Day 16

Feeling good.  Day 3 of steroids - feeling about 99%, so I think I'm in the clear.  Had my morning shake with a nectarine - yum!  went to Bible Study where I had some grapes and nuts.  Off to do some shopping...home to lunch of salad with leftover salmon on it - sooooo good.  Kids have no running around tonight (Wed.) so, we meet my Mother and Hubby at Blakeney for shopping - my Mother wanted my girls to help her pick out some skinny jeans - can you believe that!?  And they did.  And she looked great in them :)  Then off to Encore for dinner.  (We never eat out this much!)  Had the lettuce wraps with rice from the appetizer menu...basically chicken breast with soy and sesame oil served with iceburg cups and a side of rice.  It was ok.  Another shake when we got home.  Feeling good

Day 15

Feeling MUCH better today!  I would say 80 to 90%!!!  Back to normal routines.  My Elizabeth is home sick today with a headache and sore throat.  I had same old shake for breakfast and a salad with leftover chicken on it for lunch.  Shake in afternoon, then off to Dr. office AGAIN with my Mother.  Her appointment went very well and we went to Cowfish to celebrate!  Did some cheating here.  Had a beer and sushi.  The beer tasted wonderful!  The sushi was delish too!  Dexter's cousin owns Cowfish, so we had a nice chat with him (we both love Dexter).  Very nice afternoon.  Went home to yummy delish cedar planked salmon, mashed potatoes (not me) and salad.  I love my hubby!  Shake late in the evening.  Feeling good!  Steriods making me gain a couple of pounds - ironic, hu?

Day 14

Ok, had my banana shake, then spent ALL DAY (8am till 2:30) at the Doctors office, then went on to the hospital.  After MANY tests, they don't know for sure, but they think I have pleurisy (infection/fluid in lining of lungs) or periocarditis (infection/fluid in fluid around heart).  Apparently this can spontaneously happen when a virus settles there.  The treatment for both of these things is steriods.  So...I been given a script for 40 mg. of Prednisone daily for 4 days.  If it comes back after 4 days, I'll need a CT.  (Fingers crossed please:)

Between the Doc's office and my drive out to the big hospital in Matthews, I stopped at cvs for a bottle of water and a jar of almonds w/ wasabi...ok, but not enough.  Wanted to get in to get in and out of hospital.  Did. Echocardiogram was quick and painless.  Shake when I got home and big salad.  Got in bed and didn't have much dinner, just steriods and water.  An apple later.  Was feeling MUCH better by 9pm - Thank God!

Day 13

Not feeling well today.  Can't get a good breath.  Pain when bend over or lay down.  Going to Dr. first thing in am.

Shake in morning with fruit.  Church, and then Hickory Tavern for the BYO salad - yummy!  I had 1/2 and 1/2 lettuce, avacado, mushrooms, cucumbers, tomatoes, and black beans & red wine vinegar w/ evoo.

I wasn't feeling well, so my hubby made chicken on the grill with brocolli, wild rice and a salad.  I had some of each - very good.

Had one more shake (banana w/ almond milk is about all I can stand) before falling asleep early.  Tomorrow will be interesting.  I'm thinking phemonia or some such.  My lungs feel full.

Day 12

Feeling good.  Still fighting something - virus?  Had my banana shake for breakfast.  Spent the whole day at Cabarrus Arena...Cheer Competition for my 13 year old, Elizabeth.  Snuck out between her performance and awards to Zaxbys - not great, but better than the concessions in the arena.  Had a grilled chicken breast salad w/ lots o veggies.  No cheese, no croutons.  Vinegarette.  Not bad.  Had a frozen strawberry/peach shake when we got home.  My hubby just ran to Ming Fu to pick up dinner.  They actually have an option that is just steamed veggies with nothing on them.  Gonna have this with brown rice and a lettuce wrap.  Yum!  Should be back any minute :)   Not down much on the scale... 8 pounds. But clothes fitting better.  Not as much muffin top  :)

Day 11

Normal day - no problem staying on the program.  Feeling good, except I may be getting a bug - sore throat and now tightness in chest.  Taking lots of vitamin C.  Early in bed.  I will say it was a challenge not having a cocktail with my husband after work.  I poured a Seltzer water with lime and sat out on the screened porch watching the kids play.  It was OK.  (I do like my occasional cocktail).

