Cleansing Time

My naturopath decided to have me do a cleanse.  This means at least 5 days of a "bulking" diet which I refer to as phase 1, and then 3-5 days of only juice, which I refer to as phase 2.  Today will be my first full day of phase 1.  The bulking diet is mostly just vegetables, with limited amounts of protein (nuts and beans) and whole grains.  This will also be the start of eating 6 weeks gluten free, so my grains will primarily be Quinoa, Millet and Brown Rice.  

It is funny how the moment you know you have to cut certain foods from your diet you suddenly crave them all.  The last two days were my transition days, which consisted of me following the cleanse until dinner time.  There was a new vegan Italian restaurant to check out and a work dinner I had to attend the last two days so it was a great excuse to have transition days.  Now, I get down to business.

I have so far discovered I love the combination of corn, avocado and black eye peas, with jicama on the side.  Today I was reminded of my cat Roy's ability to sense corn in the house when I left my bowl unattended.  Just a few minutes away, I come back to discover him with his head deep inside the bowl isolating the corn.  I decided to give him his own plate so I wouldn't have to fight for my food.  He's been known to swat and meow incisively for the sweet kernels.  During the summer I buy him fresh corn on the cob so I can show my friend's how cute he is while letting him enjoy a treat.

On my cleanse I hope to discover new food combinations and try new ways of preparing vegetables.  I know this will be hard, but I also know by the end of it I will feel a lot better.  Sometimes challenges in life can be a good thing and something to learn from. That is exactly what I hope to gain from this experience.