Last week, Karen Kipp and I shared how we help people use clean eating and juicing as tools for better health. This week, three women in our community share how The Decadent Detox® changed their lives. Gretchen, Ellen, and Melynn tell us how the 14-Day Cleanse surprised them and the transformations they experienced. 

From loving vegetables they never ate before, to being shocked that family members got on board, to the flow-on effect in other areas of their lives, these ladies take us on three different and inspiring journeys.  

None of these women tells a typical “detox” story. Gretchen wanted to get healthy but had no idea where or how to start. The program’s structure, meal plans, and personal support got her on a path to losing 30 pounds, reducing inflammation, and feeling confident with healthy eating.   

The 14-Day Cleanse helped Melynn redefine what “healthy” looks like, and discover food intolerances that were the key to her chronic acid reflux. With just two weeks of strategic eating, she got rid of the condition, and got off medication she had been dependent on for 20 years.   

Ellen also got the nutrition education she wanted, and recipes she and her family enjoy to stay on track with better food choices. Learning to listen to her body helped her recognize the signs of illness and get early diagnosis of a rare, treatable condition. 

We celebrate the incredible impacts of practicing self-care through eating delicious fresh food, the value of joining a supportive community, and the importance of making healthy living fun. 

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS: 

• Coaching and a supportive community make it easier to get healthy. 
• Learn to listen to what your body needs to make informed choices.  
• Take time to nurture yourself physically and emotionally.  
• Nutrition knowledge supports better food and lifestyle choices.  
• Make healthy living enjoyable and sustainable by eating great food.  
• Juice fasting is an effective tool to achieve better health.  
• Gently transitioning into a juice fast and out of it gives the best results.  
• Two weeks of strategic clean eating empowers you in other parts of your life. 

JOIN OUR COMMUNITY 

Join the 14-Day Cleanse: https://www.thedecadentdetox.com/14-day-guided-cleanses/ 

Learn more about The Decadent Detox®: https://www.thedecadentdetox.com/ 

MEET OUR GUESTS 

MELYNN SIGHT 

After a successful career in business, Melynn is enjoying retirement and finding that life is fuller than ever! She loves spending time with her husband and children, traveling, enjoying a good meal, walking the dogs, and playing Pickleball. She is also passionate about facilitating an anti-bullying program for 9-year-old girls in an inner city charter school in Kansas City, and being a Rotarian. After going hard at work for decades, Melynn welcomed the opportunity to really take care of her health by joining The Decadent Detox® and Skinny60® communities. Through cooking the delicious recipes in these programs, her life has taken a big turn, and she feels better than ever!  

ELLEN LEWIS 

With a degree in International Business and French, Ellen realized her dream of working abroad before marrying and starting her family. After working in customer service and account management, Ellen became a stay-at-home to raise her kids. When her son was diagnosed with PDD-NOS, Ellen became passionate about the power of better food and nutrition. This journey led her to join The Decadent Detox® to continue her education and improve her own health. Ellen enjoys gardening, hiking, spending time with her family at their cabin, volunteering for her sorority, and reading. You’ll find her wrapped up in a book on food science or a classic Agatha Christie novel.  

GRETCHEN ROTH 

After working in education for many years, Gretchen shifted gears and has found great joy in facilitating weddings and other celebrations. She and her husband love spending time with their children, scattered across the country. Spending time together is precious, so her favorite vacation destination is wherever they can all be together. Gretchen is new to healthy eating, and is grateful to have found The Decadent Detox® and Skinny60® programs. She now has a clear path to achieving her health goals. Enjoying the simple life, Gretchen is excited about staying healthy and strong to enjoy her retirement years.  

Meet Tess Masters:  

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of The Decadent Detox® and Skinny60® health programs.     

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.   

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.  

Connect With Tess: 

Website: https://tessmasters.com/  

Podcast Website: https://ithastobeme.com/   

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblendergirl/  

Twitter: https://twitter.com/theblendergirl  

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl  

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/  

Get Healthy With Tess 

Skinny60®: https://www.skinny60.com/  

Join the 60-Day Reset: https://www.skinny60.com/60-day-reset/ 

The Decadent Detox®: https://www.thedecadentdetox.com/  

Join the 14-Day Cleanse: https://www.thedecadentdetox.com/14-day-guided-cleanses/ 

The Blender Girl: https://www.theblendergirl.com/  

Thanks for listening!  

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So last week, I was talking with Karen Kip, my business partner at the decade of detox, about our 14 day cleanse and the extraordinary things that can happen with just two weeks of delicious, clean eating. So I thought it would be fun today to talk to three women in our community and what their experience was like with the 14 day cleanse. And I think you are going to be blown away by what happened to them. In just two weeks, I've invited Gretchen, Melynn and Ellen to join me, and hopefully you can grab a cup of tea and feel like you're sitting with us having lunch, because they are such wonderful women and really openly sharing their experience about why they chose to do the clans, what they thought it was going to be like, what it was like for them and the unbelievable results that they got by just eating delicious food. So I'm so excited for you to hear from them. So let's get the skinny from Gretchen Melynn and Ellen. Oh, I'm so excited to be here with all of you. So listener, hopefully you can curl up with a cup of tea and feel like you're having lunch with with Melynn and Ellen and Gretchen and me to talk about how clean eating can kind of change your life, right? So Ellen, I want to start with you, because you've been doing the cleanse for years with us and joining, you know, seasons here and there. So what made you join? Were you scared to join a cleanse? Did you sort of have an idea about it? What made you take the leap and go, Okay, I'm gonna do this for two weeks.

