Firstly, I’d like to say that I eat pretty healthy, but after a weekend full of bad decisions (drinking, fried foods, late night Dominos — you name it), it’s typical for me feel kinda disgusting on a Sunday morning. I usually feel incredibly bloated and somewhat lethargic.
#SpoonTip: Try these yoga poses to help you feel less bloated.
One Sunday, I decided that I wanted to detox. Having done juice cleanses in the past, I wanted to try something new. After hours of research, I decided that I wanted to try Real Food Works Detox Soup Cleanse. Real Food Works is a one-day soup cleanse, consisting of 6 vegetable-based soups that can be eaten either hot or cold. Unlike a juice cleanse, soup cleanse adds more fiber and contains less sugar.
Soup Number 1: Detox
Photo by Casey Twomey
I woke up feeling my usual self: kinda gross. I was craving a nice, greasy BEC, and the last thing I wanted to eat was soup at 7:30 am. The name “Detox” is really fitting for this soup, because when you’re having it you definitely feel like it’s cleansing your body (and all your bad decisions from the weekend).
Soup Number 2: Shine
Photo by Casey Twomey
After the first soup I went about my day — I didn’t feel that hungry at all. Three hours later, I decided to have the second soup of the cleanse: Shine. Full disclosure: I don’t like carrots. This soup was thick and very carrot-y, but nonetheless, it was bearable. Would I enjoy this soup outside of the cleanse? Probably not.
#SpoonTip: If you are into carrots, try this vegan carrot soup.
Soup Number 3: Purify
Photo by Casey Twomey
Okay, at this point I was getting pretty hungry and I really wanted to dig into a big juicy burger or something. Nevertheless I enjoyed soup number 3: Purify. This soup was a little bit thicker than my first soup of the day. I personally loved this one — it was very “green” tasting, but in a good way. I definitely felt pure after enjoying this soup, which tasted to me mostly like spinach.
Soup Number 4: Energize
Photo by Casey Twomey
I was skeptical about working out while on my cleanse because I wasn’t actually eating solid food. However, much to my doubt, I had no problem at all working out on the cleanse. After going on a run, I decided to have my next soup: Energize.
This was by far my favorite soup because it was so light and refreshing. I wish this came as a juice, because I’d drink it after every workout. Hey, maybe Real Food Works has the right idea with this beet-based soup — beets could be the new kale. (Disclaimer: I ended up spilling this soup in the fridge onto all my other soups #KlutzyGirlProblems)
Soup Number 5: Replenish
Photo by Casey Twomey
I became hungry again and decided to have the second to last soup of my cleanse: Replenish. Not knowing what a tomatillo was going into this soup, I was pretty intimidated (BTW, if you’re like me and completely clueless, a tomatillo is a Mexican husk tomato, and they’re also a great addition to a salsa). This soup was very filling and completely satisfying for my dinner.
Soup Number 6: Transcend
Photo by Casey Twomey
This soup was so light and fruity that I almost forgot that it was actually soup. Though I gotta say that the Energize soup was better, I did thoroughly enjoy this soup so much that I almost forgot I was on a cleanse. I went to bed and I didn’t even feel hungry.
The Verdict
Real Food Work’s Detox cleanse was a great way for me to reset my digestion system. Though they recommend doing this one-day cleanse once a week, at $68 per day, I couldn’t see myself affording to do that. But, if I had unlimited funds, I definitely could.
Since I did really enjoy the cleanse, I do think that I will try to do this once a month as a reset for my body. It was little risk, and it had great results. I found myself having more energy on this soup cleanse than I had following my regular day-to-day diet. Though I probably lost a ton of water weight (don’t worry, I’ll spare you the details), I felt less bloated than ever.