New Year's Resolution 5-Day Cleanse

Over the holidays, many of us overindulge. Great food, baked goods, etc., with friends and family is what I love about the holidays.

But many of those things can also "bog us down."  A cleanse is one of the most effective ways to feel lighter and look younger.

And if you have a New Year's Health Resolution, a cleanse is a great way to "jump start" your metabolism, and kick of your resolution.

Below is a simple 5-Day Cleanse that I have done a few times before--and always felt great afterwards.


The 5-Day Cleanse:

1. Immediately after you get up each morning, drink one cup of hot water with fresh squeezed lemon.
2. No dairy other than 1/2 cup of plain yogurt once per day.
3. Eliminate all grains, including rice.
4. Each day each one fruit (ideal fruits are apples, blueberries, or clementines)
5. Vegetables are free (each as much as you want), except--do not eat any of the "starchy" vegetables: potatoes, yams, sweet potatoes, corn, squash, etc.
6. Eliminate all red meat.
7. No more than 3 ounces of protein to be consumed at each meal (tuna, salmon, tofu, chicken, turkey, sole, etc.)
8. No beans or legumes
9.  No coffee or alcohol.  Substitute green or black teas, herbal energy drinks, and herbal teas.
10. 8 glasses of water per day.  Add chlorophyll to water twice a day.  Mint flavoured chlorophyll is available.

Tips:

• 
• If you become constipated, add fibre such as ground flax seed, ground chia seed, or Fibre+ from Health, to smoothies/shakes and/or yogurt.
• Maximum of 15 nuts per days.
• If you feel tired or low-energy throughout the day, instead of drinking a coffee, try a Pro prolonged energy drink.

Recommended Grocery Items:

• Yogurt: use plain (not-flavoured), probiotic yogurt. Not skim or non-fat yogurt. Liberte brand is a very good choice--no sugar, good probiotic count.  Astro plain is a good compromise.
• Omega 3 eggs (hard boiled and kept in fridge--great snack or protein for lunch)
• Cinnamon tea (for cravings)
• raw almonds &/or walnuts
• green or red apples
• red peppers
• cucumbers
• carrots (including baby carrots)
• celery
• fresh lemons
• Imagine brand Soup Broth (vegetable or chicken
  --drink as much or as often as you like.)
• Pro prolonged herbal energy drink mix
   (to get you through the afternoon low).
• Vi-Shape shake mix for your protein smoothie.

Supplements:

1. Ground flaxseeds: add 1 tablespoon to shake/smoothie and/or yogurt
2. Acidophilus (probiotics): Makes sure capsules have >3 billion organisims per capsule.  Take 4 capsules per day--2 in morning, 2 in evening.
3. Chlorophyll: available at most health food stores.  Add 1 teaspoon to water twice daily--morning and evening.

Banned from the cleanse:
- mayonnaise
- sugar (including adding to tea)
- bread, pasta, cereal, grains, etc.
- potatoes
- rice
- red meat
- coffee
- wine
- beer
- alcohol
- dates
- raisins
- cheese (including cottage cheese, cream cheese, hard cheeses)
- beans (including hummus)


Sample Meal Plan:

Breakfast:
Vi-Shake--1 cup Almond milk, 1/2 cup frozen berries, 1 tsp flaxseed oil, 1 tbsp ground Chia seeds, 1 tsp mint chlorophyll.

Snack:
1/2 cup of plain yogurt with 1/2 cup of berries, 6-8 almonds, and 1 tsp of ground flaxseeds.

Lunch:
1 cup vegetable or chicken soup broth
salads with 3 ounces of tuna
carrot sticks, celergy sticks
or
Vi-Shake

Snack:
1 apple and 6-8 almonds

Dinner:
- 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- chicken breast
- salad
- steamed vegetables

