Want to Eat Healthier? Start Here.

Ever wanted to do a body cleanse but not sure where to start? Well, you’re in the right place. Four years ago I became health food conscious. By that I mean aware of what processed foods, gluten, dairy, and preservatives are and how they affect the body. It wasn’t until 2 years ago that I have altered my diet to be completely free of gluten, dairy, and harmful preservatives. After only three months I felt a huge change in my body between mental clarity, no stomach pains, and less body aches. Let’s talk specifically about those first three months.

Where to start? I started with simple, whole foods. Anything that was not processed and still in its natural form. This means meat, veggies, fruits, eggs, nuts, and seeds.   Along with this I still choose to eat rice, corn products (some people have a corn intolerance), quinoa, and gluten-free oats. These staple foods helped me to begin to heal my gut from all the chemically processed foods I had consumed years prior.

What did I avoid? Everything else. Yes I mean it, in order to truly cleanse my body I cut out grains, dairy, peanut butter and processed foods. I now replace sugar with coconut sugar, flour with almond and coconut flour, peanut butter with almond and sun butter and dairy with almond and flax milk. There are so many positive, healthy alternatives! These are just the ones I personally use, there is a large variety of choices at any health food store.

 

Not that bad, right? The second part of this lifestyle choice is food prep. I personally feel that cooking and baking are therapeutic and I enjoy it! Worried about time constraints? There is an easy solution. Before shopping, preplan your meals so it is clear what your weekly food menu will be. Then choose a free day when you have a 2-3 hour time block to prep your food. This will allow you to have maximum time efficiency because you are well organized. It’s up to you how much food you choose to prep, I did three to four days out (I now cook daily or every other day).

 

The beauty of all your effort and preparation is once you experience how great your body can feel, you’ll wonder how you ever did it differently before. Our bodies are not meant to break down the preservatives, chemicals, sugars, and additives they place into most processed foods. When you eliminate these substances from entering your body, pay close attention to what your body is telling you. Did that pain in your stomach go away? Did your headaches decrease? Has that dull achy feeling in your body ceased? You’ll be amazed at how treating your body right allows it to function the way it was designed to, and how liberating it can be!