What’s a cleanse and why should I do one?

Good morning and welcome back to Transformation Thursday! Today is an exciting post because my dear friend and health & fitness coach, Whitney Carrion, is guest blogging today to share with us what a cleanse is and why it’s helpful in achieving your goal of becoming a healthier you!

I am not going to lie that prior to working with Whitney when I heard the word “cleanse,” the following words popped into my head: juices, shakes, hunger, weak, tired. It’s no secret that some cleanses have a bad rap. However, Whitney explained to me that her version of a cleanse is simply a means of flushing your system of the bad and preparing it for the good. Yes, weight loss is a side effect, but it is not the goal. Rather, you’re laying the foundation for a healthier lifestyle both nutritionally and physically.

Still unsure if this is for you? No worries! I started my 10 day cleanse yesterday and plan on keeping you all up to date on my experience including how I feel throughout the cleanse, the results I see, and if I would recommend it to you. I’m on day 2 of 10 and already feel more energetic! But, enough about me, let’s hear from Whitney!

Commit to Cleanse Now; Be Thankful Later:

Come January, everyone seems ready to get on board with their health and fitness resolutions. In most cases, that reason being, because we Americans (especially) tend to overindulge.

All. The. Time.

We already know that our portions are way oversized in comparison to that of other countries, such as France. But this overindulgence really tends to rear it’s ugly head around the Holidays.

The span of late October all the way through the beginning of January mainly (hence why weight loss is usually a New Year’s resolution for most). That’s 60+ days worth of allowing our health and fitness to take a back seat to our cravings, our busy schedule, Mom’s famous sugar-packed/butter-filled sweet potato casserole and the Holiday Spirit. So, it’s no wonder that the average American gains upwards of 7-10lbs every Holiday Season.

Yes. You read that right. 10lbs is a whole dress size, y’all.

There are various ways in which one decides to tackle her health/fitness goals come January, but most involve a very short lived gym membership and a very short lived fad diet. Neither of which tend to amount to much…and often those 7-10lb’s wind up hanging around for awhile longer. Also, with those extra 7-10lbs now on your body, it may cause you to feel like any step toward reaching your health and fitness goals is a very steep uphill climb. And I don’t want that for you.

So what’s an effective and lasting way to address this issue? Well, for starters, being proactive is certainly the first step. After that, let’s do a cleanse.

What’s a Cleanse and Why is this helpful?

A cleanse is something that we should really be doing every 90-120 days maximum. How often do we change the oil in our cars? Every 3000 miles, right? Well, if our bodies had mileage, we’d be do for a cleanse around the 90-120 day mark. We all have nutrient receptor sites inside our small intestines. The small intestine is where the bulk of our food breakdown occurs, and where the bulk of our nutrients get absorbed. From here, these nutrients travel into our blood stream, and off to various other systems in our body, to support their functions. Every now and then, both of our intestines (large and small) get too packed full of waste. Not only does this often make the flow of waste either too quick, or not as efficient, but it also impacts our nutrient absorption as well.

When toxins are allowed to stick to the walls of our digestive track over a period of time, some of these nutrient receptor sites may become clogged. And in doing so, this can cause a world of issues to occur, because again…the absorption of these nutrients you digest, are used to help support other systems in your body. And it all begins in your digestive tract. So, ifyour nutrient receptor sites get clogged you may notice…

Signs you May Need a Cleanse:

1. You feel foggy headed

2. Your immune system feels run down and you’re getting sick often

3. You have relentless cravings for specific foods (think sweets or lots of salty foods)

4. You feel sluggish with low energy

5. You’re downing a lot of caffeine but not really able to wake up

6. Weight gain or stubborn fat that just won’t leave, despite eating healthily

7. Constipation or frequent diarrhea become the norm

8. Your bowel movements have the consistency of heavy paste

9. Your skin is pale with possible dark spots or acne

10. You suddenly have issues falling asleep, staying asleep, or you battle relentless sleepiness

I gain most of my clients after they hit a plateau in their weight loss. I gain clients all the time whom joined a gym, started eating strict, and then lost some weight with those initial changes, but after 60 or so days of that, couldn’t seem to get anymore results. So they’d incorporate 2-a-days or try to cut out more calories, but still…nothing. Thus, I’d put them on the cleanse.