You know,

I actually remember it like it was yesterday. And I think a lot of people who come into the cleanse feel this. It's like my body needed a reset. I'd just come off vacation, not been eaten, well, not been drinking Well, no water, and I just was searching for a vegan, dairy free, gluten free cleanse, and the decadent detox came up, and I read about it, and thought, You know what? This is exactly what I'm looking for. So I wasn't really scared, because I was so determined. I knew I felt like that's what I needed. But definitely, as I got into it, it was a it was, like, a lot more than I expected, in a good way it, it really was just more than just a two week cleanse for sure. Wow. Okay, I'm

going to get into that in a minute, because I want to hear about it. So Gretchen, you, how did you come into it and what made you do? Because this was very different than anything you had ever done before, right? And you just took the leap. And you were, you know, no one that you ever knew had ever done anything like this before. So what made you decide, yeah, I'm going to do

it well. So I turned 60 next week, and yes, and so that is a very big, big time for me, a big year. And I just, when I look at people my age or older, I just, I have a couple of responses. One, I'm either in awe and amazed at how fit they are, how well they're still living. And then I also have people that are my age, that they're just, it's like they're done. They resorted to the rocking chair, you know? And it's like I just really wanted to enter into a space where I was still healthy, and I've always looked for opportunities to do better. You know, you always hear Gluten Free is better, and dairy free is better, and all of these things. And I just, I never knew where to start with something like that. You know, it's like, okay, what can I eat? And I didn't have a resource or a guide to kind of help direct me. So I actually was eating at a restaurant in Kansas City, in Troy, and

restaurant in that restaurant, that restaurant. So yes, thank you, yes.

And that's what I heard about it. So I thought, You know what, I'm going to go ahead and enter into this and see what happens. And I am so grateful that I did.

Oh, we're so grateful you did, too, and we'll hear all about it. So Melynn, you entered a bit of a different way, right? Because you had already done 60, the 60 day reset, our other program, and then you decided to do something different and come into the detox, right? So what, what made you want to do? Want to do the 14 day cleanse, after, after the 60 day reset,

the 60 day reset was amazing for for my life. I had just retired, and I decided I the one thing I wanted to do in retirement is to heal my gut, and I had the chance to meet you, and really spent that 60 days learning a lot about things that I'd never thought about. Like I've been gluten free and dairy free for years, but that's not eating healthy necessarily, yeah. And so it was a totally new way to eat and to live and to go into this next phase of life. And test said something during skinny 60 you said, Life is like a cha, cha, one step forward, and then two steps, you know, around or back, and then I. You know, take a step this way and that, and so skinny 60 was great, but I felt like it was time to have, like, a little bit of a adjustment. And I did not really relate to the idea of a detox, because I thought it was juice only. I thought I would have to do it myself. I thought I would be hungry all the time. I just had way misconceptions about what you could do to like, just reset your whole system. And by the way, I turned 65 right smack dab in the middle of the decadent detox. Wait a

second, you decided to do the 14 day cleanse during your birthday. Oh,

my husband said, no, wait, you're going to do this on your birthday? I said, No, I'm taking one day off in between. Yeah, you know, full disclosure, and I took one day off, and then I went right back in. And it was fantastic. Really, has really given me a chance to reset, like the way I should be feeling, the way I should be preparing, the way I should be seeking out what to buy and what to cook, and just it resets your whole life, not only your body, but your whole life. Oh, okay, we're

going to get into this. Okay, all right, so, Ellen, you said it was so much more than you expected, in a good way. What do you mean by that?

Well, I think, first of all, I like Melynn, I didn't expect the food to be what it was. It is fantastic. You've curated these flavors to go together that just are spectacular and can be eaten outside the cleanse, which is excellent. May you

and your family eat the recipe still, don't you? You say that all the time, yeah, there are some that are

very much favorites. And you know, I was thinking about it like there are certain things, like beets. Never in my life had I eaten a beat. Never do I want to eat right? Did I want to? I now grow beets because yeah, yeah, because we love them roasted. And I, you know, we love them in the smoothies. And so it was just little surprises like that. And then, of course, the community behind it and the support system behind it, it just, it just opened up so many more things, just little bits of education that would be given in the community, very organically, like, maybe, like, what give me an example? Well, like different books to read that, like, we would just touch on different things that would just there were. I felt like I was just given a lot of extra resources that I could go to on my own. And it wasn't literally just for those two weeks, and it still hasn't been. I mean, if I have a question, I can still go to that Facebook page and the community will respond. So it's, it's not just for two weeks.

Yeah, so, Mali, what surprised you about it? Like, What? What? How did you feel during the two weeks?

I felt like I I didn't feel like I was eating more, but I felt like what eating was less important during those two weeks then Tony, I remember that you all would say, you know, this is the time that you really need to nurture yourself. And you know whether, and by the way, I'm really active. And you said, don't just don't push yourself too much. This is a chance to really reclaim your the essence of like, balance in your life. So it was that kind of advice. It was, you know, you need to go take a bath. You need to drink some this before, you know, late in the evening. And it was just a lifestyle change that I didn't expect. And you know, really, like Ellen, I don't eat chocolate, and I have become close to an addict of the chocolates. I never made them in skinny 60 because I don't do chocolate. But now I have those chocolates in the freezer all the time, and for a special treat. I try to keep it to two

little things so bad and,

you know, just so many new surprises, to let yourself explore and and take advantage of these different flavors and combinations. And it really helped to, like, really open the mind. It wasn't really only a body thing, yeah, yeah.

It's so funny. You

mentioned the chocolates, because I'll just tell you a funny story about that. So obviously we, we've been running the 14 day cleanse for years and years now, and one of the big things that we go is I just feel so incredible. What do I do between the cleansers, you know, each season, you know, and that's very much how skinny 60 has. The 60 day reset was created when

it came time to run the beta group.

You know, there were quite a number of people from from the decade of detox community that were doing it, and they went, please tell me the chocolates. Please tell me

it's like they go, that's detox crack. And it was so hilarious. So I had to put those. Chocolate. You 60? Because everybody was talking about the chocolates. Everyone was like, What are you talking about?

Where's these chocolates? Oh, no, they're in the detox. Wait a second, a detox with chocolate.

What are you talking about? It was hilarious. Gretchen, what was your experience

of your journey in the two weeks, in terms of the surprises of what the two weeks was going to be like.

