Five Points to Detox

The Christmas Tree is hardly down but we get the impression that the Party is well and truly over.?The volume of google searches looking for weight loss, detox and post Christmas diets peaks at this time of year.?And even if you don’t go looking for it, the advice is coming at you hard and fast from every fitness expert and heath guru in the industry and whilst the advice is great, mostly true and often very straight forward to follow, it can still be difficult to kick start the process of weight loss and detox and more so keep it going long enough to make it work.

So before you start any new year plan remember these five points …

1. You are going to feel worse before you feel better?This can be a bitter pill to swallow, you embark on a detox or new diet because you’re feeling fatigued, lethargic and sluggish. But less than 24 hours in you can start to feel worse than before you started.?You should remember that as soon as you cut out sugar, caffeine or alcohol, you body will send you withdrawal signs often in the form of a dull headache, foggy brain, bad breath or serious cravings.?The good news is these symptoms won’t last long and if you can stick them out for 48 hours you should start to feel better.?If your symptoms don’t ease up after 3 days you should check with a medical practitioner that the plan is right for you.

2. Sometimes giving your body a rest is the most effective way to detox?Detox and kick starting weight loss does not always mean embarking on a new diet plan with new food types.?Our body is in fact really great at healing itself and self generating if just given the opportunity.?A detox could be as easy as giving your digestive system a rest by choosing soups, juices and smoothies for a couple of days.?Just be sure that these foods include ingredients that heal the digestive system.

3. Your cravings will disappear after a few days?It’s very simple, the less you eat junk food; the less you crave it!

4. The scales may not change?If your goal is to lose weight after Christmas the scales is not the best measure of your success.?When you change your food groups, take up exercise or drink more water you may weigh more on the scales as a result.

5. There’s no such thing as an easy detox?It’s always a challenge to make positive changes to your diet habits and no matter how simple or easy a detox seems to be, it takes discipline and control to make it work.

But the results will always be worth the effort.

By Milena Byrne of Platinum Pilates