I am on the wellness committee at work and May is wellness month. I am super excited for all the great things that we have planned. I arranged 3 great “lunch and learns” which are basically presentations over lunch. The first week we have someone from NEO Team in Training coming to tell everyone about TNT and what you can get if you sign up to train with them. Then next week I have a lovely yoga instructor coming in to walk people through yoga poses to help undo the stress of sitting all day. And then for weeks 3 and 4 we are going to screen the movie Food Inc in 2 parts! How fun is that. Don’t you wish you worked here. On top of that I managed to gather 8 people who are interested in doing a cleanse with me! I am going to lead the group, so I think that will be the right amount of motivation to stay on the cleanse. In fact I am going to start on Monday (instead of Friday like them) so I have a few solid days under my belt. The cleanse will be based on the book Quantum Wellness, I did this cleanse once before, but only made it 15 days. But this cleanse is what solidified that I could be a vegetarian and I haven’t wavered on that once since I made the decision early last year. I will blog about the cleanse for anyone interested. Here is an email I sent out to the group today:

“Hi cleanse group members! If you are going to go shopping this weekend or early next week to prepare for the cleanse, below are some shopping items you will want to stock up on. All of these foods are approved on the cleanse. I am assuming no one has read the book yet, so I pulled this from the website, with some notes from me. When I did this cleanse last time I lived on popcorn, rice noodles, hummus and steamed veggies with different spices on them. Trader Joes has really great, cheap, spice grinders. I am in love with their lemon pepper and 21 spice salute.

The Quantum Wellness Cleanse Grocery List:

The items on this grocery list are specifically outlined for the “Quantum Wellness Cleanse” which precludes sugar, alcohol, caffeine, gluten, and all animal products. This does not mean that all of these items are not vegan, rather these items are specifically for the 21 day cleanse.

1. Irish steel cut oats (for most people, this is tolerable insofar as gluten; unless you are particularly sensitive, ok to use), mixed grain hot cereals, gluten and sugar (maple, honey, etc.) free


2. Rice cakes


3. Flax crackers


4. Gluten free bread (vegan) (MN: Check out the brand Ezekiel, they make many types of sprouted breads that are gluten free)


5. Sweet potatoes, yams-Grains: brown or wild rice, millet, quinoa, amaranth, corn, buckwheat, corn


6. Nuts: almonds, walnuts, cashews, soy nuts, macadamia nuts, filberts, etc.


7. Seeds: sunflower, pumpkin, sesame


8. Nut or seed butters: peanut butter, almond butter, tahini, cashew butter (unsweetened)


9. Vegan butter (earth balance, soy garden)


10. Vegan mayonnaise


11. Non-dairy protein powder (Solaray strawberry is a tasty sugar free one), also others that are pea, rice, and soy based are good (MN: Whole Foods has a very tasty banana pea/rice protein powder)


12. Beans and legumes: black beans, lentils, chickpeas, lima beans, adzuki beans, black-eyed peas, edamame, fava beans


13. Tofu-Tempeh-Faux meats: burgers, sausage patties, "meat crumbles", "chicken" patties (make sure gluten free)


14. Artichoke/rice/quinoa pasta (MN: Trader Joes has some yummy and cheap rice stick pasta)-Pasta sauce (no sugar added)


15. Vegetables: kale, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, asparagus, brussel sprouts, zucchini, eggplant, collard greens, butternut, spaghetti, and acorn squash (MN: Check out the frozen ones at WF, my lunch staple will be various frozen veggies with different spices)


16. Mushrooms: shitake, hen of the woods, etc. (grilled, they make a great centerpiece for a meal)


17. Salad "fixins": arugala, raddichio, endive, mixed greens, peppers, avocado, tomato, etc.


18. Fruits: apples, cherries, peaches, blueberries, goji berries


19. Lemons, limes for sparkling water cocktails. A splash of unsweetened pomegranate juice-Coconut water


20. Teecino (coffee substitute), rooibos tea, herbal teas


21. Rice, almond, soy milk (unsweetened) (MN: Both TJS and WF have their own unsweetened brand of Almond and soy milk and its way cheaper than the name brands. I personally like almond milk way better than soy)


22. Stevia, agave nectar to sweeten smoothies, milks, cereals, etc.


23. Extra virgin olive oil, expeller pressed organic canola, high-oleic versions of sunflower and safflower oils


24. Garlic, ginger, tamari, Himalayan crystal salt, pepper


25. Flours to cook or bake with: bean, pea, soy, potato, buckwheat, tapioca, nut and seed, arrowroot


26. Popcorn


27. Corn chips (MN: TJs has a very tasty veggie flaxseed tortilla chip, its great with hummus or homeage guac)


28. Guacamole


29. Hummus


30. Soy cheese (no rennet or casein)


31. Frozen spinach (to throw into smoothies… you won't even taste it!)


32. Flax seed oil, freshly ground flax seeds


33. Vegetarian stock for cookingPre-prepared foods at health food stores are often tasty and nutritious. Visit the "raw" section and deli/salad bar area”