I’m sure you’ve been confused before in the realm of health I’m sure you’ve puzzled over whether you’re supposed to push aside orange juice when you have a cold because the sugar supposedly feeds the virus, or to drink on up because the Vitamin C will boost your immune system. (Answer: Drink the orange juice.) And you’ve probably wondered whether to believe the (false) claims that broccoli gives you goiters (an enlargement of the thyroid gland), or the recommendations to eat it to stave off macular degeneration. (Answer: Eat the broccoli) There’s so much noise out there; there are so many contradictions, mixed messages, fads. It’s impossible to know what to trust.
My belief is that there are answers. There is something you can hold on to in this world. That something to hold on to is the information that comes from within and a personal desire. It won’t slip through your fingers like sand. Your life can change, and it can be changed tremendously for the better, if you follow the recommendations here. I know first hand as I have done it myself and have seen it happen over and over again with the people who follow this simple plan…to always come back to the healing power of REAL whole food.
Yes I’m well aware that when you say “Trust Me” it rings alarm bells and possibly the worst is to say ‘trust’ the information I’m sharing. Trust is something that builds over time where you take steps to develop the trust over time. If you’ve had your doubts about the transformational nature of fruits and vegetables, you’re unlikely to read new information about them and change your eating habits over night. We’ve all learned to be careful with where we place our TRUST.
INSTRUCTIONS
FIRST – JOIN the TRIBE
There is something to be said about having support and help when making changes, so Julie Adams, Amy Hallihan and Helga Dalla, will be your accountability and cheer squad buddies throughout the program to help keep you inspired throughout and can answer any questions and help you modify to meet you where you are currently at…
Kickstart 28 Day Healthy Eating Program
For four weeks… 28 Days, we eat only raw fruits and vegetables. For best results, follow the plan we have supplied for the whole 28 days. This period of time is the best to set good healthy eating habits, even just 7 days is likely to bring you significant results. Another alternative is one cleanse day per week. And if this doesn’t feel like the right time for you to try the healthy eating cleanse program for any length of time, turn your attention to the other subtle small changes and techniques throughout the program and come back to this post when you feel ready. On the other hand, if your health is in dire straits, and you have a lot going on in your body, or if you have a lot of weight to lose, you’re welcome to extend the cleanse beyond the first month.
One reason this program is so effective is that it maximises the nutrition you get in every meal. Vegetables and fruits in the raw state contain the highest level of nutrients of any foods, in the form most readily available to your body. When you consume these nutrients in such a high quantity, you’ll flood your body with the building blocks it craves. The microorganisms, minerals, vitamins and other nourishing components will help cleanse and strengthen every system in your body.
The digestive system is one of those receivers, it has a major impact on our immunity and overall health. Digestion takes up an enormous amount of your body’s energy.
Your body has a daily to-do-list, as there are things it has to attend to every day, like keeping your lungs inflating, your heart pumping and food moving through your intestinal tract. Then there are all the things it wishes it could get to… like taking out the toxin trash, repairing critical tissue, and so much more – if only it had the time and support.
Early Morning Ritual
Start the day with a cleansing beverage. Celery juice, cucumber juice, lemon water, coconut water with a good organic spirulina, herbal tea, or barley grass juice extract powder reconstituted with water will do wonders to maximise the detox work your body performed overnight and hydrate you for the day ahead.
Breakfast
Smoothie time…yes make a fruit smoothie for breakfast. I have come to love my breakfast, a good baseline recipe is three bananas, two dates, and one cup of berries. If this doesn’t fill you up, don’t hesitate to add more bananas or berries. Don’t deprive yourself – this isn’t about going hungry. Other alternative fruits that also make delicious additions are mangoes, pears and papayas.
Other healthy smoothie add-ins include greens like a handful of kale, spinach or coriander; two stalks of celery; or a spoonful of barley grass juice extract powder. Just make sure that fruit remains the main ingredient.
My favourite smoothie is 3 bananas, cup blueberries, 1/2 cup of coriander and teaspoon of organic spirulina, top up with coconut water and blitz. This usually makes one and a half very large glasses.
Morning Tea
Make a second smoothie as described above for breakfast (or make two servings first thing, and have your second serving now).
Lunch
Make a salad with spinach, lettuce and cucumbers as the base, then toss in the fruits of your choice. Examples include berries, sliced mangoes, papaya chunks, grapes and orange or grapefruit segments. For dressing, blend half an avocado and a handful of coriander with juice from two oranges (plus garlic and/or fresh ginger to taste, if you’d like). This is meant to be a large salad, so make sure you eat enough to feel full.
Other additions and alternative options to mix it up is chopped cabbage, celery, or cauliflower, baby kale, sprouts, mung beans, and scallions (onions).
