Liver Detox - Day 6

So we're on day 6! I didn't get time to write an update for days 4 and 5 but here are some of the meals we've been eating:

Breakfast: non wheat bread and nut butter; blueberry smoothies; porridge; super muesli
Morning tea: avocado; nuts; fruit;juice
Lunch: soups; non wheat bread with avocado and trout; salads with chickpeas and beans
Afternoon tea: juices/smoothies; nuts; fruit
Dinner: red peppers stuffed with brown rice, mushrooms, and eggplant; warm quinoa salad with roasted vegetables

We both still have some joint pain although it's definitely easing. I've been doing some research on it and apparently it's a common symptom of cutting out wheat/dairy/sugar and all processed foods. The theory is that the body has a "to do" list of things to heal and when you have toxins and digestive issues your body will work on them first because they're the most urgent. That means all of the other things will get bumped further down the list. Now that we're eating really well our bodies are going to work on all of the little niggly injuries and issues that have been sitting for a while. The pain is nerve stimulation and the tightness and stiffness is a release of toxins. I guess that explains the odd places that I've been hurting - my right thumb (old RSI injury), my bad hip, and lower back. Mr J has been hurting in all of his sore spots too!

To help with the pain I've been doing some gentle yoga and last night I had an Epsom Salts bath which really helped.

I've been sleeping so deeply which has been amazing. As a lifelong insomniac I don't think I have ever slept this well. I'm waking up refreshed and ready to get up and get going. I no longer feel tired in the afternoons and evenings and I haven't had a headache since the beginning of the detox.

Something I read said that we should continue until it's been 2 days since our last negative symptom. I'm happy to do that, I'm really loving the variety and taste of the food so I'm happy to keep it up!

Liver Detox - Day 3

Well, what can I say except ouch. Both Mr J and I are really, really sore. It's the weirdest thing - we eat well normally so I don't understand how this detox could cause such strong symptoms. Our backs are aching, when we move we have sharp pains deep in our bones. According to Dr Google this is normal and is a positive sign - but sheesh. It hurts.

Today we had cinnamon and fruit porridge (oats for me, quinoa flakes for Mr J). For lunch we had rye/GF toast with an eggplant and borlotti bean dip and some leftover sweet potato and coconut soup. Dinner was a wild rice mix with an olive and greens tapenade mixed through and some charred brussel sprouts, mushroom and eggplant on top. Dessert was stewed apple and blueberries with a "crumble" made from toasted quinoa flakes, flaked almonds and coconut. On the side we had homemade coconut and raspberry ice cream (it's just coconut solids and raspberries so no sugar).

Food was yummy, but I'm finding that I am craving salt. I'm more of a salt girl that a sugar girl so that's not too surprising. Headaches have gone now and I'm sleeping well. If these joint pains went away I'd be feeling fantastic.

I'm really used to rooibos tea now and I'm not sure if I'll go back to regular - I'm sleeping so much better without the caffeine.

Liver Detox - Day 2

Today went well food-wise but I'm sore all over. I don't know why or how, but my bones hurt. The worst by far is my bad hip/pelvis which is aching so badly I'm shuffling along like a 90 year old woman. Not cool. Hopefully tomorrow things will calm down.

Today we had vegan wheat-free french toast using ground flaxseed and water to make an egg-like gel. Mixed with almond milk and cinnamon it made a really nice french toast batter. We had peaches, cherries and blueberries on top with some seed mix. Lunch was steamed fish with roasted sweet potato and fennel, and some mixed super greens. Afternoon tea was pumpernickel bread with avocado and a vitamin drink (GF bread for Mr J). Dinner was a coconut, sweet potato and carrot soup with pumpernickel on the side. 

The food has been great so far. Having a cooked meal for lunch was a nice change. Apart from the soreness I'm feeling really good - I'm waking up early feeling ready to get up (trust me, this doesn't usually happen) and my insomnia seems to have taken a hike. 

Liver Detox - Day 1

Day 1 today! Mr J is less than enthused. By 8am he was missing his morning coffee and it went downhill from there.

I, however, am feeling mighty fine. I still have my headache (4 days now!) but otherwise I feel really good.  Hopefully my other half picks up tomorrow.

This is what we ate today:

Breakfast: Superfood museli with berries, grated apple, seed mix and coconut

Morning Tea: Banana and handful of raw nuts

Lunch: Sesame salad with artichoke, chickpea, celery and kale and a bowl of lentil and carrot soup

Afternoon Tea: Blueberry smoothie, handful of olives then a rooibos tea

Dinner: Wild rice, fennel and mushroom pilaf

Drinks: Lots of water, a vitamin liver detox drink, and some rooibos tea

The seed mix is a blend of ground up seeds and we're putting them on almost everything during the detox. It's about 50% ground flaxseed/linseed to 50% blend of other seeds. I used chia, black sesame, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Once you blend them keep them in a non-plastic container tightly sealed in the fridge. I've been sprinkling it on the kid's peanut butter toast and they're enjoying it too.

