Beauty...
Be your own
kind of beautiful
Be your own
kind of beautiful
I’ve been doing Elissa Goodman’s cleanses for years now. I found her a few years back and do her cleanses a few times a year. I think it’s important to reboot and recharge your body after the holidays or a weekend of binging. Most cleanses leave you famished and weak. Elissa’s are so delicious that it makes me excited to start because not only does it taste good, but I have more energy by the end of it. I asked Elissa to be a guest post this week so she can give you some tips on how you can do a DIY cleanse at home.
I’ve always felt that cleansing shouldn’t be a trend and it shouldn’t mean deprivation. My philosophy is simple, support your body in doing its job on a daily basis to live a cleansing lifestyle. I’ve built my business on this principle and on my cleanse programs designed to take your health to the next level, no starvation necessary!
My daily cleansing lifestyle guide will help to keep your energy up, your weight balanced, your immune system strong, and your attitude positive.
Probiotics boost the healthy bacteria ratio in your digestive tract, help heal your gut, boost your immune system and your happiness too. Fermented foods (think miso, tempeh, sauerkraut and fermented vegetables like kimchi) are probiotic powerhouses. Eating them daily and taking a probiotic daily is one easy way to support your gut and digestive system balanced during times of overindulgence, rich foods, and travel.
Note: No supplement can out-do a balanced diet, eating a diet of wholesome plant foods is your best way to support a healthy gut.
If you prioritize getting good sleep, your chances of staying well improve immensely. During restorative sleep, your body is able to heal and restore, helping you process stressful times more efficiently. Bedtime by 10pm guarantees that you will get maximum restorative sleep (restorative sleep takes place between 10pm-2am) and 8-9 hours per night is a must. It is during a good sleep that our body is able to heal and restore itself. During this time our brain also organizes and stores information of the day, helping you process stressful events more efficiently.
This is the easiest way to ensure you get the nutrients you need to stay well. If making a green juice stay away from fruit and use ingredients like: romaine, spinach, fennel, cucumber, celery, parsley, cilantro, lemon (only fruit), ginger, and turmeric. You can add flax seeds for fiber and hemp hearts for protein to your juice. Both will help keep you satiated and feeling energized.
If you go the smoothie route, a balance of plant-based proteins, healthy fats, fiber, and greens makes the ideal combination. I like a combo of unsweetened almond milk, MCT oil, spinach, blueberries, milled flax seeds, and hemp seeds.
Cruciferous veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, collard greens, spinach, collard greens, kale, cabbage, and brussels sprouts contain antioxidants that increase the production of detoxifying enzymes in the body. These veggies also contain sulfur compounds that protect the liver and improve its ability to eliminate toxins.
Pureed plant-based soups are gentle on the digestive system, they’re usually loaded with fiber and low on the glycemic scale. Soups support our body’s detoxification processes with a blend of nutrients. I like blends such as broccoli, cauliflower, edamame and lemon for their balance and nutrient density and my SOUP Cleanse (delivered in Los Angeles) is a great way to try out a soup based program, while nourishing the body with soups, salads, and unique superfood offerings.
I know you know how important drinking water is, but for daily cleansing, it is more than important: it is crucial. When your body cleanses, it pushes toxins into the bloodstream. The more water you drink, the faster the toxins are pushed out. And that’s the point of cleansing, isn’t it? Make sure the water is purified (you don’t want to use toxins to push out toxins, right?) and drink at least half your body weight in ounces each day.
Feelings of loneliness, depression, anxiety, anger, and sadness are common as is stress from family or money worries and family squabbles. Letting go of your fears and anxieties can be very emotionally cleansing. Write down a daily list of feelings, list what made you sad today, what made you angry today, and what made you happy today. After acknowledging these feelings, release them into the universe and let go of the anger and sadness.
While fiber is not digestible, it is a great way to help your body digest and pass the foods we eat. It clears out the digestive system and takes toxins, cholesterol, waste and extra hormones with it. Fiber also supports a strong immune system, proper colon health, intestinal bacterial balance, a faster metabolism, weight control, diabetes prevention and cardiovascular disease prevention. It also feeds the good probiotic bacteria in your gut. Eating fiber in natural form over taking a supplement is crucial (beans and legumes, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are your best sources).
Intermittent fasting accelerates the cleansing of waste products in your body. The basic principle here is to stay hydrated with water, green juices, or herbal tea while abstaining from food for a 12-18 hour period. It’s not as hard as it sounds. If you eat your evening meal at 7pm, you could complete an 18 hour fast by 1pm the next day – not that difficult if you’re staying hydrated! Fasting accelerates the cleansing of waste products left by dead and damaged cells, a process known as autophagy. A failure of autophagy to keep up with accumulated cellular waste is believed by many scientists to be one of the major causes of the chronic disease.
If you’re up for a 7-day commitment to daily cleansing and taking your health to the next level, my new RESET program is available HERE. Or, simply visit my site www.elissagoodman.com and subscribe to my newsletter for weekly health tips and cleansing recipes.
If I’m being honest, I think Elissa’s cleanses are SO worth it. It’s not every day you find yourself cleansing and still wanting more. If you’re feeling sluggish or want to shed some weight before a big trip, I highly recommend her program.
Elissa is going to contribute to the blog once a month. So if you have any topics that you’d like her to talk about or questions you may have, leave them below and we’ll make sure we get to them!
xox
Lead photo is credited by @mekinasaylor
