Thursday, August 8, 2013

Summer Fun

The kid and I have been traveling for the past few weeks to visit my family. We really enjoyed the trip and are very grateful for spending time with everyone, but toward the end of the trip the kid really missed his friends and his regular surroundings.


In the past when I traveled (especially for a long time), I often struggled with staying balanced when it comes to food. I sometimes used a “one treat per day” rule, but when you are gone for several weeks, one extra treat per day really adds up. Plus, I often ate such different foods than at home that it really turned out to be much more then just one treat…

On this trip, I continued to follow what I learned on the Conscious Cleanse. That is, I started every day with 32 ounces of warm lemon water, followed most days by a green smoothie. (I had planned the smoothie making ahead of time and bought and sent a small bullet mixer to my parents’ house as they didn’t have one. It worked great!) I also brought some food with me: Qia cereal, hemp seeds, almonds, almond butter, small trail mix packets, and a few Lara bars.

The majority of my meals were greens. Here are some salads we made at my aunt’s house.

 

Besides greens I also enjoyed some traditional foods that I normally don’t eat (but in smaller quantities and always paired with greens – which often resulted in unusual combinations). I also indulged in some Italian ice cream a few times, but my focus on the trip wasn’t food but people.

The Conscious Cleanse suggests an 80/20 rule when you are not on the cleanse. That is, you should eat according to the Conscious Cleanse principles 80 percent of the time and add in “extras” 20 percent of the time. I feel I followed the 80/20 rule successfully.

When I weighed myself after the trip, I had actually lost 2 pounds, which is probably a first when it comes to long trips and my weight. I am glad that I was able to continue to feed my body in a way that makes me feel great, and I’m thankful that I did the Conscious Cleanse first in January and then again in June as I had really learned what makes me feel good and how to make vegetables and some fruits the focus of every meal.

Hubby stayed home and also continued to eat quite a few Conscious Cleanse-friendly meals. He started his days with lemon elixir (water, lemon juice, cayenne pepper and a few drops of honey). He also ate quite a few green smoothies, salads and veggies. But, it also happened to be Silicon Valley Beer Week while we were gone, so there was also plenty of beer and some “beer food.” So we’ll clean things up a bit in the next few weeks. Smile

In fact, another group cleanse starts on September 7th, and we are thinking of doing it again. If you want to read about my experiences during my first and second cleanse, you can read about them here (in reverse chronological order.)

If you are interested in doing the Conscious Cleanse in September, registration is now open, and through August 11th, you can get $25 off with code EBCC913.

Questions: What are some highlights of your summer so far? What’s your favorite summer food right now? Our tomato, basil and jalapeno plants are doing great, and we are enjoying tomatoes with every meal.

Be well,
Andrea