Starting to see results - 30 Day Cleanse

I'm on day eight of the 30 day cleanse. One week down and three to go. So I ask myself, what has the cleanse done for me so far? What has it changed? The answer is this...I'm appreciating good food; I have a better mind, body, brain connection; I feel great and I have lost a little weight.

Since taking on this challenge, I tell people that I only get to eat one meal a day. The other meals are shakes. The responses I hear are "Don't you get hungry?", "You know its good to eat!", "I couldn't replace a shake for a meal." I respond with the truth... "Sometimes I get hungry, but I do snack and the shakes are sufficient for a meal." "I know its good to eat, and I am eating, I appreciate good healthy food even more and plan this carefully since I only get one meal each day." "If I can do it, you can do it. I'm a very active person in all of my day to day activities. Typical activity in a day for me includes at least 20min of yoga, snowboarding for a few hours, working as a massage therapist between 3-6 hours, walking the dog and a 1-2 hours of roller derby practise either on skates or at the gym."

When it comes to planning a meal I choose wisely. Foods that are full of good nutrients, vitamins and minerals that will fuel my body. This is what I crave. I sit down and enjoy every meal. I taste every mouthful and feel every bite. Delicious. Yes, I want to eat more but for now, this is a challenge, a 30 day cleanse and I accept the challenge and I will learn from the experience.

Speaking about experience, one of the major things I have noticed is the enriched connection between my mind, body and brain. This is most evident when I'm partaking in physical activity or when I'm working on a certain task. I don't just go through the motions anymore. The exercises are broken down and performed with meaning and intent, focusing on exactly what I am doing. On Saturday night I participated in a practise scrimmage for roller derby. Every time I stood on the jammer line I had a plan of attack, every time the whistle blew, the plan worked. With this, my confidence improves and I feel great.

I generally do feel a lot better. I know I'm consuming good food and nutritious energy supplements. Getting up in the morning is easier, exercise is enjoyable because I always have the energy to do it. The time at work flies by faster because I spend more time concentrating on the task, I never get distracted.

Lastly, I have lost a small amount of weight. I want to talk about this because its important, but those who know me well know that I'm not doing this cleanse to 'get skinny.' I'm doing it for a challenge and to see what I can gain by fuelling my body with the absolute best. Unlike most women around my age I am confident with my body, and I was before I started this cleanse. Being skinny is not important to me. Being strong and healthy and using your body to the best of its ability is what really interests me.

In 8 days I have lost nearly 2kg, a total of nearly 26cm from all my body measurements and 4.5cm from around my bum. My exercise increased marginally and my diet changed substantially. I feel great and it proves to me that when you take on a challenge, I mean, really take something on...you focus your energy to success and you really do achieve results. I'm not going to say its easy, because its not. On some of the cleanse days all I wanted was food, sometimes I just want to eat breakfast, but this is a challenge, and I accepted it. So ill be seeing it though to the end.

30 Day Cleanse

This year I wanted to have a really good shot at being the fittest and healthiest I can be for the Roller Derby season. I decided to take on a 30 Day Cleanse. The only other cleanse I have done was a year ago, lasting 10 days. My response was far from what I expected, landing myself sick in bed and quite put off at even the thought of another cleanse. This seemed much more structured. I signed up and my box of goodies was here within 4 days.

The intention of this cleanse is not weight loss, although if I can shed a few kg's, ill end up at an optimal weight. This will maximise the way I use my body at practice and bouts. I am not here nor there when it comes to eating.  I like to eat well, and I like to binge too. As an athlete my weight has bounced around between 60kg and 75kg. All ranges being effective for what I have to achieve. 

I know my body well and I want to feed it what it needs to achieve the best it can. Not only a healthy weight, but strength and power. I also want brain power. As I have mentioned before Roller Derby is a game of thinking, you must be able to think clearly. I want to get to the optimal. For me I feel this is not dissimilar from beach sprinting. Light enough for speed, but strong enough for power. Fast reactions and the ability to think on your feet (or your skates this time around) Im not far from that, but I do have a little way to go.

I have heard a lot of people talk about 'shake diets' and have been quite skeptical to try, or even believe they are good for you. Perhaps it was the samples that I tried that changed my mind. They really ARE a meal! 100% natural ingredients where quality is never sacrificed.

So I started four days ago. Day one was exciting. The shakes, snacks and supplements were filling, tasty and effective. The biggest change is that I am SWITCHED ON. Mental clarity, everything is clear. I don't forget. Day two was much the same. I bounced a long and felt great that my body was being cleaned and could feel so good.

