Spring clean(se)

The start of spring is a great time to reset and rejuvenate – and a great way to do this is through a seasonal cleanse. I’m committing to a 10 day cleanse and I’d love for you to join me!

The body is great at naturally detoxifying itself, however we are subject to so much more these days than our ancestors ever were, creating excess toxins for our livers to process, be it excess sugars and additives in our food, antibiotics in our meat, increased use of over-the-counter medication and alcohol and caffeine. A cleanse can help your bodies enzymes and liver detoxify your body through assisting to speed up this process.

Side effects of a sluggish system can include

• restless sleep
• weight gain/inability to lose weight
• digestive issues
• low energy/fatigue
• mood swings
• brain fog
• unexplained headaches

Whilst I normally try to eat healthy most of the time, over the past three or four weeks, my “sometimes” treats have started to increase (case in point – this, or this, plus all the other sweet treats I neglected to post!), and my overall health has suffered as a result – my sleeping patterns are out of whack and I’ve been feeling constantly tired and lacking energy and motivation.

So I have decided to do a little cleanse for the next 10 days to get myself back on track and start feeling amazing again!

What I’m doing and why

• Cutting out inflammatory foods like wheat, gluten (I’m actually on a two month gluten free diet at the moment so this one shouldn’t be hard!) dairy, caffeine, alcohol and all processed foods. These foods are all inflammatory and instead I’ll be eating lots of fresh vegetables, green juices and smoothies, probiotic foods and beverages and wholefoods like nuts, seeds, avocado, legumes and wholegrains like buckwheat and quinoa.

• NO SUGAR! My sugar intake has increased dramatically over the past month, so for the next 10 days I’m limiting my sugar intake to only one to two serves of fruit per day for the whole period. This is largely due to the fact that fruit is high in sugar and I know from experience that eating a lot of fruit will make me crave other sweeter food.

In addition to my diet, I’m also using this time to detox other areas of my life that I feel could use with a little reset.

• No computer/internet after 8:30pm every night – instead I’m going to spend time with my family, read, and wind down for the night

• Sleep – I’m aiming to get a good 8 hours of sleep a night, lately my sleeps been a little interrupted and I’d like to get this back on track

• Exercise – I’ve been increasing my yoga and Pilates classes lately, but at the expense of my cardio. I’m aiming to do a little cardio most days – enough to work up a little sweat, which is another fantastic way to get rid of toxins from your body.

Over the next 10 days, I’ll be posting my daily eats and progress on Instagram and I’ll also post some tips and recipes here for you to enjoy.

Can you relate to any of the symptoms above? If so, a spring cleanse might be a great solution for you as well. Some of the benefits to a cleanse are

• Improved sleeping patterns
• Clearer skin
• Clearer thoughts/more focus
• Increased energy
• Improved digestion
• Weight loss
• Increased motivation

Even a gentle cleanse can help – you don’t need to completely restrict certain foods, do what’s right for you and your body. Simple changes like lemon water in the morning or a few extra serves of fresh vegetables a day can help to slowly cleanse your system and get you on your way to a healthier you!

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Please note the above is intended as a guide only – please consult s doctor or nutritionist before drastically change your diet