Well, it's interesting that you landed on the chocolates. Because when I saw, when I saw in the, you know, the days and everything, when I saw prepare chocolates, was like, before the first day even started, I was like, I can do this with chocolate. I can do anything. And they really were, they really were so enjoyable. Yeah, so definitely that. But, yeah, I just, I went to the grocery store and had to find a lot of things that I was not familiar with. You know, I had to go to a health food store and actually ask somebody, because I didn't know what some of that was and where to find it, but they were great help, and I was able to get all of my groceries and figure it out. So yeah, just the recipes which has been mentioned were just so amazing, and I never felt like I wasn't getting enough to eat. And the preparation time was a little something to get used to, because I don't enjoy cooking, but it was nice because

right on board and started helping you, right?

He did the dishes. God,

he was like, I can't believe the dishes that you're using. So he would start doing them, yes. So that was how he supported a

lot of dishes. That's he

came in. He came in for a second detox. He must be going, oh Gretchen, let

me go get the tea towel. Oh my gosh. He actually will try things, and he enjoys them. And so it's been really fun to experience it with him. And and, you know, no, he's getting good nutrition too, because that was a big component for me, was getting good nutrition, you know, I just, I don't feel like that was something that I knew how to do, and you shared enough information where I was able to do that and do it well. And so that was a fun thing to explore.

Yeah, it's interesting, isn't it, when you feel like you don't know what to do. And, then, given this pot of knowledge and this whole kind of new world and things just start to click. So, Ellen, you had told me, I remember when you first came in, that you had been struggling, like, with the, like, the post, sort of baby weight, getting older, you know, you kind of, you know, you needed a reset, but you also wanted to take some weight, right? Richard, I

hear your little doggies going, what's going on? Don't worry about it. We don't care. Don't even worry about it. All right? Um, they she put peanut butter on their little figs to kind of destroy we don't care, don't we? So don't stress and feel you going, oh my goodness, don't even worry about

it. So nobody cares. Listener,

do you don't even worry about it. So, Ellen, what? Talk me through some

of the the things that happened in your body, like throughout the cleanse, like, what, what were some of the things that started happening for

you? You know, I think, um, you know, I had been a relatively healthy person. I've been fortunate and been relatively healthy, especially when we were starting, but what became clear to me was the amount of probably inflammation, basically, that I had, and the amount of just water and things like that, that my body was holding on to. And so when I started putting all this, like nutrient dense food into it, and it was much more efficient with using all of those things, then I just kind of began to release just that inflammation. And I mean, I I would usually lose, on average, between six to nine pounds, which I know some people may think, oh my gosh, that doesn't sound healthy. But while some of that was weight gain, some of that was also just that inflammation, just kind of relieving my body and water

retention, the water absolutely,

absolutely and I just, I just felt better. I felt more energetic. And I think that might be a misconception people might have when they think of detox, is that they're going to be very lethargic and not be able to do their normal things, and I would wake up so much more energetic and not need the coffee, right? You know, we didn't do coffee during the detox, but I do like coffee, but

I would always having a coffee, you know, something. Right?

But of course, there were fabulous tea, like supplement like that we could use instead. That is another thing that I learned about. But I think that's what amazed me, is that my energy level went through the roof, and then just this kind of slimming down from inflammation. So yeah, it was remarkable to see what a body can do, the right fuel, right? Oh,

I mean, it, just it. It amazes me every time I do it, even though I've done it for decades, and every time we lead a new group, every quarter, it still amazes me, like, how incredible the human body is, as you say, when we give it really great fuel. Melynn, what happened for you physically? Because you had already really cleaned up, you know, and really learned some stuff, but there were, there was still a little piece, right? There's always something more we can layer in, right? So what were, what were some of the physical things that happened for you.

So, you know, we always throw around this phrase, you You are what you eat. And you know, our whole lives we go, you know, oh, is eating right more important than exercise? And is, you know, not even alcohol more important than eating the right way? And, you know, I think moderation is a really great philosophy, but I think there, there's so many more things to take from thinking about what you put inside your body, and you know, you, you have this whole, this really cool understanding of what disease is. And I went really, really hard for 40 years in my career, and I thought I was pretty healthy, and I thought I was really, you know, handling things well. And it turned out, I don't think I was very healthy. I had all kinds of little aches and pains. I had neck pain, I had heartburn, I had headache, I just I had a lot of things that I just attributed to I get on a plane every Monday, and I don't eat right when I'm there. Boy, when I retire, I'm just going to stop all that. I'm going to feel fine. Well, that's not the way it really works. And I, you know, I, as I mentioned, I already was gluten free and dairy free. So you know, what else could I do that? Why aren't I healthier and and so we worked really hard during those 60 days because I really wanted to get off a Prilosec. I wanted to get off of that heartburn, indigestion medication, and I wasn't able to. I I cut it down. I felt great after 60 days. I cut it down. Then when I did the the detox, I went off, you know you as you do. You go off coffee, you go off alcohol, you put only really good things in. Excuse me, you juice, you eat raw. Really amazing. And it turned out after that, two weeks, after about a week, I decided, You know what, I'm going to go off my supplements. Because I think, remember asking you during skinny 60, I wonder if supplements, or maybe you mentioned, you know, could be supplements, some, somehow it came up. So I said, You know what? Just for the heck of it, I'm going to go off supplements, and I'm also going to go off this Prilosec. And after two weeks, I was off Prilosec. Now here's the thing, I never put coffee back into my diet after that two weeks. So that's something to think about. I am never put supplements back in my diet. Because I remember you all saying, you know, if you're eating all this healthy stuff and you're eating clean and you're buying organic, why? Why do you need to be taking supplements? I'm like, Whoa. I've been doing that my whole life. Why didn't I put that together so supplements, coffee, I am about back on alcohol, all you know to really, all you know to just get it out there. But

also for that, okay?

