Natalia Rose's Detox 4 Women: It Worked for Me!

For those of you considering a cleanse or some sort of dietary change for the new year, I want to share with you the great results I got with Natalia Rose's DETOX FOR WOMEN.  I was highly motivated by the desire to get rid of chronic migraines.  My diet was already pretty pure--all organic, plant based and about half raw.  But I knew I could use some refinement and I had high hopes of solving the migraine issue.

This detox is based on Rose's experience as a (very modern and enlightened) nutritionist working with hundreds of women.  At one point, Rose became convinced that most women in this country have some degree of candida.  She created a cleanse specific to this problem and I found it very effective. There is no starving yourself, and you pretty much get to eat as much as you like--the food is just clean and easy to digest, allowing your body to release any toxic overload gently.  Since I already did a review of the book (you can read that HERE), I won't repeat myself.  But I felt compelled to come back a year later and tell you how life changing this was for me.

At first I was resistant.  I had a hard time giving up nuts and sprouted organic whole wheat bread.  And brown rice noodles and bananas....and a few other things!  It was hard at first.  But after about a week, it got easier and after a couple of months I felt so much better.  The migraines did not go away for me, but the changes did help and  my body feels so much more in balance and energetic.

I went down two sizes in my clothes without ever feeling hungry at all, it felt like I wasn't even trying and weight just melted off.  The food is nutrient dense and ultra pleasing.  In fact, this plan is so satisfying I have continued it and will eat this way forever--not that I won't enjoy things that aren't that great for me form time to time because I will.  But it's always there to go back to after over indulging (did anybody else have one cookie too many during the holidays?)

Rose's ideas really stuck with me and when something makes you feel great, you don't want to stop.  I've added other gluten free, sugar free foods, because the vegan version of the plan can get repetitive after a few months. So though it's meant to be a detox, transitioning into a few other healthy foods, you might find that a lot of these habits stay with you.  Eating this clean feels good.

I also had the pleasure of working with her protoge, Ana Ladd-Griffin who had some wonderful input and encouragement that helped me along the bumps.  If you are struggling with Candida, low energy, or any number of ailments, you might want to check out this wonderful book.  Even if you are in perfect health, Natalia Rose has some wonderful thoughts for maintaining optimal health and wellbeing, I can't say enough good things.  You can find out more on her website (check out the blog archives for some great stuff)!

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High Raw Detox Update

For those of you who have been following, I am still going strong with my Natalia Rose High Raw Detox. It feels weird saying Detox because for the most part, this has become a permanent way of eating.  Though I think there should always be room for marginal aberration, the only foods I plan to re-introduce with regularity  are fruit, nuts and seeds.  I am loving my morning green drinks, big salads with avocado, baked sweet potatoes and steamed veggies.

Lately I've been eating quinoa tobouleh  and a few other additional things. I've had some cheats over the weeks, but mostly I've stayed pretty true to the plan.  And when I say cheats, I mean baba ganouche, whole wheat pitas (immediate headache), brown rice at a restaurant with my Thai food and raw macadamia nuts, not so bad, right?  I did have an indiscretion with vegan chocolate chip cookies and soy milk on a particularly emotional day--comfort food.  But I got right back on the horse for the next meal.  I'm almost proud of my cheats, I used to eat like that all the time thinking I was doing just fine.

The other thing I've been doing is hydrotherapy.  I had my third colonic Friday and I am really understanding why they are so highly recommended.  I haven't had any major events so far, but I feel cleaner than I ever have.  I feel as though I am cleansing on a cellular level with permanent results.  Having a colonic scheduled keeps me on track as I don't want to undo or halt any progress.  Colon hydrotherapy rejuvenates the entire body by detoxifying and hydrating the system.

During this process I've gone down a full size with very little effort as far as food and hunger.  I've undergone a paradigm shift  that has reshaped my approach to eating.  I was so close before with my whole foods organic half-raw vegan diet I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong.  (wrong for me since my energy levels had bottomed out, it might not be wrong for someone else).  I've made some changes--giving up caffeine, gluten, grains, etc.  The hardest for me was the coffee, it was an addictive  ritual plus I Love the taste and smell.  Even though everything was organic, by the time I added my soy cream and agave, what I had was basically a jolting, somewhat toxic, blood sugar effecting acid bath.  Now I start my days with alkalizing hydrating fresh green juice and there is a world of difference.  I don't crash anymore at 3:00 for starters.

