Day 12: I made it!

    Well, I made it! (With only a relatively minimal amount of cheating!) And I have to admit…I actually don’t have the urge to eat a three ciabattas or mow a Hershey. (Psych! Obviously I’d never pass up chocolate…but I’m definitely not craving it, per se.) Here is my list of results, things I’ll keep up, things I’ll stop doing, and ‘key learnings’.

Results

• My fatigue levels didn’t change too drastically, except for about a day (after which I bounced back pretty quickly). I found I was not restricting my calories, so I wasn’t super exhausted all the time or unable to work out.
• Weight loss definitely did not happen for me. I guess I was a relatively slim person to start with, and this diet wasn’t too far off of what I was already eating. If you’re looking to loose weight, try something else. Maybe this would be different if you have a lot to lose and poor eating habits.
• It certainly did reduce my cravings for carbs & sugar. Big win on that front!
• My skin showed the most dramatic change over the course of the detox – perhaps this is because I was eating tons of good fats (salmon, avocado, almond butter, etc.).
• Unlike others’ experiences, I did not have and flu-like symptoms.

Keep

• I used to drink my coffee with flavoured syrups, artificial sweetener, and milk. I’ve actually become accustomed to simple coffee with cinnamon and almond milk, so I’m ditching my old overly-flavourful ways.
• I realized I don’t miss dairy. At all. So I’m continuing to not buy dairy products and use almond or soy products instead. While I won’t cut it out completely (heck, who doesn’t want to indulge in something cheesy once and in while?) I can definitely cut it out from the day to day stuff and reserve it as a treat.
• Sugar and bread was what I thought would be my biggest challenge. The brown rice, gnocchi and oatmeal I’ve been substituting have kept me incredibly satiated and have kept my cravings & sugar cravings at bay. Similar to dairy, I won’t strictly cut this out, but I plan on not buying bread and limiting my intake of sugary (real and artificial) things like jams, dried fruit, sweetener, and honey to special occasions or meals out.
• Using my spice rack daily has become an essential part of meal preparation, and this is something I’ll definitely continue to do. Fresh cilantro in the fridge at all times is also now a mandatory in my apartment!

Stop

• Oddly enough, one of the things I really miss is the fermented foods (which I thought would be no issue). This is mostly because a lot of the healthy stuff I have been eating (rice, salad, etc.) kind of requires something fermented to give it that extra boost. I miss being able to eat most salad dressings, mustard, and soy sauce.
• High fat (good fat) foods like avocado and almond butter have been my savior on this detox. But, now that it’s over, while I will keep enjoying them, I am planning on cutting back my intake since they are just so high in fat (and so addictive!).
• Welcome back to my life, wine! (No additional explanation required.)

Key Learnings

• Pick a time when your social calendar is relatively slow. Cottage weekends and meals out were the toughest things to manage for both temptation and social reasons.
• Brace yourself for having to poop in public. Unless you are a hermit, it will happen.
• Stock your fridge with detox-friendly foods so you always have options and aren’t tempted. Same goes for your office: I always had baby carrots and humus in the fridge and peppermint tea bags in my desk.
• Be realistic with your expectations. If you’re already healthy and slim, don’t expect to lose 10lbs. I’m assuming people writing those reviews either have more to lose or are restricting calories. If I had gone into this measuring my success in pounds, I would have been really disappointed at the end.
• Use the ingredient search function on All Recipes to help you come up with recipe ideas that use the detox-friendly foods you have in your kitchen. You plug in what ingredients have, and it gives you recipes that include them. Super helpful.

I hope this blog was able to give people a little more insight into my journey on the Wild Rose D-Tox. Would love to hear you feedback, reviews, or comments – hopefully it provided others some interesting info or tips. Thanks for following! Happy detoxing! :)

Day 8 – 11: Cottaging and cleansing don’t mix

   Holy Mackerel, I can’t believe I’m already on Day 11 of this cleanse! Wowzers. Not going to lie though, the long weekend was tough. I cheated. I felt guilty. I got back on track. But I hope it didn’t completely derail all the benefits of the detox! Here’s a brief summary and some things I would do differently.

