It was okay. But more to the point, it wasn’t limeade! Laugh!

I personally think it’s nothing a little cinnamon and vanilla bean wouldn’t fix (though MJ wants his cacao)! We decided to try it straight the first time and see how long we could last before we start the modifications. Though it’s breaking protocol, we figure anything that doesn’t contain sugar is fair game!

I realized how weak I’ve gotten doing yoga this morning. It was tough and it used to be something I could breeze through. I think I may add a couple of different exercise routines in during the day, keeping them short and sweet until I get my strength back.

I tell you sitting down to break-fast will never have the same meaning again!

Today, I started cooking again. I made a balancing broth from Penni Shelton’s book, Raw Food Cleanse: Restore Health and Lose Weight by Eating Delicious , All-Natural Foods – Instead of Starving Yourself and some flax crackers from Raw Dawg Rory’s excellent e-book Getting Raw with Raw Dawg Rory. I also made some tabouli (albeit with red quinoa instead of bulgur) for Michael J, in case he’s up to adding that back in for dinner.

It’s funny the things that almost undo you.

In my case, it was the soggy sweet potato that I strained out of the broth and the strip of seeds that I’d removed from the cucumber.

I think the smell of food – not to mention the weight of it in my hands after 10 days – made me weak. But I prevailed. I sipped on and stayed strong.

But everything (and everyone has their limits), so instead of sitting here and smelling the scents of the crackers which are dehydrating in the basement, I am off for my last cup of Senna tea and then to bed.

Though I typically hate Day Light Savings Time, I am grateful that my last day of the cleanse was for all intents and purposes one hour shorter than the first nine.

Good night.

Stay tuned for more cleansing adventures as Michael J and I turn our attention to the 21 Day Sugar Detox!

The most incongruous part of this whole process has, ironically, not been the complete absence of food, but my workout shoes that have laid untouched next to the Nordic Track. I can’t even remember the last time I’ve gone 8 – 9 days without exercise.

Now granted, I have done some light yoga (barefoot) and walked from my car to the office (in my regular shoes), but there’s been no sustained activity.

I figure there will be plenty time for that next week, however, as I attempt to restart my metabolism, which has surely slowed during this process.

The next eleven days will be interesting, because, believe it or not, we’re not done!

Tomorrow – while I’m still on the green juice – will involve food prep. Again, it was a shock to open the dishwasher for the first time in a week and see, lo and behold, dishes! Not to mention the forgotten feel of a fork in my hand. I remember laughing with Penni Shelton, the founder of Raw Food Rehab said, when starting her juice feast, “Sometimes it’s a good idea to just step away from the fork for a while.” I think she might be on to something.

Then, from Monday March 15 to Wednesday March 24, we’re on a ten day deep liver cleanse, which introduces some food, but not a lot.

Breakfast – 2 scoops of NutriClear and 1 scoop of rice protein powder and a package of detox supplements.

Lunch – a clean meal (meaning nothing with anything that even remotely looks like sugar) and another pack of supplements.

Snack – 2 scoops of Nutriclear and 1 scoop of rice protein powder.

Dinner – a clean meal (again, no sugar) and yet another pack of supplements.

Personally, I think this is going to be more challenging than the limeade fast, because at least with the limeade you could get a sugar hit every 10 minutes – whether you needed it or not.

However, I am thrilled to be back in the kitchen tomorrow. First up: Ani Phyo’s Black Sesame Sunflower Bread!

Then, between March 25 – April 3, even though we will be on regular meals (that is, no more Nutriclear and Rice Protein Powder shakes for breakfast and snack) we’ll still be sugar free.

Let me tell you, the term spring cleaning has taken on a whole new meaning at Camp Living Lively!

Maybe it’s because I’m getting more sleep, which is a good thing.

Maybe it’s because I’m not spending all of my time planning, preparing, consuming, and cleaning up after my next meal!

Whatever it is, it’s interesting. Time has become as fluid as my meal supplements. And it’s not because I’m light headed either!

Today, I actually broke down and bought a German engineered tongue brush/scraper, because the fuzzy tongue thing had just gotten the better of me.

I also bought a dry skin brush.

Dry skin brushing is probably old hat to most people, but it was new to me. And boy was it exhilarating – especially after a long massage where the masseuse actually “cupped” my feet and slathered my abdomen in caster oil in an attempt to get the lymph to move more freely through my body!

Off to get at least eight hours of sleep.

Stay tuned for day seven!

P.S. I’m actually more concerned about adding the food back in, as Michael J and I are heading into 21 days of no sugar – no fruit, no chocolate, no nothing. But I guess there will be food, for which I I am pretty darned sure that by that point I will be grateful!

No real symptoms to speak of.

Though things are obviously still being cleansed (stuff that I don’t even care to know how long has been in my body given that I haven’t eaten in four days!) I’ve decided to take a break from the optional portion of the fast – that is, the internal salt water bath.

The first couple of days it was fine, but today it was the gift that kept on giving. Given that I have classes tomorrow, it’s probably not a good idea to be dashing to the loo every five minutes!

