Why I'm not getting any thinner

The salt makes you want the sweet makes you want the salt. It's a vicious cycle.

Week 2 of the Detox

Now, that's a lot of green!

Detox Day 22

I've made it to day 22 of the Green Smoothie Girl Detox!  22 days of no sugar, no meat, no dairy and nothing processed.  Until now I don't think I've ever gone 22 days without chocolate and it's really not as bad as I thought it would be.
In this last phase we still drink a lot of green smoothie every day ( 2 to 2 1/2 quarts), but she is also adding in solid and cooked foods.  My favorites this week are guacamole and tortilla chips made from organic corn tortillas and a black bean, tomato, quinoa salad with dressing made of lime, olive oil and maple syrup.  I've also found a new breakfast of millet and blueberries flavored with fresh orange juice, coconut milk and sweetened with real maple syrup that I will eat again after the cleanse.
It's been nice to kind of reset.  The best part about it is that I feel great and I have NO GUILT about what I'm eating.  Before, I knew that I needed to be eating better, but I wasn't.  Now I know that I'm giving my body time to detoxify without having to work at cleaning out all the junk I was eating (sugar, salt, pesticides).  I have lots of energy and I've lost between 6-7 lbs and haven't had any sugar cravings.  About halfway through I was really craving Japanese or Mexican food and I really wanted something crunchy and salty, but that passed.
So, 4 more days and then I have to decide how much of this I want to keep up; what parts of it I want to incorporate into my life.  If you're looking to do a detox she is doing it again in January.  If you do it when she does, you can have access to a forum for questions, answers and motivation.  She also sends a daily email with a video on things like skin brushing, changing your fat set point, essential oils, supplements, etc.  Or you can just buy the manual and do it on your own.  I couldn't have done it on my own though.  It was really hard at first.  I had 3 family members and 2 friends doing it with me and it was essential to have someone to call or text when things got tough or just to know that someone else was doing it too.

Green Smoothie Girl's Detox

        Last week I started the Green Smoothie Girl's 26 day detox.  Each phase of the detox has a different objective or focuses on a different organ to cleanse.

Phase 1 gradually reduces the calories you take in while keeping the bulk, then reduces the bulk in days 5-7.  You are resting your organs from heavy digestion and detoxing the colon. Your caloric intake dips down during the cleanse but never long enough to put your body into starvation mode.  You do lose some weight, but that's not the point of the detox. 

        One phase is the kidney cleanse and then liver and gall bladder.  Lots of watermelon. Then smoothies, green salads, veggie juice, or anything you've liked that you've eaten in the cleanse so far.

       The last phase adds foods back in like more grains in the meals (guacamole, salads, soups).
       Today is day 5 and I will be drinking 3 quarts of green smoothie.  These smoothies aren't sweet at all.  But I am so excited to finally start adding fruit back into my diet.  We just finished 4 days of absolutely no sugar, not even from fruit. In 4 days I've lost 4.8 lbs.  I think day 3 was the hardest for me.  Headaches and weakness, but today I'm feeling good.

Calling All Chubbies!

 I saw these on Facebook today.  Times have changed!  I don't think the little girl looks all that chubby. Do you? What would they say if they could see us now?  

In the 50's they must have eaten a lot healthier than we do now right? We didn't see June Cleaver with a gallon mug of Diet Coke or feed her kids Lunchables, but we'd have to go back in time a lot further to get back to "real" food.  

Lane Bryant 1952 catalog.

Here are some interesting 1950's food facts:

1950- Gerber started using MSG in their baby foods to make them taste better. (They stopped in 1969)

1952 brought us Cheez Whiz.

1953- Swanson sold the first TV Dinners

1954- Marshmallow Peeps were born.

1955- Green Bean Casserole was invented by Campbell's Soup Company.

1958- Frito Lay acquired the rights to "Ruffles Potato Chips" and Nissin brought us Chikin Ramen.

Chocolate Banana Green Smoothie

2 cups spinach -packed
1 cup Dark Chocolate Almond Milk
1 cup strawberries - frozen
1/2 banana - frozen

Blend.   Makes 1 chocolatey banana smoothie.  This is my 8 year old's favorite smoothie.
Thanks Jacque, for the recipe.

Broccoli Cashew Quinoa

Last night I tried a recipe from Green Smoothie Girl's book 12 Steps to Whole Foods.  I'm looking for more meatless dinners that my family will actually eat.  I think I found one here.  Only one kid refused to try it! :)

Broccoli Cashew Quinoa

1 TB coconut oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 small red onion, finely diced
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes chopped*
2 cups vegetable broth
1 TB white wine vinegar (I used red because I didn't have white)
1 TB agave
2 TB fresh lemon juice
1 Cup quinoa, rinsed well (soak for a few minutes, then drain with a fine strainer).
1/2 tsp sea salt
6 Cups broccoli, cut into small pieces
freshly ground black pepper
1 Cup cashew pieces, toasted in oven

Heat coconut oil over medium heat and saute onion and garlic for 3 minutes. Add sun-dried tomatoes, vegetable stock, vinegar, agave, and lemon juice. Bring to boil. Stir in quinoa and salt, then put broccoli on top. Reduce heat and simmer, covered for 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat when broccoli is tender. Add the ground pepper and cashews and toss.

*The one change I would make to this recipe is the sun-dried tomatoes.  I would use 1/4 cup. Original recipe called for 1/2 cup.  The sun-dried tomato taste was a little too strong for me.  The kids picked them out and asked why there were raisins in the dinner. So next time, I'm doing 1/4 cup and chopping them much smaller.  I think you still need them, just not so much.

Nutrients in
Quinoa
42.50 g (42.50 grams)

Nutrient%Daily Value

manganese43%

tryptophan21.8%

magnesium20.9%

folate19.5%

phosphorus19.4%

Calories (156)8%