   So, first reco – maybe don’t plan to do this detox around a cottage long weekend. Duh. I did do my due diligence to plan ahead, but it was still really hard. I went shopping the night before I left and packed a bag full of rice cakes, pre-cooked rosemary rice, rice cakes, almond butter, fruit, guacamole, cherries, etc. Luckily, cottages mean BBQs so I was able to rely on eating fish, chicken and beef like all the other ‘normal’ people, but I did cave to some birthday cake and sugary snacks, I just couldn’t resist! And it was like, a legitimate cheat, not just a couple bites of a bagel, unfortunately. (Side note: unlike some reviews I have read, I didn’t have any major adverse effects to eating a bit of junk food.)

   Aside from resisting temptation at a cottage, it is also difficult if you are a guest because you don’t want to be rude by always having to prepare a special meal for yourself or turn down food your host has cooked. This weekend, there were about 30 people up at my friend’s cottage, so I didn’t want to always be the lame ‘detox girl’ constantly requiring special food or off preparing their own meal like a loner. So timing of your detox I think is key – if you know delicious food will be spread out before you or you’ll be at a social gathering of some sort, just postpone it to a time when you have a less full social calendar.

   Another ‘timing’ issue I had was, well, timing it to overlap with ‘that time of the month’. Ummm, hello…not being allowed to eat chocolate while on your period?! Torturous! So I am telling myself my cottage cake cheat was basically needed in order to quell my PMS. Still not an excuse, but hey, at least I didn’t eat like, a full Deep ‘n Delicious or something completely crazy.

   With 1.5 days to go, I am starting to think about the things I’ve done on this cleanse that I’d like to keep up, things I probably won’t keep doing, and overall evaluating what worked and didn’t work for me. Hoping to make my last blog post a good one!

Might look serene...but is a danger zone for detox-ers!

Day 7: Ugh, cheated...

   Oh geez...my first real(ish) cheat. I think my failure was due to not eating breakfast leaving lunch too late which resulted in me being starving! I had several (maybe like, 7-8?) Sour Patch Kids after my salad (left over snacks from a work meeting). I am thinking this shouldn't completely ruin my efforts thus far. Trying to remember that a small slip up doesn't mean I need to completely give up on everything. I find that's often the case when I have something bad to eat - I figure "Today is completely ruined, so I may as well just completely blow it." Definitely the wrong mentality. Another thing I've noticed: I am much more tempted when I am alone with bad food. At home, it's not a problem because I keep it out of the house. But when I'm in the office kitchen alone with left over candy, cookies or muffins...it's realllllly difficult to resist, since it's not even an option at home. However, I am thinking that if I wasn't on this detox, a few Sour Patch Kids as the only sugar I've had in a week would be pretty damn commendable.
    Went for another sluggish run last night. Even though I had taken two days of rest (which is a rarity) I was still super tired on my run. Typically after a day off I have tons of energy and feel really recharged on my run - not so much last night. The fact that it was still about 27 degrees and extremely humid probably contributed to my fatigue.
   As I mentioned yesterday, I am heading to Sauble Beach, probably first thing tomorrow morning. My plan as of now is to pack a bunch of detox-safe snacks so that I don't make my host feel awkward. Although I won't have internet access (I guess I could blog from my phone but...I just don't feel like downloading the app), I will try to write each night and post when I am back in the city. Hope everyone has a fantastic long weekend! Wish me luck!

The culprits....arrrrgggg!

Day 6: Half way to the finish line!

   Can't believe I'm half way through the cleanse! Definitely has not been as painful or difficult as initially anticipated, however I am planning to head up to Sauble Beach for the long weekend (I think) and will be bombarded with yummy food and drinks. Could prove to be very difficult, but perhaps the thought of being in a bikini the entire time will be some motivation not to get off track.
   Felt pretty normal today, all in all. Still feeling like I'm not losing weight at all, but feeling satiated and my skin has seen the most improvement. I have never had amazing skin, but I feel like I've noticed I have had no blemishes and more radiance since changing my diet. I think the skin benefits alone, purely from a vanity standpoint, would be worth trying to stick to this type of diet for. I wish I knew which foods I'm cutting out make my skin look worse. Dairy? Sugar? Flour? All three? Anyone have any ideas? Would love to isolate what I need to continue to exclude after the cleanse to keep my skin looking awesome.

Day 5: Weight loss? What weight loss?

