It’s cleanse time!

I’ve blogged about detox a lot here and here but in this post, I want to share with you what I’m planning to do this month for a bit of a cleanse.

On a personal note, it hasn’t been the best year for me. I separated from my husband at the beginning of the year. Met someone recently and had a brief relationship which ended in well, a bit of a train wreck really. Needless to say, my emotional state hasn’t been the greatest, and consequently, I haven’t been looking after myself as much as I used to. This translates to more wine, more eating out and more wheat and dairy creeping into my diet. Yes, naturopaths are human too and although I wouldn’t say my diet has been terrible it certainly isn’t what it was 12 months ago.

Anyhow, I’ve done some healing and am beginning to move on to the next phase of my life. What better time than now to do a one-month cleanse to reclaim my health and get my life back in order.

I’m telling you this because we all need a reset from time to time and a cleanse is a great way to create focus and nourish your body while removing substances that suppress our emotions and leave us depleted of vitality (I’m talking sugar, coffee and alcohol here). And to also suggest that doing a physical cleanse is also a good opportunity to do an emotional cleanse as well, so I’ll talk about how I’m intending to do that.

There are many different ways that you can cleanse but the idea is that we’re ‘cleaning up’ the diet, removing foods that are heavy and burdening on the body. And including all the things which help our body to thrive.

Here’s my cleanse plan for the next 30 days:

ELIMINATING

  • Gluten – this means no bread (I’m not a fan of gluten-free bread, they’re usually very processed and I’d rather avoid it altogether) and being a label detective. Gluten is hidden in things like sauces and flavourings so you need to watch out for that.
  • Dairy – My body doesn’t love dairy, and to be honest not many people’s bodies do. Dairy contains lactose which most people find hard to digest as well as casein which is a large protein that your immune system and gut are not fond of. Goodbye cheese.
  • Sugar – I’m talking added sugar and overt sweets too. I’m also avoiding coconut sugar and nectar so I stay off the raw chocolate. I’ll include some raw honey or maple syrup from time to time.
  • Coffee and caffeinated tea – I’m actually quite a caffeine sensitive so don’t have coffee much anyway. I’m going to go caffeine-free to give my adrenals the break they deserve.
  • Alcohol – no booze for me. I haven’t done a month wine-free since 2016 and I’m actually looking forward to it!

INCLUDING

  • 2+ litres of filtered water every day. I just bought a Minwell+ filter for my apartment from Brisbane Natural Health so perfect timing.
  • Weekly acupuncture – to help to balance, realign and move stuck emotions (yes acupuncture can do this!)
  • Greens every day – lots of spinach, kale, silverbeet, and anything else I can get my hands on.
  • More vego meals and less meat – soups and legume-based dishes yum yum. I’ll post them on Instagram for you J
  • Apple cider vinegar (with the mother) – 20ml on rising in some warm water to get my digestion going.
  • Dry skin brushing – once a day, before showering to stimulate lymphatic flow (and fro smooth skin)
  • Movement – 2 x runs a week minimum and 2 x either yoga or bushwalking up Mt Cootha. Sweating is so important to detox and healing.
  • Meditation – 10min minimum after exercising. I use an app for this or Kate Reardon’s meditations.
  • Gratitude journal – Fill in 5 things that I’m grateful for before bed each night.
  • Laughter and Joy – this is something that I really want to focus on this month. Watching comedy and funny movies, joking with friends, hanging out with my 5-year-old daughter, and goofing around. Consciously creating joy.
  • Juice – in particular green juice. Organic celery, cucumber, beetroot, lemon, grapefruit, and cabbage are my fave detox juices.

I’ve done this type of cleanse many times before (I aim for twice a year) so I’m really looking forward to the rewards of more energy and increased vitality. See you on the other side!