After the silly season the chances are your body is feeling less-than-stellar. If you feasted on tons of Christmas cookies, ham, and the holiday cheese plate it’s safe to say you may be feeling the need for a reset.
The good news is that you don’t have to resort to a crash diet or hours upon hours of exercise to get back on track. Your body is resilient and knows how to heal itself. Here are a few gentle ways you can help it along the way.
For so many of us, consuming sweets and heavy foods are what the holidays are made of, and it’s only natural to feel a little sluggish afterward.
I'm about to share with you some easy ways to detoxify your body and feel your best after the holidays.
Further, this isn’t about dieting. Cleansing your body after the holidays is about acknowledging fun times over the holiday season and then taking steps to move forward into the New Year feeling your best and full of energy.
Which leads me to my first point…
1.LET GO OF GUILT
Let’s be honest, when we think of indulging over the holidays, we often relate it with “bad” foods or foods that we feel guilty about eating. However, I like to think of the foods we eat over the holidays as fun traditions that bring our families and communities together.
Sure, it may not be a healthy idea to consume these foods all year round, but when enjoyed with loved ones in the spirit of the holidays, these indulgences should inspire happy times.
So, with this in mind, I want you to shake off any guilt or shame that you may be feeling over what you consumed over the holidays. You’re human, and you’re allowed a treat every now and then – in fact, it’s essential in living a balanced lifestyle.
Instead of being led by guilt, try and come up with some positive motivators to help you move forward in cleansing your body – having more energy and feeling better are two great ones!
2. LEMON WATER
Have you had a glass of lemon water today? Not only is lemon water delicious, but there are so many health benefits to drinking it regularly as well. Lemon water is great in promoting hydration, it’s a great source of Vitamin C, it aids digestion, and it helps prevent kidney stones and helps detoxify the liver ( which for most of us has coped a beating over the silly season.)
All excellent reasons to enjoy some lemon water after the holidays!
3. TAKE EPSON SALT BATHS
I’m sure I don’t need to twist your arm on this one, but there’s really no downside to taking a long bath filled with Epsom Salts. The main ingredients in Epsom Salts are magnesium and sulfate, two ingredients that help stimulate detoxification.
Keeping in mind your recent holiday indulgence, an Epsom Salt bath can strengthen the walls of your digestive tract and draw out toxins. Additional benefits include soothing irritated skin (it’s great for eczema and psoriasis), providing muscle pain relief (the magnesium takes down inflammation), and it can even help promote your body’s production of melatonin which can help you sleep better.
4. INTERMITTED FASTING
Personally my favourite way to detox your vital organs responsible for detoxification.
When you fast your body goes into healing mode called Autophagy.
Autophagy is a vital process in which the body’s cells “clean out” any unnecessary or damaged components, in order to regenerate healthier cells. Autophagy also seems to play an essential role in the immune system by cleaning out toxins and infectious agents.
The longer you fast the greater the restoration.
Try a 24 hr fast. it's easier than you think !!
I personally find it easy to have dinner as my last meal and fast from food until dinner the next day. Mind you, you can still enjoy coffee, tea, miso soup, bone broth within limits, if you get REALLY hungry. Try having a glass of water when you start to feel hungry. It may only be that you need hydrating and are not hungry in the first place. Water fasting is the most effective way to fast, but may be difficult for many of us, particularly after over indulging over the holidays.
5. EAT MINDFULLY
If the holidays had you over-consuming some of your favourite foods and you’re struggling to get back on track, then consider implementing mindful eating to your routine.
Mindful eating means sitting at your dining room table and eating every morsel of food with intention. Taste your food, smell your food, chew slowly, and listen to your body as you do so. Notice how your body feels as you eat and stop eating when you feel full.
Further, make sure you eat completely free of distraction. Take your phone out of the room as you eat, and turn off the TV.
According to studies, people who eat mindfully report fewer incidences of binge eating, emotional eating, and are less responsive to attractive food marketing.
What is mindful eating, you may ask. To eat mindfully is to pay full attention to your meal when you are eating it. It is avoiding distractions such as reading or watching tv while eating your meal. To look at your food and really taste and enjoy it. This helps improve digestion and the breakdown of your food which in turn nourishes your body and your soul.
Personally, I’ve found that mindful eating has led me to enjoy my food more, enjoy cooking more by putting love into it. When you cook feeling stressed or angry you transfer that energy into your food. When you eat food with negative energy you may experience indigestion such as bloating, heartburn and feeling of discomfort. This can also assist in weight gain.
6. YOGA
Yoga is the quickest way to get your energy system back into balance, plus it boosts your mood. Yoga will help to stimulate the glandular systems of your body improving digestion and stimulating your organs to work more efficiently. Breath work in yoga oxygenates your cells and brain giving you more vitality, which is something you can greatly benefit from after holiday season.
Try incorporating 20 to 30 minutes in the morning if you can't get to the studio.
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7. TAKE A CAFFEINE AND ALCOHOL BREAK
If your holiday indulgence meant drinking a little too much coffee in the morning and having one too many drinks at night, then consider doing a mini alcohol and coffee detox.
Apart from the long-term risks associated with overindulging in caffeine or alcohol (which is for another article altogether), studies have shown that short term over-indulgence in both substances may give you heartburn, higher blood pressure, worse sleep, and dehydration.
While there’s nothing wrong with having a cup of coffee in the morning or a glass of wine at night, try abstaining for a week or two and keep a log of how you feel along the way.
8. EAT PLENTY OF GREEN VEGETABLES
While eating a lot of vegetables is always a great idea, introducing more greens is an excellent way of cleansing your body after the holidays.
High-alkaline vegetables are excellent to use in a cleanse as they help to detoxify your body, provide your body with lots of antioxidants, and give you some very-good-for-you phytonutrients.
Some of the best high-alkaline greens are kale, spinach, spirulina, broccoli, celery, green bell pepper, and even parsley.
Focus on plant-based meals.
Although you may be tempted to eat very little after eating so poorly, it’s important to focus on nourishing, healthy meals. Think fruits, veggies, and plant-based proteins.
9. SWEAT IT OUT
One of the easiest ways to cleanse your body of toxins? Sweat it out !!!
Many studies have proven that many toxins can easily be eliminated through your skin pores, helping out your liver and kidneys in a big way. So, whether you want to go to a hot yoga class, spend some time in a sauna, or get your heart pumping through exercise, getting sweaty will help you feel better fast.
If going for a run is too intense, try getting your sweat on with a visit to an infrared sauna. Infrared is the type of light used to heat objects in the sauna instead of air, allowing the body to sweat at lower temperatures. Because infrared light penetrates deeper, the heat pulls out toxins deep under the skin and exfoliates them through the skin—which is amazing for detoxifying and weight loss!
Book an Infrared Sauna Today !!
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10. IMPLEMENT A GOOD SLEEP REGIME
We all know by now how important a good night’s sleep is for you. But, if you’re anything like me, your sleep routine went totally out the window during the holidays.
If staying up late and sleeping in was the name of the game this past while – giving you either not enough or too much sleep – then it’s probably time to implement a more steady regimen and make sure you get at least 7-9 hours of sleep per night
Getting an adequate amount of sleep will help you stay on track with healthy eating, exercise, or any of the other habits listed.
Incorporate one or all of the above and watch your energy soar so you can be CHARGED to take on 2022 !!!

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