Unfortunately, I haven’t taken care of myself the way I should for a while now. I don’t eat enough vegetable and fruits, drink too much coffee, and take very little time for myself. As a result, I haven’t been feeling my best.
A Conscious Cleanse to Reset Everything
Those who have been reading my blog for a while will know that three years ago I was introduced to the Conscious Cleanse. At the time, I decided to do the cleanse at the spur of the moment after learning that it is not what I had imagined a cleanse to be (no or little food, basically a crash diet). Rather, the Conscious Cleanse focuses on whole foods. The results I got from the cleanse were truly amazing. I slept better, had clearer thoughts, little aches and pains went away, I was calmer, and I lost some weight.
But I’ve continued many of the principles I learned during the cleanse up to this day (warm lemon water to start the day, green smoothies, interesting salads, delicious vegetable soups, etc. - the Conscious Cleanse comes with a manual as well as the Conscious Cleanse book and both contain many, delicious recipes).
The Conscious Cleanse felt very doable because you eat real food and there is no measuring, rather you eat until you are satisfied while paying close attention to your hunger signals. The key for me is to do some prep work on the weekend and every morning while I do the cleanse to always have something to eat around that’s cleanse-approved. And that’s really also the key to living a less stressful life for me.
There are some foods and beverages you are asked not to consume during the cleanse (caffeine, gluten, added sugar, dairy, eggs, etc.) because they are common allergens and many people cannot digest them properly. After the cleanse you can reintroduce them back into your diet one by one and see how you feel.
Support Makes all the Difference
I’m going to do another Conscious Cleanse starting on June 8. Having done the cleanse numerous times over the past 3.5 years, I certainly know what to do. But sometimes doing “the right things” when it comes to food and taking care of yourself isn’t all that easy.I have found that support makes it all doable. And if you participate in the Conscious Cleanse there is lots of support:
- five live tele seminars where you can ask questions (or listen to the replays on your own time)
- a private Facebook group where other cleansers share struggles and ideas and Jo and Jules (the founders of the cleanse) and their team answer questions
- daily email support where you can get all your questions answered
- daily “love notes" that highlight one area of well being you should focus on for that day
One element I always enjoy about the Conscious Cleanse Facebook groups is that people participating in the cleanse are from all over the world. It’s fun connecting with cleansers in different countries and learn a bit about them, the food they eat, and their countries in the process...
A Gift to Myself
Life is busy as I said above, and when I considered doing another cleanse I thought “Do I really want to add something else to my plate?” And the answer is “yes” because taking care of myself has to be a priority. Only if I take care of myself will I be able to take care of others. I’m still following many of the Conscious Cleanse guidelines I learned over the years, but several things that are not the best for me have crept back into my diet. I know that doing another cleanse and really focusing on what I eat, how it makes me feel, and doing things for myself will be very beneficial to how I feel.Here is some information in case you are interested in the cleanse. The next Conscious Cleanse starts on June 8, and registration closes on June 6. You can get $25 off the registration fee with code Andrea25. Click here for more information and to register for the Conscious Cleanse.
I have written about the Conscious Cleanse numerous times over the past few years. Here are some of my old posts, so you can get an idea of the process and what I have learned.
- Review of my first Conscious Cleanse in January 2013 - a long, comprehensive post about my experiences doing the cleanse for the first time
- My Decision to do the Conscious Cleanse again in May 2013 - includes a list of things I learned from the cleanse that I incorporated into my life (many of them I continue to do to this day)
- Conscious Cleanse food and Experiences during the second cleanse
- Thoughts after finishing the second Conscious Cleanse
- 5 Things I Learned from Doing the Conscious Cleanse - you can incorporate them into your life at any time without doing the cleanse
- Conscious Cleanse-friendly Beverages
- Summer is a Great Time for a Conscious Cleanse
- Tools and Lessons I Have Learned from Doing the Conscious Cleanse
Questions: What do you think you should “clean up” in your life? Among other things, I know it will be good for me to stop drinking so much caffeine. What should you add into your life? I need to make the vast majority of my food vegetables and fruits again. I also need to be more consistent when it comes to exercise. The barre studio I used to go to closed down, and I’ll have to find a replacement.
Linking up with: WayWow, Inspire Me Monday, Sweet Inspiration, Blogger's Pit Stop, Thursday Favorite Things, UpsDaisy
Be well,
Andrea
[Disclosure: I’m a Conscious Cleanse ambassador, and I will earn a commission if you sign up for the cleanse using one of my links in this post. As always, the opinions in this post are 100% truthful and my own.]