On day three I started the 'cleanse day' - this seems quite hard core. You dont really eat food, just a few specially formulated snacks to curb the cravings. Your body is cleansed with nutrient rich herbal, berry juice formula. The taste is quite good yet it does seem strange for me not to eat solids.

I have noticed the effects on my body over the last few days. Day four I could opt for the cleanse again for best results. Of course I want the best results. I opted for the cleanse again. As day four draws to an end, I feel pretty darn good considering I haven't eaten for around 48 hours. I participated in 2 hours of practice tonight and Im feeling great.

Im excited for my shakes tomorrow, and I know Im going to appreciate my one meal so much more than I normally would. Next week Im lucky enough to repeat the 2 day 'cleanse within the cleanse'. Im excited for the next 26 days. Four days in and Im feeling great.

Roller Derby 2013 - Its clear!

I feel like I have been here so many times before, behind the Jammer line staring into a pack of 8 Blockers, or rather, staring right through a pack of 8 Blockers. Anticipation of the start makes the energy so high, the feeling is intense. This is what I thrive off. I love this feeling. A combination of excitement, anticipation's, nerves and not knowing whats about to happen next. For a handful of the 'fresh meat' girls on our team, it was there first game. I remembered my first game, a cloud of confusion with snippets of 'ah ha' moments.

Just under a year ago I played in my first Roller Derby bout. From there I never looked back. There is so much for me to love about this sport. A combination of power, agility, strength, speed, focus, strategy, teamwork and concentration. A game where you are constantly switching from offense to defense whilst rolling on eight wheels, alongside nine other players on the track. A 64 page rule book and seven officials calling the shots. Throw all that into the mix and it gives you enough things to think about!

Thinking is exactly the challenge. I believe all sports are won from the mind. Through 2012 I played an entire season around 10 bouts and more practice games. The thought process in Roller Derby can be complex. As a Jammer its easy, you have one goal, to get through the pack and score points. As a clean player you can avoid penalties without too much thought. As a Blocker however, the thought process is different. Your main goal is to stop the opposing teams Jammer from getting by. To do this you need to have strategies, you need to understand what strategies the opposing team is playing. You can also help your own Jammer or simply create chaos in the pack. Offense and defense switching constantly and being able to understand all this whilst taking and unexpected slamming hit from an opposing player.

Last year I felt up and down, from Jam to Jam. Sometimes switched on, reading the play and using this to my advantage. Whist other times were a cloud of confusion and unable to execute effective moves or understand what was happening on the track. Perhaps a mind block, or a rookie perspective? Could this be changed through mental imagery? visualization? supplements or energy drinks?

I have never been a big fan of energy drinks. Occasionally a Powerade to replenish my fluid at the end of activity. In this last week, I had been recommended a product, 100% natural that claimed to have the same effects as these 'energy drinks.' e+ a 60ml shot, I was told had natural caffeine, the amount that you would get from a cup of coffee derived from green tea and mate. My friend could not believe the mental clarity and focus it gave him. How alert he felt for hours after. Skeptical, but curious I vowed to try the shot in combination with my next Roller Derby bout.

So there we lined up for our first scrimmage of 2013. I am by no means and expert, but Id like to be. Which means I need to win this game from my mind. We had just driven 2 hours to get here and it was around 7.30pm. I had taken the shot about 10minutes earlier but right now I felt the same as every other time I lined up on the Jam line.

The blast of the whistle and away we went. I Jammed for the most part of the first half. Winning most and loosing some. I alternated in and out of the pack and found myself Blocking more in the second half. My mind had control, every play was clear. I understood this game inside and out. This never flagged. I could see strategies in play and how to counter them. Everything was clear. The entire game seemed like an 'ah ha' moment. If my physical skills had not been able to keep up, my mind knew what was going on. The feeling was incredible.

The learning curve this past year has been huge. A mixture of knowledge and better skills improved my game. But Im not a stranger to playing sport from the mind. The clarity and alertness I felt this game was amazing and ill be trialling the shot again. Along with several other products on offer.

Times are exciting in Roller Derby, before we know it the 2013 season will be upon us. I cant wait to play and improve and immerse myself in this sport. -Flash Fury

Picture curtsey of Crystal Hudson - Black Eyed Cherries

If you interested in finding out more about e+ please comment below and I will be in touch.