Seasonal Detox
Spring season has arrived. It symbolizes new life, new energy, new look. Are you happy with your new look? Some of us are probably not.
During winter our body asks us for more heavy food with lots of bad carbs and fats and it is difficult to resist. Result is our clothes are seems to fill tighter, our energy is lower and our skin looked stressed out, because we know that skin is our biggest and reactive organ of the body. So whatever we put inside body and topically make significant impact how it looks. If we don’t like how we look now it is probably time to make some changes.
There are a few easy and really working ones.
Change some of your habits. And start with your food habits. Get your body more fruits and veggie. They will give lots of hydration, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and healthy carbs, which make your body stronger and healthier. And it is important, because you need more energy for regular exercises and it is second important step for success, because it will burn fat and improve your body metabolism.
Third important step is to cleanse our body from the toxins it been accumulating during winter. There are lots of detoxification systems for liver and kidney you can see over the counter around. I just want to warn you that any extreme detox program should be done under doctor control. The danger of those programs that sometimes they can do more harm than good, because released toxins go into blood, which can affect your well being depends on your body conditions. That’s why the moderation and regularity are very important to get success fighting toxins and fats and get the look you deserve.
Lake Loise (MD in education from Stanford University, founder and CEO of SMB Essentials) is offering interesting and simple, in my opinion, 3-Day seasonal cleanse, which is great way to refocus and recommit to the goals and resolutions that you made at the beginning of the year.
3 day seasonal cleanse.
A week prior to cleansing, gradually reduce your intake of sugar and artificial sweeteners, white flour, dairy, alcohol, salt and caffeine, while increasing your intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. This prepares you for the change, both mentally and physically.
- Upon rising: Drink 1 cup of hot water with lemon; sit in silence for 10 minutes.
- Breakfast: Green smoothie: 2 handfuls of spinach, 1 banana, 1 apple (cored), 1 tablespoon flax seed oil and 16 oz filtered water OR 1 cup of oatmeal with almond or rice milk.
- Snack: 1 apple or pear and a handful of unsalted raw almonds.
- Lunch: 1 cup legumes; 1 cup brown rice or quinoa; 1 cup steamed chard, kale or spinach.
- Snack: 2 apples OR 1 cup of celery and carrot sticks with 2 tablespoons of hummus.
- Dinner: 1 cup of steamed beets with brown rice; 1 cup of steamed kale, chard, collard greens or spinach.
- Before bed: Drink 1 cup of hot lemon water. Drink plenty of water throughout the day.
- Begin and end the day with 1 teaspoon of psyllium powder mixed with 10 oz water. This assists the elimination process.
Detoxifying the body targets the liver (where toxins and mood-altering hormones can build up) and the colon (which holds waste). It is very common to experience an increase in energy and improved digestion, both of which lead to healthier skin and a greater ability to focus. Regularly doing a seasonal cleanse can help us follow a lifetime of healthier eating. Mark your calendar this spring and make a commitment to prepare your body for the new season.