My Thoughts on Cleansing...

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I felt like it was time to clean house and I wasn't just talking about my closets.

I have never done a body cleanse before - mostly because I didn't feel like I could actually commit to doing one. I tend to take on so much in a day that I often feel like if I was to limit my diet to juicing etc, I would be constantly thinking about how I "deserve" to eat some comfort food. I think a lot of us approach food in the same way sometimes.

Well - although I didn't stick to the juice-everything-until-dinner idea, I have come to really like a few of the things I did during this cleanse and plan on including a few of the practices into my daily routine. Here's what I loved:

- Juicing first thing in the morning. My fave was this blend of Romaine/Beets/Carrots/Celery/Ginger

- Dry skin brushing before shower

- Reading: Just bought these 2 and can't wait to dig in. I used to find it very hard to not "check in" online throughout the day, but I feel like I've broken this silly addiction :)

- Eat a monster salad before dinner & a variety of veggies every day. I used to go days without eating a single veggie and now that I'm eating more - my body is really craving them throughout the day.

- Continue to do something that makes me sweat everyday - variety is key!

Overall I had ENERGY :: GLOWING SKIN :: FULLNESS BETWEEN MEALS

If you're ever interested in doing a cleanse I would highly recommend reading Natalia Rose's book Detox for Women. She is highly respected in the Raw food & cleansing world and has a few books out which are all amazing, but I really liked this one because of it's focus on all the issues & pressures that fall on women. There are so many gimmicky approaches out there and I totally agree with her approach around juicing and raw veggies, to put the body in an alkaline state, giving it the chance to purge all the garbage out.

I'll leave you with a little excerpt from her book that really hit home for me:

"We are responsible for what happens next. Women hold enormous power in determining how the global garden will grow. If we adopt the truths of self-care in our own lives, and teach our receptive family & friends in gently respectful ways, we can effectively secure the balance of power and healing back in our bodies and throughout the planet as a whole. It takes almost 7 generations to make a cultural change....you have to know that no agency, government or grocery store is truly looking out for your best interest & health. We must first set ourselves right and then integrate our knowledge into our sphere of influence."