If you follow me on social media, you may have noticed my recent posts about my new eating lifestlyle.  I am now living an alkaline lifestyle, and my posts included pictures of me drinking my greens and minerals, working out, and getting off my acid. My grocery cart contains all the fruits and veggies that are part of my new daily menu. I learned how to shop and substitute acidic foods for highly alkaline foods with the handy Ultimate Alkaline/Acid Food Guide by Dr. Daryl Gioffre. I started this journey, like many of us do, with the thought that I needed some new goals in the New Year — ranging from health to wealth.  I thought health would be a great place to begin, and a detox would be a strong kick-start to my health goals.  I had been reading about living a PH lifestyle on many blogs and in celebrity interviews. And then when I learned that my very good friend Chelsea’s husband had created a program and it included a detox which was starting January 7^th  — I was in!  I immediately invited some friends, and of course my husband, to join me.

I have done so many cleanses as well as diets, but none of them came with the education and support from Dr. Daryl Gioffre and his team.  I purchased the Gioffre’s Get Off Your Acid 7-Day Cleanse for only $97, and along with that came greens and minerals and a great many recipes for breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner, as well as some other detox protocols I had never heard of before. Dr. Daryl surely talks the talk and walks the walk. To kick off the winter cleanse, myself and many of the other 7 day cleansers across the U.S. joined the kick off call with Dr. Daryl. We were not only educated on the process, we learned first-hand what this lifestyle has done for him. He answered questions and frankly motivated and inspired us.

The Get off your Acid Facebook support group is a wonderful place to share and commiserate. I learned something from everyone and we all supported each other.  You can post any question and you will get a quick response.  It’s like having a “911 detox hotline”.

So, what is a PH-balanced and alkaline diet?  It is really not a diet, but a lifestyle. Most of us eat very acidic foods like breads, dairy, pastas, meat and sugar. And yes coffee (which should be removed from your diet, especially during the 7-day cleanse).  Dr. Daryl says, “The purpose of eating alkaline is to make the balancing process easier for your body by giving it the necessary minerals and nutrients it needs to neutralize the acid so that it doesn’t have to fight the acid on its own. And once your body doesn’t have to waste so much energy fighting off acid, your body will heal instead of react, and you’ll see all kinds of benefits in the way you look and feel.”  This is important because acidic foods cause inflammation that can lead to disease.

My husband suffered so badly from acid reflux as a result of stress and eating highly acidic foods, his coughing would wake me up in the middle of the night. He took medication to help control it, but it never really helped. During the cleanse, the reflux was the first thing to disappear because he was eating more alkaline foods like sweet potatoes, broccoli, lentils, spinach, avocado — and incorporating his greens and minerals for additional support.  He is no longer taking meds, and we are now more conscious of living a healthier lifestyle.  I also had joint pain after workouts — and that pain is gone!

Unlike other diets I have followed that left me cranky and hungry, Dr. Daryl emphasizes that ‘going alkaline’ is about balance. “Getting healthy is not about deprivation; it’s moderation,” Dr. Daryl says. The diet has a fairly reasonable 80/20 expectation. “Your daily diet should consist of 80% alkaline foods and 20% acidic foods,” he says. “Strive to make vegetables, healthy fats, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, and low-sugar fruits the main part of your daily meal plan and try to limit your consumption of coffee, alcohol, dairy, and meat, which are all highly acidic foods.”

Photo By Anne Fishbein

I started the 7-day cleanse on Jan. 7^th and loved it so much I did it for one month. To help keep me on track I had to prepare all my meals in advance and plan properly for any outing. I found a great food management system bag by fitmark which makes traveling with meals, shakes and my AlkaMind travel packets easy. I am currently enjoying my new 80/20 lifestyle and all my new recipes — and I can’t wait for the ‘group cleanse’ this spring.  The other upside is that cleansing can start at any time, and you will always get the support you need.  For Valentine’s Day Alkamind is offering some great discounts on the products, and Dr. Daryl has included some fun Valentine’s recipes of entrees and desserts that won’t make you feel bloated when you want to feel sexy!  I hope you go to his website and read more about it.  If you want to feel good, look good, sleep well, and make small changes you can live with — this is for you!

If you have any questions or comments for me please feel free to post them here or contact me grace@itsaggthing.com