Global Healing Senior Editor Wendee Nicole decided to do the Complete Body Cleanse Program™ — a comprehensive program to detoxify and improve health that will take three to four months to complete — and it starts with a 6-day Colon Cleanse. Not everything eaten on Wendee’s cleanse experience is approved or endorsed by Dr. Group, but this was her experience trying to follow the recommended diet and protocol as closely as possible.
Wendee’s Story
I have a milestone birthday coming up in July, and I want to get in great shape by then. I’m not getting any younger, and I want to lose some weight — my main goal — but also to get healthier overall, including reducing the risk of health ailments in later years by removing toxins from my body. Every time I do a cleanse, it resets my digestion and I feel better. It also gives me an opportunity to set my health intentions anew and even takes on a spiritual element, for me.
Global Healing’s Colon Cleanse Program™ recommends avoiding soy, gluten, red meat (and all meat), high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, refined sugar, processed foods, canned foods, alcohol, and excess coffee or caffeine, among other things. Instead, I’ll eat a variety of fruits (this includes avocados and tomatoes, which are fruits!).
Every day during the six-day cleanse, I will take Oxy-Powder® and Latero-Flora™ — a single-strain probiotic (Brevibacillus laterosporus). Latero-Flora is a transient probiotic, which means it does not set up shop in your body like other probiotics do, but passes through. However, on the way, it targets harmful organisms that live in the colon, like yeasts.
I know that prevention is the key! Dr. Group says that health begins in the colon — the large intestine — and that’s because we can accumulate years of gunk in there, including toxins and unhealthy microbes. Colon health is the start of good health!
For complete protocol details, check out our article, How To Perform a Colon Cleanse: The Complete Guide.
Below, I detail the supplements I took, how much water I drank, and all the foods I ate — as well as my overall daily experiences.
Friday — Day 1
Supplements
- 2 Latero-Flora + 6 Oxy-Powder
Water (with lemon)
Breakfast
- 1 cup blueberries & raspberries
- 1 cup ginger-mango tea
- Few sips mango kombucha
- 1 cup watermelon chunks
Lunch
- 1 avocado with sea salt
- 1 banana
- Cold-pressed mixed vegetable-fruit juice
Snack
- ½ bag crunchy mango bites
- 1 cup mint-chamomile herbal tea
Dinner
- 6 jicama tacos (jicama wraps with cucumber and carrots)
- 4 oz. homemade guacamole
- 4 mini tomatoes
- 1 cup watermelon
Activity
Woke up excited about the cleanse! Dr. Group’s standard daily recommendation is drinking half your body weight in water daily, but on a cleanse, more is better. I’m drinking from a 20-ounce reusable bottle so I can track how much I drink.
I decided to drink room temperature water because it’s easier to drink more, faster. I’m drinking way more than I normally do. To my third bottle of water, I added a capful of organic raw apple cider vinegar.
I went out with a friend for lunch, but I brought my own food there. I had carrots, avocado, and juice and it really filled me up.
It’s 4 p.m., time to head home! I noticed that on my drive home, I was a bit sleepy. Around 5 p.m. once home, I got a headache. I didn’t take any meds, but instead took a hot bath and inhaled some lavender essential oil.
Headaches and other mild discomforts are a natural part of most cleanses, and are part of what’s called the “healing crisis.” When your body purges toxins, it can naturally lead to such symptoms.
I am keeping a commitment to exercise in some capacity every single day during the Complete Body Cleanse, which, of course, includes this Colon Cleanse. I really wasn’t feeling it today with the headache, but I did 100 crunches and a 60-second plank. Exercise and moving your body keep the toxins moving out of your body, so it’s helpful.
Every evening of the Colon Cleanse, I take six capsules of Oxy-Powder, an oxygenated colon cleanser that really gets things moving. Oxy-Powder is the best colon cleansing product that I’ve ever used. You take it at night and it works gently and very effectively. The next day, there’s no cramping — just simple, easy elimination. I like that I can check off the supplements I take in the instruction booklet.
Saturday — Day 2
Supplements
- 2 Latero-Flora + 6 Oxy-Powder
Water
Breakfast
- 1 cup rooibos tea
- 1 banana
- 3 dried apricots
- 1 unsweetened applesauce cup topped with cinnamon
Lunch
- 5 jicama tacos
- 4 oz. homemade guacamole
Snack
- 2 cups cold-pressed orange-pineapple-mango juice
- ½ cup blackberries/blueberries
- Few sips mango kombucha
- ½ cup chopped Medjool dates in coconut flour
Dinner
- 6 jicama tacos
- 4 oz. guacamole
Activity
- House cleaning + raking
- Rode bike a couple of miles
My healing crisis symptoms continued on day two. It’s good that I started my cleanse on a Friday so that I could relax at home and take it easy. From past experiences, I find that the healing crisis symptoms occur in the first two or three days of a cleanse. I take comfort knowing it will go away soon, and I am doing this for my health!