Oh, yeah. So you also taught me about nightshade and so about tomatoes and eggplant and the kind of vegetables that grow at night. Is that why it's called, yeah, no,

they've all got solanine in them. So it's a great day. So listener, if you don't night shades are a group of foods that all contain solanine. So it is peppers, it is eggplant, potatoes and tomatoes, and yes, during the cleanse, we remove temporarily, we remove a lot of the foods that cause a lot of triggers for people, right? So it's added sugars, it's gluten, it's dairy, it's corn, soy beans, grains and night shades. Those are some very they're very, very common, widely documented, foods that cause inflammation, acid reflux, digestive dis. Stress, sleep disorders, hormone imbalances, all these sorts of things, right? So the cleanses are just a really incredible opportunity to just temporarily remove those foods for two weeks, and then we teach you how to gradually reintroduce them, so that you've got a really great opportunity to determine what your trigger foods might be and what Melynn is talking about is a really beautiful example of that. And so in skinny 60, we do not remove night shades. We do recommend some people do try that because of these reasons we just talked about. But it was such an incredible thing to watch Melynn you take this to a whole other level with your understanding of what was making your body feel good and what wasn't. And so, yeah, it's interesting, right? Where the night shades may have been the piece for you, and it may not be all of the night shades. It may be one of them, you know, it might not be all tomatoes. It might be cooked tomatoes, not raw, because cooked tomatoes are more acid forming. And raw, tomatoes are more alkaline forming, for example, right? So, you know, every single one of us is a bio individual being, and what is going to work for you is not going to work for Ellen might not work for Gretchen, etc. And that is what is so lovely about when you get to figure out the puzzle of you, and that's what you're describing. It's really thrilling. So well, we

wouldn't have done it without you. Like, you give us this knowledge to be able to then take it and, like, listen to our bodies and decide what happens next. It's like, the detox was great, but the information that we got was like, that was the part that helped take us forward to what are we going to do after this two weeks? It was great. It was really so well planned. Thank

you for thank you for those kind words, but you did the work. So the knowledge is just sitting out there if you don't receive it and actually put it into practice and actually just take that leap of faith and go, I'm just gonna see what this is and how good I can feel in two weeks. And you know, it doesn't even take two weeks. You all know that, right? It's like it just keeps getting better every day. Just keep going, Oh,

come on. I mean, it's just

such a shock. And, you know, it's just hidden wonder, right? So what's happened for you since then? Have you stayed off those supplements.

I'm off supplements, and I'm off coffee. I have reintroduced night shades. They don't seem to bother me, so I'm okay now and and now I have a cup of coffee, it doesn't even taste good, so I don't know, I don't know what's going to happen with that. I'm fine. If I'm fine if I never go back to coffee, it's really, it's all good. You know, it's

such an interesting thing, isn't it? It's great that you bring up coffee, because that is a huge barrier for a lot of people. There's no way. I'm sorry. No, no, no, I'm not bringing that my coffee. I cannot do it. No, no, no, right? And it's, it's very interesting. So for people to realize, oh, whoa. I'm drinking coffee as a crutch to help generate energy, and when my body starts to generate its own energy, I actually don't need it. So there's a difference between need and want. If you love your morning coffee ritual and it gives you pleasure, by all means, drink the coffee, one cup of really high quality coffee a day can actually support better liver function, can rev up metabolism, can actually support better health in appropriate quantities, but when we're drinking 347, cups a day, that's when we're actually retarding our ability to to generate our own energy. Um, Ellen, how did you experience that, too, right? With the coffee?

Yeah, yeah. I mean, like I said, I now I would say it's more like I enjoy that. It's that ritual piece, yeah,

beautiful reasons, right?

So we, I mean, we actually don't metabolize caffeine very well my husband or i, so we actually are our coffee is, I make sure I get water decaffeinated, because you have to be very careful when

you talk about that in the community.

So I specifically look for Swiss water decaffeinated coffee. But it's more the ritual piece, but it's, it's, you know, that was an eye opener to realize I didn't need coffee. And if you want to go off coffee and you you like that bitterness, right? You want that that taste, but you don't need that caffeine. There's so many other substitutions that, and again, that I was introduced to through the the detox, like the Ticino, yeah, these are amazing, and a couple of them can even like, be dessert, right? Like there's one or something like that can be dessert. But I definitely felt that. But I kind of wanted to add on to what Malin said about listening to your body, because, yeah, I had an experience that listening to my body. How I learned to listen to my body, I should say, through the detox help me lead me to a diagnosis years later. So in and I have a tick borne illness called Alpha gal syndrome, and it typically takes years to be diagnosed because people don't recognize the symptoms and tie it to a tick bite where I live. I have to be very tick aware, but I was very aware of the changes that were happening in my body that made me realize something was going on, one in my in my gut, like there was a disruption. And alpha gal Syndrome causes you to have an alleged allergic reaction to mammal, all things mammal. And so with that knowledge that I gained, that's just one of those other things I was talking about that, yeah, what you learn in the detox is not just these two weeks or not just about food. You're learning about your body and what to listen for and what to pay attention to, and it can help you years later. You know, when you're not even in a I was not doing a detox at the time. This was something that came up later, and so I reduced the damage done to my body by getting that diagnosis and and being able to make those changes. So I think that's just, that was just huge. And I think I sent you and Karen a note too, because, like, I this was, if it, if it weren't for the detox, I may not have put that together. So,

oh gosh, that's such a fantastic story. I mean, I'm so sorry that you're dealing with that, but you're in an empowered place with it, because you were able to make informed decisions. Oh yes. And I remember getting that email, I have to say, Karen and I called each other, you know, because we have, you know, we have a weekly meeting. We speak regularly throughout the week. But, you know, when you look, I mean, we get emails every day from both of our, you know, all of our programs. And it's just so thrilling, and it it just reminds you every day, this is why we do what we do, because it makes such a difference. And you you are empowered when you have this knowledge and you're listening to your body, you just are empowered every day. And that's such a a lovely example. Then thank you for sending that email to us, because it does really touch us. And yeah, we loved, we really loved getting that from you. Gretchen, what was your journey like with going off some of these foods that you had been used to eating, and the coffee? You know, I'll ask you about the coffee as well. Yes,

