ritual cleanse

Smoothie Love

Posted on May 1, 2013 Written by Tonya

I gave up my beloved Diet Coke and did a three day juice cleanse a couple of years ago and loved everything about it, but I’ve been in need of a refresher.

Enter: The Smoothie.

It all started with a pin I found on Pinterest (doesn’t everything?), which led me to a blog post, which led to my lusting after a Vitamix blender and ended with me rethinking the way I eat.

I have been making a ton of smoothies, in fact one a day the entire month of April and there is no end in sight. I had two today. I’m obsessed!

I’m no cook but after a month of smoothie recipes, both following them and getting creative, I can honestly say I know what I’m doing. I love how endless the options are, not to mention how delicious and nutritious smoothies are! Things that you would never think go together, like blueberries, kale and avocado, do!

Trust me.

Great for detoxing, as a meal replacement or as a way to get a lot more nutrients in your diet, smoothies are awesome.

My favorite, by far is something I call Strawberry Goodness:

1 cup oatmeal (I use Old Fashioned Quaker Oats)
1.5 cup almond milk (unsweetened)
1 huge handful of strawberries (fresh or frozen, I prefer fresh, but frozen will thicken your smoothie).
1 huge handful of spinach
1 tablespoon ground flax seed
1 teaspoon Stevia (optional)

Blend on high for about a minute and serve over ice or enjoy as is!

Smoothie shown in photo did not include spinach and therefore turned a pretty pink hue, the spinach makes it gray-ish. Please do not let the color scare you, it’s still tastes super yummy!

This post was written for Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop Prompt #5: Refreshments anyone? Prepare a drink for us and share the recipe!

Mindful Eating

Posted on February 16, 2011 Written by Tonya

I love food!

I love chips and salsa (the spicier the better), deep dish pepperoni pizza, big fat juicy cheeseburgers with all the fixings and a side of French fries, chocolate chip ice cream, sandwiches never without a bag of potato chips nearby, several glasses of wine at the end of my evenings and at least two Diet Cokes a day.

I didn’t eat poorly every day and when I did, I’d pay for it at the gym, on long walks to and from parks or by depriving myself for days following.

That was then and this is now.

I don’t think about food the same way any more.

It’s been one week since my husband I started the 3-day Ritual Cleanse and all everyone seems to want to know is how much weight we lost.

We didn’t do the juice diet to lose weight, but I did drop three pounds, all of which, I’m sure I have gained back because it was probably just water weight.

More important than the weight loss, I feel good and I did throughout the entire three days of the cleanse. Well, except for a minor headache at the beginning of Day 2, but it was nothing a little green tea couldn’t cure.

Day 1 was just odd. Drinking only juice and peeing A LOT and by bedtime, I was really hungry, but I pressed on…

Day 2 was my best day, I had tons of energy and felt absolutely amazing. Not having that bloated or tired or run down feeling was new to me and I liked it and wanted more of it!

Day 3 went very well too, but I was starting to get nervous about eating “real” food again the following day and didn’t want the goodness I was doing for my body to stop after I had used so much will power to stick to this three day detox.

Day 3 also prompted a lot of conversation about the way we eat as a family and different choices we wanted to make to our diet going forward. I still haven’t had a Diet Coke and don’t know when or if I will. I’m reading more labels at the super market and trying to buy only fresh organic produce and products.

My husband and I are already talking about doing the cleanse again this Spring. Believe me, if I can do it, so can you!!

If you are interested in doing something wonderful for your body in order to reset it and make more mindful eating choices, I highly suggest Ritual Cleanse.

If you have any questions about my experience or want to read more about why we did the cleanse and my half way point, here are two previous posts: Time To Detoxand Ritual Cleanse – Half Way Point and I can always be reached at smadaaynot@yahoo.com.

Thank you, Ritual Cleanse!

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Ritual Cleanse – Half Way Point

Posted on February 10, 2011 Written by Tonya

It took every ounce of willpower that I had this morning not to head straight for IHOP. I woke up ready to eat like a horse and had a nasty headache. Instead of a full stack of pancakes with a side order of bacon and a large Diet Coke, I drank another Ritual Cleanse juice and went on a 6.50 mile walk!

It’s the end of Day 2 of my juice detox and I feel fantastic! I’m serious. Maybe it’s because I’m a big believer in the power of positive thinking, or maybe, just maybe, this stuff really works.

I feel energized and focused and I’m loving the juices…. There are six different flavors per day made with fresh, organic, nutritious and delicious fruits, vegetables and spices: pomegranate, coconut water, spinach, kale, celery, cucumber, ginger, lemon, apple, cashews, agave, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla and more!

It’s hard to believe I haven’t had anything to eat since Tuesday night and while there have been some very tempting moments, I have not cheated once! This is huge considering there are toddler snacks all over my house and I’m feeding my son three meals a day. Macaroni and cheese never looked so good.

I knew going without caffeine/my beloved Diet Coke was going to be the hardest part for me so I kept waiting for the headache. When I finally woke up with it, I thought I wouldn’t be able to make it through the day, but as soon as I drank some green tea, I instantly felt better. I doubt I’ll ever be able to give up my Diet Coke addiction, but I am certainly going to cut WAY back!
Not feeling full and bloated has been great too.

Since all I’m doing is drinking juice and lots of water, I’m peeing a lot more than usual. I had to stop twice on my walk.

And, I know this will sound strange, but I missing chewing, so I’ve had two pieces of SUGAR FREE gum, for what it’s worth.

Yay me! One more day to go….

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Time To Detox

Posted on February 8, 2011 Written by Tonya

My husband and I are doing something utterly insane this week. Well, okay, it’s not that crazy, people do it all the time. In fact, little did I know, Todd has actually done it several times in the past and for a lot longer period of time.

What are we doing?

We are cleansing! For the next three days, we will eat and drink nothing but juice and water.

We are using a friend of a friend’s product called Ritual Cleanse. We are doing the Seasonal Reset Cleanse; which consists of six fresh pressed pure vegetable, fruit and nut juices a day, one every two hours for three days.Before signing up, I tasted these juices and they are delicious! I’ve also heard nothing but great things about the outcome, so I am really excited (or as excited as one can be over starving themselves for 72 hours).

I digress…

People cleanse for many different reasons; it’s a quick, easy, efficient way to flush the whole body and reset all its systems. For some it’s all about the weight loss. For me, I’m not interested in losing any weight, although, I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t be thrilled to see a lower number on the scale after three days of not eating. Between moving and the holidays, there has been a lot of late night eating, take out, fast food and alcohol, so my personal goal is to detox my insides and jump start my body for a healthier way of eating.

I’m sure by the middle of Day 2, I’ll have a raging headache and want to eat my arm off, but I’m trying to stay positive and I am very committed to doing this.

We start tomorrow and I will be tweeting about my experience follow me here: @letters4lucas and I’ll post an update here next week.Stay tuned and wish us luck!

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Smoothie Love

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