EDIT: I was alerted by my referring links that this page is being talked about by some as a "scam" or "shady" or by do not link as "nonsense." I assure you, it is neither. It is simply a kick in the ass to get you on the right direction and I am simply sharing my journey...not forcing anyone to purchase this nor am I claiming it is a miracle solution. This Cleanse involves both diet and exercise and is NOT a miracle solution, pill or program. It is not easy and I am not claiming it is. It is simply a way to reset your body and hunger cues and curb cravings and I, for one, am super glad I did this.
The Clean 9, by Forever Living, is essentially a detox/way to quickly lose weight and restart your body before moving into the next phase of their programs. There isn't a lot of evidence than "toxins" actually exist in the body that can be removed from a cleanse (unless you're a devout FoodBabe worshiper, you'll probably think it exists anyway!)--but I looked at the Clean 9 as a way to reset my thinking about food, get in tune with my hunger and find healthier snacks and alternatives to the junk I was often shoving in. I'm not 18 anymore and I have lupus, so I do need to get a bit more serious about taking care of my body as in what I put in it.
The Clean 9, by Forever Living, is essentially a detox/way to quickly lose weight and restart your body before moving into the next phase of their programs. There isn't a lot of evidence than "toxins" actually exist in the body that can be removed from a cleanse (unless you're a devout FoodBabe worshiper, you'll probably think it exists anyway!)--but I looked at the Clean 9 as a way to reset my thinking about food, get in tune with my hunger and find healthier snacks and alternatives to the junk I was often shoving in. I'm not 18 anymore and I have lupus, so I do need to get a bit more serious about taking care of my body as in what I put in it.
It also means 9 days without excess sugar and it something I REALLY struggle with. I am always craving sugar and giving into it, which is bad for my health and waistline. Going cold turkey in the past has always ended up in a massive sugar binge, so this is a controlled way to go without.
I would recommend that you consult with a doctor before you begin this program. It is best for healthy individuals. I would definitely not recommend this program if you have had reasonably recent history of anorexia (it depends on how confident you feel a cleanse wouldn't relapse you), diabetes, if you're under 18 or over 65. It is probably (although I am not a doctor or you!) okay if you have lupus, RA, Sjogren's, etc., as long as you are not currently flaring and feel healthy enough to embark on something like this. But, my word isn't Gospel, so I'd recommend that you speak to your GP first if you have any qualms.
I've kept a little diary for you guys so you'll know what to expect if you give it a try.
(You can purchase it here in chocolate and here in vanilla if you're in the UK, here in chocolate and here in vanilla if you're in the US...if you are in the UK, send me an email at annajamiescanlon@gmail.com before you order to get 10% off...or if you're in the US, I can't give you 10% off, but I can tack on a free gift with up to a $30 value.)
This is not a program that utilizes illegal drugs, starvation or anything like that in order to get weight loss results. In the end, you do end up eating the minimum calorie requirement a day for women and around the minimum requirement for men. No, I did not starve myself or take something unhealthy for me. In fact, between the shakes and vitamins, I probably got more nutrients than I have in the past month in just these nine days because of all of the junk I was living off of.
DAY 1
If you read old literature or reviews, you'll hear that you are not allowed to eat anything at all on Days 1 and 2. This is no longer the case, though, as you can eat anything with a GI of under 55. But, the booklet doesn't leave you high and dry and gives you list of these foods. Of course, if you eat too much of them, it will counteract your progress, so this just means a little bit here and there. As you would guess, they are pretty much low-cal fruits and veg like broccoli, oranges, apples, raspberries, strawberries, lettuce, pears, artichokes, etc. Since I LOVE broccoli (no joke, when I've dieted in the past, I've often eaten it like a Freelee mono-meal), I was pretty happy for an excuse to boil it and eat it without judgement for my mono-meal.
I was definitely nervous when I started the Clean 9. For the first couple of days, you're supposed to do 30 minutes of low-impact exercise, so I started off my morning by walking to the grocery store and stocking up on my "free foods." This took 30 minutes total, but I also walked the dog later in the day. I intentionally started on two days where I didn't have much to do outside the house in order to ensure that I wasn't feeling too weak or dizzy.
In the morning, I had an apple and two or three strawberries to curb cravings, along with the pills and Aloe Gel. Honestly, the Aloe Gel was the one thing that really made me want to barf. Haha. On days 1 and 2 you drink 500mls of it altogether, and it can be an acquired taste, to say the least.
For lunch, I mixed the shake up with 300ml of almond milk and it was okay, if not a little bit chunky.
