TF and cleansing

[godusjourney]

Lots of questions from this mama...

I'm curious how many of you know of a cleansing routine that is TF-friendly.

I was raised raw/vegan and up until 2 years ago, believed that was the healthiest. I also was raised with colon cleansing and an assortment of other organ cleanses. Periodically, the past few years, since becoming an adult, I have done cleanses here and there - just short whimpy ones - as well as was a raw (vegan) foodist for a few years. Now (I'm 24), last April I weaned ds, after which I proceeded to get a hormone IUD (yes, I know, against my better gut instinct), had that for a total of 3 months before I had it yanked out because of weight gain, SERIOUS acne (not even that bad in the worst of teenagehood), mood swings - the typical complaints from synthetic birth control hormones (and I knew better - I was desperate and gullible to the "low" hormone marketing tactic). Then for the next 6 months I went from an apple juice cleanse (which worked fine more or less) to eating loads of junk food and gaining 15 lbs. (which on my very small frame is a lot), to off and on healthy, to another 5 day veggie/fruit juice fast (in which I *gained* 2 lbs. - explain that one to me!), more compulsive eating abuse to my body, still serious acne... Well, to sum it all up - I need a nice body cleanse - just got over a serious headache that turned into a painful head-filled-with-mucus sickness. You get the idea.

So, I could really use the nice light feeling after a good cleanse and that good ol' "clean" feeling. But how do I do it without killing my metabolism, killing my blood sugar level, and undernourishing myself?

It seems like I'm up against a rock and a hard spot - being a raw foodist made me feel light, wide-awake, clean, easy time maintaining weight, no headaches, no morning breath, amazing skin etc. but easily ticked off (blood sugar), constantly hungry, and feeling undernourished (not to mention the problems it contributed to my kids health). WAP on the other hand, first makes complete sense (which raw vegan does not anymore), makes my tummy happy, my blood sugar swings steady and balanced, and the rest of me feel yucky - like my body is getting plenty of good fats, but not plenty of juicy, watery, stuff. Does that make sense? Has anyone here gone from raw vegan to WAP and get what I am saying? How did you balance and adjust?

How does one stay clean, but still nourished?

Thanks!
Sarah

[quietserena]

I know exactly the feeling you're talking about. My raw vegan months left me with no BO and my eyes were very clear, but I was *hungry* and had terrible concentration. Also, my hair was falling out and I kept trying to ignore that one.

IMO there is a way to get best of both worlds and given this is summer and all sorts of fruits and vegetables are in season, it's relatively easy to have a fruit salad and a few eggs for breakfast and a regular salad (with plenty of cheese/good fat dressing/ meat) for lunch. That way you're still eating a *lot* of fresh fruits and vegetables but the protein and fat component is there. Having two meals be as raw as they get helps me keep that 'clear eyes, no BO, happy body' business and having the fat and the protein keeps me satisfied and well.. sane.

Organ cleanses are TF, just have to be careful not to over do them and to make sure you have the support for the organ in the foods you eat. For example, colon cleansing, being one of the most common ones. You need the dietary fat to help things, ahem, glide on by. The idea that it's all about fiber isn't exactly true in many ways. There's that book called Fiber Menace that talks more about that. Basically you want to give your body a wide array of foods because our digestive systems, since humans are omnivores, do best with all the different components. Also, you have to constantly take in some sort of ferment because that will keep everything happier. Someone on this board mentioned that she knows that she's taking enough kefir when bowel movements don't have a bad smell. How's that for a way to track colon health!

Ok, i'm kind of rambly here but basically i'm saying it can work and please don't give up on TF. There are answers out there!

[moneca]

I've done lots of cleansing and detoxing that last couple years because I was mercury toxic and just needed some serious cleansing.

For a not so severe problem I love my easy daily routine. I eat TF and keep my environment as chemical free as possible. I take swedish bitters (herbs in distilled water - 1 tsp twice per day now for mainten. which cleanses the organs)

http://swedishbitters.com/

along with a food source fruit extract high in C

http://www.thesynergycompany.com/pag...-radiance.html

I've done oil pulling first thing in the morning at times which helps decrease the bacterial load

http://oilpulling.com/

There are different threads in TF on OP and you can search these.

I try to hit a couple bikram classes a week (which is great for detox if you're not prego or bf.

I like my present routine because it does not wreck my body in any way, but helps my body detox on it's own daily to hopefully prevent a buildup of toxins.

[moneca]

Originally Posted by quietserena

Someone on this board mentioned that she knows that she's taking enough kefir when bowel movements don't have a bad smell. How's that for a way to track colon health!

Now that is interesting and I can't say I've ever heard anything like that before!