so one thing that I would like to speak to Tess is it just your program. So, you know, our feeds, our lives, our friends, everybody, we're inundated with 1000 options for do this diet, try this supplement, this will work. Try, you know, and so to land on something like, what you offer was, everybody just wants to take a pill. Or, nowadays it's the shot, you know, take the shot to lose weight. Take the pill so you don't change anything. Just do these, take this pillars, take the shot and you'll lose weight. This is about eating well and being healthy and sustainable, to be able to continue and learn the things that you have shared, which, again, melon the same thing. I mean, just I would, I would take so much knowledge is shared in the messages the face times. It's just amazing. I'd had a notebook and I just kept scratching notes and just learning so much. So, yeah, it just, I'm glad I entered into this. I thought this is about learning how to eat better, and I feel like that's going to be a pathway that is the right one to take as as opposed to all these other options that are out there. So for me, and I kind of align with Ellen, one of the first things was, like, six, seven pounds of weight loss, like right off the bat, and I know my body was inflamed, and I know that a significant amount of that was inflammation, but it was also very motivating to stay the course. Not that I wasn't, but it was like, Yes, this is working. I'm going to be anxious to see what it goes like till the end. You know how it goes till the end? So and I did also eliminate the coffee. And I have done coffee alternatives, and I continue to do that as well. So every once in a while, like this weekend, my husband asked me, should I make a full pot of coffee? And I said yes, and I have a cup occasionally, but I don't have the. Desire and craving for it, like I used to, like, like you guys have talked about the ritual of it, you know, in a cold winter morning, getting up and having a a cup of coffee. You know,

it's fabulous. I

mean, doing the coffee for the beautiful, empowered reason, I really this, and I'm going to sip on it and savor it, and it's delicious, not because I've got to drag my body out of bed and I can't wake up without it. You know, it's interesting what you were saying, Gretchen, about the shot, you know, we're talking about ozempic and all this stuff right now, and the supplements. And I want to go back to what Melynnwas saying, as well as what, what you and Ellen are saying, this idea about what healthy looks like, you know, and that that we are being proactive if we're taking 30 supplements each day, and, you know, we're doing something really great for our body, if we're doing this and doing that, or said differently, If I'm just not going to the McDonald's drive through every day and not doing gluten or dairy, I must be healthy. You know, like to Melynn's point earlier, when she said, I've been gluten dairy free forever, and I realized, well, that's doesn't mean you're healthy. I mean, no, there's all kinds of French fries are vegan. And listen, we all have those from time to time, too, for the right reasons, right for joy and whatever. We just don't do it every day, right? It's all about balance. So I I'm loving the awareness that you're all talking about, you know about redefining what healthy looks like and feels like. And so I want to ask you, from the knowledge that you gained and just the feeling in your body and all of these things, how has that changed how you look at things now? So I know that you're all omnivores, so what was it like for you to eat vegan and gluten free and a lot of raw we do cooked and raw in the beginning, and then we do cooked and raw at the end, but we do a lot of raw. What did that feel like for you? Were there any surprises for you in terms of what you thought that would look like being vegan for two weeks? So, Melynn, what did, what did it feel like for you?

I thought it was, you know, there's, there's no alternative to trust in the process. And you know, I like live that way my whole life, like if I trust my doctor, I'm going to trust whatever process he or she sends me on. So knowing what skinny 60 was and how the process really worked, I think I was most apprehensive to have to drink juice for three days. And was it two days or three days? Whatever it

was I get into that bit too, we're going to talk about it. So

I think it was more like overcoming the fear or anxiety of the approach and just taking advantage of all that there was, like, there's this entire list of here's what you get at the grocery store for this whole week, or whatever it was, three days for the first section, yeah, go to the grocery store and get all this. I didn't have to make any decisions. I just trusted that what Tess and Karen have put together is going to be fulfilling, it's going to be right, it's going to be healthy. And it was so, I think it was maybe a mindset. And so I set myself up for being satisfied, and I was, I had nothing else I can say, but it was totally satisfying. And even overachieved what I thought vegan and raw could be. Yeah,

it's interesting. What you saying about the mindset piece. Is it because the know, like and trust factor was very high for you, because you had already had 60 days with us, so you knew the recipes were delicious, you knew that it was all based in science, and it wasn't anything crazy, very extreme, and you were going to damage your body, we were going to take care of you. Ellen, when you first did it, you didn't have the benefit of that no, like, trust factor, like you do now, because you've done skinny 60 and the Deccan and detox, but you didn't so talk me through what that felt like for you deciding, okay, I know, I know you talked earlier about how you wanted a reset you were in. You decided. But were there any surprises for you about what being vegan and sometimes raw for two weeks felt like for you?

Yeah, so I want to echo what Melynn said about just the where you didn't have to think about the list and the menu. That's fabulous. I can't emphasize that enough, and it's actually I had to break it down. There's so much food it won't even fit in your fridge. So as far as to break it down into two shopping trips. But I think I was most surprised by the complexity of of flavors. I did not expect that with a vegan menu, I didn't expect that. I just, I mean, how full I would be, how, how just pleased I would be with the overall food from whether it was a smoothie or a soup or whatever it was. I mean, pudding. I mean, I know we talked about chocolates earlier. That is fabulous. And so it was. I was just surprised at the world of foods. I guess the best way to say it, there was just so much, and I was never disappointed. No, well, okay, I will say I'm not a huge fan of raw foods, but that being said, the way you have created them. And it just it makes you make them very satisfying. And so it just each day I was like, Oh my gosh, taste this oh my gosh, taste this good. So I didn't know what to expect, but I would have to say that the trust came quickly because of how pleasing all of the recipes were. Well,

let me tell you, Karen and

I know dummies, there's a reason why, in the beginning, as Richard said, we say make your chocolates before you start, right? I mean, there's

a reason why it's called the decadent detox. So Karen and I always laugh. I mean, you've heard us say this that. I mean, we eat. There's no one that can eat us under the table like we have just got huge appetites. We love food so much. And you know, for me, specifically, because when I was developing the recipes, it, you know, food, food just is one of the great pleasures of life. It has to be enjoyable and extraordinary and healthy food has to be even more delicious than unhealthy food. Otherwise, we're not going to stick to it, because, let's be honest, some of the unhealthy stuff tastes really, really delicious, and we want to eat it, right? So if I can help people see that they can do both after the detox, and do a little bit of this and a little bit of that, but and help you know, my main goal is just making vegetables taste delicious. I just want everybody to eat more vegetables. No matter what else you're doing. Just be excited about eating vegetables no matter what. So I you know, it's just so exciting for us when people love the food, right? It's really cool because, I mean, we're doing it three to five to maybe more times a day, right? It's got to be fun. So Gretchen, what was, what was your experience going vegan and doing raw and all that kind of stuff for two weeks,

right? I again. I just knew it was going to be different. I knew it was gonna be different from what I was accustomed to. So I just entered into it, and I did not feel like I missed the, you know, the meats, or anything like that, definitely satisfied by the menus and felt full, and I didn't miss it at all. So, yeah, I could go, I think I could go vegetarian pretty easily. I think, I think I would still love my fish, but, yeah, I think I could do that so, but

it's, it's very funny, isn't it, because whenever anyone finishes the detox, it's always the same sentence, isn't it? Yeah, I think I could be vegetarian.

