Detox Basics

No time like spring time to be on a detox. If you are considering doing it you are timing it right because, right now, the body is keen on loosing releasing the extra pounds we’ve piled on. That fat is also the storage of toxins. Season appropriate weight loss diet is always the best way to achieve results.

Spring requires us to eat less and eat lightly. Small intermittent fasting and spring foods (such as sprouts and leafy greens) do the job perfectly. We should avoid heavy items such as dairy and meat and let the spring clean happen naturally by resorting to lightness more exercise. Sounds like a Weight Watchers plan? If you are trying to lose weight at this point by having plenty of fat and meat, you are working against the nature’s needs. That would be the way to do it in winter and that is called the ketogenic diet.

If you have noticed signs of increasing mucous, less immunity, hay fever, asthma, heavy headaches, depression, fatigue and lethargy, you need to start detoxifying and stop the process of seasonal disorders. Timing your meal right and resorting to spring foods is the way to do it. Not difficult yet highly effective. Check out the five basics of detoxing I’ve listed here below before you start. If you want a custom made your program or have someone to walk you through the process email anu@jivitaayurveda.com.

1 – Do you feel toxic?

Symptoms such as heaviness and fatigue even if eating healthy foods, loss of appetite, heavily coated tongue, smelly gas for days, bad breath and bad skin are some of them. Generally, if you do not feel well, even if “on paper” you should, it’s time to detoxify.

2 – What is your current life situation?

Detoxing requires relaxation to allow flow of toxins out of the body. Stress causes congestion and therefore stress and detoxing do not form a combo that brings good results.

If changes in your current routines are difficult to make to allow thorough relaxation, then it is possible to detox with less intensity for longer periods of time.

3 – Do you need to lose weight or avoid weight loss?

An ayurvedic cleanse does not necessarily mean weight loss. Toxicity can be found in people who are underweight or generally do not need to lose any. These detoxes are fortifying and nourishing.

4 – What are your beliefs about your success?

Denying food or acquired habits from our life during detox requires discipline. Discipline is easy if motivations are strong. Our beliefs need to support our detox program. Doing a detox because a magazine tells you to, is not likely to be successful.

5 – Gut health is Skin health

The skin outside tells the story of the skin inside or the gut lining, in other words.

I’d like to share also a few general pieces of advice about detoxes

• Simplify, simplify, simplify
  • Less is more in detoxification, or in other words, complexity is the enemy of execution. Simplifying meals, lifestyle, routines and social connections pays back in terms of the body’s ability to remove waste and discard toxins.
• Drink enough warm water and take ghee in the morning
  • Warm water (+37 degrees) helps to catch water soluble toxins and (healthy) fat is needed to pull out fat-soluble ones.
• Release abdominal tension and stop slouching
  • The tension in the stomach is one of the worst habits preventing good digestion. Tight trousers, belts and other restrictive clothing should be avoided, especially during detox.
  • Slouching is another bad habit created by people attached to screens. Amongst other things, it squeezes the stomach into a position where food is difficult to process and move down.

If you need help on the way, we have our 3-month mentorship program to create a unique experience of transformation and creation of sustainable healthy habits.

Contact Anu at anu@jivitaayurveda.com