So today was the first day of my 5 day mini-cleanse. I didn’t start off on the right foot as for some reason my sleep was terrible last night. I’m not going to over-analyse it, I’ve learnt by now that it’s better to just accept it and move on, but I was feeling pretty tired this morning and not exactly full of the motivation I’d hoped for at the start of this reset.
What I did today
Once I managed to drag myself out of bed I started my day with a 15 minute meditation and spent a bit of time writing in my journal. It’s been a couple of weeks since I wrote anything as I’ve had a pretty packed schedule so there are quite a few things bubbling underneath the surface that I need to explore. I’ve been struggling with some uncomfortable feelings of guilt, confusion and sadness that I know I need to process. It’s too easy to push negative thoughts and emotions away when we have the busy-ness of life as a distraction. I said in my post yesterday that this is not just a physical cleanse but that I also want to give myself some time to reflect and get some mental clarity too.
This afternoon I did an at home yoga practice and went out for a walk around a local nature park. Sunday was the perfect day to start this cleanse as I had nothing to do except chill and have a bit of me-time. It was so good to get out in nature, it was absolutely freezing but one of those sunny winters days that I love where everything feels bright and light. I felt really calm and happy and my energy was pretty good too. No headaches so far although I did make the mistake of going too long without eating as I forgot to take food out with me and I got soooo hungry I was literally running through the door to get to the fridge by the time I got home. Something I forgot was how much longer fats fill you up for compared with carbs in fruit!
What I ate today
I had a yummy chocolate and maca smoothie bowl for breakfast. Since I quit coffee I have been having cacao in some form most days as it still gives me that energy boost but without the nerve-frazzling effects of coffee. It is also a good source of essential minerals such as iron, magnesium and calcium. I like including maca too as it gives a slight caramel taste and it is thought to balance hormones and boost fertility and libido. The slightly controversial ingredient for a cleanse is sea salt. For a few months now I’ve been adding a pinch of sea salt to my water and smoothies to balance out the mineral profile. This is something I recommend to anyone struggling with adrenal fatigue but I’m not going to go into detail about that here, I will write more in a later post.
Smoothie bowl recipe
Blend together in a food processor:
3 frozen bananas
1 cup unsweetened soy milk
2 tbps cacao powder
1/2 tbps maca root powder
Pinch sea salt
Sprinkle with hemp seeds for extra crunch
I had a late breakfast so I wasn’t feeling too hungry at lunch time. I had two giant grapefruits which is my faaaave fruit right now. I know it’s too bitter for a lot of people but I just love it. It is great for detoxing and said to boost oestrogen so maybe it’s exactly what my body needs – I love how intelligent our bodies are when we pay attention to them! I also had a couple of the raw vegan truffles I made yesterday and some licorice tea in my new favourite mug when I got back from my walk.
For dinner I had left over baked sweet potatoes, black beans and veggies with a simple tahini dressing. I added nutritional yeast for a bit of a protein boost and for a healthy dose of zinc and vitamin B12 as these are two nutrients that are lacking in a vegan diet. I am also taking a liquid vitamin D supplement but this is something that I do all through the winter anyway living in the UK and recommend to anyone living in a colder climate.
Tahini dressing recipe
2 tbsp tahini
1tsp soy sauce
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
Mix in a bowl and gradually add hot water to thin out
It’s evening now and I am just going to chill and watch a film or play my guitar as I am trying to switch off my computer a few hours before bedtime. I also only have a couple of chapters left of the book I’ve been reading (The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell – highly recommend especially to anyone who likes the TV show!). Tomorrow I have a full day in the office so I need to make sure I am prepared with plenty of healthy food for the day. I definitely want to have plenty of fruit but also I think I need to eat nuts or seeds too to keep my blood sugar balanced and stop me from getting hungry every hour..
