It has been about month since Bruins everywhere wrote up long lists of resolutions for 2012, most of which probably went out the window by the time the end of second week rolled around. One way to get a second wind on health and wellness resolutions is through a short cleanse to reset your system. The goal of a detox is to eliminate toxins from the body. Being a college student in LA where the air is full of pollutants and alcohol is part of the food pyramid it is easy to overload your body with more than it can handle. Participating in a cleanse aims to give your body a break so it can focus on releasing the toxins that can mess with your skin and immune system and make you feel sluggish. While you have probably heard scary things about some extreme cleanses involving lemon juice, maple syrup, cayenne pepper and not much else, simpler cleanses that eliminate foods that are hard to digest are much easier to stick to for longer periods of time and will actually give you more energy as less energy will have to be used for digestion. While the length of a cleanse depends on a persons own willpower and goals, trying one out for three days to a week is a good place to start and some people even stick to them for forty days at a time. A basic list of what to cut includes gluten and wheat, dairy, soy, nuts, eggs, sugar, red meat, artificial ingredients (including gum), and alcohol. A detox is a great time to learn new healthy recipes and find fun ways to sweat like hot yoga! Here are some delicious recipes and links to help get you through your cleanse!
Green Smoothie:
While the color may be scary, I promise that it is delicious and way more fun than eating a salad!
1 banana
2 handfuls of spinach
1 handful of your favorite frozen fruit (pineapple and strawberries work well)
1 cup or more unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk or coconut water.
Blend until smooth and drink up!
Kale, Beet and Avocado Salad
2 handfuls of kale
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 lemon, squeezed
2 roasted beets (can be found in Trader Joe’s refrigerated produce section)
2 avocado
Sea salt and pepper to taste
Put kale, olive oil and lemon into a bowl. Massage the oil and lemon into the kale (this will help make it less tough).Let it sit in the fridge for a couple hours or add the rest of the ingredients and enjoy.
Kale Chips:
Just as addicting as regular potato chips but much healthier!
An entire bunch of kale, torn into medium sized pieces
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Sea salt to taste
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Work olive oil into kale and spread onto an aluminum foil covered baking sheet in one layer. Cook for 20 minutes, or until crisp.
More detox resources:
http://life.gaiam.com/article/10-ways-detoxify-your-body
More smoothie recipes:
http://www.wholeliving.com/152126/7-detox-smoothies/@center/152870/2012-…
Secrets to a successful cleanse:
http://www.wholeliving.com/152219/secrets-successful-cleanse/@center/152… Photo: http://www.wholeliving.com/152235/week-1-recipes/@center/152870/2012-who…