A Clean Start - 9 Days of Detox - Part 2

So, this post is part two of a two part extravaganza. Over a week ago I made the brave decision that my poor caffeine-abused body needed a serious break and that a 9 day super cleanse had my name on it. 

My cleanse/detox programme of choice was the Forever Living Clean 9. You can read my first post here but my 9 days are up so here's how it went down. 

As mentioned before the Clean 9 has 2 stages. Stage 1, day one and two, in which all the "food" you had was one 'Forever Lite Ultra' shake a day. 

Yes that's one shake in 24 hours.... Meaning you only have 2 shakes in over 48 hours. Yes, yes, I know. The rest of the first two days were filled with a schedule of aloe vera gel drinking and supplement taking. 

Days 3 to 9 were less hard core in comparison. A shake for breakfast, one for lunch AND a 600 cal dinner, along with the aloe & supplements. 

Firstly, here's what I thought of the contents of my kit: 

The 'Forever Lite Ultra' shake in vanilla. 

I mixed my shake powder with soya milk. It made a thick, creamy & actually quite nice tasting shake. After a few days it was quite surprising just how much the shake filled your tummy. If you've ever had a Slim Fast shake they're pretty similar. 

Forever Aloe Vera Gel

Well, there's no way to put it nicely. This stuff tastes horrible. Baaaad. Bad bad. I pinched my nose, pretended it was tequila and knocked it back following it with a pint of water chaser! 

The first day it made me shudder, by the middle of the week it was actually no problem. It really wasn't too bad at all once I was used to it. 

Forever Bee Pollen

There's a huge amount of hype surrounding Bee Pollen. These little tablets were easy to swallow and had hardly no taste. I can't say I noticed any energy increase after taking them but they're jam packed full of good stuff so they're absolutely worth taking.

Forever Garcinia Plus

These gel tablets are quite big, but still easy to swallow. We had to take these 20 mins before the shakes or food. They naturally speed up your metabolism along with providing more of the good stuff for your body. I like the concept so I may well continue to take these now my cleanse is all done. 

So, how difficult was it? 

Day one was without a doubt the hardest. I was quite hungry, quite tired but the main thing was the enormous headache I had by the evening. Serious migraine style killer headache. This bad boy was absolutely a caffeine withdrawal headache. My punishment for consuming so much coffee each & every day. An early night was needed. 

Day two much much better. I thought I would wake up starving but I didn't. My headache had almost gone and although I was feeling a little tired I was also feeling actually pretty good. 

Days three to nine were easier. The first evening's 600 calorie meal was possibly the most anticipated meal known to mankind & boy did it taste good! 

Each & everyday my energy levels increased, my stomach bloating decreased and my clothes fitted better. Immediate results that spurred you on to continue.

Water!! The key to success was water, water & more water. Not only did it help flush out the toxins it also helped fend off hunger pains. Yes, you do about a million wees the first two days but your bladder soon gets used to holding the extra liquid. After a few days you also get used to not snacking and find yourself no longer craving sweet treats. 

With the kit you get a tape measure so that you can track your inch loss as the days go on. I decided not to measure myself as my main reason to start the cleanse wasn't inch or weight loss. Any pounds dropped would be a welcomed bonus but I didn't feel the need to measure my thighs or hips before I started. 

Talking of weight loss I was very pleasantly surprised to discover when stepping on my scales of morning day ten that I had lost a total of 7.5lbs! No wonder I could fit back into my pre-baby skinny jeans with ease. 

Overall I really enjoyed Clean 9. Yes, it was tough, especially the first two days but it was definitely well worth it. My stomach is less bloated, my skin is glowing. Food now tastes incredible. But, for me, the single most important thing is it has now reminded me how good I feel when I eat 'clean', how eating fresh balanced diet doesn't leave you feeling stuffed or sluggish. It makes you feel energised and well, blimin' great. 

I now longer reach straight for the coffee jar first thing in the morning. My 6 a day habit has turned into an occasional treat. Now that the caffeine is out of my system I no longer depend on it to function! 

I have achieved exactly what I was hoping for. Clean 9 has set me on the path to eating healthier and given me the kick up the bum I so desperately needed. The weight has stayed off too. And as for the dreaded aloe vera gel? Well, I'm going to buy more & keep taking it. I couldn't imagine my day without it!! 

If you're interested in Clean 9 contact Laura Willis here. 

I'm off to drink some aloe! 

