The Top 3 Mistakes Busy People Make When Doing Cleanses

Written by Ritamarie Loscalzo on August 20, 2009 –

Click here to leave a comment >> No Comments »

Periodic deep cleansing is a desirable thing. You probably do it to your home, your car, even your pets. But chances are, you don’t even think about doing a periodic cleansing of your internal organs.

Throughout the ages, various forms of cleansing have been used to rest, heal and restore mental clarity. Water and juice fasting are among the most rigorous methods. A variety of potions and powders have been developed to cleanse the colon and the liver. The Master Cleanse is one of the more popular cleansing programs of our modern time. Many of these cleansing methods work well. All have advantages and disadvantages. None works perfectly for everyone.

Benefits of cleansing:

Give your digestive track a rest.
Decrease the burden on your liver and gallbladder.
Improve detoxification.
Release extra weight, if necessary.
Increase your energy, as less energy is spent on digestion.
Reduce your cravings.
Get you in control of your eating habits.
Increase the nutrients that are readily available to your body.
Get you back on track with eating habits if they have gotten out of control.

There are so many cleansing programs to choose from, that it can be overwhelming to even get started. Once you get started, it can be even harder to complete.

Here are the 3 most common mistakes that prevent even the most well-intentioned cleanser from completing the program.

Mistake #1: Doing the cleanse all alone.

If your friends are all drinking beer and eating pizza, it’s hard to be the odd one out who’s drinking weird potions and talking about their bowel movements.

It’s easy to feel discouraged and frustrated when no one else really understands what you’re doing or why you’re doing it.

All too often when you set out to do a cleanse on your own, you get overwhelmed part of the way through and just don’t finish. Or you’re invited to dinner or a birthday party, and you postpone it for a “more convenient time”.

The ideal way to do a cleanse is to get out of your own environment and go away to a spa or cleansing retreat, and just dedicate yourself to nothing but self care for a set period of time. But that’s not always practical or affordable.

SOLUTION: Find a mentor or join a cleansing support group, and do the cleanse with others who understand you and can support you through the process.

Mistake #2: Making it too complex

There are lots of different cleansing programs available. Just do a Google search and you’ll see just how many there are. The problem is, most of them are just too complicated and time consuming to do when you lead a busy life.

There are all sorts of unusual powders, potions and supplements to take at all different times of the day. Then there are the enemas, mud packs, and all the extra procedures you need to do too.

Don’t get me wrong, these procedures are highly effective, and the cleanses that include them do give great results. It’s just that your life is already too busy and complicated.

And when the process is too complex, you’re more likely to give up part of the way through, before you’ve fully reaped the benefits.

SOLUTION: Choose a cleansing program that’s quick and easy to do –one that saves you time rather that requiring more of it and that fits your schedule rather than you having to totally adjust yours.

Mistake #3: Feeling like you have to starve yourself to really be cleansing

It’s hard to focus at work when you’re blood sugar is low and you have no energy. Some cleanses are so restrictive, that you feel hungry all the time.

Water fasting is a great way to cleanse, but it’s hard to lead a busy life and focus on complicated work tasks when you haven’t eaten in days. Water fasting is best left for the “go away and cleanse” programs we talked about earlier, and really should be supervised because it can lead to electrolyte imbalances.

Juice cleanses can also leave you feeling hungry and light headed

all the time, and are hard for most people to do for more than a few days. Besides, the quantity of juice required takes a lot of time to make and clean up after.

It’s easy to give up when the cleansing process leaves you exhausted and hungry.

SOLUTION: If you need to work and maintain your busy life while cleansing, it’s important that you do a program that’s loaded with nutritionally dense, easy to digest, whole fresh foods, so that you feel energetic rather than hungry all the time.

The end of summer is a great time to do a cleanse. You’ve probably been indulging more than is best for you, especially during vacation and at all the picnics and parties you’ve been enjoying.

As a result of over 20 years of experimentation and trying just about every type of cleanse out there, from water fasting to potions, powders and enemas, I’ve made my choice about my favorite cleanse. It’s short (7 days), simple (requires only ingredients you can get at the grocery store), effective, and provides community support. But don’t take my word for it. Check it out for yourself at www.GreenSmoothieCleanse.com I do it every couple f months and I so look forward to it.

Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

www.FreshnFunLiving.com