Nutrition-in-Motion Detox: The Results!

One of my last detox-friendly meals! Cannellini beans, olives, & artichoke with a splash of balsamic

After two weeks of a eating a diet which consisted solely of vegetables; fruits; beans; legumes & nuts, our Nutrition-in-Motion detox is officially over!  After gaining a few pounds over the long winter months, and overall, feeling lethargic, we decided enough was enough and committed to a two week cleansing diet under the instruction of Bucks County-based nutritionist, Joanna Chodorowska.

If you've been following along, we shared with you the cleanse preparation process and mid-way status update, which both emphasized that while the cleanse requires substantial preparation, it is not as impossible as some may think. After Week 1 provided an amazing energy boost and some tasty cleanse-friendly meal options, we enthusiastically entered into Week 2.  To our surprise, we found the second week to be more challenging, our bodies craving more than the vegan dinners we had been content with during week 1, and temptation constantly building. Check out our full detox recap below.

Week 2 Detox Recap:

–   We saw results! Both of us lost about 5 pounds each over the two week period. For the first time in months, I woke up Monday morning feeling positive about my body!  While both Angela & I still have goals to lose weight, a cleanse was a perfect jump-start.

–  We learned it's okay to trip, as long as you get back up. Every day, we received an email from Joanna about some of the challenges we were likely facing and most of the time, it was surprisingly spot-on.  She emphasized the BIG picture.  Of course you should do your very very best to stick to the rules, but if you were having a major craving, it's not the end of the world to give-in just a little, rather than completely crashing.  This happened to us on Thursday night, day 12 of the detox.  We were really struggling and morale was low so we turned to some of the foods that Joanna has mentioned are not the worst ways to cheat. We opted for a roll of sushi, since fish and rice were on the “not-the-worst-thing” you could cheat with list. We were able to jump right back on our detox path on Friday morning with minimal repercussions and a renewed level of motivation.

– “Oh, this is what it's supposed to feel like!” Our bodies simply began to function correctly. First, our sometimes hectic sleeping patterns evened out, and Angela (who is not usually a morning person) found herself waking without an alarm.  Then, Tina, who experiences severe migraines, had less frequent and less severe head pain.

– We're more ready than ever to lead a healthy lifestyle! While we admit there is no way we could follow the detox plan permanently, we are incorporating many of it's principles into our post-detox lives.  Simple changes like starting the day off with lemon water, drinking less coffee, avoiding processed foods, and eating less complex carbs seem easier than they used to.  After realizing how good we could feel, we simply don't want to go back.

Overall, I would say the title “Nutrition-in-Motion” is quite fitting for our detox experience. It wasn't always easy, and we even made a few mistakes, but in the end, we learned a lesson in maintaining a healthy lifestyle and most importantly, feel great!