Days 13, 14,15-Halfway There

Day 13

I’ve still been slacking on everything-juicing, smoothies, prepping and even making food. I’ve even been slacking on lemon & cayenne pepper water in the morning.This lifestyle can be rough without advanced food prep but I just don’t feel like it. The only reason I’m not nose-diving into a bowl full of deep-fried something or other is because ‘I can’t’ because of the cleanse..

But I’m trying not to be too hard on my self. Mando and I are celebrating two weeks of this cleanse tomorrow. I’m proud to say we haven’t veered too far off from where I wanted to be at the beginning and the best part is, I’m learning a lot along the way.

Today wasn’t so terrible though, but as I’m writing this it’s mid day so…

Mando met a friend tonight for ‘drinks’ even though he said he didn’t plan on having any. It’s been an interesting experiment for both of us so far to have alcohol off the table for 28 days. Maybe harder for Mando because he is more social and goes out more. Not that it hasn’t been a test for me, it has.

Whereas Mando uses alcohol as a social medium, something to link him and other guests, part-goers and friends, I tend to drink when I’m cooking or on the couch after a long day. Sometimes using it to ‘relax, wind down avoid an issue I don’t want to deal with.

Since not drinking there are some other negative affects that are more apparent to me:

frequent urination
bloating especially in my face
hangovers
arguments with friends and loved ones
loss of memory and clarity

Both Mando and I have noticed just how much we drink especially when it was because someone else had offered us one or in some cases, insisted on it. Though we’ve been known for not having to be asked more than once. A lot of times it’s us offering a drink to to one another!Or how ofter we get one while eating out just because not ever considering if we really wanted one.

As we spoke about this though, we weren’t laying any blame, there was no anger, worry or resentment, just awareness and clarity about alcohol being so mainstream when it’s rare to see someone not become the brundt of it’s unpleasant effects at some point with regular consumption. We talked about how it’s easier to say no when you have a reason, ‘I’m training to run a marathon so I cant drink,’ or, ‘I’m pregnant so I can’t drink.’ I’m not sure why we feel this way but we both noticed it.We talked about how there were many times already throughout this cleanse that we would’ve had something to drink if hadn’t been for the cleanse.

Funny enough though, just as I receive a Mando while out with a friend and he sent me a text saying that he caved for and a few glasses of red wine. I’m glad he feels like he can tell me especially because it’s been so nice feeling like we’re in this together. I know that he’s savoring each taste and will probably be the one to be happy to get back on tract tomorrow without guilt or punishment.

The whole reason we did this cleanse was to lessen our intake of things that cause symptoms that cause discomfort, are painful and/or lead to worse conditions. We’ve come a long way from the sugar and GMO-ladden hard alcohol from our college days and that’s the goal, to be better than you were yesterday. Without taking yourself too seriously and trying to find your joy in the process.

What we ate…..

Banana and strawberry smoothie (A)

Maca, raw cacao and banana smoothie (A)

Bananas (2) (A)

orange, apple (A)

Raw nuts (A)

water (AM)

Blueberry and apple Smoothie (M)

Dandelion, cuucmber, celery, lemon, burdock root juice (A)

Dates (3) (A)

Avocado w/cherry tomatoes, EVOO, salt, pepper, lemon juice, bell pepper & red onion, kiwi (A)

Day 14

Today marks our halfway point. Another day full of smoothies and meals from work and tons of reading. Not many other notes on what we did or ate on this day. Must not have been a super exciting day.

What we ate….

Lemon cayenne water (A)

Smoothies (AM)

Taco salad from work (A)

Pear (A)

Day 15

We’re really loving how much money we’re saving by being on the cleanse. While organic products can be more expensive, buying a restricted set of items helps keep costs down.

Mando has been making smoothies at work and I’m so proud! He says that it’s a simple way for him to get full and get his nutrients. He decided to do it when we were talking one day and he was cranky about never eating enough. I reminded him of some of the kitchen tools he had at work like a vegetable slicer his mom got him and the mini bullet his brother no longer wanted that I told him to bring to work.

Sometimes we just need to find a way to be adaptable and look at a situation from a different perspective in order to get we want rom a situation. It was also imperative of me as a girlfriend and friend not to become annoyed with Mando as we worked through his annoyances especially because it was such a nice gesture that he agreed to do this cleanse with me. I was happy to help him figure out a solution and even happier when I started receiving these throughout the day….