Salad, salad and salad - detox time again

September has been get healthy month for me. 

I did a 3 day detox - no meat, eggs, fish, sugar, dairy, wheat, caffeine, alcohol, salt and oil. Although, I did have yoghurt on two mornings - I hate to throw things away! Usually my detoxes are strict, but this time I decided it was ok to have a bit of yoghurt. My primary goal was to have a low fat diet. 

I find a detox once or twice a year jumpstarts healthy habits and really helps me feel better about myself. 

It might also help with the adrenal glands - Adrenal diet

Food becomes very boring on a detox. This time round I ate lots of nuts, potatoes and bananas. Since I was not eating wheat, I ate both regular and sweet potatoes which are a good carb and protein hit. They kept meals reasonably satisfying and filling. I ate a lot of salad and smoothies in the morning.

Tips:

1. Spinach and celery smoothies are low fat and healthy. I add grapes and apple for sweetness. Ginger and lemon give it a kick. Switch to carrot smoothies when you get bored. Note - lemon is a good addition to the morning routine. 
2. For breakfast too, I'd have grapefruit some morning, or else seeds with nuts & fruit. 
3. Nuts are also great and filling. At night I'd snack on almonds. Go unsalted. 
4. I did a big grocery shop before I started to make sure I was prepared.
5. Buy organic if budget and convenience permits. 
6. Fruit make salads a bit more interesting. Figs, pear, mango and papaya are great. Red onions give it flavour. 
7. Samphire, nuts or garlic is great if you're craving salt. 
8. Exfoliate to aid any toxin removal.
9. Be prepared for tiredness, headaches and going to the toilet alot (high fibre and less water retention). Eating took longer. A plate of vegetables is slow to get through. I also slept more and better! 
10. Bananas or nuts were great when I was feeling weak. 
11. Go easy when you come off the detox. Have a bit of fish to start or wheat.
12. Drink lots of water. Herbal teas are great when you want some variation. 

My 3 day detox evolved to a 7 day no wheat or sugar diet. I'm balancing my days with a boring almost detox 2 meals plus a semi healthy one (by semi I mean add wheat, meat / fish). One meal I try to go meat free. 

Lots of exercise also complements detoxes.

The results:

• My waist seems trimmer and I feel more toned. I'm sleeping so much better after months of really poor sleep. 
• I'm doing much more exercise, conscious healthy eating and I'm adopting better habits.
• Portion sizes have shrunk. I'm use to five to six meals a day instead - eg. Watermelon, banana or nuts might be a snack / small meal.

Note that a detox is not suitable for everyone and a health practitioner should be consulted if you have any medical conditions before undergoing one. 

Also any diet may not be sustainable and could result in a nutrient deficient intake, so care should be taken. 

You may also find these posts useful:

• Healthy snacking at night
• Hiit workout
• Eat more vegetables
  
• Detox - what's it all about?
  
• Boost your detox
  

With winter coming, you might find it helpful to read this: When you feel a cold coming

Why do a Hiit Workout?

To boost metabolism, Hiit can be an intense, time efficient way to workout. Hiit is high intensity interval training. 

It involves breaks but then you go hard. 

It might include:

• Butt kicks 
• Commandos 
• Fast feet 
• Mountain climbers 
• Knee highs 
• Runners lunge 
• Speed skaters 
• In out squats 
• Air squats
• Bicycle situps
• Walkout with pushup 
• Pushups with shoulder taps 
• Kettlebell swing 
• Superman lateral raises 
• Russian twists 
• Plank jacks 
• Wall sits
• Pushups  
• Plank with shoulder taps
• Burpees

Stretch before and after. Drink lots of water. I started off with 30 seconds on and 30 seconds off, working through the 19 exercises in the order that I've listed. I ended up breaking longer after the first five and also at the fifteenth workout mark. The total time from laying out the yoga mat to the final stretch was about 30 minutes. 

Since I workout at home without trainers, I wore cushioned sports socks. The jumping and running can be tough on my feet.  

I first tried hiit at a Virgin Active gym in London years ago. I thought I was fit, but this was a whole other level. At home workouts mean I can do it at the right pace for me, but I need to be disciplined and push myself. 

I've included a youtube video of a workout by a Virgin active instructor at the top of this blog to give you an idea of what it's like. 

A wall clock with the ticking seconds is super handy but you can use the stopwatch on your phone or a watch. 

Hiit is great if you want a new challenge, to try something new, burn fat and love a really good sweaty workout. 

My staple workouts are weights, body balance and kickboxing. So a hiit workout is something to add into the mix every now and then because it can be brutal and exacerbate existing injuries. Be careful, form is important and if you're unsure then consult an expert or try it under supervision. 

For more on hiit workouts, you might find these articles useful:

• Womens Health Mag - hiit workouts at home (scroll to the end for the list of exercises)
• Shape - hiit workout exercises