My 3 Day Active Delight Cleanse

I’ve been flirting with the idea of a juice cleanse for a while now but I always seem to convince myself against it. I love juices and smoothies and usually start my day off with one or the other but the idea of having JUST liquids all day for a few days didn’t tempt me.

A colleague of mine however recently suggested going on a cleanse with a group of other colleagues. She mentioned detox delight’s Active Delight cleanse and this is what came out of the conversation:

  1. She loved it! The juices were really tasty
  2. The juices were so filling she couldn’t finish all eight bottles a day. She actually extended her 5-day detox into 6 days to finish the remaining juices

I was easily convinced. I have been feeling quite bloated and tired recently so giving my digestive system a break might just be what I need.

 

About Detox Delight’s Active Delight Cleanse

“ACTIVE DELIGHT is Detox Delight´s first detox treatment for men and everyone who is physically active. The new Liquid Detox program has been specifically designed to give men and everyone who is physically active the possibility to take a healthy cleansing downtime without risking the loss of any muscles gained through hard training. To achieve that, ACTIVE DELIGHT contains an extra portion of high quality protein which, following the so popular vegan Detox Delight concept, come from plant-based products such as nuts, seeds, legumes, green leaves, sea vegetables and grasses. However, as detox processes in your body will not be activated when you are consuming too much protein, we have paid attention that a maximum daily dose of 35 grams of protein is not exceeded.”

“To meet the higher demand of calories and proteins men and physically active persons usually have, ACTIVE DELIGHT offers larger daily portions than our other Detox Delight programs. Each day you will receive four liters of detox juices in eight individual bottles to be drunk every 1.5 hours.”

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The active delight cleanse includes the following:

  • • 1 x 500 ml Good Morning Protein Shake (vegan)
  • • 4 x 500 ml Enzyme and vitamin rich detox juices from fruits and vegetables
  • • 2 x 500 ml Chlorophyll Water to satisfy your thirst in between (during physical activity)
  • • 1 x 500 ml Good Night Protein Drink (vegan) to boost your fat and hormone metabolism during the night

Here goes nothing!

 

Day 1:

I set my alarm for 5am as I plan to horse ride before work today. I apparently switched the alarm off instead of snoozing because next thing I know its 7:45am! (yiiikes).

I get ready in record time and rush out the door with a cup of warm water with lemon and ginger (good thing I had sliced the lemon and ginger the night before!)…

10am: Done with my morning meeting. I’m ready for my “Good morning Protein Shake” which includes silk tofu. Tasty!

I drink about half the bottle and feel full so I stop. It is 12:30pm by the time I’m done with my first juice. To be fair, I had a late (and heavy) diner last night so I wasn’t particularly hungry this morning. Let’s see how fast I gulp my first juice tomorrow.

I feel a headache coming along, I wouldn’t mind a cup of coffee now ….. but I opt for a  Peppermint tea instead (and a break from the computer screen).

2:30pm: Excited to try the second juice of the day “Orange”. This one is great!

4:30pm: I grab juice number 3 “Pink” and drink it on my way to the stables. WOW. This one tastes like summer vacation. Definitely a mood booster. I can only drink half before I’m full though. So I leave the rest for when I’m done at around 6:30pm.

FYI I did get a slight headache after my first ride but nothing a bit of water couldn’t cure (stay hydrated!).

By the time I get back home, I’m still quite energetic so I fit a workout in. I’m actually quite surprised as I’m usually exhausted this time a day. Then again I had slept in this morning ….

9pm: I’m ready for diner. I skip juices 4 to 7 and have number 8, the last juice of the day “Good Night”. This one includes sweet potato and carrots among other ingredients. It’s creamy and delicious. I heat it up and have it as a soup.

I put on an episode of House of cards and I’m ready to sleep! Day 1 is over and it went quite well. I’m looking forward to tomorrow!

 

Day 2:

7:30: I head to work, quite sleepy, with my warm cup of lemon and ginger water. It doesn’t take me long to get my energy back though. No coffee required this morning.

9am: Time for my “good morning” juice. This time it includes soy yoghurt and dried fuits. Not bad. It’s quite filling and takes me an hour to finish.

I sip on warm water with fresh mint leaves between juices. It’s freezing in the office!

11:15am: I have a better appetite today, I go for my second juice “Orange” with slightly different ingredients than yesterday’s.  These juices are seriously great!

1:30pm: Time for a “Pink” juice, again with different ingredients than yesterday. Another good surprise! Less hungry than earlier though. This one may take me longer to finish…

3:30pm: Chlorophyll water, basically water with wheatgrass. Just gulp! At this point I want solid food….hmmmm good thing I’m going riding soon. It will take my mind off it.

I sip on the Cholophyll water for the next couple of hours, and alternate with water. I don’t finish the whole bottle but I get through at least three quarters of it.

6:30pm: I’m excited to try number 5 finally (didn’t get a chance to try it yesterday). Sour but good. I love green juices. I can’t finish it though. I feel like I’m overdosing on liquids at the moment.

