Detox: Rehab for foodies

Because I have been living like a rockstar lately and because I have 1 week until my birthday and 2 weeks until I will be living in a bikini, I looked at myself and said "snap out of it" get yo-self on a detox.  I don't claim to be anyone who is knowledgeable about anything.  I don't know nuffin about birthin' no babies, Miss Scarlett.  But, I do know what works for me in terms of diet/exercise/detox.  Don't think for a second that I would embark on some ridiculous lemon water diet.  Of course, I have tried it and was miserable.  Let's face it, no one is fun to be around when they are hangry (hungry+angry).  And what joy in life is there without good food? (Surely, I am not the only person who structures their whole day around their next meal?)    Anyway, I think it is about small choices you can make, doing things in moderation, be consistent, yada yada....So here is what I do when I want a little boost in terms of my diet/exercise/detox.

Exercise - Tone x2, Cardio x2, Yoga x2.  You know you have to. The four sessions I listed above are what work for me, but some people prefer more cardio or yoga or pole dancing or whatever. The point is to do 4 formal sessions of exercise per week----I combine cardio and toning.  I don't feel like one works without the other. When I say 'tone' I mean anything that works your muscles and core - be it a class,  monkey bars, rock climbing etc. I like the classes where you are lifting weights for an hour and then cannot move the next day.   In addition, you want to maintain a certain level of activity on a daily basis - For me that means I put on my flats and walk.. Aiming to do a few miles of walking as part of getting to work, getting lunch and getting  home will have you almost there. May sound hard but its a conscious choice to make - leave early on the way to work and walk to the next metro stop, go up the stairs instead of the lift, get off your desk and do some errands at lunch.  Or just take a break and enjoy the day

Nutrition - Again, not rocket science. Pack your diet full of fruit and veggie, lean meats and fish, and cut down on all the good stuff (booze, salt, sugar, fats). Swap your nightly starchy foods - like rice, noodles, pasta, bread, potatos etc, for beans, lentils and more veggies. I don't agree with the whole Atkins no carbs thing (Jessica Simpson looked wayyyyy hangry when she was on it) but limiting nightly intake makes sense.  As does cutting out the lovely stuff.  I tend to go Asian.  This means for me things I love, so it really isn't a big deal---fermented soy bean soup which is packed with veggies and tofu, and eat it with seaweed and kimchi (which I could eat forever).

For snacks, I'll be eating roasted unsalted nuts like almonds maybe mixed with a few pieces of chocolate as well as fruit and crackers (always with a bit of cheese, I mean, c'mon!). Cutting down on alcohol is also a key element of the detox. I don't mean becoming teatotal, and it will all be relative to your current drinking levels, but having none during the week and only a few over the weekend seems to me to be a good approach (but ohhhhh so hard!).

I guess I failed to mention not to eat take away junk food, as in, ever. Its shit. I'll leave it at that.  And we all know this, but it is good !!  Although... one small cheeseburger may be allowed if you are incredibly hungover and stayed out until 4am the previous night. However if this is the case you probably already drank your weekly calorie intake in one night so a cheeseburger aint gonna kill you... (the detox sounds like its gone off the rails already!).

That is all I got.  See how it works for you.  What are the things you cut back on when you need a detox?