Yup, colonics. You did it! This is where Liana and I became best friends with Sweetgreen (their pesto and jalapeño vinaigrette dressings are CP approved) and Gourmet Garage’s salad bar. There's no denying the fact that the idea of clean living and wellness have been thoroughly commercialized; empowerment is now something that can be bought and sold. I have adopted some very healthy habits over the years that stem from this cleanse. This person is not a gastroenterologist, so has no right to call himself a “gut doctor.”. There are a few reasons for this (the very real appeal of cults and group-thinking are certainly one of them), but the main thing for me is that I know I am always going to be looking for a way to feel more at home in my body, and to feel as strong a connection as possible between it and my mindâand paying attention to what I eat is a big part of that.Â. One of the best parts of this whole experience, though, was the self-care, treat-yourself, feel-like-a-million-bucks kind of rituals, recommended as part of the program. The Clean Program consists of multiple daily supplements, two shakes, and a hearty lunchtime meal. Pizza and hamburgers are not on my daily menu, but there was something psychological going on there. I did the program not only to lose weight but also because I wanted to give my system a thorough cleansing. But here's the thing: During the entire time I was on the cleanse, I didn't feel deprived. Julyne Derrick is a freelance beauty writer and contributing writer for Byrdie. And I have, in my day, done a couple of juice cleanses, and the end results were decidedly mixed. I have no regrets: These are all balanced with heavy habits of Sweetgreen and New York Pilates. I've told everyone that the biggest takeaway from the cleanse is learning how good it feels to eat cleanly. The Clean Gut Diet is a slower weight loss process for sure, but its easy to do and makes you feel better inside and out. So my advice to those of you doing this who are married or who have a family is to ask for their support through this cleanse. It's the internet equivalent of a friendship bracelet. My friends were very nice to me, however, and I think people were generally impressed that I was sticking to a program. What he’s peddling is the low FODMAPS diet for IBS, which he has renamed. As the days wore on, I was able to keep up with the program. ). I spent the weekend leading up to the cleanse weaning myself off of coffee (I had a solid three to four cups a day habit) and limiting my sugar and alcohol intake, so as to not totally shock my system once I abstained completely. I've laid upon a bed made up of LED lights and basked in their glow with nothing to entertain me but my own mind for an hour (and yet the hour flew byâmagical!). Sure, my skin seemed lit from within by the light of a million supermoons, but also, I was really hungry, and the surface of my teeth felt fuzzy, and it's boring not to chew. I have more energy and focus and am now in full possession of the knowledge that I'm able to sustain something that is good and healthy for me over a long period of time. Though, if you're like me and not particularly self-motivated and work better with someone overseeing you, then there's really nothing quite like the actual Clean Program and its built-in support system. In the end, I lost about eight pounds. Did we lose some weight? Every day for lunch I ate skinless chicken and steamed veggies or fish and veggies or a big salad full of veggies. One hard thing about the Clean Program is feeling like a buzz kill when out with friends. I had given up eating a full meal at night, but I had gained a newfound awareness of how much better I felt when my stomach wasn't laden down with heavy food at the end of the day. The Coveteur, Coveteurs, and Coveteur'd are trademarks of The Coveteur Inc. Here’s what went down when we test-drove the Clean Program. This gave me a clarity that I can't value highly enough, an ability to see that I don't need any external crutches to get through trying times. Here’s what happened. And that would be terrible. The first time I tried The Clean Program it was fall of 2009. All of which is to say, the GOOP girl is a very busy, very toned woman who manages her time far better than I. I rarely drink alone. And every day I cheated with a piece of chocolate candy. Every mid-morning I had a snack of more almonds than is really allowed. You can also get it on your kindle. If they agree to "have your back" as you go through 21 days of clean eating, then they will feel a sense of accomplishment with you when it's over. This service is incredibly helpful, as is the existing Clean Program community, because it's impossible to feel alone and unmoored while engaging with the program.