Raw Food Cleanse - Hacks that Help Make it Easier

Doing a raw food cleanse can be a wonderful way to reset your body, aid digestion and even lose weight. But it does take practice or you could get into a nutritional deficit that may be difficult to overcome. Here are some hacks that can help you do a raw food cleanse, efficiently and effectively so you stay healthy and feel great.

A raw food cleanse is a way of clean eating, using only raw, organic produce like fresh fruits and vegetables. Raw grains may be included, but soaked, as well as nuts, sprouts and even a raw protein powder mix so you are sure to have plenty of protein on hand.

Some people like to make their own raw dressings that may include citrus juice and raw, apple cider vinegar. Others use "regular" jarred dressings and prefer to do an 80/20 raw food cleanse, meaning 80% of the diet is raw as described above, while the other 20% is not raw and may contain brewed teas, dressings, and even beans.

If this is a completely new way of eating for you, it is best to keep your raw food cleanse simple, at first. Be sure to have plenty of product on hand, salads pre-made, nuts ready to be eaten, raw granola prepared or anything that will help you get used to eating raw without feeling overwhelmed.

Vegetable juice is a staple for many starting or doing a raw food cleanse. It can be difficult to get the nutrition you feel you need, or the energy you need to continue your daily activities from eating only raw foods, especially if it's your first time. And in reality, even when eating cooked foods many of us just do not get the nutrients we need to stay feeling well. Vegetable juice is one of the easiest ways to fill this nutritional gap. While making it may take getting used to, there are some ways to make this part a little easier.

Wash and prepare your vegetables for juicing ahead of time (I do this as soon as I get home from the market).
Have your juicer on the counter and ready to go.
Wash your juicer right after you drink your juice, and put it back together for the next time.
Remember that you can make juicing a habit by just following a routine for at least three days.
Shop every four days for your organic juicing vegetables. This helps you rotate the veggies you use in your juice and ensures they are fresh.
Use organic vegetables because not only do they provide more nutrition, they just taste better.
I make my juice right before dinner, since I'm in the kitchen anyway. I have been doing it so long that the cleaning up part afterward takes only 10 minutes or so. Doing this also allows me to be more in control of what I eat for dinner.

When you are doing a raw food cleanse, remember this is a type of body cleanse. Your body will be taking a break from digesting cooked foods, and often people get stronger digestion because of this. On the other hand, this leaves the body free to cleanse and clear built-up waste, which may cause some physical discomfort as this waste travels through to leave your body. To help deal with this, be sure to drink enough water throughout the day. Taking psyllium at the end of the day may help absorb toxins, making it easier to move out of your body.

Green super food supplements are used by many raw food advocates. They are easy to add to juice, smoothies or just water and provide a lot of highly beneficial protein and other phyto-nutrients that are easily absorbed. They are a bit costly, but the nutritional benefits are worth it. At the same time, many health advocates remind us that the money spent on healthy nutrition now is a lot cheaper than the cost of medical later.

If you get into raw food and find it makes you feel great, healthier or more youthful, investing in some kitchen gadgets can help you find your creativity.Dehydrators are great for making crackers, breads and other foods that can help make meals more creative and substitutes some cooked food favorites. Food Spiralizers and other handy kitchen gadgets can help you make raw spaghetti from squash, thin sliced cucumbers and other fun items for more a wider variety of creative recipes. Check out raw food recipe books for the many ideas to keep your raw food adventure interesting.

Hacks to Keep Your Raw Food Cleanse Simple

Drink juice to ensure you get enough nutrition.
Ease into your cleanse. Instead of jumping in all at once, start by adding a vegetable juice every day to your existing diet. Add a green salad to lunch and dinner, and fresh fruit to your breakfast. Slowly cut out all milk products, reduce meat intake and avoid all junk foods. Doing this over one or two weeks before your actual fully raw diet can make your cleanse far more effective while reducing the side effects.
Make two or three salads ahead of time. As said before, tabouli type salads keep easily in the fridge. Many green salads can be washed and even torn (or cut) ahead of time, then all you need to do is add grated carrots, beets, cauliflower, broccoli or what you desire. Organic baby spinach is an easy vegetable to find and keep ready, and adds variety to your leafy green salads.
Keep your raw food cleanse simple. If you are planning three to five days, maybe juice, smoothies, fresh fruits, raw nuts and salads are the way to go. Any of these can be easy to just grab and go without much thinking.

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