After some morning tea, I started some house cleaning. I guess I felt like “cleansing” my house as well. Cleansing the body often brings psychological and emotional responses.
Later, my daughter and I started riding our bikes on the greenbelts in our neighborhood, then spontaneously decided to go to a coffee shop, which was not too far. I got a juice while there.
Back home, I took a hot bath with scented Epsom salts — a great part of any bedtime routine. Epsom salt contains magnesium sulfate, which comforts sore muscles and joints. Supportive therapies are encouraged during cleanses and you can turn your bath into a healing hot spring by adding Epsom salts, Bentonite clay, and other health-inducing ingredients. Other therapies that help a cleanse include massage, acupuncture, and saunas.
I am not taking any other supplements during this cleanse — which is what Global Healing recommends. That allows your body to devote its energy to breaking down toxins rather than processing the additional nutrients in supplements. While vitamins, minerals, and other supplements are healthful, it takes energy for the liver and kidneys to break down each and every item consumed. The simpler your diet is during a cleanse, the better the result.
Once in bed, I felt very cold and even started shivering. That was weird because, although it’s a bit cold outside, I keep my house warm. I felt so cold that I dried my hair and then used a heating pad to warm up. I am sure it’s part of the healing crisis. My body is ridding itself of toxins.
Sunday — Day 3
Supplements
- 2 Latero-Flora + 4 Oxy-Powder
Water
Breakfast
- ⅓ cup dried Medjool dates in coconut flour
- 1 cup peach passion tea
- 1 banana
- 1 dried apricot
Lunch
- ½ cup blueberries
- 1 cup peppermint tea
- 1 handful of dry roasted macadamia nuts
- 6 plantain chips
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
Dinner
- 5 jicama tacos
- 4 oz. guacamole
- 4 mini-tomatoes
Activity
- Stretching
- 100 crunches
- Tae Bo
It’s day three and I have a lot of energy and feel great. I started my day with some stretching and situps and later, at a movie with my daughter, I swapped my normal popcorn-munching habit with snacks from home: chopped dates and blueberries, plus sparkling water. Yay for small victories!
I’m weighing myself every day on this new scale I have that tells body fat, muscle mass, and more, but suffice it to say that I am not at my ideal weight and hope the colon cleanse will help!
As you get older, metabolism slows down, and that is just a natural part of life, but I am trying to increase my muscle mass and strength through exercise of various types, from yoga to running. I know that moving your body is an important part of cleansing because — along with water — it gets things moving and flowing, enabling the toxins to purge from the body.
But so far, as of day 3, I am not losing weight. But again, weight loss is not the main focus of a colon cleanse. It can happen, but often that comes when you have a lot of accumulated, compacted fecal matter in your colon. I’ve done several cleanses, so don’t expect to have much in the way of compacted waste. Since I’ve done many cleanses before, I think my colon is pretty clean overall!
When I got home, I did 40 minutes of Tae Bo. I used to do these years ago — I love Billy Blanks’ energy and I feel like I get an excellent all-over workout.
I only took four Oxy-Powder because I know that four “keeps me going” without being too much.
Monday — Day 4
Supplements
- 2 Latero-Flora + 4 Oxy-Powder
Water
Breakfast
- 1 cup rooibos tea
- Few sips coconut water
- 1 banana
- 1 pear
- 1 dried banana
- ½ cup blueberries
- ⅓ cup green grapes
Snacks
- ½ bag organic crunchy mango bites
- 1 banana
Lunch
- 1 cup carrot sticks
- 4 oz. spicy guacamole
Dinner
- 15 plantain chips with ½ avocado
- Few sips Mango Tango juice smoothie
Activity
It was my first day back at work, so I came prepared! I didn’t want to end up hungry and make poor food choices by being tempted by that. I brought the following: a banana, apple, pear, grapefruit, avocado, grapes, blueberries, lemon (to squeeze in my water), dried dates & coconut, dried banana, and a bag of carrots… I laid all the fruits out on my desk, and I found it humorous and it kept my mood high in the morning!
I’m finding it so much easier to drink water at work than at home. Weird. I’m going to the bathroom a lot, are people noticing? I added lemon to all my water today and apple cider vinegar (ACV) to my last 20 ounces.
