Why Cleanse?
In general, doing a cleanse at least once a year is beneficial physically, mentally, and some claim, spiritually as well.
– makes the digestive system more effective
– maintains regularity
– increases energy
– increases the body’s absorption of vitamins and minerals
– improves concentration and mental clarity
– kick-starts weight loss
– increases fertility
– maintains pH balance in the bloodstream
– helps with emotional release
– creates a deeper consciousness (since your physical body is muted through a smaller caloric intake, your mind and soul are more alert, or rather, you’re more aware of them)
– getting answers to deeper questions/epiphany
What is the Ultimate Reset?
The Ultimate Reset The Ultimate Reset is Beachbody’s 21 day food based cleanse with three different phases:
– Reclaim: which “balances [the body’s] inner chemistry, preparing it for a change
– Release: which releases “the toxic compounds that are clogging your cells and stored within your tissues—like a purifying surge of clear water that flushes away years of impurities”
– Restore: which restores “your metabolism to maximum efficiency, while fortifying your body with the nutrients, enzymes, and probiotics it needs to maintain healthy performance in the future”
It also comes with six different supplements (detox, alkalinize, soothe, mineralize, optimize, and revitalize), some are used in all three phases, some are just in one or two of the phases.
Another thing it comes with that is a surprisingly powerful tool is a reset bracelet “symbolizing your dedication to transforming and ultimately resetting your life—and reminding you to give thanks for all you have”. And it’s true. When the journey felt a little hard, I looked at the bracelet, and it gave me power. It’s a mental thing, I know, yet it worked.
Why Did I Choose The Ultimate Reset?
I decided to do a cleanse after a six week vacation in Hungary, where I’m originally from. It’s funny how food is not just a physical, energy providing something, it’s emotional, brings back memories, it’s social, it’s enjoyable. And I enjoyed it a bit more than I do in the U.S. where health food stores are more readily available and foods are affordable compared to the standard of living. So I had white bread, cheese, butter, and sweets. Way more than I usually do. Surprisingly, I did not gain any weight, but I did feel “blah”. My inside just wasn’t feeling healthy. So I wanted to give it a fresh start.
There are many many different cleanses out there. I once did a nine day cleanse that started off with vegetable juice for a day and a half, then salad once a day for a few more days, adding back starch eventually. And I did benefit from that too, though I purely did it to lose weight. Completely the wrong reason.
The Reset works the other way around. It slowly eliminates animal products, and goes completely vegan for the last two weeks. While I knew the Reset was quite restrictive, with a major reduction in caloric intake, I felt ready. I felt like this was what I needed. I wanted to test myself mentally as well. I may have a little sugar addiction problem. 🙂
My Journey in Short
I loved the Ultimate Reset. There were days when it got harder, there were days when I was a bit more hungry, but I did not starve. Dinners were always amazing, and sort of made me keep going. Eating fruits for breakfast for almost two weeks straight got a little boring, but overall, the experience was so more than worth it.
I learned that I do have the self control to resist foods I before had thought I didn’t (for my toddler and husband, I made their usual foods: eggs, pancakes, bread, cheese, etc).
I learned that while I felt like we were having plenty of veggies and in a good variety, that wasn’t the case. The Reset had such flavorful vegetable dishes as main entrees, that I will be using as side dishes in the future. Different cuisines, like Asian, which I haven’t experimented with much, made me realize I had a lot more to learn.
I learned that I can let the emotions out (it was an emotional journey, I was more sensitive, for sure) in a healthy way.
I did kick-start my weight loss.
Before & After
Like I said, I did not do the Reset to lose weight, and that wasn’t what I had in mind. But physical results are of course, part of any cleanse. So here we go. I started the Ultimate Reset on June 9, 2014. I normally only measure my weight once a week, but I measured myself more in the third week, as I promised myself I would stop if I got below the 120lbs mark.
May 27, 2014: 128.1lbs
June 9, 2014: 127.9lbs | 21.6% body fat
June 12, 2014: 126.3lbs | 20.8% body fat
June 22, 2014: 121.7lbs | 19.5% body fat
June 29, 2014: 120.3lbs | 19.6% body fat
June 30, 2014: 120.4lbs | 19.2% body fat
The Best Part
By far the foods and learning discipline.
The feeling of lightness (not just because of the weight loss, but light on every level).
The Worst Part
Badly missing my workouts. I can’t tell you how difficult this was. I did not have the energy for them anyways, but I was really looking forward to getting back to my routines.
A Look Back At The Foods
I documented every day here on my blog, so you can check it out, but here’s the short version.
Thank you for reading my The Ultimate Reset journey!
Sources:
http://www.ultimatereset.com
http://life.gaiam.com/article/10-benefits-colon-cleansing
http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-9818/5-unexpected-awesome-benefits-of-doing-a-cleanse.html