I made it!  I made it through 6 days (my event was in 6 days so I didn’t do the whole 7) of no bread, sugary drinks, processed foods, juice, pasta, cereal, and the list goes on.  Read my original post here.

I did the cleanse to lose some of the weight that I have gained while at law school (that wasn’t in the brochure) and because it was Barrister’s this past Friday. I also wanted to jump into a healthier living style where I eat mostly fruits and vegetables and stop snacking on unhealthy foods.  Here is a photo after the cleanse:

Overall: I lost about 5 pounds which is not bad for a week.  I actually think it could have been more, but I don’t think I ate enough fruits and veggies, and I didn’t eat tomatoes on meat and tomatoes day because I don’t like tomatoes.  Instead I substituted fruits and veggies.  I did not eat a ton of meat either.  I did not eat the soup except for one bowl.  It sounded good when I made it, but I just couldn’t motivate myself to eat it.

The positives: Eating non-processed foods really does make you feel much better than eating processed foods, meat, and other non-natural foods.  I had more energy throughout the week, it was easy to go to bed, and I just felt healthy.  I also saved a lot of money.  I wasn’t going to Starbucks, I had to remember my lunch because  there aren’t healthy options at most lunch places, especially not just fruits and veggies.

The Cons: I didn’t get to eat a lot of the things I like and I don’t particularly like the taste of fruit.  It almost seems like a tradeoff; if you enjoy eating it, it makes you feel worse afterwards, but if you don’t enjoy eating it, you feel better after.  When I worked at the mall, almost every Sunday we would all go to McDonalds.  I couldn’t resist, the Egg McMuffin is just so good.  Afterwards though I would feel sluggish, sleepy, unmotivated, bloated, etc.

In the future: I’m hoping that I will continue to eat healthy and will not gain it back.  This was a good starting point that showed me what I am able to accomplish if I have a little self-discipline.  I want to eat at least a few servings of fruit as a snack, and maybe some yogurt in the evening.  I also need to stop snacking at night.  On this plan I didn’t eat anything besides green tea after 7pm.  I was a little hungry, but it was not unbearable.  I think it made me wake up feeling lighter and I slept better.

I also need to get in the habit of running more often.  It seems like I always hit the roadway strong for a month and then I get just a little busier and I stop.  I hate building back my endurance every time this happens. I have gotten into strength training a lot so I want to also get on a schedule to lift every night.  Bikini season is almost here….

Let me know if you have any questions about the cleanse.  I would probably do it again, but I want to eat like that every day so I won’t have to worry about gaining an extra 5 pounds.