I went to an Indian place for lunch with two friends. They are doing the colon cleanse also, but not the all-fruit option. I had one small bite of both of their vegan dishes — it was so delish! A bite or two of something else won’t blow the whole program. But my main meal was carrots and guacamole that I brought with me.
Back at the office, my stomach was very gurgly, and I was gassy (unusual for me, even on a cleanse). I wonder if it was the bite of Indian food since I hadn’t had this in the previous days.
I talked to Luis, who said that’s normal because Oxy-Powder releases oxygen in the gut and that feeling means it is working away at the gunk in the colon. The oxygen “eats” away at compacted waste in the colon, which is a key part of the colon cleanse. Knowing the benefits helps offsets any difficulties.
I didn’t end up eating all the fruits I brought to work but I did eat some and left some for tomorrow. I’m not eating all that much, but I wasn’t hungry at all during the day. Or when I felt hunger, that is, I ate some fruit and felt fine.
In the evening, I ate a few plantain chips and felt a little guilty because they are not fruit per se. But they aren’t too bad because they’re really just bananas; the only thing they’re introducing that I hadn’t been eating is oil.
Tuesday — Day 5
Supplements
- 2 Latero-Flora + 4 Oxy-Powder
Water
Breakfast
- 1.5 cups mango juice smoothie
- 1 cup rooibos tea
- 1 dried banana
- 1 banana
- 1 Gala apple
- 1 cup coconut water
Lunch
- 1 cup raw kale salad
- ⅓ cup quinoa salad
- 2 red potatoes in oil
- ½ cup corn-arugula salad
- ½ bottle turmeric golden milk
- ¼ bottle sparkling prebiotic tonic — ginger/turmeric/lemon
Snacks
- 6 organic carrot sticks, dried
- ⅓ bag dried crunchy mango bites
Dinner
- ½ avocado w/Himalayan pink salt
Activity
- Ran for 40 min
- Lunges & calf raises
Happy to nearing the end of the colon cleanse and proud of myself for beginning this health journey.
I’m finding it to be harder than I thought to eat only fruit! I had a few salad items at lunch that were not all fruit, but still, I ate no meat, dairy, eggs, sugar, or gluten, and no processed foods. I’m noticing a connection I have to emotional eating. If I’m stressed or down in any way, I crave comfort foods.
Noticing these patterns is just one positive aspect of a cleanse — they become much more obvious when you eat simply.
Cleanses can serve many positive purposes, not just cleansing out the colon. First, it’s the act of eliminating poor dietary choices which gives your digestive system a break and purges toxins.
Second, cleanses help me to eliminate poor diet choices even after it’s over. In the past, I’ve permanently given up diet soda, caffeine, gluten, and other things during and after different cleanses.
But I also use the cleanse as a time to reflect and observe. As mentioned, I am noticing this pattern — which I know is common — to eat out of emotions. Eating can be a comfort and a habit, beyond the nutritive value. That’s something I want to focus on, even after the cleanse ends.
At home, I went for a long run with my daughter. We ran for about 40 minutes. In fact, I ran further than I have in a long time. That felt so great!
I’ve had no wine all week, and I love a good glass of red wine in the evenings. In fact, I haven’t had any in a few weeks — another positive aspect of the cleanse for my health.
Wednesday — Day 6
Supplements
- 2 Latero-Flora + 2 Oxy-Powder
Water
Breakfast
- Rooibos tea
- 1 banana
- 1 cup strawberries, raspberries, blueberries
- ½ bottle mango juice smoothie
- ½ bottle turmeric golden milk
- 1 grapefruit
- 1 dried apricot
Lunch
- 2 red potatoes
- ¼ cup corn arugula salad
- ¼ cup quinoa salad
- ⅔ cup roasted zucchini & sweet potato mix
- ⅓ cup roasted okra
- ⅓ bag dried carrots
Dinner
Activity
- 25-minute yoga flow
- Arm weights
At work in the morning, I talked to one of our Customer Satisfaction specialists who said that it’s not ideal to drink store-bought juices during cleanses because they remove parts of the juice like pectin and enzymes during the pasteurization process. It’s fine to drink homemade juices, even better if you use a juicer that leaves the pulp.
I ate half of a grapefruit before our morning meetings, and it made me hungrier! But I know it’s good for me. In the meeting, my stomach was rumbling and I was super hungry. I had a dried apricot and finished the grapefruit afterward.
