Peaks and Valleys

Today marked day 5 of our January cleanse, and the last day of all fruits and veggies.  Tomorrow we start easing back into normal eating, slowly adding some whole grains and protein into the mix.  This has been an incredible and worthwhile experience thus far, but I think the true payoff will come when we are basking in the afterglow.  While actually living through this week, we've had our highs and lows.

Highs

1. Feeling incredibly light, serene and calm.  Could be the lack of caffeine, could be the lack of time spent digesting things.  For whatever reason, eating this way has caused me to feel kind of ashram-y and high in the most lovely way (for the most part).

2. Salad with Carrot and Ginger Dressing.  So delicious, so healthy, so easy to make.  I will be serving this at many a dinner party to come.  Make it tonight.  Thank me later.

3. Sharing this experience with the Cleanse Posse: the husband, Kelly, Haley, and her husband Erik.  Should you embark upon one of these, I highly reccommend recruiting as small group to join you; the humor and community is priceless.  Husbands are also great for quotable (but not blog-friendly) quotes when faced with 5 days of raw food.

4. That said, the husband's devotion and good humor throughout this has been spectacular.  He says this is as rested and well as he has been in a long time, which makes me so happy.  Also, this seems to have finally killed the cold/flu thing that has been hanging on and re-emerging with him on and off since October.  No cold = no snoring!  No snoring = blissful sleep for all.  Deep sleep = happy family!  Hooray!
5. Miso Soup with Watercress.  Again: delicious, healthy, easy!  I have no idea why, after years of joyfully sucking down miso at the sushi bar, it has never occured to me to make it at home.  A little diced tofu would make this even better.  This is fabulous comfort food.

6.  Slowing down.  Not being in a totally ramped up caffeinated state in the morning has caused me to slow down and enjoy life a bit more.  In particular, after lifting the baby out of his crib, I am just taking a moment to stand there and hold him.  Sounds silly, but normally when we are all trying to get out to work, it is a rapid-fire routine of changing and feeding that happens right as he gets out of bed.  Standing there in the dark for a few minutes, smelling his little head, hugging him, is something I will hold close to my heart forever, and I am making time for it from now on, period.  Today he kind of exhaled and leaned into me, as if he sensed the slow-down too.  Good stuff.

Lows

1. Romaine, Celery, Cucumber, Spinach and Parsley juice.  Not so much.

2. Two horrific caffeine withdrawl headaches which were brutal but, I suppose, a necessary evil.  We reached an all-time caffeine-consumption high this fall with our busy schedules and Baby J's erratic sleeping.  Now that he sleeps through the night (knock wood), I think we can dial it down a bit, and this was the perfect way to hit the reset button.

3. Not having enough energy to run.  It was a balmy 40 degrees and sunny out today, and the work gals went out on their 4-miler, while I looked wistfully on, clutching my Kombucha.  I've been walking, but its not the same.  Looking forward to getting back on the road next week.

4. A cruel twist of monthly hormonal fluctuation left me majorly craving some fatty protein mid-week.  Brutal.  But I prevailed!  So there, estrogen.

5. Raw Carrot Ginger Soup.  Not a bad idea, in theory, and not such a bad recipe, I just wasn't feeling it.  There are only so many raw shallots a gal wants to eat in one week.

The good has far outweighed the bad, and I think 5 days is a perfect amount of time for the more hardcore portion of this cleanse to last.  I'm very much looking forward to some grainy goodness tomorrow. 
I'll report back from The Afterglow!

PS - Want to score some delish YoBaby for your favorite little one?
Leave a comment on yesterday's post!  I'm picking a winner tomorrow!