And speaking of classes, before I started this regimen, I had promised mine that I would make them some raw fudge/cookies on the last day of classes. The bad news meant that in order to keep my promise, I was actually cooking tonight. The good news is that I am so sugared out from the local grade B maple syrup in the limeade that the dough wasn’t even remotely appealing. All of the cookies made it into the freezer unmolested and all of the remaining nuts and dough remnants went right down the sink.

Anyway, time for a cuppa (sans the biscuits) and off to bed!

Goodnight!

For the last two days, I’ve been scouring the Kohl’s sales racks. For those of you who don’t know about Kohl’s – it’s a mid tier department store (somewhere between Macy’s and Target). They are known for their sales. At the “end” of every season, they slash their inventory by anywhere from 60 to 80%

Luckily for those who live up north, spring doesn’t really arrive until about a week before summer. That means that you can wear the heavily discounted stuff for weeks – if not months – before you need to break out the linen and t-shirts!

Regardless, while I was there a couple of interesting things happened.

One, I found myself shopping at the low end of the clothing racks. It wasn’t that long ago that I would start at the 12s or 10s or the innocuous Ms. This time I found myself seeking out the 6s, the occasional 4s and the Ss. (Unfortunately I am not naive enough to think that Kohl’s and other mid-level department stores all across America haven’t gone to what one might call “vanity sizing,” but it was still fun!)

Two, I actually put things back that made me look “too big.” This is noteworthy, not because I’m significantly smaller than I’ve been for the last year or so, but rather because I’ve finally come to terms with what I look like in a mirror. And, perhaps even more importantly, I’m no longer trying to hide it.

There was a time that I would have cringed if anything that even remotely looked like a curve was visible. This time, not so much. Does this mean that I don’t have any love handles or (perish the thought of even using this word) muffin tops? No, unfortunately, they’re there; that’s life.

When I did a little fashion show for Michael J, he congratulated me for trying more form fitting clothes.

I thanked him for the compliment and asked him to promise me one thing – that is, to tell me if I go too far, as its easy to get seduced by the pull of smaller and smaller sizes.

“How far is too far?” he asked.

Good question.

After a moment’s consideration, my personal guidelines for if I’ve taken it too far: I look bad or it looks like I’m trying to dress younger than I am.

He agreed. And I trust him to tell me truth.

If you have a Kohl’s near you (or any other store with decent clothes and ridiculously slashed prices) go spend a couple of hours pawing through the sales racks. You never know what you might find. Who knows, you might – if you’re lucky and you’re willing to take some chances – find a completely new you.

In fact, I’ve found some of my favorite pieces of clothing by trying on what other people have left in the dressing rooms. The benefit of trying on other people’s left behinds is that unless that person has your exact same taste, they’re choices are almost certain to be outside of your comfort zone and something that if you’d seen it on the rack you wouldn’t have given it a second glance – let alone tried it on.

As a wise man once said, all progress comes when you’re outside of your comfort zone. So step out of yours and have some fun. After all, it’s not like you have to actually buy it!

More energy? Check.

Fuzzy tongue? Check.

Headache? Nope.

Hungry? Surprisingly, not at all.

Amazing.

If someone had told me three years ago – heck, three weeks ago – what I would be able to go two days without food and not really even miss it, I would have laughed in their face.

Stay tuned.

Instead of stressing about it too much, I just asked for what I need. It worked pretty well last time, so I thought I might try it again.

First things first, I asked the very helpful person who has been coordinating my upcoming visit if she could take me a to a grocery store immediately upon landing. This is imperative, as I typically travel with a blender – a travel blender at that – and love making green smoothies in my hotel rooms. I find that if I start the day off normally – well, as normally as anyone who drinks spinach, broccoli, red pepper, carrots, cayenne pepper and pear for breakfast can – then the rest of the day will go that much smoother. Of course she said yes.

Second, even though I am the keynote speaker at a banquet (hence the invitation to travel), I asked that a special meal be prepared: a large plate of uncooked vegetables or a large salad. No problem, she assured me. Now, who knows what the quality of the veggies will be, but that’s why it’s important to make sure I have snacks and high quality produce in my room for after the event.

Third, there are people who want to take me out to dinner when I get there – presumably after the trip to the grocery store and before the main event (which is the next day). When asked if I had any preferences, I simply said that i was currently on a raw vegan diet and that anywhere where I could get a big salad and perhaps an avocado – or at least someplace that wouldn’t object if I brought my own – then I was golden.

This is what she sent back, saying that it wasn’t raw, but she was sure they would accommodate.

Looking at the menu – particularly the appetizers and the salads – I think I may be the one to accommodate.

Given that the definition of High Raw is 80% raw or more, I think I’ll be okay. Meanwhile, that Cauliflower Miso is calling my name….

The moral of this story: I used to be really concerned about asking for what I need. I used to think that I was being bothersome or troublesome. What I’ve found as I have practiced this – and not been so apologetic about it – is that people are happy to help. But it helps if you’ve done your research. If you’re going to go visit someplace new, find out what the options are ahead of time. I lucked out, because my colleague happened to know about The Vegiterranean.

And for those of you who are traveling to a new place, without the benefit of helpful hosts, the internet is your friend. It’s amazing what you can find – and where you can find it – in just a few minutes on-line.

There’s a lot to say about this (including how horrifyingly fuzzy my tongue is at the moment); but now is not the time.

Stay tuned.