Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Cleansing Day

On my visit to India last year, after a week of gastronomic indulgence, my insides started revolting. After a night of forceful upchucking, I decided I needed to detox. My father, who is already one of the healthiest people I know, joined me in a day of wholesome eating. No meat, processed food or drinks were allowed. We stuck to fruit, vegetables, fruit juice, whole grains and natural foods. This may not seem like a hard task (Erica does it practically every day and doesn't brag about it), but keep in mind that my mother (who is one of the best cooks I know) was busy in the kitchen, whipping up her culinary masterpieces to feast her gluttonous sons and son-in-law, none of whom were in the least affected by all the overindulgence. And of course, there were the friends and relatives we would visit that day, all of whom would insist on us staying for lunch/dinner/brunch/tea or whatever meal was laid out at the time of day we were visiting and would take offence if we refused.

The important thing was, my father and I both survived that day unscathed, felt awesome at the end of it, and enjoyed our run the day after. Recently, we decided to make it a monthly event. I christened it the Cleansing Day.
Yesterday was the day. Here's my report:

Breakfast: bowl of oatmeal with 1% milk and honey and a glass of orange juice
10 am: a banana and a glass of pomegranate juice
12 pm: another banana and half a Strawberry kefir smoothie
1:30 pm: an apple and a couple of slices of dried papaya
3:00 pm: boiled veggies (carrot, peas and soya beans with salt and pepper), baby carrots, almonds and dates (5 almonds and 2 dates).
5 pm: Banana (that's 3 in a day! Can you get potassium poisoning from too much banana?)
I went for a swim after work (1250 yards).

I was ravenous after the swim and had nothing but an oat and honey granola bar on hand, hope that counts in the healthy foods category.

Dinner was leftover boiled veggies, almonds (15), dates (4) and prunes (2), sunflower seeds and more baby carrot.

I was not even tempted to cheat once (which isn't that big of a deal...my mom's not cooking this time). I would not survive on a raw fruit and veggie diet, though.

I ran 4 easy miles this morning and felt on top of the world. Healthy eating - score!

Today, it's back to oily chicken curry and rice, and cream puff for dessert.

17 comments:

Heather said...

I like the idea of a cleansing day - because I know I certainly couldn't eat like that all the time! :)

Cindy said...

that does sounds really refreshing. i might have to try that some time--might be a shock to my system!

Beth said...

Congrats on your cleansing! That's a great idea and I'm glad that you feel wonderful afterwords.

Erica said...

hehe- thank you for the shout out :) My body really functions best when I eat this way (less tummy troubles) and I feel stronger when I work out! Do you read No Meat Athlete's blog? You should check it out if you don't. He is a BIG runner (training for Boston) and eats a veggie diet. Good stuff there

Anonymous said...

I could probably use a cleansing day! Can't wait to read how the month goes.

Sara Cox Landolt said...

Thanks for the food examples and pictures, this looks interesting!

joyRuN said...

I need to try that for a week!!

As long as your kidneys are fine, the potassium shouldn't be an issue.

You made me think of our EKG module in nursing school - I actually had changes when I had my EKG, & the instructor immediately asked if I had eaten a bunch of bananas recently. As it turns out, I was trying to eat my way through a bunch of bananas that were turning brown :)

healthy ashley said...

Sometimes I think we all need a clean day of reprogramming.

Marlene said...

I don't know if I could survive a day on that, but good for you!

Mel-2nd Chances said...

nice job on the cleansing, i wonder if i could do that!

Aileen said...

I think I could get through that for one day. And one day only!

I don't know for sure, but I do think there is such a thing as too many bananas...

Lindsay said...

i'd love to hear more about how you feel before/during/after a cleansing day. does the influx of veggies change up your, uh, bathroom habits? :)

this is a great idea - thanks for sharing! i have always thought about doing some natural cleansing. i like the idea of flushing out the body but i don't like the "cleansing" systems that are out there on the shelf - they just don't seem natural to me.

I Run for Fun said...

Lindsay, I always start the day with oatmeal and orange juice, and I decided to keep it that way, so the bowel movement was not disturbed. You don't want to do anything drastic, but as long as the diet does not consist of just raw fruit and veggies (throw in some boiled veggies), I think your body will be able to adapt well. I didn't feel hungry or tempted to cheat at all during the day. It might help to rid your house of M&M's before you start, though!!!

Amy said...

Ah, I like the idea of a "cleansing day." I definitely feel that I need this after a vacation....or a crazy weekend.

X-Country2 said...

Ooh, I like all the pictures. I probably wouldn't last an entire day, but I may have to try a few of the things.

Felice Devine said...

Good job! I don't think I could last without some coffee, though.

Have a good weekend :-)

Scheri said...

You inspire me to do it! I keep saying I will, but some wonderful snack always happens into our door when I have a cleansing day planned. I know it will make me feel better than ever. Thanks for giving me the push I need to do it!

I'll also keep in mind that I should do this while we are in India in October. I'm fully anticipating stomach issues and this sounds like a great solution. Thanks!