Tried And Tested Ways To Detox From The Holiday Eating And Drinking

The holiday season always brings new dishes to try, an occasion to eat, or simply the license to indulge a little more. Come January, the holiday weight starts to set in, and so does the guilt. Before you beat yourself up over enjoying one bibingka too many, here are some tips on how to do a reset to start the new year right!

Detoxing doesn’t work if you do it as a one time event; rather, it should promote mindfulness in what you are putting into your body. There are simple ways to enjoy a sustainable detox that you can incorporate into daily life. What we put into our bodies greatly affects our minds, so remember, you are literally what you eat. In this new year, we can increase positivity in and around us by what we put into our bodies.

Most of all, enjoy the process. This is not punishment for enjoying the food you were blessed with. Instead, think of it as a way to build better habits in the new year!

1. Consider a fast. 

Giving your digestion a break for a day or two is a great way to ‘reset’. While the body is capable of detoxing on its own every day ( thank you liver and kidneys), giving the whole system a day off allows it to work efficiently. Studies have also shown that giving your digestion a break boots your immune system. 

Try Sexy Beast’s detox program, choose the intensity of the fast from beginner to advanced as well as the duration (1 to 3 days). In my experience, a 1-day fast is harder than a 3-day fast. By the time you get to day 3, you’ll be surprised at how refreshed you feel!

More than anything, fasting helps you to become more mindful of what you eat, as you feel the difference when you eat clean food.

2. Cut out meat once a week.

Pick a day to ditch all animal products to lessen your meat intake. Animal protein takes anywhere form 24 to 72 hours to digest, which leads to a sluggish feeling. There are so many options these days to eat more veggies, even for one day a week.

Check out the Mesa ni Misis 30 day Plant Based challenge on Mesanimisis.com as well as numerous plant based recipes!

3. Add a salad to every meal.

Eating more vegetables is a great way to increase your fiber intake and vitamins. If you fill up on a salad before your main meal, you’ll likely eat less. Salads can be made from any leafy green- alubgati and native pechay are two favorites. Check out my recipes for salads using these greens on Mesanimisis.com!

My other favorite source of sweet crispy salad greens are from Future Fresh – their baby kale is sweet and crunchy while their Savoy Spinach is sweet and tender. Watch out for these as these often get sold out, and bought by yours truly.

4. Drink more water.

It sounds like common sense, but if there’s one new years resolution you should keep, it should be this. Water flushes out all the toxins and keeps us hydrated—keeping hydrated means you feel full for longer.

5. Stop all packaged and processed food.

Ideally, this is how we should be eating all day, every day, so eating this way should be something we strive for. Eating whole foods rich in nutrients and minerals is a sure fire way to clean out your system. While processed food leaves fatty deposits and chemicals in our body, adding more fiber and real vegetables to your diet can actually physically clear out clogged arteries, what’s a better cleanse than that?

6. Add turmeric and lemon to your diet.

A practical way to do this is to start your day with a cup of hot water with lemon, which is alkalizing and will set the course for a healthy digestion for the day. Sip turmeric tea with ground black pepper to activate the curcumin, turmeric’s active ingredient. Turmeric is known to reduce inflammation.

7. Maintain a diet high in life force.

Simply put, eat a diet high in fresh local food. Fruits and vegetables loose their vitality the longer they travel, so eating food that is freshly picked, closer to you, has a higher energy than those that have traveled far to get to your plate. Remember that processed food and bad quality animal products cause disease and dis-ease in your body, so start the new year right and fill your body with the right energy.

8. Check out these resources to incorporate more plants into your diet and to learn more about a plant based diet, which can reverse and prevent disease:

Mesanimisis.com- Mesa ni Misis uses local vegetables in recipes so you can increase your intake without breaking the bank. The 30 day plant based challenge provides recipes and a meal plan for 30 days so you can see if the plant based diet is for you. If you can’t go full veg, at least you would have learned new recipes!

In addition, here are my two personal resources for going plant-based. These women helped me transform my eating habits as well as my family’s:

1. Dr. Yami Lancaster, Plant Based Pediatrician

I came across Dr. Yami on a plant-based nutrition course at Cornell. What drew her to me was that she is a pediatrician who advocates plant-based diets. We consulted with her in transitioning our kids to a plant-based diet, and continue to check in with her for any questions my husband and I have. Her website has loads of free downloadable information! Check her Instagram profile which links to these resources:

2. Julieanna Hever, Plant-Based Dietician

Julieanna helped me take my plant based diet to another level! Her Instagram content of bite-sized information on plant-based eating are wonderful resources if you a ‘plant curious’. For those considering transitioning into a plant-based diet, Julieanna is running a 6-week immersion course starting January 14 and will answer any questions you have! Check out this link for more information