Â, I chose to do the Clean Program for the first three weeks of November. I wanted to make sure I wasn't restricting myself during Thanksgiving, and also felt, in the days leading up to the presidential election, like I just needed to detoxify in general (oh, sweet, pre-November 8 me, if only you knew how much toxicity was about to come! With each meal, we took the pre-packaged supplements of vitamin D3, EPA-DHA, Digestive Enzyme, along with a probiotic each morning. Clean is a state of mind ... with an incredibly impressive resume who has written extensively and lucidly about the powers of detoxing through diet and the mind-gut … all. I figured it was the human equivalent of taking the car to get a complete system overhaul. Our super nice, go-to CP consultant (whom we emailed on the regular with questions), Emily, told us about Juice Press’s soups, and they kind of saved us. I didn't lose as much weight the second time. I've told everyone that the biggest takeaway from the cleanse is learning how good it feels to eat cleanly. Not too different than our usual lunches. Dr. Junger is a frequent expert advisor on GOOP; he's a cardiologist with an incredibly impressive resume who has written extensively and lucidly about the powers of detoxing through diet and the mind-gut connection. And while in many areas of my life, I'm a highly skeptical person, I am one of the many, many women who find themselves drawnâperhaps now more than ever beforeâto all things "wellness" related in a not exactly guileless, but certainly a want-to-believe kind of a way. And everybody is different, so make sure to check with a doctor before trying anything!]. The second day, I seriously considered wiping clean the slate and using that as the first day but my friend talked me out of it, and so on my second day I was very, very good, except for three tiny pieces of Cadbury chocolate. Days three and four I was also very, very good. But regardless, Liana Weston, our former production manager, and I decided a few months ago that it was time for a little reset. Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2018. Instead, I felt, well, clean. A word to those of you who are married (skip this paragraph if you live alone): I'm a single woman who lives alone but I've noticed that my friends who are married have a much harder time dieting because their lives are so entwined with their husbands. Since it's a full three weeks long, it's possible to really establish new habits and then, as I have, stick with them. 1.0 out of 5 stars Scam. I was off!Â. I've cut down on sugar and massively cut back on how much food I have delivered, as opposed to preparing myself. Since the program, I've not had more than two drinks on a single night, and have found myself less drawn to alcohol and more inclined to say "no" to that glass of wine than ever before. The only problem with that, of course, is that marathons are really fucking long, and what if I got bored while doing it? MORE: Easy Weight Loss Tips For Lasting Results [As always, we are definitely not doctors or medical know-it-alls. I had given up coffee, but I was newly filled with energy in the morning, even though I wake up at the ungodly hour of 6am most days and rarely get more than five hours of sleep because I am incapable of being responsible about my sleeping habits. I read about the program on Gwyneth Paltrow's GOOP newsletter and I figured if it was good enough for Gwyneth (you get the picture). My stomach was never … Every day you should work out, run or walk because if you don't, you simply won't be burning enough calories to lose your maximum weight. Every morning I drank the shake (a mix of powder, ice, agave nectar and a frozen fruit, such as blueberries) and took my pills. Every mid-afternoon I had another pile of almonds. That the cleanse also took place during an incredibly difficult time for me (and our nation) meant that I had to deal with a wildly psychologically stressful time without recourse to unhealthy habits, like overdoing it on caffeine or ice cream. My stomach was never upset. The best thing about the Clean Program was how good I felt. Verified Purchase. Plus, the juice cleanses I have done in the past lasted four, five days, which is not such a long time actually. My friends, for example, drink a lot more than I do because each evening they share a couple glasses of wine over dinner with their families. Dr. Alejandro Junger's 21-Day Clean Program, Clean: The Revolutionary Program to Restore the Body's Natural Ability to Heal Itself. Here they are, drinking wine and eating rich foods, and you are relegated to soda water with a splash of lemon. © 2010-2017 The Coveteur Inc. All Rights Reserved. Unlike those sprinting juice fasts, the 21-Day Clean Program was the marathon I needed. We were lucky to have Rachel Bastow and Jennifer at Gravity East Village take care of our digestive tract (something we can say we don’t always do).