I discovered AdvoCare a couple of years ago. A group of people that I worked with went on the cleanse together. Up until that point, I was very skeptical of any dietary cleanses and had no desire to participate. The first thing that flashed through my mind when I heard the words “dietary detox” was the scene in the first season of Orange is the New Black where Piper and Larry were attempting an all juice master cleanse. It went so poorly for them that Piper cheated by eating pork rinds and wound up cutting the cleanse short. After seeing that, no dietary cleanse was anything that sounded like something I wanted to do.
Thankfully, I was friends with some of my co-workers who did participate in the AdvoCare cleanse that year. They filled me in about their experiences with the detox after they had completed it. I quickly realized that it was far from the all-juice cleanse that Piper attempted in Orange is the New Black. The main purpose of the AdvoCare cleanse is to rid your body of waste. You especially want clear any built up chemicals that you might be exposed to in your everyday food supply. The ultimate goal of the AdvoCare cleanse is improved digestion and absorption of good nutrients. You get there through nothing more than eating cleanly and supplementing your diet with the Advocare Cleanse System.
After hearing how well the cleanse went for my friends at work, I was more than willing to try it! There are so many benefits to completing the cleanse. They include, but not limited to: more energy, potential weight loss, regular bowel movements, and even better sleep!
Before ever attempting the AdvoCare cleanse, I personally struggled with bladder infections. They were so debilitating I could barely walk straight because my stomach hurt so bad. I completed my first AdvoCare cleanse a little over a year ago. Since then, I have not had to have been treated for a single bladder infection!
Another one of my friends used to not be able to drink beer before attempting the cleanse. Beer made her stomach upset whenever she would drink it. (We’re from Wisconsin people! In many social scenarios, beer is the only beverage option available to us. Not being able to drink it is a huge problem around here!) After completing the AdvoCare cleanse, my friend had no issues drinking beer socially with the rest of us!
I’m sure that there are many more testimonials similar to ours, but the only way to see the same incredible results that we saw is to really be dedicated to the cleanse for the full 10 days. Definitely make sure that you follow all of the guidelines and tips that AdvoCare and its reps tell you. AdvoCare lists generic dietary suggestions in their directions for use on the product and on its website. I didn’t find their suggestions super helpful or insightful. I had a lot of questions even after reading all of the directions. That is why I wanted to share what really worked for me.
1. Focus on Clean Eating
The purpose of the AdvoCare cleanse system is to aid in a natural dietary detox. If you focus on cleansing your body naturally with what you choose to consume, the AdvoCare cleanse will work that much better. For the 10 days that you are on the cleanse, you should be trying to be as gentle on your stomach as possible while also eating to promote digestion. Try to stick to lean meats and fish (wild caught seafood and free-range chicken/eggs), whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, and healthy fats like avocados and nuts or seeds. Try to buy as much of this from the organic section as possible to avoid lingering pesticides, antibiotics, and chemicals.
2. Avoid Junk Food at All Costs
Absolutely do NOT eat anything processed during the cleanse. Doing that would defeat the purpose of the cleanse, but it’s easier said than done. There are many pre-packaged “health foods” out there that actually have a lot of not-so-healthy additives in them. Be sure to read ingredients carefully when grocery shopping. Additionally, cut out any added sugar from your diet. Yes, this means skipping dessert for 10 days! I promise you though that you will feel so much better afterward if you do!
3. Avoid Dairy and Limit Caffeine
I added this as a separate bullet point here because it might sound counter intuitive to some so I wanted to make sure and elaborate. Dairy containing probiotics such as kefir and yogurt do help promote digestion. However, most of the options that I see in my grocery store are heavy in added sugars. I completely eliminated dairy for the sake of my cleanse and it worked well for me. As far as caffeine goes, there seems to be mixed research out there on its effects. It seems to really just depend on the person. I opted to completely avoid coffee for the duration of my cleanse. I did drink 1 cup of green tea in the morning as well as 1 cup of rose hibiscus tea in the afternoon which seemed to have worked for me.
4. Meal Plan
Ok, if you’re going to ignore all but one of my suggestions here, please listen to this one! Meal planning can make all the difference when attacking a cleanse. There’s nothing worse than being really hungry and having nothing but bad options in front of you to eat. When you’re prepping your meal plan, make sure to include all three meals as well as at two healthy snack options per day. It might sound like a lot, but trust me when I say that it’s better to be over prepared with too much food than under prepared with not enough!
5. Partner Up
While this step is not absolutely essential, it does make it a lot easier. If you live with a roommate or significant other, I would especially recommend trying to get them to participate in the cleanse with you. Eating super well for 10 days would be a lot more difficult if the person who lives with you is cooking bacon and smelling your whole place up with it. If you live on your own, a little moral support in the form of a friend doing the cleanse with you wouldn’t be a bad thing either!
6. Plan During Downtime
Life can get super busy so this step can prove to be extremely difficult, but try and plan your cleanse over a 10-day stretch where you don’t have any obligations. I made the mistake of going on the cleanse over St. Patrick’s day weekend, so I learned this the hard way. While all of my friends and family were drinking green beer and eating Reubens, I was miserably mowing down fruits and veggies. If it’s not possible for you to completely avoid any obligations, at least try and plan your cleanse over a weekend that you can lay low.
7. Start on a Monday or a Tuesday
This is oddly specific, but I find that starting on a Monday or a Tuesday is the best bet for succeeding on the cleanse. This is because if you start on a Monday or a Tuesday, you will only need to make it through one weekend. You will wind up ending your cleanse on a Wednesday or a Thursday. I’ve started the cleanse on a Wednesday before and even just having to make it through the last Friday made completing it successfully a little more difficult.
Like anything in life, as long as you are well prepared, completing a dietary cleanse really is not as difficult as it might seem! I hope my tips help. If you are on the fence about whether or not to tackle a cleanse, I would highly encourage you to go for it! If you are serious about it and take all the steps necessary to make it effective, you won’t regret it one bit once you’ve completed it!
*A couple of notes before I end this post
1)This post is in no way sponsored or affiliated with AdvoCare nor am I an AdvoCare rep. I just really believe in their cleanse system because it has really worked for me!
2)I want to mention that the Advocare 10 day cleanse is also the first segment of the AdvoCare 24-day jumpstart program. I have never done the full 24-day program (I think the cleanse is really the most important portion), but I would imagine that many of these tips would apply to all 24 days as well.
♥