How was it?

The museli was nicer than I thought. I hate breakfast and wasn't looking forward to eating a huge bowl of warm museli but it was actually quite good. To make it you put 40g of raw rolled oats in a bowl with 1 Tbsp seed mix (as above), 1 Tbsp dessicated coconut, 1 Tbsp blueberries and 1/2 grated apple. Then you cover it with boiling water and leave it for a few minutes so the oats soften and puff up.

Lunch was pretty good too. I got a bit sick of the salad so I also had some leftover carrot and lentil soup with some seed mix on top.

I skipped the olives for afternoon tea (couldn't see them going with a smoothie!) but Mr J had them.

Dinner was delicious!

Exercise

Once the kids are in bed we're going to do a couple of short detox focused yoga practices on myyogaonline.com. We also spent a few hours walking around an outlet mall today - that counts right?

Liver Detox

Tomorrow my hubby and I are starting a 9 day liver detox program. You guys know how I love a challenge - remember Vegan Week??

I thought I'd share our progress with you over the next 9 days. We're following the recipes in this book:

I chose it for no other reason than I saw it in the library and it the program features real food, you know, not just smoothies and juices and the like. 

Why are we doing it?

I have some liver issues and I know my liver function isn't great at the moment because my symptoms are quite bad. I've been having 3 - 4 day headaches, waking up feeling very tired, and I've felt generally "toxic" for a while. I can't process highly fatty foods usually (which is part of my liver problem) but lately I've had trouble with anything even remotely fatty. Alcohol is also a write off - even one glass of wine.  My husband is doing it because I'd like the company on this little journey and he's a good sport.

What will we be eating?

We can eat wholefoods, fruits, vegetables, fish, nuts and seeds, smoothies and decaffeinated drinks. No coffee, caffeinated tea, red meat, poultry, wheat or dairy. We are mostly GF in this house for Ben who is coeliac and my husband who is gluten intolerant (and probably undiagnosed coeliac himself). I don't eat dairy, so I think the eating plan will be OK. The cost was the same as my normal shop and I bought extra meal ingredients for the kids who won't be doing the detox. We'll also be taking liver supplements and probiotics (I take these anyway).

What do we want to get out of it?

I'd like to feel more energised and I'm interested to see if eliminating toxins has an effect on my headaches and joint pain. I'm also keen to break my chocolate cravings! I think my 3 coffees a day husband is really going to struggle tomorrow and Saturday but will hopefully feel better by early next week.

What preparation is involved?

I worked out my shopping list and ordered my groceries online this week to make sure I got it all. I love online shopping - I've felt happy all day knowing my food is going to appear on my doorstep this afternoon without me stepping foot into a supermarket. I wrote out a detailed menu plan including meals for the kids. The key to following the recipes is having everything at hand, otherwise I think it will be easy to make something else or buy food instead. I stopped drinking tea two days ago in preparation and have had the most monster headaches which I think is a sign of addiction to the caffeine in it. I've been drinking a lot of water and red bush or rooibos tea instead.

What about exercise?

Along with the eating plan we'll be following a detox program from  My Yoga Online . You need to be a member to do the programs but there's lots of free info on there as well. The program has detox recipes and tips and yoga practice videos to do at home specifically for detox. 

So that's the deal, I'll keep you updated with how it goes!

She's Nine.

Well hello there. It's been quite a while hasn't it. Life became that little bit crazier in February when I started a part time job from home. Then we had another very unexpected and rushed move in March and a trip home to NZ in April. Busy busy busy. I'm loving the fullness of my days though, even if it is a balancing act sometimes!

I thought I'd write a quick post today to share something special that happened in our house a couple of weeks ago. Our big girl Jemima turned 9. Now if you have read any other party posts of mine, you'll know that we tend to do big themed parties in this family. Jemima has inherited the party planning gene and with characteristic intensity she was sorting out themes 11 months in advance. I was bracing myself for something huge and complicated, and quietly wondering how I was going to pull that off while working 25 hours a week and trying to keep up with all of the other mum jobs I have to do.

Blessedly, she came up with the idea of an 'Instant Restaurant" and wanted to invite just her closest family friends. This girl of ours is a cooking reality show addict and she could think of nothing better than being a chef for a night. Menus were planned, ingredients carefully written out and decorations organised well in advance. She wanted a winter theme and she was set on doing the entire thing herself.

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present the newest and greatest restaurant the Blue Mountains has ever seen... Dancing Ice.