Salads have become my main course for lunch and dinner.  At first I did not want to have a mashed avocado for dressing, I had been hooked on dressings I made using the soy based Veganaise.  I'd just learned how to make a vegan Caesar that was out of this world and it was hard for me to shift to the avocado, plus at the time I only liked avocado in small amounts.  Now I eat two avocados (sometimes three) every day and look forward to my salads with excitement.  They are crunchy and creamy and salty and sweet all at once.  It's a bowl full of textures and color and I can't imagine going without them at this point.  I crave my avo-salads.

At first it was hard to simplify.  I'd just become obsessed with the world of raw food cuisine and I was constantly testing new recipes in the dehydrator and whatnot.  It's an exciting world.  But it's not appropriate for my detox cleanse so I had to let go of that for the time being.  At some point I will utilize those recipes for holidays as an alternative to baked goods perhaps, but for now I'm keeping my eye on the ball.

One of the things that has helped has been working with Ana Ladd Griffin.  She knows this stuff backwards and forwards and is incredibly supportive and wise. She recently wrote a wonderful post on the female reproductive system with regards to detox which I found very interesting.  My conversations with her have helped me stay on this path, particularly in the beginning when I was quite wobbly and hadn't yet realized how profound the change would be or how important it would be to let certain things go (I didn't want to give up nuts and fruit).  Having a coach like Ana has been so beneficial especially during those moments where you are feeling resistance or slip up with emotional eating going back to old ways that never worked (like milk and cookies).  It makes a huge difference to feel like you have someone in your corner--I'm so grateful for you Ana!

If you are having any health issues at all, or think you are not feeling up to your potential, I strongly recommend having a look at Natalia's cleanse.  I've read just about every post on her website--the woman is incredibly intelligent and spot on about nutrition, and think that would be a great place to start or use additionally along side her books for anyone on this journey.  It helps so much to know there are other people doing this.  It can be a bit lonely sometimes to feel like you can't break bread with people, food is such a focal point of social events.  It's been like this for me for some time with the veganism, but now even more so and it can be tricky.  It's nice to know you are not alone.

The name of Natalia's website is Detox The World, which I think is so appropriate and inspiring.  She promotes a lifestyle that is non toxic and joyful and she sees the grander global picture.  As these concepts spread, it will no longer be "extreme" to eat like this--how is that for irony?  Anyone practicing healthy eating knows that the SAD is extreme, not a plant based diet.

I'm impassioned about this and could go on and on.  It's fun making positive changes!  There will be more posts to follow, but for now, this is where I'm at with my cleanse.  I still have quite a way to go, but the process is exciting and enjoyable.  Onward!

image credit: shrinksteve

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NuNaturals Stevia

I have been using NuNaturals Liquid Stevia now for the last couple of months and I must say, I really am hooked. It took several tries before I found a stevia that I could stand--some of them taste like nutrasweet to me--in other words, blech.  You Do Not want to use artificial sweeteners such as asparatame, but I'm sure my readers already know this!  (Skinny Bitch has a wonderful chapter on this subject, by the way and the history and dangers of Splenda).

The South American plant, stevia, which has been used for centuries, seems to be a healthier alternative.  After some experimenting I finally settled on the Trader Joes brand.  But after reading Natalia Rose's books and adopting her dietary regimen, I discovered NuNaturals stevia, her brand of choice.

What I love about this brand is it's mellowness.  It doesn't assault your taste buds, and there's no weird aftertaste.  I also love the glass bottle with dropper.  The liquid form is much easier for me to negotiate than the packets I had been using from TJs.

I use it to create salad dressing by mashing up an avocado, adding lemon, stevia, salt,pepper and onion salt.  It blends easily with no mess.  I also use it in my green juice when needed, if I get a particularly bitter batch I will add lots of lemon juice and a drop or two of stevia.  It's also great in chia porridge and smoothies.

If you haven't tried NuNaturals yet, or think you don't like stevia, I urge you to try it in this form.  They also make the packets for those who prefer powder, and another form that is used specifically for baking.  Find it HERE.

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High Raw Detox Day 2

Feeling fine today, no detox symptoms but not doing anything hard core. 
Morning:  Green Juice-broccoli stalks, kale, lemon, carrot, apple, chard.