Mid-afternoon
As you become hungry throughout the afternoon, snack on any fruits of your choice. Some examples include apple or pear slices, dates, oranges and grapes. I like to munch on celery sticks alongside each serving of fruit too. A spoonful of raw honey also makes a great pick me up too.
Dinner
Now this is when you can get creative. It can be a lot of fun to serve our creamy thick spinach soup (below) over cucumber noodles, which you can make with a kitchen gadget such as a julienne slicer or spiral slicer. These tools make it easy to turn vegetables into long, slim crunchy strips. Our preference is zucchini noodles as they are much healthier than wheat pasta, however keep in mind that that raw zucchini can be a little uncomfortable to digest. If maximum healing and detoxification are your priorities, save the zucchini (and carrot and butternut squash) noodles for when you’ve completed this initial 28 Day Healthy Eating Program.
Creamy Spinach Soup: combine two bunches of spinach, three medium to large ripe tomatoes ( or an equal quantity of cherry or grape tomatoes), the juice of one orange, one stalk of celery, a small handful of coriander and a clove of garlic (optional… if desired) in a high speed blender. You can be creating and use other herbs, such as basil, that appeal to you. To get the consistency right, we suggest blending orange juice and tomatoes first, than add the other ingredients. You can add a little garnish if desired such as chopped scallions, Atlantic dulse, chopped tomatoes, hemp seeds, Mung beans, Thai basil, rocket and/or herbs.
Evening Snack
If you’re still hungry after dinner, snack on an apple and a date or some pear, papaya, melon or grapes and a nice herbal tea. Don’t go to be hungry, this is not about starving yourself or depriving yourself… eating as much as you need to feel fulfilled will keep you going and motivated to continue through out the whole 28 days. You will find that your body will easily digest and process all the raw vegetables and fruit so much easier and quicker than any other processed foods you have been used to previously.
Modifications
As mentioned above, please pay no attention to the idea that says too much of a particular raw leafy green such as spinach will cause you harm. That’s a rubbish and misinformation. If you eat raw spinach soup every day for a month, it will be the BEST thing you’ve ever done for yourself. Please don’t be afraid to eat as many greens as your heart desires.
The above is only a guide, you don’t have to eat this exact menu every day. That’s the fun of this initial Kickstart 28 Day Healthy Eating Program, it’s about experimenting and getting to know what you like. You can swap the lunch and dinner dishes or eat two salads for both dinner and lunch. You can even choose to have a smoothie for lunch or dinner too. Feel free to rotate through different salad and soup greens if you’d like too… have fun, find your own taste buds and enjoy playing with raw fruit and vegetables. You’ll be surprised how your taste buds change during this time…I’m excited to see what magic happens once you reach your 28 Days.
It’s also ok to eat an entire meal of just one fruit too. If you find yourself eating a lot of one food in particular, many grocery stores, coops and farmers markets will sell you cases of produce at discount, that’s a bonus… you can then spend the morning eating only mangoes, however we suggest balancing them with a few celery sticks.
Speaking of my favourite mangoes, a delicious alternative meal is mango salsa, which you can make by chopping tomatoes, cucumbers, celery, coriander, garlic (if desired) and mangoes of course in a food processor. Serve in cucumber boats, lettuce wraps or over a bed of greens…baby spinach or mesclun mix.
And in place of the avocado orange juice salad dressing, try mashing up some guacamole, topping your salad with it, then sprinkling the whole thing with lime or lemon juice.
Another great detox dish is apples and cauliflower or apples and cabbage blended in a whiz.
You really have so many options…it’s like art, get creative and test your taste buds. Just remember your mantra: raw fruits and vegetables.
More Alternatives
Afternoon Drink with your snack
If your gut needs healing, start the day with a glass of fresh, plain celery juice on an empty stomach. If your blood sugar or energy levels are of particular concern, employ a grazing technique.
For a really powerful impact, try a week or more with no avocados or other overt fats. Also try cutting out added salt entirely. You’ll be getting plenty of natural sodium from the vegetables and fruits.
However if you prefer a less rapid rate of implementation and healing, feel free to add half an avocado at diner. You can even add coconut butter, nuts and seeds as add-ins to your salads, or as a creamy base for a dressing or dip. I like adding half an avocado to my salad dressings or as a dip as it gives it a creaming texture and tastes so yummy.
If the spinach soup for dinner becomes a bit tough and challenging you can swap it out for a meal of simply cooked vegetables. Lightly steam or roast with a dash of coconut oil, or make a soup with veggies such as cauliflower, broccoli, potatoes, squash, yams and/or asparagus. For maximum digestibility, eat them with some raw sprouts, greens or celery. This can be part of a less intense cleanse, and it can also be an excellent way to transition into or out of an all-raw Healthy Eating Program ‘aka’ cleanse.
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