For breakfast I had my banana shake, later a pear.  For lunch I took my Mother to Chili's - and believe it or not found something perfect!  I had the explosion salad with no cheese, tortilla strips or dressing.  The waitress brought the bottles of vinegar and oil and it was pretty good.  I had a frozen strawberry/peach shake in the afternoon.  I made 2 lasagnas (one for a neighbor who just had a baby) and one for my family.  That was pretty tough mostly because the whole house smelled soooo good.  I had veggies and hummus and an apple.  I should have had something more, but I didn't.  Later when my hubby and I were watching a movie, I had popcorn...probably a no no, but I don't feel too bad about it since it's not a huge amount of calories or fat...after all, it IS popCORN, and it WAS a movie!

Day 10

Ok, today I woke up at 3:00am and couldn't go back to sleep!  That NEVER happens to me...bummer!  But, I felt great all day...a little sore throat, but I'm sure unrelated.  I was very energetic today.  Accomplished all the laundry, cleaned out my closet of 5 garbage bags of old clothes to give to the Salvation Army - Mom jeans and all!  Wow!  I can see what I have now, what a difference.  Also, I changed all the knobs on the kitchen cabinets - I like this energy.  I hope it continues!  

For breakfast, I had my fav banana shake.  Then I went to my Chiropractor - Weddington Wellness - I see Dr. Merritt primarily, but have seen Dr. Croft on occasion and I really like them both!  Adjustment - awesome.  For lunch I did a cucumber and red onion salad with basil and red wine vinegar & oil.  I also had a small bowl of brown rice with salt and pepper.  I had a peach and strawberry shake for a snack.  For dinner I had quinoa pasta tossed with mushrooms, tomatoes, green onion, brocolli, evoo and fresh garlic.  I went to a Basketball Team Party at Brooklyn Pizza where everyone was eating pizza - thin crust pizza, thick crust pizza.  Funny thing is, I noticed it smelled good, but I didn't want any of it.  I was full from my pasta primavera.  Got home and had some vegetable chips and hummus.  A good day.  I did notice that I have 2 tiny zits on my face!!! Haha, it's been a LONG time since I've popped a zit!!!!  I was fun!

Day 9

Today was pretty much a normal day.  Woke up after sleeping well and got kids on the bus, then made my fav banana shake.  Went to my Bible Study, then stopped at Teeter for a few things.  Made myself a nice big salad from the salad bar.   In the afternoon I had 2nd shake made with strawberries, grapes, oranges...ok. Also at some point in the afternoon I had sugar snap peas, celery and vegetable chips with roasted garlic hummus - yummy.   I found some vegetable chips that have nothing artifical in them at Aldi of all places.  I only have a few at a time because there is potato in them (not sweet), but they are great for a salty crunch!  My hubby was out of town and we didn't have to be anywere (which never happens), so I took the girls to Hickory Tavern for a Girls Night Out.  They have a build your own salad on their menu that is awesome!  I had 1/2 iceburg, 1/2 romaine, avacado, mushrooms, celery, black beans, tomato & cucumber....Oh, also, grilled chicken breast!  They even had red wine vinegar and oil!  (I'm soooo sick of balsamic!) It was deelish!!  Energy level seems very normal.  No crazy issues at all.  No cravings.  Easy! (so far)

Day 8

Today was good.  I did an hour of yoga and noticed that I sweated like a pig!  So, it's day 8!  I can have some meat today!  My Annie is doing a report for school where she has to write a paper on what forms of transportation she would use to collect all the ingredients for a recipe from all over the world.  She chose Chicken Soup with Rice.  I'm gonna let her make this for dinner - using brown rice, of course.  I decided to have my meat servings all at dinner so that I feel like I'm having a 'regular dinner' with my family. (I don't know if this is recommended or not, but it works for me.)

For breakfast I had a shake made with banana, unsweetened almond milk and a handful of ice.  For lunch I had a teeter salad and some sugar snap peas dipped in garlic hummus.  In the afternoon I had a shake made with frozen blueberries and unsweetened almond milk - omg!  It was super purple!  My lips and tongue were bluish-my kids loved it!   For dinner I had  Annie's Chicken Soup with Rice which was delicious!  I also had a big salad.  My family had a big loaf of french bread which smelled soooo good.  I just enjoyed the aroma and had nothing to dip into my soup and it was still yummy :)  Late in the evening I had some celery and salsamole.  Lots of water today.

