Day #8: TRU 21-day detox/weight loss program

"There are moments when I glimpse another self swimming as if in a great watery world beneath all the definitions I have been given.  It may be in movement, or meditation, wakefulness, or near sleep, and suddenly a door has opened as if into a vast room.  I discover dimensions in myself I had not known before and yet recognize with some sorrow as if I had been separated from an old friend for too long."
~ Susan Griffin, "Being," The Eros of Everyday Life


I am amazed at the ease with which I've taken up this return to physical health.  For years, I've been postponing a commitment to losing weight and being healthy again.  There were always too many distractions, or too many demands, or too many temptations - in short, an army arrayed against my best intentions.

Now I am sensing a shift back to the health-conscious girl I was, once upon a time.  Believe it or not, I was a vegetarian who wore birkenstocks, lived in North Oakland, and shopped religiously at the Berkeley Bowl!  Fast-forward to the present: it is not as though I'm forcing myself to eat well, or missing the things I can't eat.  I am happy with the many moments of fruits and vegetables that punctuate my days.  I am delighted by the bright splash of an orange or the dense, tangled garden of a salad.  It is satisfying, beyond simple nutrition.  It is enough.

I got some very good news this morning: (without reference to the original numbers) in the first seven days of the cleanse I lost 7 lbs. and 4 inches overall (chest, waist, hips).  Best of all, I still feel great - better every day, in fact!

I also got to experience the cleanse in the Real World for the first time: I went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner with friends, carrying a purse full of bell pepper strips, apple slices, and orange wedges - and hoping against hope for pure guacamole.  I was able to sit in front of a bowl of chips without a single craving - without a thought about how I could maybe, maybe eat just one.  It didn't even occur to me.  I ate some guacamole with my bell pepper strips and then I ordered a salad with fajita veggies on it - and that was it!

Tomorrow, it's back to Whole Foods for re-stocking.  I'm branching out to yams with coconut oil, and who knows what else?  Stay tuned - more recipes to follow!
Ruth
Ruth A. Cochran, MS, LAPC, NCC
TRU Integrative Health & Wellness