And it's so interesting, because our response kind of surprises people, right? Which is, well, that may not be what's appropriate for your body. Your body may actually need some animal protein, right? So our goal with the cleanse is not to turn everybody into being a vegetarian or a vegan, because there's plenty of unhealthy vegetarians and vegans, right? And there is this popular misconception that being plant based means veganism or vegetarianism, right? They're not the same thing. We should all be plant based, meaning our diet should be based in plants, and then we get to supplement those plants with animal and or plant protein of our choice, right? And that, well, what is appropriate for us is is different for everybody. So often, you know, people with very high protein needs find that they fare better by eating just a little bit of animal protein, but mostly plants, right? So, yeah, it's just, it's interesting how we get to rethink these things and also get to rethink what we actually enjoy eating and what? What makes our body feel good? So I want to go back, Melynn, what you were saying? I said I'd pick it up about the juicing, right? Not only the not only just juicing, but juice fasting, so only doing liquids for three days now, obviously we're doing nutrient dense, fresh juices and broths and herbal teas, and we're we're chomping on the juice popsicles. Thank God for the juice popsicles, right? But still, if you've never fast, well, we're all fasting in every 24 hour cycle when we sleep, right? But the concept of actually not masticating and chomping on something and putting our fork to our mouth or whatever. It can be, ooh, it can be kind of a source of anxiety. What's that going to be like? Can I do it? So you spoke to a little bit about that before. Do you want to just elaborate into what that was like for you? Melynn, that the three days of the juice fasting?

Well, thank goodness you set some good expectations that it was not going to be drinking. You know, apple juice for three days. So many. There were so many options of really textural differences, and then the idea of looking at juicing as this new, like it like new, interesting opportunity to try something new. I'd never done it and I really loved it, and I still do it today, and probably drink more juice than I don't know maybe I should, but it

is really the

whole three days was like not it was no problem at all, but you gave us that expectation. So when I first started thinking about the detox. I was a little worried about that. But as it came closer, you prepared us. And I really feel like we're never too old to learn. And if I feel like, you know when I started that, I'm like, This is my chance to learn a whole lot about somebody else who's an expert, somebody else who's who can help me, like, build my own repertoire for the future, to reduce disease in my life. And so all of this really worked together, and it was a beautiful thing. I loved the juice day. Loved them.

I could do this, yes,

yeah, yeah.

What was the juice fasting like for you the first time you did it? Clearly you liked it because you kept coming back for more classes.

You know, it I kind of had the same mindset in Melynn, like, Okay, I'm just going to go with it and see what it's like. Let's see if I can do it. And, you know, you get through day one and you're feeling pretty good. Day two is definitely the hardest. And then, and by three, you're like, my gosh, I'm going to finish this thing. I think. You know they are, they're fabulous juices, and if like you You feed, you figure out your rhythm, right? You have your juice, and then you have your broth, and you have your tea, and you can have your popsicle, and so you are very hydrated, and you're really getting all of those nutrients kind of evenly throughout the day. And it's not that bad. And I would like to say if someone for whatever reason, if their body can't handle it, you and Karen kind of help them understand how they can still detox if the juice that at that moment isn't the right thing for them, and and I would say, don't be scared of the juice fast. You know it, it is. It's doable. It's it. You're still getting so many nutrients and so many good things. But yeah, I I did it. I did it there and there, I'll be honest, there were some cleanses where the juice part has been a little more difficult than others. And I think where your body is at that time,

and your mind, your and emotionally, yeah, definitely,

I've been in different mental places at at different times, and it's been a little bit more challenging, for sure.

Oh yeah. I mean, I struggle with it. Some seasons where I'm like, Oh, I'm going to make triple the popsicles, because this is just harder for me right now. I'm just emotionally I'm feeling more stressed. I mean, it's just different every time. And you know, some people, it's okay if you don't want to juice fast, you can just eat raw foods with the juices and get all the nutrients, but not fast. I mean, there's just options. Gretchen, what was the juice fasting like for you? You clearly came back for another season too.

I I did honestly test. I didn't think I was going to be able to do it. I thought in my mind, I was like, I don't think I can go three days without eating solid food. And, I mean, just like, Ellen said, day one, okay, we knocked day one out, you know? And then I just kind of just stayed with the program, just kept following it, and day two, and I did it, you know. And really, I don't feel like I felt particularly deprived or anything like that, like I didn't feel starving or lightheaded, or, you know, any of those things that I expected that might take place, you know, when I don't, when I don't eat enough. I just know, you know how my body feels and stuff, and I didn't experience that at all so

and I mean, if nothing else, the way that your skin glows after that juice fast. You know, as we get older, our skin just gets a little bit duller, drier, loses that shine, and the juice fast. I mean, that's one of the big things. I mean, all the things we're talking about, inflammation, better sleep, better energy, all the things. But I. And the skin. I mean, you're like, Baby Skin, right? Did you guys experience that? Yeah, yes, it's incredible. I mean, it's just like, whoa, I'm gonna do it, just for that, right? So, I mean, we've people come in right before weddings or, you know what? I mean, they've got big events, and they're like, right? I'm doing this. You know, you just look like a million bucks afterwards. So you've all spoken about the community a bit. I just want to dive into that a little bit more about but how that fed you during the experience, having access to the Facebook group, being on the live video calls, the email support that you know, the videos, Karen's meditations. I mean, they're so amazing. There's so many resources for support. So Ellen, how did you tap into that? What? How did that help you get through the two weeks?