Day 7

I'm feeling absolutely normal.  Maybe a little hungrier than in days 1-6, probably because I've been working out more.   I did a 25 minute hilly course on my elliptical which was much harder than it used to be!
I'll eat more today.

For Breakfast I had a shake made with a handful of ice, unsweetened almond milk and 1 whole banana.  For lunch I had a big salad from  the Teeter salad bar and balsamic vinegarette (homemade).  In the afternoon I had a juicy pear.  For dinner I served my family pork tenderloin, baked potatoes and brocolli.  I had a baked sweet potato with butter and a bunch of steamed brocolli.  In the evening I made a shake with frozen peaches and strawberries and unsweetened almond milk.

All in all a pretty easy day.

Day 6

Wow! I'm feeling great!  I'm sleeping like I haven't in years. My head is clear.  I'm not at all hungry.  I really think the shakes at breakfast and snack followed by the brown rice, brown rice pasta, or sweet potato at dinner are plenty of food...it's only hard when you're out at dinner time and they don't have one of the starches that I ever had a thought about being hungry or unsatisfied.  Yesterday was a Sunday, I had a shake in the morning with frozen berries-not my fav, too seedy.  After church we went to Salsaritas and while I saved the booth for our group, I trusted my hubby to get me an acceptable salad.  It was awesome!  The addition of cilantro, black beans, and guacamole made it delish without any dressing. yum.  I had a handful of green grapes in the afternoon and for dinner I tried something new.  Eggplant.  I've never been a big fan, but I must say it wasn't bad.  I put cheese on it for my hubby.  I made spaghetti & meatballs for my kids and ate leftover brown rice pasta with mine.

Eggplant
cut into 1/2 inch slices - peeled
brush with oil and garlic on both sides
bake 425 20 minutes, turn and bake 5 more minutes
remove from oven and place fresh basil leaves then tomato slices on top  (parmesan cheese on hubby's and others for kids to 'try'.)  Salt and pepper.  Back in oven at 350 for 15 to 20 more minutes.
I thought this was OK.  My hubby and Emily really liked it - they had fresh parmesan cheese on top.

In the evening I realized I hadn't had my 2nd shake, so I made one at 9pm.  Best shake yet!  Simply a 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, 1 banana and a handful of ice cubes added to the mix and then some water added while in blender...awesome! -kinda.

Day 5

Today I felt great!  No excess energy, just pretty much normal.  Down 5 pounds.  Had absolutely no appetite today.  None.  I actually had to force myself to drink the second shake in the late evening.

I have noticed that in the past couple of nights I'm falling asleep earlier and I'm sleeping like a rock.  Even remembering my dreams, which has been rare for me in recent years.  I'm usually awake till 11:30 or 12:00.   The last 2 nights I've  been sound asleep by 10:30.

Breakfast:  Shake made with fruit, almond milk, frozen peaches and strawberries, flaxseed oil.. (not terrible)  a handful of green grapes

Snack: banana, water

Lunch: brown rice pasta with tomatoes, basil & garlic - yum! 2 waters

Dinner: From Encore:  steamed yellow squash, zuchinni, onion.  Caprese salad w/ no mozzarella.  Soda water w/ lime.

Snack - shake made with frozen mango, almond milk, water, flaxseed oil.

Day 4

OK, I've got the hang of this now.  Slept great!  Getting up this morning was not so great, but atleast it's Friday!  Really feeling quite normal.  A little skinnier!  Not crazy energetic like some people are on day 4. But pretty clear head...my thoughts came to me quickly - no fuzziness.  Swallowed my 9 pills, yes in one gulp.  Had my yummyish shake and later went to lunch with my Mother at Harpers.  Had a green salad with no croutons...but when it was delivered to me it had egg and bacon all over it - who does that?  Scooped it out.  Also a cup of black bean soup - way better than mine.  Came home (had shake) and took the kids to Teeter where they bought everything to make their own pizzas - perfect - me no cook!  Had mushrooms and celery with salsamole (diced tomatoes, cilantro, garlic, in mashed avacado - s&p).  Had soda water with lime while hubby had cocktail.  Later had brown rice noodles with fresh basil, garlic, evoo, tomatoes -yummy!!  All in all, a pretty good day :)  Lots o #1 and #2s...must be toxins I'm flushin' away!  Yay!