Mid Morning:  Grapefruit with Stevia
Lunch: Half of a Yam w/coconut oil, salt and pepper, and flash sautéed greens (kale, chard, mustard, spinach, garlic).
Dinner:  Made an exception for red potatoes (not part of Natalia Rose's plan) since leeks came in my organic delivery box.  Boiled the potatoes, sautéed some leeks, then tossed together with kale and chard.  I know potatoes are not the most detoxy thing I could eat, but it's warm and comforting and actually I don't think the small red potatoes are all that bad on occasion.

*I've been freezing cold today and wanted warm food.  The green drink and the grapefruit were the only raw items today, but I ate a ton of very lightly heated greens. 

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High Raw Detox Update

I haven't posted in a while about my high raw detox, but I am still going strong.  I thought I would spare you more endless pictures of salads with avocado and baked sweet potatoes but I do want to let you in on my progress.  More pictures will follow as my food options expand.

Slowly I am getting more energy, yaay!  That and doing something about chronic migraines were my hopes for this cleanse and I think I am making some headway, more with the energy levels than migraines but even a little progress is great.   I'm feeling very level.

My clothes are loose and I just feel all around better--emotionally, mentally and physically.  The detox was for four weeks, but I am not going to stop there.  When something is working, and you feel good, you don't want to stop.  This way of eating is practical and enjoyable for me though I will be adding nuts and more fruits and occasional other things.

I don't miss the gluten and think that is something that will be gone from my diet permanently.  My mindset about food has shifted.  My 'cheats' have not been cupcakes, but cannolini beans, macadamia nuts, brown rice pasta and mango (all in very small amounts).  I'm great with that and feel happy that I am not desiring baked goods or anything I consider unhealthy.  Will check in with you again soon, thank you for your support!

Image credit:  John Steven Fernandez

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Off and back On the Wagon

Hi Everybody.  The last week has been hectic.  I had some construction work done on my house (more on that later) which is wonderful but I didn't have any real access to my kitchen for a few days.  This made it hard/impossible to juice, prep salads, etc.  So I did the best I could and fell a little bit off the wagon.  But I didn't fall too far off.  I want to share with you my "cheats."  I'm actually kind of proud of them, they showed me that I've made some lasting changes.

I had some raw blueberry granola, some sprouted whole grain toast with avocado, arugula pear salad with fig vinaigrette and maple caramelized pecans, a Thai red coconut curry with veggies (no rice, just curry).  Oh, and two mangos.  Those are my indiscretions, the rest of my food intake has been the salads with avocado and sweet potatoes.

As of right now I'm back on completely, I have my kitchen back and things have settled down.  It was just a crazy week.  The food I ate was attainable, and there was an element of comfort involved on a couple of things, like the mango, salad and curry.  Those are pretty healthy comfort food choices, I think, so I don't feel bad about it but happy that I've had a paradigm shift, and that's good to know.

The day after I ate the bread I got a migraine.  Not sure if there is a connection since there were several other migraine-causers present but it certainly raised an eyebrow.  I'm happy and grateful to be back on my detox and realize just how much I need it.  Onward!

(image credit: slack12)

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High Raw Detox Day 11-13 and Fridge Audit

I have not posted my detox diary for a couple of days but I am still going strong.  How many times can I show you pictures of sweet potatoes and salad with avocado??

This is what I am eating.  Every day.  Green juice, salads with avo and lemon, and sweet potatoes with coconut oil.  Surprisingly, I'm not getting bored with it, it's actually quite satisfying.  I am still having moments of fogginess and weakness but it's getting better each day.  To avoid repetition, I think I will report my detox food weekly as opposed to daily so that you can see more of a variety of food, how's that?

One last picture of my new mainstay and check out this tiny avocado, it's so cute (hopefully you can tell the scale here, it would fit in the palm of my hand).

And for something different,  here is a fridge audit--it's always fun to see inside other people's refrigerators, right?  Organic delivery came today, so it's pretty well stocked.

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High Raw Detox Day 10 ♥and happy valentines day♥

Mid Morning:  Green juice consisting of cabbage, parsley, kale, cilantro, cuke, ginger, carrot.

Lunch:  Big Salad, steamed broccoli, raw tortilla chips.

Chocolate Tea--more on this stuff later, it's made by East Bluff Trading Co. and tastes wonderful.  My son said, "It tastes like brownies!"

Dinner:  Big salad with avocado, orange peppers (see the heart?). Two squares dark mint chocolate.  Happy Valentine's Day everybody, thank you for your support on my detox!  ♥xo♥

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High Raw Detox Day 9

Today was kind of mixed up food wise.  Woke up hungry and instead of having my green juice mid morning, I had the zucchini noodles again, flash sauted with veggies--spinach, basil, sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms, and a salad with avo.