By the time I’m back home from the stables, I’m feeling a little tired/lazy to workout. But I can’t blame the cleanse. I do tend to feel like this after riding (and the long drive back) most days, hence the reason I usually try to fit in my workouts early morning before work.

Anyway, I listen to my body and just rest. That’s what detoxes are all about right?

8:30pm: Diner time! I’m looking forward to heating this one up. Craving a warm meal. It tastes just as good as yesterdays! It includes red bell peppers! I’m full and satisfied.

Second day of juicing is over. Got through it with relative ease. Highlight of the day: no caffeine withdrawal! 

 

Day 3

I’m feeling….zen. Yes zen is the word. Maybe too zen. I just want to sit on the terrace, enjoy the beautiful sunrise and sip on a hot drink (I do miss the smell of coffee in the morning) … but I have to go to work! Haha

7:10am: I’m off to work with my warm lemon and ginger water.

8:30am: I’m hungry and looking forward to my morning juice (same as yesterday).

10:45am: I have my “Orange” juice. I’m pretty hungry at this point. I’m done with it in about half an hour (usually it take me almost an hour).

Yep…I’m hungrier today…

12:40pm: yummy “pink” juice. Refreshing and Satisfying. I gulped this one down in 15 minutes! (oops). Looks like I may actually be able to finish all 8 bottle today!

2:45pm: Not looking forward to no.4 “chlorophyll water” but I know it is essential to the cleanse. I sip on it for the next couple of hours. The trick is to take big gulps and avoid smelling it lol. Highlight of the day: I finish the whole bottle! 

6pm:  I’m done riding, and finish off the second half of yesterday’s green juice on my way back home. I fit in a quick yoga/foam rolling session to ease the tightness accumulated from riding in the last couple of days and get ready for a night out.

8pm: I’m off to diner/to watch people dine. I have a longer night ahead so I sip on no.6, the “yellow” juice instead of the “good night” one, which I haven’t had the chance to try yet. So refreshing! I love pineapples! (although slightly sensitive to it)

10:30pm: my night isn’t over yet, so I pick up the last juice of the day. I can’t finish it though.

Day 3 is over! I’m officially done with my cleanse (but too tired to be excited about it)!

I have a few juices left so I will have them in the next couple of days before they go off.

 

Post Cleanse

I didn’t weight myself before the cleanse as weight loss wasn’t my goal. I can say however that my tummy has not been this flat in almost a year. I’ve been suffering from inflammation and consequently horrible bloat due to food sensitivities and stress among other.

Cleansing not only gave my digestive system a break but kept me away from most foods I’m sensitive to. I feel lighter, more comfortable.

My skin has also been effected by my food sensitivities. It started with acne scars (never had acne) then progressed into actually acne. It gets worse when I’m not careful with my food. A three day detox may not be enough to see drastic changes in this department but I do see a difference. I don’t know if it makes sense but my skin looks more “relaxed”.

 

Next steps

I will try to ease back into a normal diet one day at a time.

On my first day post cleanse I’m having:

8am – Breakfast: Chocolate superfood smoothie (similar to the one posted on Instagram a while back and inspired by Kristelle Gratziani http://consciouscooking.com/ )

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  • 1 cup almond milk
  • 1 tbsp raw cacao nibs
  • 1 tbsp cocoa powder
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds
  • 1 tbsp almond butter
  • 1 tbsp lucuma powder
  • 1 tsp maca powder
  • 3 dates
  • 4-5 ice cubes

11am – Mid-Morning Snack: Detox Delight’s Active Delight leftover Green juice. Or at least that was the plan! Turns out I brought the Wheatgrass instead! That’s Ok, I’ll have the rest of last night’s Red pepper and Cashew “Good night” juice.

1pm – lunch: I have a spinach salad with chickpeas, shredded carrot, red bell pepper, cucumber and pumpkin seeds, and a side of sauerkraut to keep unhealthy bacteria in check!* I try not to overload my stomach the first time it receives solid food in 3 days.

2pm: I didn’t want to have any caffeine today but now I really feel like some Earl Grey tea….so I go for it. It’s better than coffee, which FYI I haven’t had since detox day 1 and am not craving it (success!).

I get busy so I don’t have anything until after riding at around 6pm. At this point I’m hungry. Good thing I had some homemade superfood protein balls (Recipe in Nicole Maree’s Tummy Tamer e-book ) with me. I have a couple pre-workout.

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9pm: It’s BBQ time! I try to limit my intake of solid foods and especialy meats! I end up having some salad and the tiniest piece of chicken kebab with a side of hummus. It’s a BBQ after all! I do feel a little uncomfortable after that but it doesn’t last long. I’ll try avoiding meats for a few days….

Would I do it again? At first, and although it wasn’t a difficult three days, I thought no. Perhaps I was missing food hehe. But two to three days later, I felt even better (even after a couple of cheats). So yes, I would!

Who has done a juice cleanse before? Which cleanse did you choose? Share with us and the rest of the fitnut community your experience by hashtagging #fitnutuae on Twitter and Instagram

 

Sarah x

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