Almost Raw Vegan

Do you ever feel like your body just needs a quick reset?

Perhaps you are a little more tired than usual. Perhaps you’ve been working too much and not exercising enough.  Perhaps you’ve been eating a little more than usual or eating things that just don’t jive with your body.

Whatever it is, you are just a bit “off” and need something to kick-start your body.

This ARV 1-Day Mini-Cleanse will leave you feeling clean, refreshed and energized after just one EASY PEASY day!! 

The best part with the 1-Day mini-cleanse is YOU WON’T BE HUNGRY!! You can drink as much smoothie and eat as much salad as you need to with only two conditions:

1. only eat when you are hungry and;
2. stop eating when you are full.

TIP:  Don’t forget, feeling “full” on healthy clean food is a much “lighter full” than “full” on not so healthy food which is more like a “sluggish need to sleep and relax NOW” kinda full. Just saying

So isn’t that great news!  It’s only for 1-Day, you won’t be hungry, and you will be left feeling clean, refreshed and energized and hey, you might even loose a pound or two!!

How great is that?

I’m starting the cleanse myself this Saturday, does anyone want to join me?

1-Day Mini-Cleanse

Here’s how it works in 4 – EASY PEASY Steps:

1. Start your day with a large glass of water with juice of 1/2 lemon. If you are chilled you are welcome to use hot water, or if you prefer you can use warm or even cold water. Starting your day with lemon water helps reduce your body’s overall acidity, (yes lemon is acidic but once metabolized it does not create acidity in the body), it also helps to wakeup the liver and flush out unwanted toxins.
2. Throughout the morning and all through the day, enjoy 2 litres (8 cups/64oz) of the Cleansing Green Smoothie (recipe below).  For example you might enjoy 500ml/2cups at 3 hour intervals – 8am and again at 11am, 2pm and 5pm. Note: If 2 litres isn’t enough for you, then by all means make a 2nd batch or 1.5 batches…listen to your body and don’t starve yourself!! Drink enough to be full**.
3. For dinner enjoy a GREAT BIG Clean Green Salad (recipe below).
4. Also drink as much water or herbal tea as you like throughout the day and evening. Make sure you have at least 6-8 glasses of water (hot or cold) throughout the day/evening. I also love hot water (yup, plain hot water) I find it warms my insides and feels surprisingly satisfying, especially on days when you aren’t having any cooked foods.

And that’s it!

Easy Peasy!

Give it a try! Email me (AlmostRawVegan@bell.net) with subject “1-Day Cleanse” and I will be happy to answer your questions and support you through the day!! Enjoy!! xox

Cleansing Green Smoothie

Green smoothie (i.e. smoothies with only a little fruit or no fruit at all) will leave your body feeling refreshed, clean and energized – more so than any fruit based smoothie. Don’t get me wrong, I love fruit based smoothies (as you know from my gazillion recipes), but there’s something especially wonderful about the cleansing and refreshing effect of true green smoothies.

This smoothie is chocked full of nutrients and is an excellent source of Vitamins A & C, it’s high in fibre, great source of iron and calcium. The best part is that both cilantro and parsley are great cleaners.  Parsley cleans the blood and gives you fresh breath and the high levels of chlorophyl helps cleanse your entire system. Cilantro binds with toxins and helps eliminate them from the body. So you are in good cleansing hands with this Smoothie

Ingredients:
Makes approx. 2 litres

• 4 cups coconut water (or filtered water if you have no coconut water)
• 1/2 bunch parsley
• 1 bunch cilantro
• 1 lemon, peel/rind removed
• 1 apple, cored and chopped
• 1/2 bunch romaine

Add all ingredients to the blender in the order listed. Blend on low speed and gradually increase speed. Blend on high until smooth and frothy.

You’ll want to store the smoothies in jars – if you have it, use 4 x 500ml mason jars. Fill the jars to the top (the less air the better as it’s the air exposure that will reduce the effectiveness of the enzymes (see Why Eat Raw).  Screw lids on very tight and store in the fridge. If you are on the go, add the jars to a travel bag with ice packs.

Now if you feel 2 litres isn’t enough for you, by all means create another 1/2 or full batch. If you make too much you can always use it the morning after.  Just be sure to drink what your body needs and don’t starve yourself.  Remember to drinks lots of water (hot or cold) and herbal tea as this will also help take the edge off.

To learn more about how I create smoothies visit My Smoothie Approach and if you are looking for a blender visit my post on Choosing a Blender for some ideas that will fit any budget. Enjoy!!

Great BIG Clean GREEN Salad

For dinner enjoy this salad:

• 1-2 heads of whatever combination of greens you like (spinach, romaine, kale, etc.)
• 2-3 cups of your favourite raw veggies (tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, celery, cucumber, beets, etc.)
• 1 big handful of sprouts like sunflower sprouts, alfalfa sprouts, pea sprouts, etc (sprouts are amazing living foods with tons of protein)
• For added flavour & spice you can add:
  • any fresh herbs you like, i.e. cilantro, parsley, thyme, basil (you can use dry herbs, but I think fresh tastes more yummy and fresh also offers more nutrients)
  • some minced garlic and/or ginger
  • a chopped up hot pepper!!
• juice of 1 lemon
• lots of fresh ground pepper
• NOTE: just make sure you don’t use any oil, no nuts/seeds, no avocado, no grains or legumes, no potatoes (sweet or regular).

Add chopped greens (spinach, romaine and/or kale, etc.) to a large bowl. Add chopped veggies, chopped sprouts and toss together.  Add herbs, garlic/ginger and/or hot peppers.  Top with juice from lemon and lots of fresh ground pepper.  Toss well together. Enjoy as much as you like to feel full! For some that will be 1-2 bowls, for others you may eat 3-4 bowls. Eat what your body needs and the rest can be saved for lunch the next day. Keep in mind the “full” you feel after a day of cleansing will be a “nice light” full vs. the almost sluggish full you feel when you eat a heavy meal Enjoy and Happy 1-Day Cleansing! xox

That’s it, that’s all.  How EASY PEASY is that?

So, I’m starting the cleanse myself this Saturday, does anyone want to join me?

I can’t wait to hear from you! Email me (AlmostRawVegan@bell.net) with subject “1-Day Cleanse”. I’d love to hear from you, answer your questions, hear how you like the cleanse, how you feel!

I can’t wait to hear from you.  xox