A few hours later I had a green smoothie with black kale, maca, very ripe banana, and camu.

Dinner:  Salad w/cuke and avo, 1/2 sweet potato with coconut oil, steamed broccoli w/coconut oil and lemon.  Four pieces dark chocolate.

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High Raw Detox Day 8

Mid Morning:  Carrot, cabbage, lemon, parsley, broccoli green juice.

 Ran out of avocados--not into lemon juice with stevia for my dressing!  (have since replenished in time for tomorrow.  Really missed my salad with avocado, it's becoming a nice healthy habit.

Lunch:  Steamed Romanesco with coconut oil, s&p.  Sweet potato with--this time I tried coconut butter (LOVE coconut butter).  It was rich and okay but I think I actually like the coconut oil better on sweet potatoes.

Dinner:  Very lightly-flash sauted zucchini noodles, mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, red peppers, shallot, garlic.  Yummy!

Treat:  Four squares Endangered Species dark chocolate mint.  These are so yummy, they remind me of thin mint girl scout cookies.

Treat 2:  Green Smoothie--black kale, banana, ice, stevia, maca powder and camu.  Yum!  Haven't had one of these in a while because of the fruit, but I'm allowed an occasional very ripe banana in my smoothie.  I CRAVE greens.  By missing out on my salads today, even though I had the juice, I was just jonesing for greens!  This did the trick.  Green Smoothies rule.

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High Raw Detox Day 7

Morning:  Green Drink w/cabbage, carrot, kale, lemon.  

Lunch:  Salad, Avocado, Raw Tortilla Chips.  (no picture--I was ravenous and scarfed it down so fast there was no time for a photo!)

Dinner:  Steamed Broccoli w/coconut oil, s&p, Big Salad w/red peppers, avo, carrot, lemon.

Check out this fabulous bounty from my organic delivery service.  Every time I get a delivery (once a week), I feel so Lucky!

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High Raw Detox Day 6

Morning:  Green Juice on the go!
Cabbage, cuke, celery, kale,
lemon, carrot.

Lunch:  Big Salad with red pepper, cucumber, avo, red leaf, lemon, etc.

Dinner:  Repeat of lunch.

Treat:  Four squares Endangered Species Mint Chocolate.  Look at the cute little trees!

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High Raw Detox Day 5

Mid Morning:  Green Juice consisting of celery, lemon, carrots, cabbage, kale.

Lunch:  Big Salad with avocado, lemon, etc., sweet potato with coconut better.   
Dinner:  Repeat of lunch.
* I actually started this post yesterday and needed to add pictures...so today you will see two food diaries.  Yesterday was difficult, I felt like a limp wet rag with no energy at all.  
* Salad portions might look small in photos, but those white bowls are the size of Serving bowls and Huge.  I feel like I am eating enough...maybe the listlessness is symptomatic of detox?  Whatever it is I hope it fades away soon.

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High Raw Detox Day 4

Mid Morning:  Green Juice consisting of carrot, kale, celery, ginger, lemon.

Lunch:  Big Salad w/red leaf, tomato, avocado, cilantro.  Raw tortilla chips.  Made extra to eat a little later when I get those low blood sugary feelings.

Treat:  Three pieces dark chocolate.

Today I scheduled an appointment with a hydrotherapist.  Ana recommended three weeks from now to assist with optimum detox.  This will be a first for me, a new experience!  A little hungry but have my eye on the ball---detoxed and full of energy.  

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High Raw Detox Day 3

Mid Morning:  Green Juice consisting of broccoli stalks, lemon, bunch of kale, cucumber, ginger, stevia.

Lunch:  Big Salad with cucumber, smashed avocado with lemon, onion powder, stevia, salt and pepper. Steamed broccoli with coconut oil, lemon, s&p.  Yam with coconut oil, s&p.

Note:  I was completely hooked on whipped Earth Balance and worried about being able to give it up.  How will I eat steamed broccoli without my EB, I thought.  Well--coconut oil to the rescue!  I've been substituting with Navitas Naturals coconut oil and I'm doing just fine!  Not only that, but I need only a fraction of what I was consuming with the EB.  A tiny little bit goes a very long way and it's a much cleaner oil.

