Vegalicious

You knew I was going to ask you this, so here it goes… 🙂 How was your Day 1 of the 3 Day Detox? I want to hear (read) it all–good, bad and ugly, so, let me have it. Tell me all about it in the comment section under this post.

I can tell you that I am feeling great.  I have had: green smoothies, green salads with some chickpeas and barley in them, which tasted fabulous. I snacked on grapes, enjoyed a cup of tea, and even went for a 2 mile walk with Sprout, in addition to running errands.

Jenay, who is at the helm of day 2 of the cleanse, also had a great day with her mixed, all raw, cleanse; but she will tell you about it herself.

About Jenay

Hi, my name is Jenay Hallickson and I’m a recent “convert” to veganism (Hello Jenay :)). My journey with veganism started in January of 2013 when my church did a Daniel Fast together. I had no idea what I was getting myself into; but I made the commitment and googled, ‘Daniel Fast’. I quickly found Elena’s site and read through her advice for a Daniel Fast. We started on January 6 and went through January 27. After just a week of eating a plant-based diet with no sugar or processed foods, I felt SO GOOD! I had energy to spare and slept like a champ. As an added bonus, I also lost 9 pounds in those 3 weeks – 9 pounds! I couldn’t believe it.

At the time I was the only one in my household eating a vegan diet, so I quickly succumbed to a SAD (Standard American Diet) after the three weeks. Although I never regained the 9 pounds, I didn’t feel right. About 2 months ago (April 2013), I said to my husband, “I just don’t feel right; I’m going back to being a vegetarian.” I instantly felt better. In fact, anytime we went out to a place that didn’t offer a vegetarian option, I was sick the next day and had a pounding headache only hours after consuming meat. I also noticed that if I eat dairy (I love ice cream), my stomach churns and churns and I am left with gas that could clear the room. Sorry for TMI, but it’s the truth. Since starting back on a plant-based diet, I am down 4 pounds and 8 inches. 🙂

So here I am, 7 months after my initial date with veganism, doing my very first smoothie cleanse with Elena, the person whose recipes and website helped me through the first 3 weeks of the new year with a Daniel Fast. My husband and kids have jumped on board, ditching dairy and meat in search of a healthier future. We live in South Dakota, not exactly vegan-friendly country, and have encountered some resistance, the standard protein and calcium questions; but I have been able to stand up for our decision and show just how much protein spinach or a chickpea has. It’s amazing to me how much ignorance and brainwashing there is by the Meat and Dairy folks (that are government subsidized by the way) out there.

One of the books that inspired me the most was The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone. Although she’s known as an actress, her book is full of studies and research that point to a plant-based diet as the healthiest option to avoid heart disease, cancer and a grocery list of other things. I like to see facts and research to back up your claims, so you can see why I’m drawn to this site; nothing is just said without explanation or the facts to back it up.

I want to be around for my children for years to come; I want them to have a healthy life and future without worrying about the food that is supposed to nourish them, actually killing them slowly from the inside.

3 Day Detox | Day 2

I have never done a Raw Food or Smoothie cleanse before, so I am both nervous and excited at the same time! I have done a Daniel Fast before, but it included cooked foods (when I did eat, it was a fast after all). And while it’s been a weeks since I’ve had any meat, but will admit to having butter just a week or so ago! But this cleanse is a new leaf for me, kicking animal products completely.

For breakfast I had a green smoothie made with romaine lettuce. I eat spinach a lot, so I thought I’d try this one for a change.

Romaine Green Smoothie Recipe

• 1 Romaine Heart
• 2 bananas (mine were frozen)*
• 2 oranges
• Sliced pineapple (I used canned, 4 rings)
• ½ cup ice (I like my smoothies cold)
• 2 cups water
• ½ cup pineapple juice
• 1 Tbsp chia seeds (I love chia, store it in the freezer to avoid it sprouting, add to anything for an extra boost of antioxidants and fiber.)

Since I don’t have a big fancy blender, I did have to do this in steps; I put in one of everything and all the liquid, blended it, then added the rest.

*If you’re using frozen bananas, let them sit at room temp for 15 minutes or so and you should be able to peel them. Otherwise, just peel them with a knife. (Note from Elena: or, peel them before freezing ;).)

This made over 5 cups – my blender could barely contain the yumminess of it all! It was a beautiful shade of pale green. Also, the oranges are still a bit pulpy (unless you have a high speed blender, like Vitamix ;)!), so if you have texture issues, this may not be for you. I didn’t have to chew my smoothie by any means, but you could definitely tell there was pulp in it.

Since I’m doing a combination green smoothie/raw foods cleanse, I had a salad for lunch. It was mixed greens, raspberry vinaigrette (Elena’s recipe from High on Raw Book), and raw sunflower seeds. I’ll admit, as a Ranch fan, the dressing was “okay.” I think I put too much on, because by the time I got to the bottom of the bowl, it was a big droopy mess. Still, I ate the whole thing! I’ll try again with less dressing tomorrow. I had a slice of watermelon to go with it. (Elena’s note: yes, it is hard to compete with Ranch ;), especially if you are just going vegan. Given time, however, taste buds cleanse and improve and you can be ready to love the goodness.)

After a really fun (and hot) day of swimming with the kids, the whole family came back hungry! My son finished off the pineapple, my daughter had an apple with peanut butter and I had a grapefruit, a couple of carrots and just a few prunes. I love carrots, and these were from our CSA, so they were sweet and crunchy and just the thing to help cool me off after a hot afternoon!

For dinner, the rest of my smoothie from the morning and some sliced cucumber. And of course…lots of water throughout the day!

I did not feel any weird or crazy symptoms, although my husband might tell you I was a little cranky! I was crazy tired after church. I’m not sure if this is just my body readjusting or what, but a nap helped that and the crankiness. After dinner I am completely full, almost uncomfortably so. A long walk with a friend is in order tonight; I would normally do 3-4 fast miles, but tonight I’ll take it slow. In total, I drank more than 9 cups of water.

How is Your Day 2?

What have you planned for meals today? If you have any images to share, make sure to add them under the post in the comment section. I cannot wait to hear all of the stories!

Get ready for Day 3!