Friday, November 30, 2012

post-holiday cleanse.

a week before thanksgiving i promised myself that as soon as my fifth thanksgiving celebration was over (and cider and donuts) i owed my body a 5 day health cleanse.

i didn't want to go on a juice diet, or lose a bunch of weight, or anything really abnormal.. i mostly just wanted to give my body time to recuperate after all the junk food i ate during the holiday.

i decided to stick to a few basic rules : no dairy. no artificial sugars. minimal processed food. no red meat. no gluten. no alcohol. 

basically, it seemed like all things delicious were off the table. (this turned out to be untrue, of course)

i was also searching for a good morning/cleanse drink and read about several variations of them so i tried a few different ways before i ended up deciding what was best for me.

a hot cup of water, 1 tbsp lemon juice, and 1 tsp of honey.

as soon as i got out of bed, i'd make the drink and sip on it while i did my makeup, read my daily blogs, and etc. it was a great way to wake up my body and warm up my throat in the morning.





i don't really like to cook, that's never been my thing. but this week i totally had to get creative and spend time preparing meals. i'm also pretty picky about fruits and vegetables but i was able to find a few things that i really like and kind of mix and match. (here's just a few)


my favorite dessert was this little beauty.

a halved pear, drizzled with organic peanut butter and agave sweetener.
topped with red grapes, carob chips, cinnamon, and crushed raw almonds (which i forgot for this picture - oops).





weston also invented an "orange soda substitute" which was really just because i was being ridiculous one night and complaining that i missed orange soda when i literally drink orange soda maybe twice a year. but this was a yummy treat with the carbonation and flavor i was looking for.




AND i made my own vegan pesto with no dairy! which was delicious and i was so proud of it! i'll totally make it on a regular basis and i'm hoping to start growing my own basil and garlic for it in my little garden!

after this week i'm mostly excited to have cheese back in my diet again. that was the thing i missed the most. even more than sugar, surprisingly.

long term, this isn't something i will stick to as diligently, but i think after this week i'll be much more conscious about ingredients and nutritional value in food. i want the food i'm eating to count for something positive!

but right now i just want cheese.
bye!

17 comments:

  1. Love your little jar for your orange soda :)
    offtobuttonmoon.blogspot.co.uk

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    1. haha thank you! i have a (not-so-secret) theory that mason jars and striped straws make drinks taste better. it hasn't been proven yet, but i'm working on it. :)

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  2. Good for you! Most people don't think that much about what they eat. Also, I'm now craving apples and peanut butter, so thanks for that! xD

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    1. thanks! that was my go-to snack for school this week. i usually buy a grilled cheese or something overpriced (and unhealthy) on campus but this week i took apples and peanut butter and was surprised at how satisfied they kept me! i'm way behind on cool healthy snack trends :( haha

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  3. All of the food you make looks amazing! You're quite the healthy food guru, I have to admit it's impressive.

    Is that chicken on a rice cake?

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    1. haha thank you! i should admit, i'm much more of a cookie/cake/brownie expert but i gave it my best this week and i think i learned a lot! and yes! gluten free rice cake, homemade vegan pesto, green onions, and chicken breast! it was my healthy, makeshift pizza! something i'd for sure eat again.

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  4. The food looks amazing! What is the recipe for the avocado picture? It looks delicious!!

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    1. thanks! that one is quinoa, lean ground turkey, green onions and avocado, sprinkled with a little bit of sea salt. super easy and surprisingly filling! anything's good with avocado on it, ya know? :)

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  5. yay! i like this post :) good job with all the healthy foods - you got pretty creative!
    your food looks good. especially your pear! YUM.
    apples & peanut butter are one of my favorite snacks. i also like celery and & hummus. & is that quinoa i see? - LIKE! :)
    i've been looking for a new drink to jumpstart my body since it's now a bit cold for morning smoothies so i'm going to try your morning drink one of these days. thanks for sharing :)

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    1. yes, i wished all week that i could have hummus, but i couldn't find any that didn't break my rules! i hope you like the honey/lemon drink. i think it's a great smoothie alternative for the colder months but weston is a smoothie enthusiast so he disagrees haha. interested to see what you think!

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    2. kelle, i've been drinking this honey/lemon drink this week and i love it.
      i like how it's so much easier to prepare than juicing/green smoothies.
      so this is sticking around this winter :) thanks!

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    3. yay! i'm so glad to hear it! i've really grown to love it, too - they days that i've skipped it, i've realized how beneficial it really is for me!

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  6. Are you sure your nit a in the closet chef? The food looks amazing! X

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    1. thanks! you're so sweet! who knows, i might be.. but i just can't stand cooking! maybe i am depriving the world of amazing meals by never using my kitchen.... buttttt probably not hahaha ;)

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  7. Love your pictures! Where do you get the circle frames?

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    1. thanks! i used an iphone app actually! afterglow! it's the easiest way i could find to make circles - i'm photoshop challenged in that area :(

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