During the rest of the day, I oscillated between feeling fine to feeling really hungry/depressed and grumpy. Because of the Garcinia tablets, I spent a lot of time in the toilet as they are natural laxatives. I've read online that some people cannot handle the Garcinia tablets, so if that's the case, they can be eliminated. We'll see how the rest of the time goes. But...yeah, I cannot imagine having to be outside my house and having all of what happened on Day 1 happen!
By the evening, I started to feel really ill and went to bed early. Since I do have lupus, it is always hard to tell if my disease is saying hello or if it is something else. I woke up several times in the night very thirsty and a little nauseated. Even though I wasn't supposed to, I ended up eating a tortilla to settle my stomach and I felt a bit better and skipped the evening dose of aloe gel because I just couldn't stomach it. Eventually, I slept through the rest of the night.
I should also mention that I did cheat a bit, aside from the necessary tortilla, in the name of Diet Coke. I am very sorry, but I absolutely cannot live without it. And since it has no calories, I am going to pretend it doesn't mean anything (even though fizzy drinks aren't supposed to be consumed on the Clean 9!).
DAY 2
When I woke up, I didn't feel sick anymore (hooray!). I weighed myself (you're technically not supposed to weigh yourself except on days 3, 6 and 9) and had lost 4lbs, but after all the time on the toilet on Day 1, I can see why! I did feel really thirsty, though, and I don't usually feel thirsty. Perhaps it is the laxative effect of losing all of that water. But I had a pint of water with my "breakfast" (aka the pills, aloe and and apple) and felt a bit better.
Yesterday, I wasn't too thrilled with the shake. It reminded me of baby formula and was a little bit chunky. Today, I decided to blend up the almond milk, powder and a couple of strawberries and it make it a lot nicer and smoother. I may try some raspberries tomorrow.
I did end up eating another tortilla to settle my stomach, but today was a lot better in general. The laxative effect was still there, but it wasn't as excruciating as the day before (eating a whole bunch of apples probably doesn't help much). I felt more hungry and less energetic, but I did end up getting in some exercise with a 30 minute dog walk. But I think the losing energy on the first two days is normal, which is why the first two days should be done on days that you're not doing much.
I am very excited for tomorrow in which I can actually eat real food!
DAY 3
First measurements! (Which I know a lot of people are probably here for!) I lost a total of 7lbs and an inch from my waist and chest and 1/2 an inch from my hips. Yay!
I was so excited for Day 3 because I could actually eat something besides a handful of raspberries or some broccoli here and there. It started off great, I had my shake in the morning (bonus, you get TWO shakes a day!) with my crushed strawberries and it was quite nice. Beginning on Day 3, you only need 120mls of that awful gel, so I was pretty excited about that.
The program recommends that you have a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch and a 600 calorie dinner on days 3-9 (haha, remember that old commercial? "A shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch and a sensible dinner."). Since I'm not great with consuming a huge amount of food at once (unless you're going for a small but particularly rich food that is like 600 calories for not much), I decided I would do 200 calories for lunch and 400 for dinner, which suits my style a bit better. However, I ended up going for 400 for lunch and 400 for dinner, which meant I cut out a shake. Honestly, this is not a smart thing to do, especially because I was supposed to exercise in the afternoon.
I had decided I would try to do the 30-Day Shred again and I set a goal to do 2/3 of it before stretching and then walking the dog before going out to my photography class. It ended up that I did 2/3 of it and practically collapsed....likely from not having that second shake. The shakes are really nutritionally sound, probably more so than that stupid extra cheese quesadilla I had, so my body just wasn't having it.
I felt pretty bad, so I had to eat my dinner early and eat an apple to try and get my blood sugar back up. I didn't get to walk the dog, which he didn't seem too happy about and kept giving me side-eye.
Lesson learned--walk the dog first and have the two shakes!
I decided against going to my class because I just generally wasn't feeling great. Perhaps more water is also necessary!
Addendum: I did end up walking the dog because he was just looking too pathetic so I pushed myself. It wasn't so bad after I had a rest and some water.
DAY 4
Not much to report. I took the dog for a walk in the morning and had my 200 calorie lunch and shake so that by the time it came to do my Jillian Michaels DVD, I wasn't feeling so terrible. I took a break in between circuits (which she advises you against, but if you're doing this on not a huge amount of calories, it has to be done!) and drank some water and was able to finish.
Luke told me he had started to notice I looked thinner.
I also started my period today, which I didn't realize was going to happen and I should have planned ahead better. But as I'm starting a new job soon and have to speak at a conference, I didn't want to be feeling not so great trying to do all that. But that may account for why I was feeling faint yesterday.
