The Cleanse: one person’s experience.

Seven day cleanse with Shaklee
Since I promoted the box with the seven packets and recommendations for the Shaklee detox cleanse, I thought I’d better do it myself. Wow! I lost 5 pounds! I wasn’t trying to lose weight and didn’t think I needed to, but the little “fluffy belly” is gone. 135 is a better weight for a 5’6” woman. Now to keep myself at this new baseline.

Was it a smooth ride, detox-ing my body on this program? No, it was not. I have not gone a day without Shaklee protein since beginning with the old Energizing Protein back in 1985. Eating soy protein for breakfast made such a difference in my energy level, my mood, my overall metabolism that I didn’t trust any other protein for breakfast. Every morning, no matter what. This was scary to me. There is no protein on the program.

I contacted my upline, Kathy Naef, who assured me there was enough protein in the vegetables. I put the question on “100 days to amazing”, the Shaklee facebook group. Some people responded that a reduced serving of the Shaklee shake was OK.

By the end of day two, I was getting fuzzy brained and weak. I snuck a half serving into a glass of water after my trainer worked me out to utter fatigue on day three. On day 4, I had a half serving of the 180 plant-based protein powder before going on our weekly hike. Days 5 – 7, I added a half serving of the protein powder twice a day.

You can do this.

The other modification I made to the list of vegetables and fruits and the way I prepared them was to make soup. I have chicken stock in the freezer and I sauteed onion and garlic (not on the list) in olive oil and added a mountain of chopped vegetables. It’s cold up here in the Pacific Northwest. I needed heat. The soup was fabulous. Avocado (one a day) provided fat and olive oil on a giant salad added more fat, an essential part of the detox diet. I normally don’t eat bananas at all but added half a banana a day to give a little bulk.

To be completely transparent, my digestive system rebelled at so much raw food. Steaming beets, baking rutabaga, yams, sweet potato and winter squash, and eating with a pat of butter made them easier to digest. I built my evening meal around one of these root vegetables as the main food, adding salad.

Once when I couldn’t get home to fix anything (under normal circumstances, I carry Shaklee meal and snack bars with me for hunger emergencies, but they were not on the program), I went to the deli section of a local grocery market and picked up a container of sauteed green beans. This turned out to be a filling snack. I also made applesauce by quartering and pitting apples into a stainless steel pot with a tiny bit of water and nothing else. Warm applesauce was comforting.

I couldn’t believe my body had that much waste to get rid of! And I couldn’t believe my eyes when I got on the scale. It has been two weeks since the detox and I am still at 135. Oh, how cautiously I put back the oats, rye and millet hot cereal with walnuts and prunes for breakfast. How carefully I sauteed Alaskan cod with a little cornmeal coating. How tentatively I ate a few Christmas cookies at two parties yesterday and several over the weekend. Then I relaxed and ate the way I normally do, avoiding refined flour and sweets, with some exceptions, avoiding processed foods, dairy and salty things. All went well without any weight gain. Since there have been delicious holiday offerings at several gatherings I decided today will be the detox program for 24 hours. I now have a tool for balancing the indulgences of the holidays.

My good friend Bobbie has completed her first week of the detox cleanse and reports feeling light, clear-headed, energetic and wants to keep it up forever. She added legumes during her cleanse (beans and peas), and still achieved the results she wanted. I gently discouraged her from staying on it too long. The detox program, when followed to the letter is not meant to be a regular way of eating. We need whole grains and protein for balance.

Another friend has loved the results and plans to use the detox program periodically. She talked to me from Aliso Viejo about her experience.

Put your order in for the box of seven daily packets or get the four full bottles of products that constitute the cleanse: packet has Optiflora DI probiotic, Alfalfa Complex, Liver DTX Complex and Herb-Lax in the prescribed amount in little tear apart servings. #21318 for $39.95 MN. All four products in full bottles (many repeat cleanses or use daily for overall good digestive health) for $105.40 MN price plus tax and shipping.
Most people like taking an Herb Lax and a Liver DTX every night just to clear the toxins from their day. You might like the results of that daily cleanse.

Have a wonderful holiday. Eat, drink and be merry. Plan to cleanse your body after it’s all over, the wrapping and tinsil gone, the tree in the yard waste and the body eager for normalizing itself. Cleanse with confidence.

Be well, Do well and Keep Moving, Betsy

www.HiHoHealth.com shopping personal website with Shaklee

www.BetsyBellAuthor.com for information about Open Borders: A Personal Story of Love, Loss and Anti-war Activism, my first book.