Guest blog written by local Toowoomba Naturopath Taylah Teschner and The Field Guide Toowoomba Editor Sam Kirby.
With Winter officially here, and flu season in full swing early, getting a fresh dose of wellness and showing our body a little bit of TLC is never a bad idea. So with the discovery that Sol Cleanse recently launched monthly delivery of cleanses, juices, wholefood and wellness shots delivered straight to our doors, and at the encouragement of a number of friends and family already spruiking the benefits; we were eager to discover what all the hype was about.
Taylah's Experience Naturopath
Let’s be honest, the word ‘cleanse’ is used A LOT within the health industry (and quite loosely at times) so much so that I am usually hesitant when this word is attached to a product or diet as it can commonly be a little-more than a marketing ploy to magically ‘solve’ all of our health concerns. And yet, after experiencing the benefits of gentle, well balanced juice cleanses, I do believe it is something most of us could benefit from.
As a Naturopath I believe that if you eat a balanced diet and maintain a healthy lifestyle you aren’t likely to need a ‘cleanse’ and I still believe this to be true, for the most part. Our body has an automatic detoxification system made up of particular organs and specific networks working for us 24/7. However, the reality of modern living means we are exposed to toxins, chemicals, endocrine disruptors and harmful compounds in our environment daily.
This exposure, combined with poor dietary choices, non-organic foods, overeating, alcohol, medications, stress, synthetic personal products and a sedentary lifestyle and our bodies can start to struggle to detoxify all of this correctly. Toxins, chemicals, hormones or compounds that are not eliminated correctly can lead to a variety of health conditions and symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, bloating, skin concerns and hormonal imbalances.
Which pack did you try? I tried Sol’s Organic Whole Food Meal Pack, packed with nourishing smoothies, nutrient-dense salads, warming dinners and cold-pressed organic juices in between! (it was the perfect pack for the busy Mumma, if you have a busy week coming up or as part of a bit of a reset when you are feeling overwhelmed and don’t know where to start!) By consuming nutrient dense, chemical free, organic foods or juices for a few days we are taking away some of the burden we place on our organs and detoxification channels with modern living! From my personal experience I noticed an improvement in my energy levels, less sugar cravings, reduced brain fog and an improvement in my digestive system and not thinking about cooking for three days… Well that was an added bonus!
Sam's Experience Self-Confessed Cleanse Sceptic
First things first, I love food. And I eat a lot. But I’m also seldom one to shy away from a new experience; especially one heralded as being good for me!
Having just completed the Winter Field Guide, had meant a week (or three) of late nights and early mornings and the convenience of some very-much ‘not-so-healthy’ takeaway as we’d pushed towards our print deadlines.
All-in-all I was feeling tired and ‘flat’, and whilst I had earlier (and rather ambitiously) ordered a three-day “Active” cleanse, re-assuring myself “your body needs this after what you have just put it through”, I was now feeling a little bit less excited by the idea of surrendering the comfort-food and baseline coffee abuse I had recently trained by body to expect.
Don’t get me wrong! I love my fruit and veggies and enjoy a fairly active, healthy lifestyle, but I was also a “cleanse sceptic”, and the idea of a few days “without food” (as I had expected it would be) was one that filled me with a feeling of nervousness. (It was with genuine relief to unbox the front-door delivery, to uncover amongst the jars of juices, the assortment of salads, nut-packs, hearty dahl’s (seriously delicious!) and protein smoothies).
I proceeded to ‘cleanse’.
Truth be told, the cleanse itself was straightforward and went by with relative ease, a handy guidebook to guide me through the process and instruct me on some optional (but well worth it) reflective and exercise practices to accompany the program; save being a little hungry on the second day (did I mention I eat A LOT?), one moment where I forgot and accidentally ‘cheated’ (which my guidebook reassured me was completely ‘ok’), and the naturally anticipated caffeine withdrawal on the first evening (opting to go cold turkey, rather than weening myself off prior to the cleanse commencing as recommended).
Surprisingly, on the positive, I did feel lighter, fresher and more energised, and noticed a renewed non-coffee reliant alertness that I hadn’t anticipated. Similar to Taylah, I also noticed the dip in sugar cravings and was surprised by how much I was enjoying the salads, dahl’s and smoothies; all of which I happily affirmed to myself I should incorporate into my regular diet (if not purely for their tastiness).
And whilst, I personally couldn’t speak from an informed perspective about a reduction in toxins, chemicals and the impact a short-term cleanse has on these (there’s plenty of scientific information and studies that exist around all of that; I’ll leave that to the professionals), what I can attest to is the circuit breaker effect that committing to this process brought, an increased awareness to what I was eating and the impact that this has on my health, happiness and overall wellbeing.
Overall, the experience left me buoyed by an inner confidence of doing something good for me and with a renewed commitment to continue that going forward; and that’s never a bad thing.
Read the original article from Sam & Tayla at The Field Guide
