February Cleanse Posse Wrap Up

[Penni]

 

Hello Faithful Cleanse Posse!

I know our numbers have dramatically dwindled, but I want to thank those of you who have made it thus far!  With only a day-ish left in February - we can begin to celebrate the good work that we have done this month!  

I know many of you have incorporated LOTS of juices, smoothies, salads and blended soups into your daily diet and many of our posse have stayed all raw or high raw throughout the duration of the 28 days.  Even if you had challenging moments and ate off plan from time to time - I want you to think about everything you DID DO WELL and feel wonderful about all of the ways you made efforts to love and heal your body!  It's all been good and many of us learned new things about ourselves as we went through this cleansing process. 

In the comments below, I would love to hear from some of you who experienced some positive effects this past month; weight loss, mental clarity, reversal of negative health symptoms, improvement in skin, etc.  Also, tell us what you enjoyed about the month and if you have a new game plan as we prepare to start a new month this Tuesday.  Anything that you would like to share or that you feel will be value for the group, please share!

It has been my pleasure to read your comments, blogs and emails this month.  I have been so inspired by YOU!  So today I celebrate you and look forward to our continued journey as we work together for a higher level of optimal health! 

Much LOVE to you!!

Penni

[Susan : )]

It has been pure JOY watching this cleanse posse share their journey!!  I am excited to hear more! : )

[Michelle]

Well considering I had to deal with a serious health issue with my son I was able to stick with the plan. I knew I had to take care of myself so I could be there for him.  Drinking juices and smoothies, eating salads and making the recipes are just a way of life now. Everything improves. The best was when my son and daughter-in-law ( who by the way have terrible eating and drinking habits) called me from Whole Foods and I did shopping with them on the phone. I then received another phone call asking me how to make a green smoothie. Next I am going to get them to join RFR!!!!!!! I love you guys and thank you for all your dedicated work.

[Shevy Thompson]

I will continue my cleanse with juicing for a week or so. From my research, I realized my cleanse has released more than just toxin and weight, but also viruses and bacteria. So far I have gotten the flu and a cold sore. Not as severe as it should be, but there none the less. Has anyone experienced this during a cleanse? I have not had a flu, cold, etc for about five years, so I taken back a little by it.

[Susan : )]

Your body may be simply re-tracing.

 

Shevonne Hollenbach said:

I will continue my cleanse with juicing for a week or so. From my research, I realized my cleanse has released more than just toxin and weight, but also viruses and bacteria. So far I have gotten the flu and a cold sore. Not as severe as it should be, but there none the less. Has anyone experienced this during a cleanse? I have not had a flu, cold, etc for about five years, so I taken back a little by it.

[Penni]

I have been wanting to share about my experience with the herpes virus leaving my system during an 18 day liquid fast (water/master cleanse & juice) in 2006 - I should probably make a video about it, but it's just one of those subjects, you know?   Anyway - half way through the fast I had a pretty severe herpes outbreak and I have not had a trace of it since.  I believe that was the time the virus either left my body or burnt out or my immune system strengthened to the point that it's now gone.   I never have as much as a tingle and I am a BIG believer in fasting/juice feasting for these kinds of things.    

Shevonne Hollenbach said:

I will continue my cleanse with juicing for a week or so. From my research, I realized my cleanse has released more than just toxin and weight, but also viruses and bacteria. So far I have gotten the flu and a cold sore. Not as severe as it should be, but there none the less. Has anyone experienced this during a cleanse? I have not had a flu, cold, etc for about five years, so I taken back a little by it.

[Karen Cacciola]

I have finally after 51 years did what my mom and grandmother told me to do...eat more fruits and veggies...lol  I bought a dehydrator, glass straws, veggie spiral/cutter.  I have collected so many recipes and made my own (which I will share) and pictures when I learn how to download, I have many new friends.  I HAVE to have my green smoothies, the darker the better !!! Drinking my water and salads, am off artifical sweeteners and powdered teas, so I must say I have went from 10% raw food  - 75% The weather was challenging, and I am still learning.  I have been on a personal journey for 2 1/2 years, and am finally finding myself and a balance.  Thank you Penni and Susan for being there. 