   I had two bites of a pumpernickel bagel today. I couldn't resist! It was left over from a meeting and sitting in the office kitchen, all alone. I think that's a relatively small cheat though - I didn't go completely off the rails! Other than that, I am on track. A 4-5pm meeting today even had me sitting in front of a plate full of chocolate chip cookies, and I totally resisted. To be completely honest, I the no bread thing is not as hard as I imagined it would be. I crave them, but I am OK substituting with rice or oatmeal.
   This is the first day that the herbal supplements caused some seriously, um, urgency around getting to the bathroom, if you know what I mean. Still not planning on cutting down my dose, but I can see how some might want to go that route. Maybe station yourself close to a bathroom and don't book any meetings around your first coffee of the morning - just a suggestion!
   To be honest, I don't feel like I am losing weight. At all. But, like I mentioned earlier, I don't really feel like I am cutting my calories - I may even be eating more. However, I have to admit I feel much more satiated and 'balanced' on this Wild Rose diet than what I normally eat. I am not overly full or overly starving - it's actually really nice. I know a lot of people do cleanses for weight loss, and I don't think this is one of them, unless you have really poor eating habits ahead of time. I'm eating olive oil heavy salad dressing and almond butter ever day - normally I would avoid those foods because of the fat content (even though I know it's healthy fat, blah blah blah). I guess you could lose weight if you stuck to this diet but were restrictive - but I am trying not to let myself get super hungry so that I'm less likely to cheat. Even though I am not losing weight, I do enjoy not feeling like I am on a roller coaster between being starving and stuffed all day.
   A really simple, delicious dish I whipped up with some of the left over brown rice I had is just frying it up with an egg and adding rosemary, salt and pepper. So simple, but really good - and really quick to make when in a rush. One thing I am kind of using as a crutch so far as been salt - not good, I know! Definitely going to try to include more herbs and spices instead of salt moving forward.

One of my favourite indulgences: oatmeal with apples & cinnamon 

Day 4: Here comes the fatigue...

   Day 4 is here, and I'm still going strong. Well, relatively. Last night on my run, I was so exhausted I actually had to take a seat for a minute and walk part of the way - rarely does this ever happen! I feel like I was going to fall asleep standing up. I'm wondering if it's because although I don't feel hungry on the detox, I'm really not eating a lot of carbs. Had a pretty big day at work today, so taking the day off from running to let my body recover a bit.

   Today was the first time I had to go out to eat...eeeek! Furthermore, I was with a client, so I didn't want to look totally neurotic. Luckily we went to School Bakery which had seared tuna on a bun with a side of greens and avocado, which is what I went with (hold the bun, obviously!). Let me assure you, going into a restaurant specializing in baked goods is probably not a great idea when you're on this detox. 

   Speaking of yummy treats, one that I've tried that feels like cheating but isn't that's super easy to make: rice crackers and guacamole. It's clearly not close to real chips and guac, but it's a reasonable facsimile on the Wild Rose D-Tox diet. Obviously, I don't have a ton of time (or willpower) to cook, so I'm sticking to the basics that are actually satisfying: brown rice, avocados, almond butter, etc. Hoping to whip up some more interesting dishes on the weekend.

School Bakery treats. Drool.

