About a month ago I wrote this post about my idea to start a cleanse. I had quickly glanced over the program details and menu plan and saw healthy foods and thought, this is it! Over the course of the month, I managed to round up some pretty spectacular people who were ready for the challenge. 21 days as a raw vegan is no easy feat.
I didn't realize exactly what the cleanse entailed until day one into it. Raw veganism. Have you heard of it? I had seen a video about it once but that was the extent of my knowledge. Being vegan seemed hard enough. Basically, it is being vegan as well as not cooking the foods above 118 °F (48 °C). So it is now day four of the cleanse and we are doing our best to keep going to the best of our ability (disclaimer: we are cooking our dinners).
The idea of this raw vegan diet sparked a though in my mind. WHY? I understood the animal rights/cruelty argument but this cleanse was not about that for us. We were also not interested in the weight loss aspect of a diet. For us, that seemed like a natural consequence.
We were interested in the health aspect. I wanted to rid myself of gastrointestinal problems after my gallbladder surgery and Scotty, well, he eats what I cook.
It wasn't until I started the cleanse when I wondered about the specific health benefits and why I couldn't cook my foods. I read some blogs and learned about the reasons behind this type of diet and let me tell you, I came out more motivated than I ever imagined. Let me share to you why.
THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE CLEANSE ... well it's science for me
Alkaline. Before the cleanse I had never heard of this before and now, it's the main concept of our diet. Through my research I learned that high alkaline foods lead to more alkaline urine pH levels which leads to healthy cells and balanced essential mineral levels.
This article gave me all the information for this post, but basically you want to keep your pH (potential of hydrogen) level of the blood at about 7.365-7.4. And this is determined through the foods you eat. Your pH level is a balance between acidity and alkalinity in your diet.
Examples of (healthy) acid foods:
- Blueberries
- Dry Beans
- Seeds
- Agave
- Pecans
- Walnuts
Examples of alkaline forming foods:
- Leafy and root vegetables
- Cayenne pepper
- Onion
- Garlic
- Fresh green vegetable juices
- Almonds
We are currently eating all of these foods in our cleanse and are incorporating them in ways that I had never imagined! I guess you have to when you want to spice up your meals. Our current favorite recipe for example, has us chopping up walnuts in our food processor and using it as "taco meat"! Sounds crazy but it works and is surprisingly yummy!
So why should we not cook our veggies? Simply put, when exposed to different heats, foods loose their nutrients. This is very hard for us to grasp as we like the comfort (the dreaded word) of a warm meal. We are working on this, kind of.
THE BENEFITS OF AN ALKALINE LIFESTYLE
I say lifestyle because a diet is short term and you need to keep at these habits to see the benefits. Through research, the benefits of consuming alkaline forming foods are found to be:
1. Protecting bone density and muscle mass
This was particularly surprising to me as we always think of protein as being the muscle provider to our bodies. But this makes sense as an alkaline diet balances ratios of minerals that are important in muscle formation and decrease muscle wasting as we get older. Since we learned this, this has been our main motivator during the cleanse.
2. Lower risk of hypertension and stroke
This happens through decreased inflammation. Other benefits in this realm include reducing risk of high cholesterol and kidney stones. The article mentions memory loss as well, but I would like to see more research on this.
3. Cancer protection!
I had heard of this before. It seems that those following this lifestyle do so because of previous health concerns like cancer. So I'm thinking, why not adapt this lifestyle now to prevent future diseases or illnesses? To read the study behind this claim, click here.
4. Weight Loss
By eating less acidic foods your body decreases leptin levels and inflammation which affect hunger and fat-burning abilities. This one is pretty self explanatory, all the weight loss diets you see around involve some sort of veggies on your plate. From my own personal experience, I gained 10 pounds transitioning from a pescatarian diet to eating meat, while maintaining the same lifestyle and activities. We are not trying to loose weight so we don't limit our consumption during meals.
Other benefits I have noticed in myself within four days of clean eating include
- A surprising amount of energy, considering I have not been drinking coffee or matcha
- My skin looks noticeably better
- My gastrointestinal problems has decreased enormously (more on this later)
- I feel lighter.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE CLEANSE?
The cleanse lasts 21 days but for a lot of people, this type of food consumption is their reality! I have found it incredibly hard but I have learned a lot about myself in just four days.
I have learned that food is primarily for comfort in my life and I
Remember my cleansing goal to end my gastrointestinal problems? Today, on day 4 of the cleanse, I felt zero GI discomfort for the first time in a year. This to me is all the victory and result I need to know this is good for the body.
So before you run to the store to try and fix whatever is going on with your health, try switching things around in your diet and find a natural solution to your ailments. Your body is stronger and more capable than you think.
Thanks for making it this far on this post. Quite lengthy and more science based that I normally write but my life is changed if I keep this up and I would love the same results for you! If you are doing the cleanse leave a comment with updates, tips, or stories! I love having a group of strong people to share this journey with. If you are not doing the cleanse, what's stopping you? What health issues do you struggle with and what solutions are you looking to find? xoxo Lety