[henrietta zielinski]

Hi Penni and collective wisdoms.  I wanted to share with  you what was most benefical for me during the month of the cleanse.  It wasn't all smooth going, a few rocky spots because of family issues, but I can get pass those if I just remember to start each day as a new day and try not to carry too much baggage from hour to hour and release all by day break.  That has been the spiritual part.  The physical part has been my sense of discipline, to keep going, which I intend  to do.  I like the routine that I have set up for myself.  I've enjoyed juicing more this month then ever.  I've actually not looked at smoothies all February.  Sorry Susan, I know you are the Queen of Smoothies but juicing seems to do my body good.  I feel lighter, cleaner and can sip then slower with enjoyment.  I started with greens and fruit juices but by  the end of the month found that savory was working better.  So more and more my juices became greener and alkaline.  Still add a bit of apple but usually that is a minor component.  Than I did incorporate salads into the day and found I loved salads more without lettuce (that is shocking since I usually grow tons of lettuce and love the taste of newly picked lettuce - maybe that's the difference?  This winter I couldn't get the frames up before the snows came, so I've had to rely on the purchased lettuce vs my home grown)  Never-th-less, I plan ofn sticking with that regement - juices for the majority of the beverage intake, salads with a nice hearty dressing.  I'm whipping up the dressing selections today so that during the week I just have to chop chop my greens: kale, collards, cabbages (savoy, green, red), shredding and cubing or dicing and slicing my salad components, etc.  It's a good life at the moment  - hope to keep it going.  Thanks for the encouragement and suupport.  We do this for ourselves and for each other.  Hands across the aisle to all.  Let March begin!!! 

[Shevy Thompson]

Ok, I have never heard of Retracing.  However, it makes sense and lines up from what I have learned in microbiology and genetics.   I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and have suffered terrible pain for many years since childhood.  I have experienced a terrible bout of pain during the detox, so far the pain is becoming less in severity.  I know fibromyalgia is caused by continual inflammation and believe I have narrowed it down from where it started.  For some unknown reason to myself, I was hospitalized for a year at the age of 8 years for pneumonia and was given a daily injection.  I questioned it, but never got any straight answer.  All I know it that I got toxins pumped into my body consistently for a year and more to take when I got home after my year stay in the hospital.  This cleanse is an eye wakening experience for me in many aspect, which includes both my health and career.  The cleanse is like the uncapping of the bottle on my illness.  I was thinking of starting medical school, but after my medical experiences and connecting all the information I have found over the years I found myself gravitating towards medical research.  Everything apparently happens for a reason!  Thank you for the information Susan.  

Susan : ) said:

Your body may be simply re-tracing.

 

Shevonne Hollenbach said:

I will continue my cleanse with juicing for a week or so. From my research, I realized my cleanse has released more than just toxin and weight, but also viruses and bacteria. So far I have gotten the flu and a cold sore. Not as severe as it should be, but there none the less. Has anyone experienced this during a cleanse? I have not had a flu, cold, etc for about five years, so I taken back a little by it.

[Lynne]

Henrietta--

I would love to know what salad dressings you're preparing. That's one of my biggest challenges--to find something really good that I like. Also, thank you for pointing out other greens for salad--I'm totally sick of lettuce, although I'm wondering about how difficult it might be to chew and digest the cabbages and other tougher raw greens as raw salad. Any tips you have are welcome!

henrietta zielinski said:

Hi Penni and collective wisdoms.  I wanted to share with  you what was most benefical for me during the month of the cleanse.  It wasn't all smooth going, a few rocky spots because of family issues, but I can get pass those if I just remember to start each day as a new day and try not to carry too much baggage from hour to hour and release all by day break.  That has been the spiritual part.  The physical part has been my sense of discipline, to keep going, which I intend  to do.  I like the routine that I have set up for myself.  I've enjoyed juicing more this month then ever.  I've actually not looked at smoothies all February.  Sorry Susan, I know you are the Queen of Smoothies but juicing seems to do my body good.  I feel lighter, cleaner and can sip then slower with enjoyment.  I started with greens and fruit juices but by  the end of the month found that savory was working better.  So more and more my juices became greener and alkaline.  Still add a bit of apple but usually that is a minor component.  Than I did incorporate salads into the day and found I loved salads more without lettuce (that is shocking since I usually grow tons of lettuce and love the taste of newly picked lettuce - maybe that's the difference?  This winter I couldn't get the frames up before the snows came, so I've had to rely on the purchased lettuce vs my home grown)  Never-th-less, I plan ofn sticking with that regement - juices for the majority of the beverage intake, salads with a nice hearty dressing.  I'm whipping up the dressing selections today so that during the week I just have to chop chop my greens: kale, collards, cabbages (savoy, green, red), shredding and cubing or dicing and slicing my salad components, etc.  It's a good life at the moment  - hope to keep it going.  Thanks for the encouragement and suupport.  We do this for ourselves and for each other.  Hands across the aisle to all.  Let March begin!!! 

[Shevy Thompson]

It seems I am going through most of the symptoms I have experienced throughout the years.  My friend thinks the cleanse is making me sick, but I was not convinced by her theory that I was not get sufficient nutrients.  It appears I need to go through the worst to feel better long term.  And rid myself of all the ailments my doctors diagnosed me with, but had no solid evidence any illnesses existed.  They have always said, "You are the healthiest person ever according to lab works, but still you are sick" hummm go figure!!!  Thanks for the information Penni   ;  ).