Day 3: Wild Rose D-Tox, Meet My Day Job

   Day 3 was the first day I was detoxing at work...yikes! The key to staying on track here was preparation and making sure I had enough food to keep me full so I wouldn't be tempted to cheat. For breakfast I maxed out my 2 cups of coffee with almond milk. For lunch I had big salad with a salmon fillet and homemade dressing that was surprisingly refreshing and delicious (olive oil, chopped cilantro, juice from a lemon, and dijon mustard...although in hindsight I think the mustard has vinegar in it, so may have been a slight cheat, oops!). For an afternoon snack I had carrots and humus. Whenever I was feeling peckish, I had a cup of peppermint tea.
    So, real talk: one thing you can't be afraid of while on this detox is pooping in public. Seriously, unless you're a hermit, you're going to have no other option, so just be prepared. Also, I experienced my very first unpleasant side effect last night - woke up several times during the night due to major stomach pains! Tonight I'm trying to eat more food after taking the pills to try to reduce this, hopefully this will help. No headaches, nausea, flu like symptoms, or anything like that. I actually think my skin looks pretty good today, not sure if this is due to the detox though.
   For dinner I snacked on more brown rice & peas, a small bag of popcorn, a small boiled egg, rice cake with almond butter, and oatmeal with apples & cinnamon. The time I get home from is my most vulnerable: I am usually super hungry and craving carbs, in a major way! Saving my oatmeal indulgence for right after work sort of helped conquer this craving (vs pigging out on bread or toast).
   Another tip I have is to take your drops of oil mixed with water from a shot glass mixed with really cold water. A shot glass is like the perfect amount of water - and obviously, since you're on a cleanse, you won't be needed it for anything fun, such as actual shots of alcohol. You can leave it beside the sink and rinse it out each time you use it.
    I'm pretty tired from a very busy work day (had a post work nap), but will probably attempt a run in about an hour. I had originally scheduled a yacht race and special dinner at RCYC tomorrow night with a friend (we bought the package to support a friend of mine who is currently competing in the Olympics), but we decided to reschedule, since obviously we didn't want to be the lamest company ever, sitting there unable to eat 95% of the menu or even enjoy a glass of wine! (She's starting Weight Watchers this week.) So looks like I'm actually taking this seriously...3 days = 25% done! 9 days to go!

Day 2: Keep On, Keepin' On

   Hey all…just checking in at the end of day 2 of the Wild Rose D-Tox. After the concert last night, I dropped my friends off at Poutini’s (no booze = DD for the night) and went home to “indulge” in some late night rice cakes and almond butter. So yeah, significantly healthier than poutine – and felt no guilt in the morning! Speaking of almonds, I also bought some almond milk to add to my coffee this morning, which has made it much more enjoyable.

   As for food, basically ate a bunch of blueberries, cherries, kale chips, brown rice, apples, almond butter, humus,  rice cakes, carrots and oatmeal today. I think I may actually be eating more calories than I normally would – I haven’t felt hungry or deprived so far at all. Also, I think that I am eating a lot more fat than usual (good fats, mind you). Typically I buy low fat everything: peanut butter, yogurt, skim milk, egg whites vs whole eggs, etc. With this diet, I’m eating things like almond butter, humus and almond milk, which all have fat in them and are something I’d typically steer clear of or find a low fat alternative for. So, I’m a little wary of whether or not I’ll actually lose weight, considering I was pretty calorie and fat content conscious before. I’ve actually chosen not to weigh myself, since I know it will just make me completely neurotic and crazy, but I know I’ll be able to feel/see if I’ve lost weight at the end of the detox.

   As for other side effects, my stomach was making some pretty weird noises this aft, which I’d heard other people have dealt with on this program. As for the herbal laxatives, I don’t find them to be too much for me at all – if I didn’t know I was taking them, I wouldn’t notice much out of the ordinary on the bathroom front, to be honest! I know I’d read some people found them to be too harsh, but I’m not experiencing that at all. Fatigue wise, I am fine, because like I said, I definitely have not gone hungry.  I am a bit tired this evening, but I think it’s because I spent the afternoon in the sun with some friends hanging out at Trinity Bellwoods Park. I’m planning on going for a 6.5km run tonight once the sun goes down and it cools off a bit. In the meantime, I’m going to prepare my lunch for tomorrow.

Day 1: So Far, So Good

   So far, so good! Day 1 wasn’t that bad at all. Started the morning with the pills and drops (FYI, the drops aren’t that bad, I mixed mine with a couple sips of water). Breakfast consisted of a bowl of oatmeal with sliced apples and cinnamon on top and a cup of black coffee (tip: put cinnamon in your coffee filter or your French press…helped take a bit of the shock out of having to drink it black). I snacked on fruit all day (half an apple, some blueberries, cherries, baby carrots with PC masala hummus) and also baked my very first batch of kale chips. So easy and so delicious – will definitely make them again!

   Mid day I went on a 7-8km run along the water. I have read that some people get super fatigued mid-detox, so I wanted to get in a decent work out in case this happened to me.

