Cleanse!

 

Kitcharee or Kichari is a delicious Ayurvedic healing food used for the purpose of cleansing and purifying the body.

Today is Sunday Oct 23, 2011 and I am preparing to start my 7 to 10 day kicharee cleanse tomorrow!!!!

That means that I just drank my last delicious cup of Oly coffee roasters coffee with a little soy creamer and maple syrup (yum!). I will miss it!!! I know that living a relatively clean healthy and disciplined life should allow me a few simple pleasures such as a fabulous cup of coffee at 5 a.m. before my yoga practice or some fine red wine and good conversation with my girlfriends,  but I know that it is time for a cleanse when I start to notice that I am emotionally attached to certain foods or beverages… meaning I suddenly CANNOT IMAGINE my day being good without them. Everyone has their own vices- and I know I have mine. That is why I like to do a cleanse with the change of seasons ideally several times a year if not more often. This feels like a healthy balance, as it is long enough between cleansing to allow for a few rules to get broken here and there (which is healthy in my book), but not so long that the exception to the rule becomes the norm.

In the past I think I may have been addicted to cleansing- which means I was cleansing more often than not- (I know, right?). I have done so many different types of cleanses, tried all kinds of herbs and enemas and restrictive diets. A couple of years ago I did a 30 day juice fast followed by 9 months of a totally raw vegan diet. This was an amazing process and I learned so much from it! I do not believe that there is any one diet that is perfect all the time, but at certain times in my life I have benefited greatly from exploring, sometimes to extremes such as a 40 day master cleanse (about 7 years ago). Sometimes the benefits of cleansing are more for the physical level, and sometimes the intention is beyond physical. For the past few years I have followed a relatively clean vegan diet. I try most of the time to avoid eating breads or pastas or processed sugars or fake meat products. I have been vegetarian for most of my life and the reasons for my diet today are physical, moral, spiritual and political. I am far from having it figured out, however, and enjoy the process of learning from my mistakes, growing as I go and always being open to changing my mind as I process new information and new experiences. As I said above, the coffee and red wine are my main weaknesses currently (along with tortilla chips when I make the mistake of accidentally buying them). I look forward to another opportunity to humbly observe myself floundering through the process of elimination- it is always quite the journey!

Emotional eating is so accepted in our culture that it is hard to recognize balance. I like to define balance in my own life as being a diet that is clean and empowering, but not so micro managed that following the diet causes stress in my life. When I start to notice patterns of cravings or that I attach a reward mentality onto a certain food or beverage, such as “I get up so early to practice yoga and run six miles and give five hours of massages and raise my two kids and my life is so full and stressful that I deserve this rice and honey latte (or two) from cafe Vita, or I deserve this glass (or three) of wine with my girlfriends”. If I am going to indulge, I try to recognize when deep down underneath my choice has undertones of guilt or compulsion. I would ultimately like it to be a choice that is coming from an empowered place of clarity, compassion, and self awareness.

SO, here is the cleanse I have decided to do starting tomorrow:

This is a classic Ayurvedic cleanse or mono fast called Kicharee. I have done many Kicharee cleanses in the past. In fact the first cleanse I ever tried was this very one. I was still nursing my daughter at the time, and she was just around 9 months old (now she is 9 years old!). I remember this being one of her first solid foods. I also remember that I made a gigantic batch of it with a curry blend that made me so nauseated, I couldn’t stand to smell it for years after. I strongly recommend making smaller batches that only last a day or two at most, so you can vary the spices enough to avoid grossing yourself out! This particular recipe came from simplegoodandtasty.com but there are many versions available on the internet or in books on Ayurvedic healing.

 

Kicharee is a bright yellow, porridge-like dish that tastes like a blend of rice, lentils and mild curry. According to Dr. Doulliard, “Kicharee pulls toxins from your body, is high in protein and is extremely healing to your digestive tract and intestinal mucosa.” Eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and flushed it down with lots of warm, not cold, water.

 

Fall Detox Kicharee

This recipe makes enough to last for 3 or 4 meals. You can play with the mixture of spices. Many people prefer the spices doubled — or even tripled.