Yeah, so I joined in as many of the the support calls that I could. And, you know, sometimes I had to miss some, and that was okay, and you could always go back to the recording if we needed to. But what was, I was just so great to be with the other people who are going through the exact same thing that I was at that time. And then, you know, they may have a question that I didn't have, but I could still learn from it. And I think that was the thing that really came out of those calls, was just the excellent learning opportunity to kind of dive deeper and just learn more than what just like the recipes were teaching us. And I loved it. Became friends, right with some of those people that I had gone through several classes with. You know, a couple people are popping in my head right now. We're friends on Facebook chat every once in a while, yeah. And so it was just really, really cool. And then, like I said, that Facebook page, it's still a resource, even when you're not in the detox, you you can still go to it, and it's just an incredibly supportive community. I think that's that's the thing is, there's nobody there. And you know, I'm in lots of different right face group pages, whether for my kids or for alpha gal, and there's always right the one, right? There's always the one, yeah, and there's not the one, there's not the one.

We're lucky, aren't we? I mean, I think, I think the cleanse attracts certain kind of people, right? And Karen and I sort of have these, these superpowers of attracting pretty awesome humans, right? And it is a very, very supportive, collaborative and celebratory. I think that that's the key, that we stay in celebration of ourselves, of each other, wanting to be better, wanting to learn. Like Melynn, you were saying, we are never too old to learn. It's never too late to make changes. You know. Gretchen, how did you tap into the support

I the first time I did the cleanse, I was very diligent to log in and listen to the information that you and Karen were sharing, and the information and the questions that other people in the community were asking, and again, it just, I'm echoing what's already been said, but it was just such a learning opportunity. I learned. I just gained so much information and knowledge about things that, like Ellen said I didn't even know I had a question about and I was like, Oh yeah, okay, well, that's really cool. That makes sense. So yeah, it was the second time around. I ended up my schedule was a little bit more busy. But what is so great is that I was able to take the time and listen to the recordings and do that at my convenience. So and again, even even the second time around, I still gained insights and information that just keeps coming. So, so it's been great, amazing. Yeah,

Melynn, you had come off the back of being totally ensconced in our world, in the 60 day reset in skinny 60, where we have lots of calls. And so how did you find the calls in the detox as opposed to skinny 60? And how did you tap into the detox community specifically?

Well, first of all, I'll say that I would echo exactly what Ellen and Gretchen have said absolutely but I'd like to, like comment on something, maybe a couple little different things than what they've talked about. So I spent 40 years in the communications business, and I and trying to get across that the way to get people engaged is you have to have many ways for people to come together. You have to have many ways for people to connect with you, to make them feel like they're comfortable, to make them feel important, to kind of personalize it for them. And so I feel like you've done a beautiful job at giving every person in this program. Chance to do it their way. Okay, so I'm not really a Facebook person. I kind of like I don't love that, but I go there because I know I'm going to get valuable information there. Seven o'clock at night wasn't great for me for the video calls, so I listened at six o'clock every morning the next morning. So you gave us every chance to engage, whether live, remote, virtual, email, whatever. Okay, so that's number one, and I think that's really valuable for people to know that they have whatever kind of support system they need. And then number two, I don't know how you do it, but you and Karen, treat every one of us like we are, your best associate, like we are the patient or customer, whatever we are to you, you treat us like you know us, not only on the outside, but on the inside. And there's something about that, that when we're part of this program with you, that you are in there with us, we are not having to do this alone. Yes, we have books to look at and resources and the website to look at, but we have you to tap into. And I don't think there's really any substitute for somebody making you feel like they know you enough to encourage you to keep going and that you can do this. And you and Karen did this every day, no matter how you did it. And I don't know how you do it, but you know every one of us, maybe as well or maybe better than we know ourselves. And it made for a beautiful experience.

Oh, very well said.

Thank you Well that is certainly our aim. It's certainly our mission, for sure. So I'm really thrilled that that translates for all of you. So thank you so much. I take all of that into my heart. So I always end every episode with the same question, and I'm going to ask it of the three of you as well. Within the context of this conversation, I always ask everybody, you know, if somebody has a dream in their heart and doesn't think they have what it takes to make it happen, what would you say? So within the context of our conversation today, going off what Melynn was saying about how it's never too old to make changes, and Gretchen trying something completely new, and Ellen saying, Yep, I need a reset. I'm doing this. You know, what would you say to someone who's, you know, got those aches and pains, not sleeping through the night, waking up to pee multiple times, waking up thinking, Oh, I guess I'm just in flame, and this is how it is, and I got to just put up with it. Needs to lose weight. Doesn't know where to start. You know, wants to make changes, like Gretchen said, and doesn't have a path forward. What would you say to them about making those changes they know they need to make. Ellen, what would you say?

You know, I think I would just say they they really have nothing to lose. To give the decadent detox a try. There's, there's only positive outcome. You're you're putting good things into your body. You're learning to pay attention to your body. You're learning to just balance, maybe in a way you haven't balanced before. And there's the the worst thing that could happen is maybe your ache doesn't go away, but the best thing that could happen is that it goes away and you feel like you've never felt before. And so I think that's what I would say. Just don't be scared. Just just give it a try. It's it's just something. I mean, you won't regret.

Gretchen, what would you say?

So, like I spoke of earlier, there's a lot of options out there. I mean, there's a pill for that and, and you can go to the doctor and and take pain meds and all of the things. But the thing that attracted me most to your program was it was like, just eat healthy foods. I mean, how, how simple. Yet, if you don't know the way to get there, complicated, you know, that could be, and you just laid it out there for us and made it so easy to follow and understand, and then you start to experience the results. And speaking to what Moline was saying, you are invested in our success. And I think that that's one of the things that is so appealing about the program, and it makes me want to go deeper. I definitely am going to do the skinny 60, and I just, I hope, to learn more and and do be on the path to a healthy lifestyle for as long as I am walking this earth. So, yes.

