Internal Cleanse - Day 2 - Reflection

Initially, I had thought when I started preparing for the detox/cleanse/change in June that I would follow a raw vegan diet. And maybe I will once vacation starts and I have the time. While I am eating some cooked veggies and fish, I've also increased my raw veggie & fruit consumption greatly.

The main criteria are:
No refined sugar
No refined starches
Good oils only

And those simple criteria have ruled out most of the items in a regular grocery store. Essentially, I shop the perimeter of the store where the produce and seafood are located. If I didn't have a cat or used paper towels, I'd never have a reason to go down an aisle. But I still take a stroll down memory lane with the coffee. The cart slows down, I close my eyes a little and take a long luxurious inhale. Ah... But it's adios amigo to my old caffeinated friend. Coffee is very acidic so why would I make all these changes only to sabotage it with coffee? It's all about PH balance. More on that at a later date.

No white sugar. While agave nectar is the current rage, I just can't see throwing out the gallon jug of raw honey that our brother-in-law gave us. Honey has an indefinite shelf life. It is anti-microbial, anti-fungal and anti-viral. All the same, I'm using it sparingly so that my main sugar will be from fruits. In June, I hope to reduce to only those fruits that have the lowest Glycemic Index [GI]. I will have to check a glycemic index for fruits that are low in sugar. Oh yeah. I just found cherries and they are very low at 22.


Good oils. Coconut Oil for cooking, as a spread on toast and make-up remover and moisturizer. I have always cooked with olive oil but was told recently that it has a much lower smoking point and becomes denatured (carcinogenic), therefore, I will use olive oil primarily for salad dressings at this point. I've been told that hemp oil is good for you too. I'm now hearing from some that while flax is a good oil, it becomes rancid too quickly. I know that it must be refrigerated and keep my bottle in the fridge. But now that I have coconut oil which I understand will remain good for three years.... I don't see the point of having the more fragile flax oil. Another oil, DHA plus EPA cannot be found in plant sources. Just cold water fish like salmon, tuna, etc. Sardines are a good source, plus, because they are so young when caught they don't have a build-up of toxins. So I bought a few tins of sardines and oysters since I won't be preparing fish daily. Just two smoked oysters per day is all you need...

The first three days of the 24 day cleanse is actually a preparation to determine the number of 'digestive stimulators' (pills) necessary to ensure three Bowel Movements (BM) per day. Today I had three BMs before noon so I think I've determined that one pill is enough. Although the instructional booklet says that you can move on to the next step in the cleanse once you've determined the right number of pills, I just don't have time tonight to figure/plan/measure all that tonight. So another day won't hurt.