 

Day 3

I'm feeling much better this morning.  Thank God!  Still peeing like crazy tho.  Getting into a routine now where I wake the kids up 5:55am and then take my pills in one swallow...yes, I know its' crazy, but I can throw all 9 pills in and wash them right down with no problem - again thank God.  This way when I get 2 of the 3 off to school I can eat something and I've waited the recommended 1 hour.  I went to my Chiropractor today - Dr. Merritt at Weddington Wellness - which is where I got both the idea for the cleanse and the cleanse products, and she told me that if I put a little bit of almond milk in my shake it will be delish!  (I really hope she's right)  Also, I found out yesterday that black beans are permitted.  Yay!  I made a huge pot of black bean soup at 7 am that filled the house with yumminess.  Gonna share the soup with Lynn Amos who is one day behind me on day 2.  Now off to the grocery store (again) for almond milk.

Breakfast: Shake made with peeled apple and cinnamon, water and ice. (Yuk!)  also 1/2 a clementine and 1/2 a cup of coffee (I'm weaning myself off coffee)  tomorrow 1/4 cup. 2 glasses of water.

Lunch: Black bean soup, 10 grapes, water

Snack: Shake made with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, water, flaxseed oil, frozen strawberries, pineapple, & mango.  MUCH better!

Dinner: lil' bit of black bean soup over lil' bit o brown rice.  Salad - greens, cucs, tomatoes, mushrooms, carrots with balsamic and evoo, water

Snack:  Green grapes, 1/2 avacado (mashed) w/ chopped tomatoes & garlic on celery sticks, water

I made it all day with NO headache!!  Also, I was very energetic today and got lots done :)  Feeling good!
I'm usually up till 11:30 or 12:00, but I conked out at 10:30 and slept like a rock.
Bonus:  I'm down 3 pounds!

Day 2 Standard Process Purification Cleanse

Green Tea
Breakfast: Shake made with cantaloupe,  strawberries, & ice
(yuk!)

Lunch:  Simply Salad (Newks) with balsamic and oil...water

Snack:  Shake made with frozen mango & blueberries
(better)

Dinner: Small sweet potato with butter, salad (leftover from Newks) with balsamic & evoo

Snack: button mushrooms & grape tomatoes

Day 2 started out alright, but a headache slowly built up throughout the day... I took both tylenol and motrin (probably wasn't supposed to, but I couldn't take it. )  The meds didn't even touch the headache.  At about noon, I drank  1/2 cup of black coffee thinking that was the reason for the headache...apparently not.  Anyway, I'm gonna tough it out because everything I've read says after day 3 it's a breeze!!  Tomorrow is Day 3!  I'll let you know.

Day 1

Yes, I'm gonna do it.  The Standard Process 21 day Purification Cleanse.   I plan to post my experiences here for others to benefit from.  I'm actually the 'guinnea pig' for several of my friends, so I figure I might as well be the 'guinnea pig' for you too!   I have a husband and 3 kids (15, 13, &10) who I will be cooking regular meals for while doing this cleanse...so it should be interesting.

Today is Day 1.  Just had decaf. green tea and pills.  About to make my first shake.  Will procure lots 'o organic fruits and veggies today.  Also yoga.  Will post at the end of each day with what I ate and how I felt, etc...  Here goes!!!

Green Tea
Breakfast:  Shake made with water, 4 frozen strawberries & 1 banana
 (yuk!  Chalky) water

Lunch:  1/2 avocado, 2 stalks celery, carrot sticks, sliced cucumber, water

Mid day snack: shake made with water, frozen mango, 4 frozen berries
(yuk)

Dinner: zucchini , yellow squash, onion & mushrooms sauteed in evoo over 1/2 cup brown rice, water

Evening snack:  celery sticks

I actually felt perfectly fine...no fatigue, headache...nothing.  Totally normal.  I peed more than usual