10 Day Smoothie Cleanse
When creating menu tabs for this website, I included Fitness Fortitude. I added this section as I enjoy working out, make healthy choices in the way of food/vitamins/juices, lost 40 pounds about 11 years ago and have kept it off, and the words ‘Fitness Fortitude’ were catchy and kept with my theme of strength. I only recently realized that it’s my only drop down yet to have a post. Oops!
That is not what inspired me to join in the 10 Day Smoothie Cleanse with some friends at work, though. I think my reasoning for this challenge fell somewhere between the lines of not wanting to feel left out and needing to spice things up in my life since all I feel I do is work, sleep, repeat.
J.J. Smith wrote a book for this cleanse and it’s technically the 10 Day Green Smoothie Cleanse, but as you will see, this whole thing morphed into what I wanted it to be, so to claim I stuck to the exact recipes and techniques that create weight loss and awesomeness would be a lie. A few years ago I participated in a 3 day juice detox (that started as a 5 day thing). I did not follow recipes that go ’round either, but instead just gave my new juicer a whirl with whatever vegetables and fruits I did not want to rot. I wouldn’t suggest that route as the juices were brown and horrible and at the end of day 3 I felt awful and just wanted to chew something, dammit! So I ate about half of a supreme pizza and marked juice detox off of my bucket list. This cleanse was different in that it consists of smoothies (so texture and taste are considered) and snacks of crunchy vegetables and fruits throughout the day.
We spoke of our plans to begin this challenge Tuesday morning at work and I read the details that night as I snuggled into bed. I learned that a modification to this cleanse is to eat a healthy meal for dinner instead of the supper-time smoothie. OK, then, that sounded even more achievable. Halloween was my beginning day and I began with a kale/apple/lemon juice and an Excedrin, as the rules on this are no caffeine or dairy, and my daily espresso has lots of both. (Most days I drink an espresso on my drive to go buy another one, so I knew to carry the bottle of Excedrin with me). My teamie at work told me she would make my smoothies for the first week because, well, she’s awesome and way better at discipline and preparation than me. Therefore, the hard part of planning was off of my plate. I just showed up for work and had a breakfast and lunch smoothie waiting for me. I felt great and the smoothie was tasty. I did take note that the chica who began the cleanse one day earlier called in sick for the first time in forever after her first day on the cleanse. Hmmm…
My work friend asked me if I was doing the modified version of actually eating food for dinner. My answer was that was to be decided. That decision was made on my drive home when my youngest son and I decided to stay in for Halloween, hanging together to pass out candy instead of facing the cold. It was the perfect night to order a pizza, so we did. And it was good. The next day, I admitted to this, and my teamie said she had no judgement-she had eaten a couple of candy bars herself. This attitude definitely made the challenge less daunting and I liked the idea of eating at night. Therefore, on Day 2 I concluded that if I don’t get to regularly enjoy sex (for now), don’t get to travel or go out (like ever), was not drinking wine or liquor and not getting to enjoy the effects of marijuana (damn randoms!) for the Love of God I was allowed to have coffee in the morning and a delicious dinner at night. I’m a proponent of staying happy and maintaining positive vibes so what was I thinking anyways?
The days went along nicely. The smoothies tasted good and the chewiness of flax seed didn’t bother me, although the look of these smoothies obviously bothered others as I was asked more than once with absolute disgust in the questioner’s voice, “WHAT are you drinking?!” All of the fruits listed were received fine, but right when I mentioned spinach or kale, other’s would lose interest. My main difference was being mindful about what I was putting in my mouth during the day. Instead of snacking on crackers or chips, I grabbed raw veggies, fruits and almonds. I admittedly began feeling like a rabbit at some point and on the weekend, this challenge was non-existent. Meaning: I had a cookie for breakfast Saturday morning and when my son had two friends sleep over, I decided weekends were my cheat days for vodka tonics.
I hit the reset button on Monday morning. My children were with their dad on this week so dinners were actually healthier than the Italian fest I had the week prior (i.e. tuna or avacado and eggs vs. spaghetti). On Wednesday night of this week, I craved a yogurt/banana/avacado/orange juice smoothie, which I had to create in my Ninja Bullet because a week into this feat, I realized that I don’t even own a blender. That made me extra thankful for my work friend as this challenge would have ended on day one if I had been forced to take responsibility of making my own health drinks. It also made me realize that I should really do my research before jumping on board with challenges. On the drive to work the day after my smoothie dinner, I realized that I was freakin’ starving! I stopped at Vitality Bowl, one my absolute favorite places for juices and smoothies, and bought a protein breakfast sandwich with egg, avacado, spinach, mozzarella & pesto on whole wheat bread. I went right back to a day of smoothies, fruits and vegetables.
Friday was Day 10. One of the other challengers at work asked me if it was my last day. I’ve decided no, this wasn’t a 10 day thing. I will not go back to eating sugar-laden “healthy” breakfast bars on the daily and a bag of chips for lunch. My teamie followed the rules more accurately than me and was feeling awesome! She noticed that her pants fit differently and her sinuses were clear. She wants to do another 10 days of actually following the rules For Real this time. I just want to continue actively considering what I shove in my face. I will still eat tacos for dinner with a margarita (’cause dammit I love those things) but for breakfast today I’m doing that egg / avacado duo with fresh squeezed orange juice instead of french toast. And hell, I might even go buy a blender this weekend.
To get my ideas flowing for this blog, I looked high and low for pictures of myself when I was 40 pounds heavier. I found exactly one, which means at some point I threw away a few years of pictures of myself. I figured the memories I made during those years were less important than forgetting how I looked. I am including that one picture of me that I found, although I despise it. (And I’m so vain that I have to put it next to a picture of how I look now.) If you think it’s not that bad, remember, it is the one that survived.
When I look into the eyes of Then Me, I don’t remember that chick at all. I can’t remember if she was sad at having gained so much weight from child rearing or if she was blissfully ignorant. Looking at the picture makes me fearful that she will come back and eat me, so I stay addicted to endorphins and pay attention to how I fuel my body. I am finally convinced that what I put in my body directly affects how I feel. I know this isn’t revolutionary but 20 year-old-me hadn’t a clue. Recently I was told that someone described me as ‘plump’. The person describing me knew me while I was in my baby-having years but was speaking to a person who knew me post divorce. The divorce diet, by the way, is how I lost the 40 pounds. In the movie Double Jeopardy, there is a scene where Ashley Judd is running on a track and an inmate says that she is running with pure hate. While I wasn’t framed for murder like Ashley’s character, I was pissed at life and took it out on the treadmill-a few miles a day for a few years. After I got my happy back, food started tasting better and a half-marathon told my knees to take it easy.
A couple of years ago, I was sitting alongside a gal telling a story to one of my friends. When describing the cashier in her story, she called her a “skinny bitch” and then paused to look my way and said, “Sorry, Amanda.” Right or not, I would prefer to be described as Skinny Bitch over plump. Here I am now, 42 years old, 115 pounds (anti-plump), stressing out if I don’t get into the gym at least 3 times a week-but a little more realistic, a little less crazy, and letting happy be my guide. I’m going to start my day with espresso because I like it. Fruits and vegetables are going to win out over chips because they actually taste yummy and make me feel good. And, finally, I will not beat myself up when that tiramisu calls my name once a month or so because when you make mostly healthy choices, it’s quite alright to be unhealthy some of the time as well.
I giggled “is she going to come back and eat me”! Happy you’ve bounced back from that WOMAN and have found your STRONG 💪🏽