7-10 cups of water (more water makes it more soup-like, less makes it the texture of oatmeal)

1 cup split yellow mung beans (not WHOLE mung dal beans)

½ cup white basmati rice

1 tablespoon fresh ginger root

1 teaspoon black mustard seeds

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

½ teaspoon coriander powder

½ teaspoon fennel

½ teaspoon fenugreek seeds

1 pinch of asafetida (optional)

3  cloves garlic

3  bay leaves

½ tsp salt (rock salt is best) or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos

1 small handful fresh chopped cilantro leaves

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

1. Wash split yellow mung beans (dal) and rice together until water runs clear.
2. Heat a large pot on medium heat and then add all the spices (except the bay leaves) and dry roast for a few minutes. This dry-roasting will enhance the flavor.
3. Add dal and rice and stir again.
4. Add water and bay leaves and bring to a boil.
5. Boil for 10 minutes.
6. Turn heat to low, cover pot and continue to cook until dal and rice become soft (about 30-40 minutes).
7. The cilantro leaves can be added just before serving.
8. Add salt or Bragg’s to taste.

Classically, in an Ayurvedic cleanse, ghee (clarified butter) would be taken daily to help with detoxification. Being vegan, I have decided not to include this part, although I value the benefits this would offer. I am including turmeric pills and tri cleanse powder which is triphala mixed with psyllium and flax in powder form. I may continue to add vitamineral greens and vitamin C to this drink since my body is used to taking these three powders in my morning smoothies.

My plan is to start gentle and get more strict as the cleanse goes on. This way I can ease my way in. This is just what feels right to me right now. I also happen to have a ton of veggies in my fridge right now, as a friend passed on his CSA to me last week and I don’t want them to go bad. Starting slow means I am going to do the strict Kitcharee for every meal but I will add some steamed veggies to my lunch or replace the mung porridge with blended veggie soup in the evening until my veggies are suffiiciently used up, or I am feeling ready to cut them out. I am fine with adding veggies for as long as that feels good to my body.

I like to give myself permission to follow a cleanse for a minimum amount of days (7 in this case), with the option of deepening the cleanse for another three days. I may choose to do a day of just tea and veggie broth or just water towards the end.

What else is included in this cleanse?

I plan to:

*Eat kicharee with some veggies at first

*Take the herbs mentioned above

*Eliminate all other foods especially and most painfully coffee (why God, why!), teas (I may do a fasting tea by yogi tea), alcohol, sugar (I usually only consume grade B maple syrup or local honey but even these have to go bye bye), and lastly my beloved snack of tortilla chips (sigh).

*Drink 3 to 4 liters of warm water a day.

*Do dry skin brushing before my showers and salt scrubbbing in my showers (I actually do this several times a week regularly anyways because it is so good for the lymph system and I enjoy the benefits).

*Continue to exercise daily which for me usually includes two hours of Ashtanga yoga four to six days a week, which is an amazing and vigorous yoga practiced in a heated room early in the morning where I get to sweat out my toxins both emotional and physical. I also try to run five to seven miles 3 to 4 days a week and dance 5 rhythms (or in my living room with my kids!) at least once a week if possible. I generally try to break a sweat at least once if not twice a day because exercise is the best way for me to release stress and feel amazing and alive and grounded in my body. This may not be for everyone, but it is not a habit I feel the need to break. I believe in moving my body vigorously and regularly as much as I feel I need or more. I love to push myself and to achieve new goals. My goal during this cleanse is to go to yoga six days a week and run as much or as little as I want. On the weeks that I get to yoga every day, I feel the best in my body and my heart.

*The most challenging and important aspect of this cleanse for me right now is to reduce stress. I cannot abandon my motherly duties or stop working full time, but what I can do is include a minimum of ten minutes of meditation every morning and every night breathing through my left nostril only (good for nervous system), make sure I limit my social responsibilities and go to bed by 9 every night, try to talk less, let my mind wander or obsess or get stuck in negative loops less, and ultimately be present and calm as much as possible.

*I am planning to read a book I’ve been hearing about for years called “Molecules of Emotion” by Candice Pert.

*I will also utilize my favorite new age childhood tool of positive affirmations (thanks Louise Hay!) as well as journaling or blogging here. I like to take notice of what kinds of emotional patterns start to emerge whenever I do a cleanse. I believe that negative thinking is the most insidious toxin shed during a cleanse. I am prepared to have a few tantrums and feel all around horrible at a few points, and hopefully, eventually get to a place of ease and peace- maybe even maintain that throughout it!

*Lastly, I will make sure I treat myself lovingly and have arranged a craniosacral session on Friday with my dear friend and amazing massage therapist Tracy Heron-Moore at the Massage Place, and hope to fit in a couple of massages and a trip to the korean womens spa at some point during the cleanse.

Thanks for reading and feel free to check back here for updates. I invite you to do your own research, and join in the cleanse at any time if you feel so inspired!

Namaste.

 

Amanda Lux