January is legendary for being the month people resort to extreme programs to lose weight and cleanse their bodies.
This year, more than ever, friends, clients and even family members were asking me for advice or telling me about some new juice cleanse.
To be honest, juice cleanses never made sense to me. I find them to be too drastic, unnatural (often supplement or product driven), and harsh on physical and mental performance. While some of them work fast, they never produce lasting results.
Is there an alternative? I think so!
Here are three strategies you can incorporate immediately, while maintaining an active lifestyle, to help you lose body fat and promote overall health and energy while teaching you a thing or two about your body.
1. Drink up:
Drink a liter of water first thing in the morning, before you eat.
We lose water during the night through breathing, sweating and other chemical processes. The best way to rehydrate and encourage removal of toxins through urine and stool is drinking lots of water as soon as you wake up.
Warm lemon or lime water is ideal. Amongst many reasons, it balances pH levels, prepares digestive system for food, aids fat loss and stimulates gall bladder to get rid of waste and toxins. Apple cider vinegar also makes blood more alkaline, but it doesn’t taste as delicious with your water 🙂
Try it for a week, and see how you feel. I’m confident you will feel and look better!
2. Add greens and superfoods to your diet:
You can only get as strong as your body is healthy. If you want to perform better as an athlete, you need to make sure that your internal physiology is functioning at its best. One of the most powerful ways to improve your health is to add more greens to your diet.
Why greens?
Greens provide a major source of alkalinity in our diets and balance blood pH levels. Greens are also filled with disease fighting phytonutrients, and provide essential vitamins and minerals.
When our bodies are acidic, we suffer from low energy, don’t absorb food well, and are more prone to sickness. Primary causes of acidic condition in our bodies are stress and foods like sugar, alcohol, coffee and unnaturally raised animal proteins. –TWEET THIS
I don’t know about you, but eating raw kale, swiss chard, bok choy, (actually all of those are better eaten slightly cooked to neutralize oxalic acid which can irritate intestinal tract or even cause kidney stones) parsley or large amounts of lettuce just doesn’t come easy to me. But I can drink a tasty shake any day.
Here is one of my favorite shakes that helps me add a large amount of greens to my diet:
Mix these ingredients in a blender:
300ml of unsweetened coconut milk
Juice of 1 lime
1 head of kale or swiss chard (multiple colors are great! More colors = more phytonutrients)
1/2 avocado
1/2 cup of carrots
1 banana
1/2 cup cilantro (try this even if you don’t love cilantro…..)
1/2 cup parsley
1/2 cup ice
Enjoy anytime throughout the day as a snack. It makes one to two servings.
I came up with this shake because I had a strangely intense craving for cilantro and parsley. When my cravings change, so will this shake. Sometimes I might add spices or ginger to it. Listen to your cravings and experiment.
Warning: If you are not used to eating high quantities of raw greens, your stomach may get a little upset in the beginning. It does not necessarily mean that you should not eat greens. It just means your body is not used to breaking them down. Start slowly and increase gradually. If raw kale upsets your stomach or you are predisposed to kidney stones, consider lightly steaming it before adding to the shake. Also consult your doctor or health specialist if you have unusual needs.
Other superfoods you could add to your diet: chia seeds, cacao nibs, ground flax, coconut oil/butter, shredded coconut, sesame seeds, fermented foods and drinks, various spices and berries.
3. Restrict inflammatory or harmful foods and substances in your diet:
Most people are aware that sugar, alcohol, and excess caffeine are addictive and can be unhealthy.
But there are other foods that might cause inflammation or less obvious mild allergic reactions in our bodies. This may show up as congestion, excessive mucous, bloated stomach, skin irritations, joint pain or just lack of energy.
Some of the most common plant foods to cause issues are soy, corn, wheat and many other grains (sprouting or soaking may aid digestion of some grains). Even legumes such as peanuts or nightshades (red peppers, tomatoes, eggplant…) can cause irritation in some. All unnaturally raised animal products (corn fed beef, farm raised fish, pasteurized dairy etc) are either hard to digest or contain an abnormally high amount of omega-6 fatty acids which cause inflammation in our bodies.
The best way to figure out what causes allergic reactions in your body is to eliminate inflammatory foods for 1-4 weeks and reintroduce them one at a time while paying close attention to how you feel.
So there you have it! Next time you need to lose weight or get rid of toxins in your body, use this simple formula: eliminate bad stuff, replace it with good stuff and drink more water. It’s simple to understand, not easy to consistently practice, but always worthwhile to invest in your health.