Happy (almost) NEW YEAR! So excited to see y'all again after the break! I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas with your family!

In the upcoming year, I am hoping to motivate and challenge you with new goals and steps to make your year healthier. This first challenge is kinda tough, but one that I know will bring success. It's ideal to start tomorrow (the 1st), but do what works with your life right now.

I hope you'll join me for a 5-day cleanse! Here's the challenge for the next 5 days:

- drink 90 oz of water per day - to mix it up, add lemon, cucumber, or fruit

- drink one cleanse shot each morning (recipe below)

- substitute one meal with a protein smoothie/shake per day (recipe options below)

- NO added sugars (NONE)

This is meant to kick-start your healthy game plan in to gear for the year! After 5 days, I promise you will feel better, de-bloat, re-set your appetite and cravings, feel more energetic, and you may even drop a pound or two (depending on your current diet)!

I'm starting tomorrow! Shopping for my ingredients today... Here's what you'll need:

Grocery list: lemons, apple cider vinegar, eggs, protein powder (I recommend Vega), almond milk, frozen berries, leafy greens, chicken, various veggies (best: kale, brussels sprouts, broccoli, arugula, avocados, beets, carrots, onions, cabbage, etc.), apples...

YOUR A.M. CLEANSE SHOT: 8 oz water + 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar + 1/2 lemon squeezed + cayenne pepper (optional)

YOUR A.M. OR AFTER WORKOUT MEAL REPLACEMENT SHAKE: 1 scoop protein powder + frozen berries + 1 cup spinach or kale + 1 cup unsweetened almond milk + 1 TBSP chia seeds (you can jazz this up in any way, just watch the added calories and sugar)

An Ideal day of food:

breakfast: cleanse shot, wait for 10 mins, then coffee or tea, and one of the following...
- protein shake
- egg white scramble: 2 eggs + 1/2 cup diced veggies + avocado slices (optional)
snack (if needed): apple slices with cinnamon sprinkled on top (cinnamon is anti-inflammatory)
lunch: green salad with baked/grilled chicken + veggies + lite dressing (my go-to dressing is evoo + lemon + balsamic) OR Protein shake!
snack: choose one: cut up veggies, apple slices, protein shake...
dinner: so many options:
- salad as above
- protein and veggie bake (1 cup of your fave cut up veggies + 6 oz lean protein + 1/2 cup onions + 2 garlic cloves minced + 2 tsp olive oil + salt, pepper, and rosemary... bake 20 - 40 mins at 375
- turkey burger with no bun + grilled veggies of your choice on the side
- soup - any clean option will do, but here's my fave right now:
  - In a large pot, heat 1 tbsp olive oil... add 1 yellow diced onion and 6-8 gloves minced garlic... cook until translucent (2-3 mins)
  - add 6 cups vegetable broth + 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes + 1 tbsp dried Italian herbs + salt and pepper
  - bring to boil, then simmer for 5 mins
  - stir in 4, 15 oz cans white beans (cannellini) + 4 cups baby spinach
  - cook about 2 mins until spinach has wilted
  - stir in 3 tpsp parsley
  - to make thicker, you can add 3/4 cups Parmesan cheese when you add the broth

So, that's the plan for the next 5 days (or whenever you choose to start)!

Cheers to your healthy body this 2018!

XO,

Meg