairy as well as hormones in foods like beef and chicken that cause me to break out. Issue is, I LOVE diary, especially cheese.  This cleanse period will allow my body to detox of all the yucky and leave me feeling better and free of acne.

This will spark my healthier much cleaner lifestyle. Last time I juiced it was for 2 weeks, I felt great and my skin glowed...ya' hear me? GLOWED! All I was missing was a halo!

Pictured above is what I picked up from the store with a budget of $12 and 2 juice drinks for 3 days for 2 people. I'm trying to bunk the misconception that eating healthy is prohibitively expensive.  So hopefully my body and my wallet will be happy with my healthier choices.

Good luck to me! Do you juice? Share your favorite recipes below.