DAY 5
Again, not too much to report. I opted for a 200 calorie lunch, 50 calorie snack and 350 calorie dinner, which seemed to work better for me (in addition to the shakes, of course!). Today, I was able to get through the 30 Day Shred a bit better and actually completed it with a rest between circuits 2 and 3. So that counts as Day 1 for my 30 day shred! haha. Or maybe 2 since I've done two half days before.
DAY 6
Measurements and weight day! Unfortunately I didn't lose any more weight, but I did lose an inch off of my waist, an inch off of my chest and half an inch from my hips. I really started my period today (if you're a girl, you know what I mean) so it was a bit difficult to get motivated to work out. I finally did and felt better for it. I skipped one of my shakes and had a quesadilla instead, which may have not been the best idea, but I didn't feel faint this time. Um...that's all to report on day 6.
DAY 7
I would kill for a slice of cake. So I ate a chocolate protein bar. This is technically cheating since I already had my food for the day. Dammit. FAIL. I'm still pretty hungry, but I think I am mentally hungry if that makes sense. Other than that, I seem to have more energy, even though I am pretty upset that I seemed to wake up every hour on the hour last night.
DAY 8
So today lupus was like, "Hey girl. You didn't think you'd make it through this whole thing without me, did you?" And I was like, "Um, I was hoping?" Today I felt very swollen and off, which meant no workout, which in turn made me feel like I failed a bit. I stuck to the food plan, though, without any free food snacking and snuggled up in bed for the day. I also felt bad because the dog has been going for a lot more walks since we started this and I only took him on a little walk. Today, it was all about the duvet and Lizzie McGuire movie.
Here are my results thus far:
DAY 9
Still not feeling fabulous....mostly just a bit of lupus fatigue. I stuck to the plan without snacking knowing that tomorrow I can have ALL OF THE THINGS! But, if I'm honest, I kind of liked the plan and the certainty of knowing what I would eat every day. You can keep going and order the FIT 1, but I decided not to break the bank and instead just ordered some more Garcinia tablets, therm tablets and shakes. I also know I don't eat nearly enough protein and protein does help me feel better, so I ordered myself some Clif bars. I was upset not to get a work out in today, but I am going to keep going with the 30 day shred and update you guys on my progress as time goes on.
DAY 10--Post Detox
Well, I did it! I posted my results to Facebook and got some messages of concern from a couple of people who were afraid I was starving myself or taking some kind of stimulant drug. However, this is definitely not the case, as you eat around 1200 calories per day with the cleanse...granted you do exercise maybe about 100 of it away, but you would start to eat that back after the cleanse is over to ensure you have a net of 1200 calories per day (which is healthy for someone of my height if they are losing weight).
After all of the cravings I had, I thought I would be rushing to the grocery store, excited to stuff my face full of all of the junk I had been eating. Instead, in the morning I had a shake (I had a bit leftover and ordered another bag of shake mix to keep getting my protein in as time goes on), counting it toward my 1200 net calories per day goal. I then went to the grocery store to pick up some things and decided to reward myself with a cupcake (haha, good job, you lost 7lbs and did a cleanse, you get a cupcake!). And to be honest, it wasn't all that great. I didn't even finish it, even though I love red velvet. I was more into the other stuff--like the fruit and vegetables I bought.
I felt a lot better today and actually pretty cleansed and ready to take on the day. Although I can tell I am still having some lupus swelling, I still have more energy than I usually would with the swelling. Because I have to travel tonight and get a lot of things done, I am going to forego the exercise, but I am going to continue with the 30 day shred again...I got awesome results when I did it last year and then got very sick and lost all of it. However, last time I wasn't keeping up with eating well in addition to the exercise, so I'm hoping I can do that this time!
This was definitely a step in the right direction for me! It may be for you or it may not be...but I just wanted to share!
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Well good for you, girl!! I'm proud and impressed xxx
ReplyDeleteThank you! It wasn't easy, but it was definitely worth it!
DeleteThis is awesome, Anna! I am trying to find a natural cleanse to do, similar to this, however, just can't spend that kind of money on it! I am glad it worked for you!
ReplyDeleteYeah, it isn't cheap and is a big investment into your health. I feel like I have to keep it going because I spent so much money! The program also is supposed to go FIT 1 and FIT 2, which are quite expensive, so I bought some of the elements from it to keep going, but I can't afford everything. Definitely not cheap. I recommend doing this for sure, but don't break your bank. xx
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