Love Emma 

XOXO 

A clean start - 9 days of detox

Whilst I was pregnant with my son I had pretty bad morning sickness & food aversions. For the first 3 months I could only stomach pizza and pasta. So pizza and pasta I ate every day for weeks. And weeks. Needless to say I gained 3 stone during those long 9 months. 

The first 28 pounds dropped off relatively easy but the final 14 pounds have kindly hung around to remind me of my crazed Italian food cravings. 

To add to that a week away, where we completely & utterly overindulged, has left me feeling uncomfortable, bloated and basically like a big fat slug.

On top of this my caffeine consumption is frankly out of control. Lack of sleep with the baby has led me to drink about 5 or 6 cups a day, mostly all before lunch. Just too much. Far far too much. My will-power has been rubbish. I know I need to eat better but I'm just not doing it. 

I need to make a change and do something positive. I've lost a fair bit of weight before on Slimming World, which I absolutely loved and found ever so simple. Slimming World got me to the lightest weight I've ever been in my adult life. I want to go back to the heathy balanced diet that Slimming World keeps you on but this time my motivation has been lacking big time. Boy do I need a blimin' big kick up the bum. 

I was talking to my bestie Laura Willis, about how I've been feeling (slug alert) when she mentioned the Forever Living Clean 9 programme. 

I read up some info about what it involves and decided this is exactly what I need to get back on track. My body is in major need of a break and Clean 9 could do this & more. 

Put together by Forever Living, the aloe vera specialists, their 9 day detox plan, Clean 9, sets you on the path for a "cleaner, healthier happier you whilst cleansing your body of unnatural chemicals". 

Clean 9 is basically a 9 day eating & diet detox plan involving meal replacement shakes, supplements & calorie controlled meals. In the kit you get everything you need (bar your evening meals) for the whole 9 days plus full instructions. 

My husband & I have both bought Clean 9. (There was no way I can do a detox if he were still eating & drinking normally around me!). We are actually looking forward to being on a strict controlled diet but we're also under no ill illusions. 

Cutting out coffee & all drinks, except water, skipping snacks and replacing meals with shakes isn't going to be a walk in the park, especially for someone with a caffeine addiction like mine! 

Here's what you get in your Forever Clean 9 kit:

3 x 1ltr bottles of Aloe Vera Gel

Aloe leaf contains over 200 different compounds which help maintain a healthy digestive system and a healthy energy level. 

Forever Lite Ultra with Aminontein Shake (Vanilla or chocolate, I went with vanilla) plus a shaker 

You mix this meal replacement shake powder with milk or soya milk. It's high in protein and 2 shakes provide 100% RDA of vitamins and minerals. It contains a blend of enzymes designed to break down the protein in your diet. 

Forever Garcinia Plus softgels

These aid natural metabolism, help lower cholesterol and fatty acids. They also aid the development of healthy hair, nails and skin. 

Forever Bee Pollen tablets 

Bee pollen contains vitamins C, D, E, K, beta carotene, B complex, minerals, enzymes, co-enzymes, plant-source fatty acids, carbohydrates, proteins and 22 amino acids. It can also assist in maintaining a healthy circulatory, digestive, immune and nervous system. 

(Victoria Beckham tweeted her love for bee pollen a little while ago, ohhhhh!)

You also get a full guide, a measuring cup for your aloe & a tape measure (to measure your inch loss). 

The plan has two stages, days one-two and then days three-nine. Day 1 and 2, apart from your aloe & supplements you have no food whatsoever (yikes) except a shake at lunch. Day 3 to 9 you have a shake for breakfast, another for lunch and then a 600 calorie dinner, again combined with the aloe & supplements. 

One of the great things about a programme like Clean 9 is that you don't just detox, you are also likely to loose a little weight too. Double thumbs up for me right there. However, we don't want to use this as just a quick fix weight loss. I need to ween myself of caffeine and get a much needed kick start to a healthier eating lifestyle too. So, we've already started Clean 9 but I'm going to write about the journey & our results once we've finished so this isn't the longest post known to mankind. 

Make sure you stay tuned (does that phrase even apply to a blog?) or make sure you stay logged on (?) for part 2! I'm hoping for a positive success story but time will tell, thankfully only 9 days!! 

You can read a lovely guest post Laura Willis wrote for me about 'how to feed veg to your fussy little ones' here!
If you would like more information on Clean 9 or any of Forever Living products you can contact Laura through her Facebook page (here). 

I'm off to drink some water, 

Love Emma