Is eating clean and exercising a great start? ABSOLUTELY! Not only will this help your weight loss, but it will also help your immune system, support good mood, clear your head, and elevate your energy levels. But there’s only so much that clean eating and diet can do, and that’s why you often need a little push. Again, back to the car engine analogy….we can put the best grade fuel in our car, wash it, vacuum it, and all of that. BUT, if we’re not changing the oil frequently, a breakdown will surely occur. Same as your body.

Which Cleanse is the best?

When you hear the word “cleanse” associated with diet or weight loss, you’re likely to cringe or pucker up a bit, right? That’s normally because one thinks about having to drink nothing but lemon juice and cayenne pepper for 30 days, and the thought of living a normal life while partaking in such a cleanse, sounds near impossible.

To be fair, it must be noted that I DID once partake in a hydrotherapy cleanse, out of peer pressure from a friend who thought it would be “fun group activity.” Please allow me to be the first to tell you that it was far less than pleasant. I will never let anyone peer pressure my colon again. Lesson learned.

If you’re someone who feels the need for a challenge and likes to live on the dangerous side, by all means….go on with your bad self and tackle that liquid cleanse. You go, girl!

BUT, for the average joe…the cleanse I prefer best, is the Advocare 10 day cleanse. It’s the cleanse I choose to coach all my clients on because it’s what I personally found to be the best in terms of comfort and in terms of effectiveness.

And when I say “All my clients” … I mean people in all walks of life. I’ve coached the tired mom, the overweight grandfather, the Soldier looking to get a better PT score, the single 30-something gal who wants to look better in a bikini, the 25 year old who wants to look good for her friend’s wedding, the 19 year old boy who wants to keep his post Hockey season weight at bay, and the 45 year old nurse who just wants to be able to stay awake during her Night shift and steer clear from Doctor Peppers all the time.

A friend introduced me to Advocare by introducing me to the Cleanse, 3 years ago. At the time I was working as a full time CrossFit Coach in Northern California, about 60-80 hours a week. I was over-worked, over-stressed, and though I was supposed to be this Model of Health/Fitness, I was overweight.

After 2 days on the cleanse, I noticed a huge boost of energy, and after 4 days, I felt unstoppable. After 60 days on product, I lost 12lbs and began performing IN LIFE again, instead of just trying to survive it. My passion came back and my career love was re-ignited. After that, I signed on with this company immediately, knowing that I could use it as a vehicle to help my friends, family, and clients reach all of their health and fitness goals as well.

Also, a fantastic side note…I’m currently almost 4 months postpartum, and my doctor approved me doing this very cleanse after I delivered my baby girl. And before you ask, yes, I am nursing her.

In doing this cleanse and following the Advocare nutrition plan, paired with regular exercise, I lost all 25b’s I gained while pregnant, plus 9 more in the first 80 days after delivery.

The Advocare 10 day Herbal cleanse is part 1 of the Advocare 24 Day Challenge. Part 1 is the cleanse, and part 2 is the Metabolism reset. One can do either part solo, or both together.

However, we’ll be focusing on the cleanse right now.

THE CLEANSE:

The 10 day cleanse is non-violent. Let me say that again…this cleanse is NOT violent. You get to eat normal solid foods throughout and you can put all “sprinting to the bathroom in fear” thoughts at bay. If it’s not violent, what makes it effective you say? Let me be the first to say, that a cleanse doesn’t need to be violent to be effective.

In fact, if you’re someone who experiences frequent loose stools, that’s actually a sign that you’re in NEED of a cleanse (remember, this is from above?).

A simple fiber, probiotic, and some form of calm herbal flush is the best route to go.

With this cleanse in particular, you wake up, drink an Advocare Spark (Advocare’s version of caffeine intake that hydrates you and won’t irritate your stomach while cleansing; this will be your coffee replacer for 10 days), you pop some good probiotics, and you have some fiber. The probiotics help ensure that you have good bacteria to help with the breakdown of food in your digestive system.