Penni said:

I have been wanting to share about my experience with the herpes virus leaving my system during an 18 day liquid fast (water/master cleanse & juice) in 2006 - I should probably make a video about it, but it's just one of those subjects, you know?   Anyway - half way through the fast I had a pretty severe herpes outbreak and I have not had a trace of it since.  I believe that was the time the virus either left my body or burnt out or my immune system strengthened to the point that it's now gone.   I never have as much as a tingle and I am a BIG believer in fasting/juice feasting for these kinds of things.    

Shevonne Hollenbach said:

I will continue my cleanse with juicing for a week or so. From my research, I realized my cleanse has released more than just toxin and weight, but also viruses and bacteria. So far I have gotten the flu and a cold sore. Not as severe as it should be, but there none the less. Has anyone experienced this during a cleanse? I have not had a flu, cold, etc for about five years, so I taken back a little by it.

[Lisa MB]

My blog really takes you through this experience of the Cleanse for me.  I started out only on juices for almost a week, and then moved to a mixture of smoothies and juice with some raw dishes.  I also fell off many times, and most days in the middle of the cleanse I ate non-raw things.  But I definitely lost weight.  I'm not sure how much because I didn't get on the scale to start.  But I certainly lost all the weight I put on over the holidays (yikes, lots), and a few more lbs too.  I probably took off about 5 or 6 lbs in total, and that is much better than my usual 1 lb per week.  The biggest and most wonerful thing is that a sense of Peace really pervades my life when I am raw vegan, and this is noteworthy because right now I am in the midst of some intensely stressful situations with huge financial implications, and I'm starting a business which is rough going.  I also have 2 young children and my husband's health is quite scary.  To feel a sense of Peace in the midst of all this is surely noteworthy, and there is no doubt that it is all the green and raw that is doing that for me.  The other thing to note is that my skin all over my body is softer and smoother than it has been since I was about 8 years old.  By the time I was 10, it was already getting rougher, and even bumpy on my arms.  I am loving my body, and I'm losing weight slowly and gently.  This cleanse has been a lifesaver for me and I fully intend to just keep going with the way I am eating now.  It's not hard and it is incredibly rewarding.  This site has done more for me than any other resource and I especially value all the comments, advice and company from you here.  So THANK YOU, and I plan on staying around and putting in my two cents as often as I can here!  LOVE and HUGS to everyone!!

-Lisa

 

[henrietta zielinski]

Hey Lynne,

 

I'm experimenting with the dressing right  now so once I get those done, I'll write back.  The greens are more digestible if you massage the "harder" ones - kale, collards, and cabbages, but I find too that if you dress them with vinegar or acid based  dressings (lemon/lime juice and or apple cider vinegar) and let them marinate, that also helps with breaking down the cell walls structures.  So I'll be back later with my dressing update so stay tune.  Later.

Lynne said:

Henrietta--

I would love to know what salad dressings you're preparing. That's one of my biggest challenges--to find something really good that I like. Also, thank you for pointing out other greens for salad--I'm totally sick of lettuce, although I'm wondering about how difficult it might be to chew and digest the cabbages and other tougher raw greens as raw salad. Any tips you have are welcome!

henrietta zielinski said:

Hi Penni and collective wisdoms.  I wanted to share with  you what was most benefical for me during the month of the cleanse.  It wasn't all smooth going, a few rocky spots because of family issues, but I can get pass those if I just remember to start each day as a new day and try not to carry too much baggage from hour to hour and release all by day break.  That has been the spiritual part.  The physical part has been my sense of discipline, to keep going, which I intend  to do.  I like the routine that I have set up for myself.  I've enjoyed juicing more this month then ever.  I've actually not looked at smoothies all February.  Sorry Susan, I know you are the Queen of Smoothies but juicing seems to do my body good.  I feel lighter, cleaner and can sip then slower with enjoyment.  I started with greens and fruit juices but by  the end of the month found that savory was working better.  So more and more my juices became greener and alkaline.  Still add a bit of apple but usually that is a minor component.  Than I did incorporate salads into the day and found I loved salads more without lettuce (that is shocking since I usually grow tons of lettuce and love the taste of newly picked lettuce - maybe that's the difference?  This winter I couldn't get the frames up before the snows came, so I've had to rely on the purchased lettuce vs my home grown)  Never-th-less, I plan ofn sticking with that regement - juices for the majority of the beverage intake, salads with a nice hearty dressing.  I'm whipping up the dressing selections today so that during the week I just have to chop chop my greens: kale, collards, cabbages (savoy, green, red), shredding and cubing or dicing and slicing my salad components, etc.  It's a good life at the moment  - hope to keep it going.  Thanks for the encouragement and suupport.  We do this for ourselves and for each other.  Hands across the aisle to all.  Let March begin!!!