I’m adding some ACV and lemon to my water. I didn’t use to love the flavor of ACV, but I know it’s good for me, and the more you drink it, the better it tastes! I do prefer the taste with ACV + lemon to just ACV.
I went to a natural grocery store for lunch again and ended up eating again from the salad bar. I never thought I’d say this, but I’m looking forward to the Liver Cleanse which comes next on the Complete Body Cleanse — because I can eat other stuff!
When I got home, I was kind of struggling with low energy and motivation, but I’m not sure why. I know that emotions can come up during any cleanse, especially as you get into deeper cleansing — in other words, when you’ve done several. I’m really proud of myself for sticking with it, and for exercising daily!
Today, when I didn’t feel motivated to exercise, I found a 30-day yoga video series online. We can do hard things! The first one was a simple 25-minute flow. Then I did some arm weights — biceps, triceps, shoulders — afterward. I was so glad I pushed myself to do it and it made me feel proud that I stuck to my commitment. Mentally, I feel recentered and that is a good way to finish the cleanse.
Because supportive therapies are helpful during a cleanse, and I plan to reward myself with a massage this weekend and go to the chiropractor next Tuesday. That’s a great way to end these six days and transition to the liver cleanse, the next step in the Complete Body Cleanse I’m doing!
Overall Experience
I feel really happy and “clean” because I ate very healthy throughout the entire program. I feel good about what I’m putting into my body. I feel great about exercising every day, whether it’s a day where I push myself with 40 minutes of running, a gentle yoga flow, or even just a few crunches.
I am seeing that my stomach is flatter, and my digestive system feels clean. Since I just finished, I can’t say how my digestion is going to be after, but from past experience I find cleanses make me very regular — like clockwork! It takes a couple of days for Oxy-Powder’s effects to gradually wear off, and the colon to fill back up with more substantial food.
Doing something structured like this cleanse helps me in other areas of my life. Knowing I’m cleansing with a goal of weight loss, it helps motivate me to keep going on the exercise, knowing I’m improving my overall health.
The baby steps of some small exercise when I don’t have the energy for something more really helps me. And while exercising during a cleanse is not absolutely essential, it really helps move things through your system and makes you healthier in the process.
Advice
Plan your meals in advance, especially if you work. I found breakfast the easiest because I would just bring fruit. For lunch, I would bring fruit and raw veggies, but the time I went out with a friend, I got tempted to go back and get some of that delicious food the next day! Even if it was plant-based without any wheat, gluten, soy, etc., it was cooked when I was initially aiming for raw.
Also, when you eat out, it’s really hard to know what is in your salad dressing or whatever, even when you order something pretty healthy. So I definitely recommend sticking to bringing your own food if you want to be strict about the cleanse.
To remember to take my supplements, I put the bottles on my bathroom counter. I took Latero-Flora in the morning and Oxy-Powder the evening before bed.
I started out with the recommended six capsules of Oxy-Powder but reduced to four as that worked better for me at work. In an ideal world, I would have followed the protocol more precisely, but this was my honest experience. I did not have to rush to the bathroom or have any concerns with that at all. I would usually wake and have a nice hefty BM, and then at work would also go to the bathroom (number two) a couple of times. Other than the one day with a gurgly stomach, I did not experience any stomach upset, diarrhea, or gas.
Everyone has questions during a new cleanse. I had these questions and asked our Customer Satisfaction Team Manager Luis. Here are his answers.
Can I drink store-bought juice?
You can, but it’s not optimal for the colon cleanse. Dr. Group recommends fruits in as close to their natural “live” state as possible. If you drink juice, it’s best to make it yourself.
How long do the effects of Oxy-Powder last?
Its effects last 18 hours. (That makes sense why it seems to loosen the poo, not just the day after you take it, but the following day as well.)
Can I eat dried fruit?
Yes, but be careful not to overeat. It’s not hard to do.
Can I just eat fruit and vegetables, but raw? Why all fruit?
Dr. Group believes fruit is best for cleansing the colon. Fruit is full of both soluble and insoluble fiber, while also containing high levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other nutrients.
Can I drink tea in that 20-minute period between taking Latero-Flora and eating?
Yes, it’s ok. It does not interfere unless you’re taking a probiotic at the same time as oregano tea or oregano oil, which kills probiotics. It will make little to no difference. The 20 minutes is really to ensure enough time for the capsule to open so that it can travel to the small intestine along with the food you are about to ingest.
†Results may vary. Information and statements made are for education purposes and are not intended to replace the advice of your doctor. If you have a severe medical condition or health concern, see your physician.