Have you wondered what happens to your body on a Cleanse Day? While researchers commonly use the term intermittent fasting to describe the basic concept, an Isagenix Cleanse Day is a nutritionally supported fast that will help you feel nourished and energized, instead of deprived or run-down. No, there are no laxatives or diuretics involved.
Cleanse Days are an important part of the Isagenix System and are a powerful tool in helping you to reach or maintain a healthy weight. While there is significant scientific evidence supporting the benefits of Cleanse Days for aiding weight loss, there are more potential health benefits from Cleanse Days beyond a healthy weight (1). Here are four positive things that go on inside your body during a Cleanse Day.
1. You improve insulin sensitivity.
Regularly practicing Cleanse Days can help to tune up your metabolism. During a Cleanse Day, the body becomes more sensitive to the action of insulin, which is essential for maintaining normal blood sugar levels (1, 2).
2. You not only burn more fat, but burn the worst kind of fat.
When you are fasting, the body mobilizes stored energy in the form of body fat. If burning fat wasn’t enough of a reason to do regular Cleanse Days, then consider that as part of an Isagenix System, Cleanse Days are shown to go further by helping reduce visceral fat (3). Visceral fat is the type of fat that surrounds internal organs and has been strongly associated with poor health.
3. You rev up your body’s cellular cleansing system.
By eating frequently, you provide your body with a steady flow of nutrients and energy. This environment of abundance keeps your cells in continuous “growth mode.” On a Cleanse Day, you allow your body to rest and permit your own natural cleansing and rejuvenation processes to occur. Nutritional cleansing activates several systems in your cells that break down old cellular components into their basic building blocks to recycle them into new components—a process known as autophagy (4). Autophagy goes to work on a Cleanse Day by cleaning up worn-out parts within your cells.
4. You nourish your body with cleansing, health-supporting nutrients.
Cleansing with Isagenix is a unique way to practice nutritionally-supported intermittent fasting. Depending on which method you chose, an Isagenix Cleanse Day involves abstaining from virtually all food for one or two days. In place of food, you drink Cleanse for Life®, a phytonutrient-rich botanical beverage designed to nourish and support your body’s natural detoxification systems, along with Cleanse Day tools such as Snack Bites or BĒA™ to satisfy cravings and boost energy.
Many beneficial things happen to your body during a Cleanse Day. By regularly practicing Cleanse Days, you can tune up your metabolism, burn more fat, and allow your body’s own cellular cleansing and rejuvenation systems to work at their peak. Whether your goal is to lose weight or you are just interested in doing something good for yourself, Cleanse Days can have benefits for you.
References
- Varady KA, Hellerstein MK. Alternate-day fasting and chronic disease prevention: a review of human and animal trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Jul;86(1):7-13.
- Halberg N, Henriksen M, Söderhamn N, Stallknecht B, Ploug T, Schjerling P, Dela F. Effect of intermittent fasting and refeeding on insulin action in healthy men. J Appl Physiol. 2005 Dec;99(6):2128-36.
- Klempel MC, Kroeger CM, Bhutani S, Trepanowski JF, Varady KA. Intermittent fasting combined with calorie restriction is effective for weight loss and cardio-protection in obese women. Nutr J. 2012 Nov 21;11:98.
- Bergamini E, Cavallini G, Donati A, Gori Z. The role of autophagy in aging: its essential part in the anti-aging mechanism of caloric restriction. Ann NY Acad Sci. 2007 Oct;1114:69-78.
