Three-Day Cleanse

When my friend asked me to do a 3-day cleanse with her, I figured I would give it a whirl. I’ve read testimonials from people that have done one, and their “added energy” and “absent sugar cravings” always made me question and wonder if they were getting paid to make these comments or if they were true. The only way for me to find out was to try one myself and I knew if I had Taylor suffering through it also, we could get through the 3 days without punching someone, surrendering in a tub of ice cream or fainting before noon. #buddysystem

So - much - chicken/turkey/tilapia  (Hi Santa!)

Meals for one day

Before I give you a breakdown of how the past 72 hours went, let me preface this by saying I’m not gullible. There are many people who do a cleanse to lose weight and I want to give those people an eye roll (let me remind you I grew up with three brothers so I've had it mastered since age 4). I am at a healthy weight for my body type so did not agree to do this to shed pounds. More than likely you will lose weight because hello you are drinking juice, cutting your calories exponentially, or eating low-carb foods. Keep in mind the second you go back to “regular” eating you will gain the weight lost right back. #reality

Here are the 6 meals that I ate everyday for 3 days. The only thing that changed each day were the steamed veggies. Throughout the cleanse I had broccoli, brussel sprouts, green beans, and yellow squash. 

Meal 1: 

1/2 C oatmeal

2 egg whites

1 tsp. coconut oil

Meal 2:

3/4 C chicken

1/2 C yam

Meal 3:

3/4 C tilapia

1 C steamed broccoli

Meal 4: 

3/4 C chicken

1 C steamed brussel sprouts

1 tsp. coconut oil

Meal 5: 

3/4 C tilapia

1 C steamed brussel sprouts

1 tsp. coconut oil

 Meal 6:

3/4 C turkey

1 C steamed green beans

1 tsp. coconut oil

What I liked:

• never felt starved or deprived from food
• overall felt "lighter" - lost 2.4 lbs
• not as bloated
• my stomach issues subsided 
• meals were pre-made and pre-planned which helped me stay on track 
• discovered I LOVE steamed yellow squash and yam with cinnamon sprinkled on top!
• was eating food every 2-3 hours (I could never survive a juice cleanse…I need grub!)

What I didn't like:

• tired and exhausted (to the point of wanting to go to bed at 5pm) by day 2
• not eating carbs made running with little to no energy very, very miserable
• craved the slightest sugar - a strawberry, a grape, anything! 
• low-blood sugar symptoms kicked in on day 2 and 3 so I snuck in a spoonful of peanut butter to prevent any fainting episodes 
•  was drinking water 24/7 which meant I was in the bathroom quite often 
• Coconut Oil - oh my! I had to plug my nose when "eating" it. Not for me! 
• Temptations:

K enjoyed fro-yo while I enjoyed…water.

K wanted to walk through the candy store so I did…reminding myself that I don't even like chocolate.

When doing a cleanse, don't pick up a food magazine that has an entire 2-page spread on ice cream.

It wasn't as terrible as I thought but I'm not sure I would it again. Who knows, though, I always love a good challenge! To end on a humorous note, K made this to sum up how she felt having to deal with me through it all. 

P.S. Have you done a cleanse? If so, did you like/hate it? Comment below!