I'm doing the Advocare 24 Day Challenge!

Good morning, everyone!  Happy Saturday!  I hope this weekend is going to be a great one for you :)  Joe and I have some low-key plans (and I have some work I HAVE to get done by Sunday), but it should be a really good one!

I wanted to stop in this morning and tell you what I started doing on Monday.  I began the Advocare 24 Day Challenge!  I first heard about this program from Stephanie's blog.  She completed the 24DC in May, and her posts about her experiences intrigued me.  I made a few comments on some of her posts, and her Advocare coach Becky saw them and contacted me about participating in the 24DC in June.  After a few e-mails back and forth, I decided to do it!  Let's talk more details now.

What is the 24DC?
The Advocare 24 Day Challenge is a supplement and nutritional program designed to cleanse and nourish your body.  It helps with weight loss, changing body composition, increasing energy, and improves overall wellness.  There are two portions: the Cleanse Phase (10 days) and the Max Phase (14 days).  The Cleanse Phase helps to rid the body of toxins, and the Max Phase is designed to help the body absorb maximum nutrients after the cleanse.

Cleanse Phase products

What do you do for the 24DC?
For the 24DC, in addition to taking the supplements from Advocare (there's a few different supplements you use during each phase), you focus on clean eating!  You are supposed to avoid alcohol, caffeine, sugar, fried foods, processed foods, grains (except whole wheat in moderation), and dairy (can eat in moderation).

Why am I doing it?
Lately, I've just been in a cycle of eating poorly and not exercising.  I know that when I have a goal in mind or a program to follow, I do a lot better about eating healthy (like during Lent).  I've also noticed that I've been gaining some weight.  It's not much, but I can feel it, particularly in my thighs and my waistline.  I knew that signing up for something like the 24DC would be beneficial for me in learning to enjoy clean eating and getting rid of these extra pounds that have shown up lately.

How's it going so far?
So far, so good!  I'm on Day 6 in the Cleanse Phase, and I've stuck with it to a T.  I was really nervous about giving up coffee and anticipated dealing with some bad headaches on day 1.  Surprisingly, I didn't have a headache AT ALL!  I think that can be attributed to the Advocare energy drink Spark.

This stuff seems to be better than coffee because I never experienced an energy slump during the day!  Plus, it's full of vitamins, so you can't argue with that!

I've also been feeling really great.  I haven't had any stomach/digestion problems since being on the 24DC nutrition program, and I just feel better overall.  I'm looking forward to seeing what I feel like during the rest of the challenge!

I'll do a few recap posts throughout the 24 DC, including what I've been eating and things I've learned about food and my body.  If you're interested in the challenge or have questions, feel free to let me know!

Question for you: Have you ever done the 24DC?  What are some ways that you focus on clean eating?