This weekend, Andy went out to the reef for a research trip. Usually when he's away, I eat lots of crap, especially carbohydrates. But I just spent a month doing that in the name of christmas, so I didn't really need to eat more crap. So I planned a short detox for myself.
It was nothing official, just a self-designed 3 day thing. I read lots of websites and gathered information from them about what types of food I should eat, as well as exercising and other details. Especially informative was all the tabs on
this website.
The parameters I set out for myself included no caffeine, no refined sugar, no salt, no wheat, no soy (not that it is bad for you, but I consume a whole lot of it and wanted to give my body a break), and no processed foods. Mostly, I planned to eat lots of whole, raw fruits and veggies. I also aimed to drink at least 2 litres of water per day. And, I would avoid uni, and thus the internet, and get caught up on some back work I had to do.
The first day was easy. The second wasn't too bad either. I ate lots of mango, fresh pomegranate, bananas, and oranges. For dinner I had garlic soup full of fresh tomato, carrot and eggplant; or miso soup with wakame. I went for a few walks, and did some pilates and other stretching exercises.
To add some variety in textures, I made some mango banana sorbet. Basically, I peeled and chopped one banana and two mangos, then squished it all up with my hands and froze it. Very easy.
I also made this banana sesame pudding, aka a banana mashed with some tahini, maple syrup, and sesame seeds. Sure, it looks like mushy baby food, but it tasted good.
By the third day, I was really craving some starchy food. All I wanted was a piece of toast. But, that would be cheating, so I had to find another way to satisfy that urge. Almonds and dried fruit didn't do it for me, but plain organic popcorn made a fair effort.
For my last detox dinner, I had plain brown rice with lentil capsicum salad. It was okay, but really, I just wanted some salt on it.
Everything I've read and heard about detoxing has implied a horrible few days, full of 'healing crises' and headaches. That didn't happen to me. I don't even feel particularly better--though I didn't feel bad in the first place. I think next time I'll do it for longer, or do something a bit more drastic--all juice or something. I did find that I drank 3 litres of water a day, plus tea. Maybe that's because it was 36 degrees out. All told, I don't really see what the hype is with detoxing, but I'll give it another go in the future.
It was nothing official, just a self-designed 3 day thing. I read lots of websites and gathered information from them about what types of food I should eat, as well as exercising and other details. Especially informative was all the tabs on this website.
The parameters I set out for myself included no caffeine, no refined sugar, no salt, no wheat, no soy (not that it is bad for you, but I consume a whole lot of it and wanted to give my body a break), and no processed foods. Mostly, I planned to eat lots of whole, raw fruits and veggies. I also aimed to drink at least 2 litres of water per day. And, I would avoid uni, and thus the internet, and get caught up on some back work I had to do.
The first day was easy. The second wasn't too bad either. I ate lots of mango, fresh pomegranate, bananas, and oranges. For dinner I had garlic soup full of fresh tomato, carrot and eggplant; or miso soup with wakame. I went for a few walks, and did some pilates and other stretching exercises.
I also made this banana sesame pudding, aka a banana mashed with some tahini, maple syrup, and sesame seeds. Sure, it looks like mushy baby food, but it tasted good.
By the third day, I was really craving some starchy food. All I wanted was a piece of toast. But, that would be cheating, so I had to find another way to satisfy that urge. Almonds and dried fruit didn't do it for me, but plain organic popcorn made a fair effort.
For my last detox dinner, I had plain brown rice with lentil capsicum salad. It was okay, but really, I just wanted some salt on it.
Everything I've read and heard about detoxing has implied a horrible few days, full of 'healing crises' and headaches. That didn't happen to me. I don't even feel particularly better--though I didn't feel bad in the first place. I think next time I'll do it for longer, or do something a bit more drastic--all juice or something. I did find that I drank 3 litres of water a day, plus tea. Maybe that's because it was 36 degrees out. All told, I don't really see what the hype is with detoxing, but I'll give it another go in the future.