Quit Drinking Soda Pop

Why you should quit drinking soda: You have probably heard about the evils of soda, and how bad it is for you.  Really, isn't nothing but sugar water, devoid of any nutritional value. Lots of websites, magazine articles, etc., have reported how it is linked with obesity, and diabetes; but that is only the beginning. Check out these Nine Disturbing Effects of Soda Pop: 1. Body Fat in Weird Places: Researchers in Danemark report that drinking non-diet soda leads to dramatic increases in fat-buildup around your liver and skeletal muscles, a 30% in triglyceriede bloods fats, and an 11% increase in cholesterol. 2. Diet-Soda Belly We are not surprised to learn that drinking sugary sodas causes weight gain, but so does drinking "diet" sodas. Research from the Health Sciences Center at the University of Texas found taht people who drank diet soda had a 70% increase in waist circumference when compared to people who did not drink any soda. And those that drank 2 diet sodaa a day had an average 500% larger waist circumference! Another study by the same researchers showed that aspartame found in diet sodas actually raised blood glucose levels, which in turn causes weight gain as when the liver reads a high blood glucose level, it converts it to body fat. 3. Caramel Colouring may Cause Cancer: Two ingrediants in the colouring of sodas: 2-methylimidazole and 4-methylimidazole, have been found to cause cancer in animals. These contaniments are purely cosmetic, and are part of California's strict Proposition 65 list of chemicals known to cause cancer. 4. Aging Accelerators! All colas contain phosphoric acid, a weak acid that gives cola it's tangy flavour, as well as extends shelf life.  Too much phosphoric acid is linked to heart and kidney problems, muscle loss, and osteoporosis, as well as accelerated agin. A study published in the 2010 issue of FASEB Journal reported that excessive phosphate levels caused premature deaths in lab rats.  There has been a disturbing trend in the soda pop industry that past few decades--the continual increase in the levels of phosophoric acid in sodas. 5. Water Pollution: Our bodies do not break down the artificial sweeteners found in diet sodas. Nor do wastewater-treatment plants. This leads to artificial sweeteners entering our waterways and eventually our drinking water. Swiss scientists in 2009 tested water sample from rivers and lakes and found levels of acesulfame K, and sacharin, both of which are used in diet sodas. 6. Mountain Dew Mouth A new name for kids who drink too much soda pop has been coined by Dentists: "Mountain Dew Mouth." This term refers to a mouth full of cavities caused by excessive sugar levels found in drinking soda. To prevents the flavouring from separating in the drink, manufactures add BVO--brominatede vegetable oil.  This is an industrial chemical used in plastics as a flame retardant. It is used in citrus flavoured soda pops, as well as sports drinks, and has been shown to cause memory loss and nerve disorders.  BVO also builds up in body fat, increasing in levels over the years, and has been linked with behavioural problems, infertility, and lesions on heart muscles. 7. Hormones out of Whack: Aluminum cans are lined with an expoxy resin called bisphenol A (BPA, and used to keep the acids in the soda from reacting with the metal of the can.  BPS has been shown to interfere with hormes, and is linked with such medical/health issues as inferitliity, obesity, diabetes, and reproducctive cancers. The Centers ofr Diseae Contorl and Prevention has recently listed soda can as a major source of exposure to this chemical. 8. Dead Birds: Unfortunetley a large percentage of plastic pop bottles are still not recycled and end up in landfills, and waterways, oceans, etc. This mass of plastic debris, including soda pop caps, tend to float just beneath the surface of water, and get mistaken for food, eatern by birds, sea turtles, and other wildlife.  These animals are unable to digest these plastics, obviously, and the plastic causes them to starve to death.  It is estimated that thousands of animals die every year due to consuming plastic garbage.  Check out the photographs of environmentalist photographer Chris Jordan for his stunning photo evidence of this issue. 9. GMOs Check out the ingredient list of soda and you will see most of them are derived from corn.  Approximately 85% of the corn grown in North America is genetically modified.  Due to the strong lobbying of the corporate worlds, there are few human studies of the effects of GMOs on humans. Independent scientsist have show that in animals genetically modified crops (GMOs) are linked to digestive tract damage, accelerated aging, and infertility. Something to think about next time you reach for that soda. So, next time you are thirsty, reach for a water.  If you normally reach for a soda for the energy-sugar boost, or the caffeine boost, then try a Go instant energy drink, or a PRO prolonged energy drink.  All natural, with no sugar or caffeine crash.

Energy Drinks--The Truth

What are you pouring into your body?  Do you really know?

Taurine--a very common energy drink ingredient.  Very exotic sounding, isn't it?  But what is it?  Almost all of the big name energy drinks--Red Bull, AMP Energy, Sobe Adrenaline Rush, etc.--contain taurine, claiming that is can spike your performance, and hone your concentrations, for hours.

The truth, however, is not quite there.  So what is taurine?  Taurine is an amino acid that acts as a neurotransmitter.  Research from Weill Cornell Medical suggests that it might actually work more like a sedative than a stimulant.  So instead of giving you wings, it may actually "clip" them.

Oh, but there is more.  Check out this article form Men's Health Magazine where they attempted to separate the science form the marketing.  Where they analyzed the claims and the ingredients of some of the most popular energy drinks on the market.  Where they tried to answer the question: Are energy drinks safe?

And the question: Do energy drinks contribute to body fat gain? Or can you lose weight by watching what you drink?

For a natural energy drink, research-based, that will help access your energy, awaken your metabolism, and clear your mental fog. Check out Go and Pro from ViSalus Sciences.  Go Energy shots are perfect just before a game, or your workout session.  Pro Energy drinks are great to drink throughout the day instead of coffee, and to drink during physical activity.