A detox?? You mean choking down gross powdery drinks and piles of horse pills? Well, no, not exactly. I recently finished my second 26 day detox. Why? I’m glad you asked! Did you know your liver completely regenerates every 90 days? Did you know the average person could be walking around with up to 15 pounds of mucous? Yuck!

You regularly change the oil in your car. Why? Because if you don’t, the old oil will completely gum up the engine and eventually ruin it. Our bodies deserve just as much (or more!) attention, including keeping things “cleaned out” and in good running order. Everyone should consider a detox, at least once a year, preferably twice. And guess what? It’s not actually that difficult!

Here’s a peek into what my days looked like during the recent detox, which, by the way, involved NO gross powdery drinks or horse pills whatsoever! Just whole, nutritious foods and some delicious recipes! As a Green Smoothie Girl apprentice coach, I finally decided in May that maybe I should at least try the 26 day detox that Robyn Openshaw, the Green Smoothie Girl, spent years researching and creating. How hard could it be, after all? Fortunately, not really hard at all!

The detox, a vegetarian plan, is designed to detoxify all the major bodily systems, one by one, with each “phase” lasting anywhere from 2-7 days, depending on the system in focus. It begins with the colon because good elimination is essential for safely and easily eliminating toxins. Consuming only fruits and veggies, then gradually adding a few grains and legumes, your body is able to focus on releasing toxins rather than spending a lot of energy digesting proteins, sugars and processed foods. Eliminating salt (the very hardest thing for me!), even “good” salt like Pink Himalayan or Celtic gray sea salt allows your cells to more easily release stored toxins.

Is this the only way to detox? No. Plenty of plans exist. But I like the fact that this one uses whole foods and targets each major bodily system, one at a time. The Detox manual is 203 pages chock full of terrific information, recipes, and step-by-step instructions for each phase. There’s flexibility, too, as I learned early on.

During my first detox I lost 8 pounds, and while the ultimate goal is not really weight loss, it is a fringe benefit. Since I have about another 45-50 pounds to lose, it tends to get a lot of my attention. This second one I lost about 12 pounds, though altering things more than the first time, apparently successfully!

Day 1:

My biggest issue is overeating, which despite causing misery, still plagues me! Glad today is the start of the detox. Looking forward to simpler food, but will miss salt! Food: 2 Pts of No-Fruit smoothie (actually pretty tasty), 1+ c soaked oat groats, 2c roasted cauli, baked sweet potatoes (4 small –I was hungry, ok?), cuke-tom salad, and Hippo Soup (don’t ask – I have no idea why it’s named that!).

Day 2:

Got pretty full today but ate less than yesterday. I think I just don’t stomach this portion very well (no pun intended). Basically same as yesterday but only 2 baked sweet potatoes instead of 4.

Day 3:

Won’t be too hard to lose weight in this first phase since I’m heartily sick of the Hippo Soup and the tom/cuke salad, neither of which I liked in May. Will try roasting all the veggies today when I make the next batch. Really looking forward to the smoothie days. I ate more of the same from days 1 & 2, but no Hippo Soup – not ready yet.

Day 4:

Glad today is the last day of this phase! Had the roasted Hippo Soup tonight and it was actually really good, especially with the addition of a little cayenne. Bill liked it, too; we both ate 2 bowls. Guess I will always roast all the veggies anytime I make this in the future.

Days 5-7:

About like this: Classic green smoothies, 3 qts, added banana. Also added 1 avocado, frozen zucchini, flax, flax seed oil. Had 1 pt of Bill’s smoothie from day before because mine only makes 2.5 qts. Had the last pint of Bill’s as well in the evening. Too hungry.

Day 8:

Not bad for my first day back to solid food instead of smoothies. But then the dumb Hockey Pucks (yes, that’s their name) weren’t done in time to take to work, and I forgot to take the grapes for lunch, so ate those for dinner along with a small sweet potato, a little roasted veggies and the Purple Heaven (one of our all-time favorite recipes – we make this a LOT, detox or not!). Okay, 2 c of millet is too much, but 1 c isn’t enough. Will try 1 1/2 c on Monday. Felt full all day, uncomfortable stomach by 8 pm or so. Didn’t overeat except the millet in the am.

Days 9-13:

This phase, except for the Hockey Pucks, is my favorite phase. The millet porridge with orange sauce is the bomb, we all love the Purple Heaven, and the Hot Pink Breakfast Smoothies are yummy! Down about 6 pounds so far.

Day 12:

Felt pretty good yesterday and today. Didn’t overeat. Went for a walk 2 nights in a row, plus a lot when getting groceries. Might get over 10k steps today, we’ll see. Terrible, terrible allergies ALL DAY LONG. Sneezing, runny nose, itchy face and throat. Thought it might turn into a sinus issue. Tried everything, the oils, Cold Calm, homeopathic allergy meds. Nothing really stopped it, just slowed it down a bit. I’m used to sneezing and runny nose in the ams, but this literally went on the entire day. I was congested and sounded like I had a cold.

Day 13:

Allergy symptoms gone, except for a tiny bit in the am like usual. Really weird. I didn’t eat anything different yesterday than the day before, so who knows what sparked it. Surprisingly, the Black Bug Soup wasn’t bad. Now I wonder if I seasoned it enough the last time I made it, in May. Ate 2 large bowls.

Days 14-26:

Moved into the kidney cleanse phase – 2 days of nothing but watermelon and fortunately, I love watermelon, so it was easy, then I actually “inserted” and followed the Andreas Moritz Miracle Liver & Gallbladder cleanse* as it meshed well with the detox, so did a liver/GB flush on the 3rd Saturday night of the detox. The following Monday, I had my first ever colon hydrotherapy session, which was fascinating and proved I was releasing stones, albeit very small ones.

By the time the 26th rolled around, I’d lost just over 12 pounds and was feeling light and energetic. I will definitely repeat the detox in January when they do another “group” nationwide one. My next adventure is to do the 30 day Kickin’ Candida Cleanse which begins September 1. And great news!!! I can have salt again!

All photos (except for top image) taken from The GreenSmoothieGirl Detox Manual, pages 122, 126, and 122, respectively.
Published by Robyn Openshaw/GreenSmoothieGirl.com
Lindon, UT
November 2013 (July 2014 Update)
Copyright © 2013-2014 Robyn Openshaw/GreenSmoothieGirl.com
Food photographs copyright © 2013 Katie Dudley
All rights reserved.

* I would recommend buying the paperback version of this book, not the Kindle. I bought the Kindle but ended up buying the paperback when I realized there was a lot of back and forth searching for protocols, resources, etc.

Cheryl

Cheryl is a contributing writer for Whole Intentions and the mother of 5 grown kids, ages 22-36, who were all homeschooled in one fashion or another, 
and the grandmother of 8 grandsons (yes, ALL boys! They keep promising her a granddaughter...), all of 
whom live in other countries with their parents – 3 in New Zealand, 5 in South Africa. She’s been married to the only love of her life (next to her Savior) for more than 37 years now (now she really feels old!) and they currently reside in the San Francisco Bay Area, though they’d love to become ‘country folk’ and pray that’s in God’s plan for their future! Her interests include reading, teaching, natural/alternative health, reading, eating healthy foods, and did she mention reading? You can contact her at micahsgrandma@gmail.com, or through her websites at My DoTerra and Green Smoothie Girl.