Sometimes while cleansing, the Fiber you take in will not only bond with the food you eat and the toxins you want to flush, but can often bond with the good bacteria you have, and flush it all away.

So, Advocare was proactive with this fact, and added a good dose of probiotics in each day of the cleanse. The specific fiber you take while on this cleanse is also a good balance of soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber is said to reduce the risk of heart disease, while insoluble fiber helps waste to pass along more efficiently through the stomach and intestines.

Then, at the end of each day, after you’ve consumed some great solid proteins, veggies, fruits, and complex carbohydrates, you take 2 herbal cleanse vitamins, that flush out all the toxins, which the fiber has bonded to throughout the day of being in your body.

You follow that easy schedule, for 10 days, and hydrate the whole way through.

The beauty of this 10 day cleanse is that you don’t just get results in those 10 days. Your body is now primed to work more efficiently for the next 90-120 days. If you continue eating a reasonably nutritious diet, and continue exercising, as well as drinking a lot of water (I always say a gallon a day), your body should be functioning at optimal levels once again.

After cleansing, you will notice various positive side effects:

1. Boost in good mood

2. Increase in energy

3. Clear head and much better focus

4. More regular Bowel Movements

5. Fat Loss

6. More visible muscle tone

7. Quicker and more efficient recovery from exercise

8. More restful/deeper sleep

9. A strengthened immune system

10. Clearer and more “glowing” skin

To continue getting results, one should continue on with the eating plan for 90 days. You cannot revert back to eating poorly and not working out, if you want to get the most out of a cleanse.

The eating plan that goes along with the Cleanse is a lifestyle change; it is not marketed as a diet. Diets are short-lived. Continuing on with this type of eating, however, is a great way to learn how to properly fuel your body, and is a great way to learn how your body responds to different foods. Eating small meals throughout the day is like adding kindling to a burning fire, versus eating 3 large square meals, which will almost suffocate the flame entirely…aka your metabolism.

In another 90-120 days, do the cleanse once again. The clients I have that get the best results, follow this regimen over and over and do the cleanse about 3-4 times a year. I, myself, follow this regimen and I NEVER regret doing it when that 90 day mark hits again. In fact, I’m always looking forward to the next one.

Preparing for a Cleanse

All in all, whichever cleanse you choose, you’re going to want to prepare ahead of time. I always tell my clients that “Lack of Preparation is the Number 1 Sabotage of all your planned Successes.”

So, you want to  make sure you have a healthy grocery shopping list of foods to buy, you’re ready to prepare a bulk of your foods ahead of time, and that you’re committing to a more strict eating plan for those 10 days.

Email me and I’ll send you a very easy yet variety packed grocery guide.

Also just go on ahead and commit to carrying around a gallon jug of water those 10 days. The more water you drink, the more flushing you’ll do and I promise the better you’ll feel.

You may also want to do a clean sweep of food temptations in your house. Okay, maybe not throw them away, but tuck them all away somewhere out of sight, only accessing them if you must for your children or Spouse. Or better yet, see if you as a family can commit to cleaner eating during this time frame. It can be tough, but it can be done. A whole body refresh for your whole family. You’ll thank me later, I promise!

If you’ve got issues with motivation, and you don’t see your family getting on board, than grab an accountability partner, or grab a Coach!! Such Challenges are best tackled in a group or with someone who can help keep you on point. Or join in one of the Accountability groups I have coming up this Holiday Season as well.

Your Friend in Health and Fitness,

Whitney Carrion

Thanks for reading and please feel free to email me or Whitney with any questions you may have!!

Whitney offers a variety of services and would be happy to help you reach your Health and Fitness goals, in whatever capacity they come in!

• Easy/Advanced nutrition plans, sans cleanse/challenge products
• Simple/Advanced Workout routines with/without gym access for strength, body composition, and postpartum
• Goal Coaching

Instagram: Mdub_Fitness_Whitney

Email: mdubfitness5@gmail.com

Website: Coming soon! www.mdubfitness.com