   Post run I went on a big grocery shop and came home to make my first dinner. I baked a plain salmon filet and made this awesome peas & brown rice recipe that included coriander, basil and cumin. Really fresh tasting, perfect for summer. I cooked a few cups of brown rice, since I figure it’ll be a staple over the next 12 days, and saved some to use in different recipes. For dessert I had an apple with almond butter – ummm, how have I not actually tried almond butter before now?! It’s so delish. One of the foods I was most sad to give up was peanut butter, but I think I’ll be totally fine replacing it with almond butter. Bonus for people who are lazy and live alone (aka, like me): almond butter is runnier so you can actually dip the apple slices into the jar, no knife required. You may think that's gross, I think it's awesome.

   Tonight, I’m heading to see The xx at The Phoenix with a bunch of friends, which means I’ll be surrounded by people drinking. This will certainly be a test of will power, so we’ll see how it goes (but I’m feeling confident!). As for cravings so far, it hasn’t been bad – although I felt like bread at dinner, the salmon, rice, apple and almond butter was totally fulfilling so I’m OK. I feel like I might crave carbs come 2am tonight after the bar, however, since I won’t be drunk I’m hoping I’ll have more clarity in my late night snack choices.

The kale chips I baked today

Introduction: Getting My 'D-Tox' On

   Welcome! If you're here, you're probably considering doing the Wild Rose D-Tox and (might be) looking for reviews on this cleanse...which means, hey, we already have something in common. After hearing about the virtues of Wild Rose from friends (and some extensive Googling), I decided to give it a whirl. Although I found some info on the process, the one thing I was unable to find was a more in-depth, day by day account of what the expect on this cleanse - which is why I'm committing not only to the cleanse for 12 days, but also to chronicling it here. I'm hoping to give other gals (and guys) honest feedback on the process, meal ideas, tips, tricks and share my challenges along the way.
    OK, so a little about myself. I'm a 28 year old who works in marketing in downtown Toronto. So basically, I'm busy (who isn't?). In my business, summer time is event time - which means lots of open bar parties, delicious hors d'oeuvres, and [cringe!] the occasional casual cigarette or two. Add that to weekends filled with nights out on the town (read: too many drinks & the occasional post bar Poutini's) and weekend brunches, it's unsurprising that I'm ready to get my detox on (or, in the nomenclature of the clever folks at Wild Rose - 'D-Tox'...so edgy!). Another fun fact: I'm a detox/cleanse virgin.
   Despite my social schedule, I don't think I'm completely hopeless in the health department. I run 6.5km 5-6 days a week and bike to and from work in Liberty Village daily. During the work week, I have a coffee for breakfast (tsk tsk, I know...), a niçoise salad for lunch, and by the time I get home I usually cave into my carb cravings and have rye bread with peanut butter & jam, a banana, low fat deli meat, low-cal popcorn, granola and low fat yogurt, or a combination of several of those. Sprinkle in a dinner or two out during the week and the occasional naughty afternoon snack. I have a love affair with sugar, and am an aspartame junkie (love diet pop, Crystal Light, and am a sucker for artificial sweetener in my coffee). I'm 5'6.5" and weigh around 117lbs. Here are the reasons I've decide to do this cleanse:

• Trigger a change in eating habits: As aforementioned, I have a weakness for carbs, sugar and artificial sugar. Additionally, I have a very narrow range of foods that I stick to when eating at home. The Wild Rose diet will definitely force me to try some new options, while at the same time limit me from eating some of the not-so-great foods that I should be avoiding (bread, peanut butter, sugar, etc.). While I don't expect to maintain the Wild Rose diet forever, I hope that this will reduce my carb cravings and allow me to incorporate some new options into my diet.
• Increase energy level: We've all read it in the reviews - this detox is supposed to make us feel fan-f*cking-tastic at the end of the 12 days. I've felt super sluggish lately, so hoping this will boost my energy.
• Lose a few pounds: Let me caveat this by saying I'm realistic - I've read about people shedding 10lbs on this detox. For a girl my size, I'm not sure that's realistic (or healthy). However, I do want to decrease stomach bloating and maybe shed 5lbs.
• Improved skin tone: Did anyone else read this in the reviews around the web? Because this would be a definite bonus! We shall see...

After researching several detoxes and cleanses, I decided on Wild Rose because I've heard good things and $40 isn't breaking the bank. I picked up my kit at Noah's at Bloor & Spadina last night. Well, I think that about sums it up...wish me luck! Daily blog post reviews to follow!