Oh, I love that so much. No, because as we get older, like you were saying earlier, Gretchen, you know, there are some people that just roll over and go, This is it. It's all from here, and they just succumb to the symptoms and go, that's it. Whereas, when you realize you have the power to control how you feel in your body, it's a whole new world. You know, you get to choose how you age. Do you want to sour like a glass of milk that's, you know, past it's used by date, or do you want to age like a fine wine that you savor and celebrate? I mean, I think we all know what we want, right? Oh, Melynn, what? What would you say?

I think that many people want to feel better, and many people want to reduce whatever symptoms they're having, or difficulties or challenges, by the way, emotional or physical challenges, but don't know where to look. And so I kind of feel like it's your community that needs to be the people that say, you know, there's something I think could help you. You know, I think sometimes we feel like we don't have the right to say, you know, if you wanted to lose a little bit of weight, I I could give you an idea. Or, you know, if you want to, like me like if you want to, you know, improve your life and get out, get off of this medication. I might have it a way to help you. I think it's our responsibility to speak up and say to those people, there is a way to do that. And by the way, life's not easy. I'm going to be the first to tell you, I really love to cook, and it's a lot, but the reward is worth the effort 100% and I, I think, like when I I brought in just a couple people to this program by just sharing what happened to me, not really to give them advice, but to share it, what happened with me. And they're like, Oh yeah, but, you know, oh yeah, but I don't cook, oh yeah, but I don't have time, oh yeah, but I don't think I would be able to, like, you know what? I think maybe you could serve yourself by just like, try, try this. And I think if we would be better about telling our story about what we've been through, we would have more people feeling better about themselves, physically and emotionally and mentally and so, like, what I take out of this is like I need to be the advocate, because I know how good I feel, and I want other people to have this experience. So that's my challenge to myself as a way to thank you for giving us this opportunity to to be part of this community.

Oh, well, I

mean, you are doing that today, all three of you, right, reaching 1000s and 1000s of people listening to this podcast. So dear listener, Melynn and Ellen and Gretchen are passing the torch to you take care of yourself and love yourself and find community that's going to help you expand into the better parts of yourself. And it starts with your gut. What do you really want? And then physically cleaning up your gut health and digestion, nourishing your body with beautiful food and positive thoughts and sleep and managing your stress. And you know, our genes are not our destiny. Epigenetics our food and lifestyle choices play a huge role in our quality of life, and that there's so many things we can't control in life, but we can control this, how we take care of this one body that we have, we have, we have control over that. So thank you so much to the three of you for sharing your story so openly and passing the torch to anybody to wants to take it right? I just really, I really appreciate all three of you so much and your very beloved members of our community. So thank you so much. Thank

you. Thank you.

Thanks. Tess.

Oh, aren't they fabulous?

What a great conversation. Was interesting. What they were saying about the mindset piece that they just decided I'm in and they just committed, and off they went. And just what Melynn was saying about trusting in the process, they were really busting some misconceptions about what a cleanse looks like, that you don't have to starve or deprive yourself. There can be lots of food and delicious food. It's not just juicing and that eating plant based for two weeks doesn't have to be bland and boring, right? You won't be hungry. It can be delicious and filling, and you can actually really relish the process. You know, they all came in for their own specific reasons, right? Ellen was saying she needed a reset. She wasn't taking care of herself. She was deciding it has to be me to take better care of myself. And Melynn, listening to those aches and pains, the sleep issues, the inflammation, wanting to be more healthy and vibrant and restore balance in her life, was interesting. What she was saying about what healthy looked like, and redefining that, that being gluten free and dairy free doesn't necessarily mean that you're healthy, that there are lots of other things that you can layer in and, you know, wanting to remove disease from my life. When she said that, you know, Gretchen deciding, I'm looking at people in their 60s, and some of them are healthy, and some of them are already resorted to the rocking chair. You know that she wanted to be healthy, but she didn't have a clear path to get started. And she didn't want it to be about the pill or the shot. She wanted it to be about eating. Well, they were all talking about learning to listen to their bodies and the flow on effect that that's had in their life. You know, when Ellen talked about being able to diagnose that tick borne illness earlier because she had learned to listen to the signs in her body and the results that they got, I mean, my goodness, the weight loss, losing of the inflammation, having better sleep, better energy, better skin, feeling more alive. You know, learning so much about what made their body feel good and what didn't the food piece right, where they were all talking about how delicious it was, and they were surprised by the variety and the complexity of the flavors, and, you know, learning to love foods that they'd never heard of before, never tried or thought they might hate. You know, I mean, gosh, when Ellen said she's now growing beets, when she thought she hated beets, that was amazing, right? And that the juice fasting is surprising. You know, when Melynn said that, well, they all said that, didn't they that it was actually quite easy once they gave over to it that they were drinking lots of juices and the broth and eating the popsicles and drinking herbal teas and things like that, was interesting. What they were saying about the coffee, right? How they learned to drink it for joy when they wanted it, not because they needed it for energy. And you know, Melynn's lost the desire for it, right? And all three of them were talking about how they drink it when they want to drink it. You know, from a really empowered place, the value of the community, I mean, and they are three beloved members of our community, you know that there is value in doing something like this in a group where people are going to ask questions that you may not think to ask about you're going to learn things from your fellow members. Everybody's going to elevate and celebrate each other. You're going to help motivate each other and keep each other going that you're not alone in this experience, and that you can make friends with people from all over the world. What I loved the most about what they all shared was about the education and the resources and the learning and the knowledge, that it goes beyond the 14 days that there's so much learning and growth that you carry forward in your life after the two week experience, and then it's just it's the gift that keeps on giving. And I love it when I hear this from members, because that's exactly what Karen and I set out to do when we created this program, just to empower you with knowledge and with tools and resources to be the best you know, the best version of yourself, and be healthy and vibrant no matter what your age is. So if you would like to join us for the next cleanse, we'd love to have you on the video calls and get to know you and for you to be part of our community so you can learn more about the 14 day cleanse at it has to be me.com. Forward, slash, detox. You.