Pre-Dinner:  I'm not supposed to eat (dark) chocolate until after dinner, but I started getting that weak, shaky feeling and just grabbed it and ate it.  It's weird because I don't feel hungry when that happens, but eating helps to take that feeling away.  Juice probably would have too, but I wanted something immediate.  And also sweet plays into it as well.  Hopefully my body will adapt soon, I really would like to reserve chocolate for more of a treat than a stabilizer.

Dinner: Salad--red leaf lettuce, cuke, shredded carrot, mashed avocado, lemon, seasonings. steamed broccoli w/lemon and coconut oil, s&p, half a sweet potato.  (ate half of sweet potato, doubled the broccoli and salad portions).

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High Raw Detox Day 1

Recently I had the pleasure of reading two of Natalia Rose's books, Raw Life Force Energy and Detox 4 Women.  I was so inspired that I wanted to embark on her cleanse, however I felt I needed support.  After going to Natalia's website, I found the contact information of her protoge, Ana Ladd-Griffin and got in touch with her. She is warm and encouraging, knowledgeable and very down to earth.  I will be working with Ana through the next few weeks as she coaches me along this cleanse.  Ana helped me get started and has made me feel as though I have support and someone rooting for me, it's a huge comfort.  If you would like to reach Ana, you may do so at analaddg@hotmail.com.

For the course of the next few weeks, I will share with you my journey by posting my food intake and relevant information.  I'm filled with excitement and also a little trepidation.  I'm exuberant over the prospect of feeling better and having more energy.  I'm a little bit scared (I don't know why exactly), but I am going to do this.  If anyone else is doing this, I would Love to hear from you!  If anyone wants to join me, welcome!  Here we go, day one.

                                          Morning wake up:

Lemon and warm water with a little stevia.

Mid morning:
Green juice consisting of broccoli stalks, lemon, spinach, celery and carrots and a tiny dash of stevia.  Normally I put apples or pears in my juice, but no fruit for now.  The stevia added that slight sweetness I wanted.   I almost forgot to take a picture!

Lunch:  Big Salad with carrots, cucumber and a smashed avocado with lemon, salt and stevia, sweet potato with just a smidgeon of coconut butter, salt and pepper.


I was so full after this I thought I couldn't possibly be hungry again later, but around four I felt like my blood sugar was dropping.  You know that irritable slightly shaky state?  (blood tests have shown there is nothing wrong with my sugar levels but...).  So I had four squares of dark chocolate while another sweet potato was baking.  

Dinner:  A repeat of lunch.

(image credit cocoon: papasan)

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DETOX 4 Women by Natalia Rose

Having recently read Raw Food Life Force Energy, by Natalia Rose, I was excited and eager to read her latest effort, Detox For Women.   The former is a 21 Day plan, the latter four weeks, to get you detoxed and glowing with living food energy.  The newer book for me, was just a little bit less accessible.

Detox 4 Women focuses on getting rid of Candida, a problem Rose had seen growing rampant among women in her practice.  In doing this, she eliminates fruit and nuts permissible in her former book.  She allows some animal products which I don't agree with (all fish contains mercury and also see The China Study) and incorporates the the principles of proper food combining which I think is great.  Her tone is very girlfriend's guide and she is excited about what she's doing which gets you excited.  Her flexibility on animal products as well as red wine and chocolate might ease some people into the program who may otherwise feel overwhelmed.

It's basically green juice for breakfast (she includes her own favorite recipe for green lemonade), a big salad at lunch with the option to have something cooked if needed, such as a baked sweet potato or steamed veggies, and a more flexible dinner including another salad with some cooked fare.  I find this doable and reasonable and I'm gearing up to give it a go myself.

I am, however, not thrilled with the omission of nuts and fruit.  Raw Food Life Force Energy seemed more balanced to me and also more doable as a permanent way of eating, however I do get where she's coming from with the Candida issue and temporarily giving up foods that feed yeast or are harder to digest is completely understandable.

Both books contain recipes, chapters on movement, breath and psychological well being. Her method reminds me of a very worthwhile book I read years ago called Fit For Life by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond (proper food combining, avoiding processed foods, minimizing animal products, maximizing food from the plant kingdom, rebounding, etc).

I'm on the fence about which book to recommend.  I like them both, but lean heavily toward her earlier book.  If you have Candida, or suspect you do, go for Detox 4 Women.  It wouldn't hurt to read both of Rose's books, especially if, like me, you are inspired by that "you can do it!" vibe and encouraging words.  Both are very appropriate for New Year's Resolutions and I think they would work great for some internal Spring cleaning as well, carrying on into permanent change beyond detox.

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