After a solid 28 years of trying to avoid fads and trendy culture (or just not being cool enough to keep up with those things), I have decided to be more open minded. After all, I'm getting old and don't want to be a curmudgeon all my life.
I say that to say this... I have decided to try out this Detox thing.
As with the rest of the trends in the past, I have been dismissing the detox and cleansing trends for a while now. Only recently have I had a spark of interest in the subject. Detoxing has become a prominent practice in some circles of the health and fitness community but that wasn't quite enough to push me into action. However, when I found out a few of my clients had either tried these things or are currently in the midst of a radical diet in order to detox or cleanse their bodies, interest had been sparked.
Quietly, I was a little perturbed, but unlike my previous self, I chose to embrace rather than dismiss. Beyond that, I'm actively trying to better my own health and could us a little change up. Anything gets stagnant after a while, and I was excited to try something new in hopes of solid results.
Although I have been consistently losing weight, getting in better cardiovascular shape, and getting a little stronger, something has been off the past couple of weeks. Besides the normal rigors of life with a family, a business, and 2 dogs, it has been a little extra stressful lately. One of those dogs (who you know as my run buddy Clubber) has been destroying items in our house or the actual house itself on a regular basis. This has been compounded by the fact we have received news that he also has some very expensive health issues.
Just like I'm sure you are saying right about now, I thought to myself "I need to stop whining!" So I did. I stopped whining and found what is hopefully a solution.
I went about it a little different than I think most people would because I wanted something that I haven't seen or heard of before. I'm not saying it doesn't exist or that I am doing something groundbreaking, but it surely isn't common or as popular. My goal is to develop my own detox program that won't cause me to get sick, feel sluggish, lose muscle, spend all day in the bathroom, or have to stop working out so hard.
All of the first recipes and actual programs I found would cause one of those problems to creep in. Some are too low in calories (especially for larger people such as myself), some will run straight through you, some have no source of protein, some involve fasting and some can leave you open to weakened immune system. Others just really don't sound like they would do much for me. Then I thought, instead of looking at programs why don't I research the principals of a detox program and develop one that fits both those principles and my needs.
I was reeled as soon as I read why a person should think about detoxing. Some of the signs are anxiety (me), trouble sleeping (me), skin problems (me), fatigue (me), craving sugary or rich foods (not historically but recently me), sinus congestion (me), coughing, and poor elimination. As you can see I almost had all of those covered, so I was pretty much convinced right there. The next thing was to learn what the cleanse or detox actually does to or for your body. They might have lost me if it started getting into impacted feces in the colon or some mistruth like that, but suprising to me, it has some pretty reasonable objectives. The whole basis is to help the body's natural cleansing processes. This is done by resting the organs; stimulating the liver; promoting elimination through the intestines, kidneys, and skin; improving circulation of the blood; and refueling the body with healthy nutrients rather than preservatives and chemicals.
After that I was officially sold. Now, here I am trying to figure out what would be the best way for you the reader, my clients, my friends, my family, and of course myself to conduct this type of diet. I have learned a lot just by actually putting some time in and researching on my own, but I have not found something that put it all together for me. That is what I will be keeping you posted on in the next few weeks (unless I can figure it out quicker). I will gladly be the guinea pig and test everything out on myself for your gain.
In closing, I found out that detoxing and cleansing weren't these crazy, weird, hipster things that the unhealthy did to look cool in front of their friends. Well, it can be that too, but at it's core it is kind of a reset button to help your body get back to functioning the way it should. Most of the healthier programs I came across only last about 7-10 days and are used as just that, resets of your system. All recommend contacting your health care provider before making any dramatic changes in your diet, especially if you currently have health issues. I'm sure people have some questions and you should feel free to ask. I may not know but I will surely find out... either through trial and error or some research. Keep a look out everyday for a new post about my detox adventures.
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