Lately, I’ve been really wanting to do a detox or cleanse. I try to eat fairly “clean” but fully realize that every once in awhile, it would be beneficial for a cleanse. Well, basically for the past 5+ years, I’ve been either pregnant or nursing (the latter category of which I presently fall into) so a detox is out of the question. So, what’s there to do when a new program comes out that I want to investigate?? Have Marv do the cleanse for me!
For starters, What is the 3-Day Refresh? Basically, it’s a non-starvation (yet low calorie) cleanse that allows you to detoxify your body while pumping nutrients and whole foods back into it – things that your body needs and CRAVES. It consists of 1 Shakeology shake, 1 Fiber Sweep drink, and 2 Vanilla Fresh shakes per day in addition to 2 veggie options, 2 fruit options, 2 healthy fats choices and 3 optional caffein-free herbal teas. Sounds like a lot of things right?! The key here is eating not a whole lot at each sitting but rather eating 5 smaller portioned meals per day. This fuels your body continually throughout the day – and fuels it with WHOLE foods in addition to the Fiber Sweep drink to help cleanse your digestive system and Vanilla Fresh shakes to load you up with vitamins, minerals, probiotics, and protein (20 grams). That Vanilla Fresh drink smells AMAZING too by the way…..
But enough of the specifics….What was the Refresh like?? Here are some pics of what Marv had to eat on each Day – Day’s 1, 2 and 3:
Each day basically remained the same with just the 2 fruit options, 2 veggie options, and the dinner option changing. What’s great about this cleanse is that there’s a huge list of approved fruits and veggies to choose from so if you like variety (or are picky about the fruits and veggies that you eat), there are a LOT of different things to choose from. I spent less than $20 (keeping in mind I bought more than necessary for just Marv’s cleanse since we’re a family of FIVE…and the kids love their fruits…) but for under $20 I bought – carrots, cucumber, pear, banana, peach, apple, plum, and asparagus. The avocado (Healthy Fats choices) I already happened to have on hand from my parents’ neighbor’s tree so I figured I could easily use those (FREE!) vs budget for any of the other Healthy Fats options (almond butter, hummus, etc). Key here was prepping all his foods the night before so he could easily grab it and have it pre-portioned out and set to go.
Day 1 lunch on the Refresh (while holding a sweet sleeping baby):
Day 3 dinner (final meal!) on the Refresh:
Here were Marv’s take aways/thoughts for this Refresh: He normally drinks a Shakeology every morning so drinking one each morning of the Refresh was great to maintain his routine. Initially, he was a bit concerned with the (small) portions of this cleanse (although he was pleasantly surprised with the total amount of food he was “allowed” each day since he was initially thinking cleanse = no food…). His concern with the small portions was that he would be grumpy by days 2 and 3. Turns out he didn’t turn into a grouch during the Refresh. (YAY!) The Fiber Sweep drink wasn’t as bad as he though it would be. Anything with the word “fiber” in it really, has that old person thought connection to it. He got it down each day just fine – not having to struggle to get it down like he initially thought he would have to. According to Marv, the Vanilla Fresh shakes were outright YUMMY! I didn’t try them but I did smell them and boy did they smell delicious! They looked smooth and creamy and mixed up great in the plain old shaker cup (vs blender). The 2 dinner meals that we tried were the Moroccan Carrot Salad and Roasted Asparagus with slivered almonds. The Asparagus was a huge, tasty hit, but the Carrot Salad on the other hand was a big flop. I think it was due to all the spices added (cumin, paprika, garlic, cinnamon, salt, olive oil, lemon juice, etc) – hey, I followed the recipe to a T! It all comes down to personal preference though, and that Moroccan Carrot salad was NOT one of Marv’s favorites…. Marv drank the optional herbal teas about 1/2 the time and actually drank this tea in place of his daily coffee. Although it doesn’t “replace” a good ole cup of coffee, it did fill that warm drink void for those 3 days (Marv is certainly looking forward to his morning coffee tomorrow though!)
Ok, ok, RESULTS….right?? Are you ready for this? Without going into specifics with his actual weight and measurements…..I will let you know that in these past 3 days alone, Marv lost 5.2lbs and an inch off his waist! (in 3 days…..) Here are his before/after pics (before on left, after on right). There are only very slight changes, but I can visibly see a minor “puffiness” change in him. His body now looks more lean and toned vs puffy muscle toned.
Why take your “results” pic alone when you have 2 munchkins to join you!
Marv’s overall conclusion. This. Refresh. Works. He said Day 1 was tough. He realized just how much he consumed in a typical day and it made him appreciated food SO much more – and understand just how true it is that food is FUEL for our bodies. Towards the end, he said his tastebuds felt different (no processed foods and only minimal sea salt for seasoning) and he was no longer as hungry as Day 1 – his body was adjusting and knowing just what it needed to sustain itself. He said although he wasn’t necessarily looking to cut weight, his body felt so much cleaner and lighter (5.2lbs lighter….). He felt FRESH. <—is that why it’s called the 3-Day ReFRESH? lol 😉
Interested in trying this cleanse for yourself? I’d love to give you more info on it, chat about it, or help you to order. Send me a FB message or go here to order your very own Refresh!
lifewellspent808 