Why you are tired, bloated, struggle to lose weight, and crave sweets and how to fix it
It's hard to believe that it's almost officially fall and that summer will really be over. As much as I love summer, I am looking forward to some cooler weather. I have already started making a lot of pumpkin food. I made a pumpkin marinara sauce the other day, which was delicious. Unfortunately, I didn't measure anything, so I'm not really sure what I put in there, but will attempt to make it again and post the recipe. I also have been enjoying my favorite chia seed pudding, pumpkin chia seed pudding, which tastes like pumpkin pie. It is one of the recipes from my Eat Clean, Get Lean Fall Detox.
Detox…Cleanse…Why are these words so scary to some people? Many people hear the word detox, and they instantly think that they will be starving, eating terrible food, and are so concerned that they won’t be able to have their _____ (Doritos, ice cream, soda, alcohol, coffee, or whatever it may be that they think they can’t go without). Then they decide thIat they don’t think that they can do it. Many people hear the word cleanse, and they think that they will only be drinking juice or that they will be drinking some concoction that will keep them in the bathroom all day. (The point of a detox or a cleanse is to help you better absorb nutrients, and forcing them out of your body before you have the chance to absorb them is not going to help, so I suggest avoiding any program with those type of results even if you do lose a few pounds.) Detox and cleanse can be used interchangeably, and really is something that you need to do every once in a while to make sure that your body is functioning properly. It is recommended to do a detox once every season.
How do we become toxic? Our bodies have natural detox systems, but our body’s ability to detox is limited. When an excessive amount of toxins accumulate in the body, your body’s detox systems aren’t able to manage the excess toxins, which causes numerous symptoms and and health problems. What happens is that the body’s systems aren’t able to efficiently get rid of all of the toxins, which leads to toxic overload in the organs that participate in detoxifying the body, and this causes inflammation in the body. Inflammation causes all sorts of symptoms like constipation, diarrhea, bloating, heartburn, acne, itchy skin, depression, sleep issues, weight gain, difficulty getting up in the morning, lack of energy, headaches, hormonal problems, cravings, joint pain, brain fog, fatigue, food allergies, etc.
Do you need to detox? The simple answer to that is yes because we live in a very toxic world, and everyone is exposed to multiple toxins on a daily basis. It is impossible to avoid all toxins. We are exposed to toxins through the air we breathe, in our cosmetics, cleaning products, medications, etc. and in our food and water supply. Even a newborn baby has been found to have more than 200 toxic chemicals on the day of birth. Even if you eat a very clean diet and use cosmetics and cleaning products with very little chemicals in them, you are still going to be exposed to toxins, and can benefit from doing a detox program.
What exactly does detox mean? Detox, or detoxification, is any chemical and/or mechanical process that removes substances that are harmful to your body or changes a toxic substance so it is no longer harmful. Doing a detox program will help your body detox efficiently, which will make you feel better, and potentially extend your healthy life. The main two outcomes of a detox program are:
reducing the toxins your body is exposed to.
improving your body’s ability to detoxify.
So, are you toxic?
If you answer yes to one or more of the following questions, there is a good chance that you have built up toxins in your body that you need to clean out:
Do you ingest any of the following on a weekly basis – alcohol, soda, sugar, processed foods, fast food, non-organic meats?
Do you have difficulty losing weight or feel that you keep gaining weight even if you think you are eating healthy?
Do you feel like your brain is “foggy” or do you have difficulty concentrating?
Do you suffer from bloating or constipation?
Do you wake up feeling un-refreshed or feel that it is difficult to stay awake in the afternoon?
Do you just feel icky?
So, you need to detox, but what are you going to eat? Are you only able to eat salad? And, are you going to be hungry? I just launched my Eat Clean, Get Lean Fall Detox, which you can see by clicking here. It is based on whole foods and clean eating. You will not feel deprived, and will not have to rely on shakes, pills or juice. And, I promise you will not only be eating salad. And, the best part is that you can eat as much as you want as long as you eat foods that are on the list of foods that are ok to eat. My detox program contains over 50 delicious recipes. It is also set up like an elimination diet, so you can see if there are any foods that you might be intolerant to.
Finally, going back to detoxes being scary…a detox is whatever you make of it. When I do a detox, I usually still drink my morning coffee. I may not be getting the full benefits, but I am still benefiting from the healthy foods that I am eating and the other foods that I have eliminated. So, if you decide that you want to do a detox, but you really do not want to cut out grains or coffee, then go ahead and have your grains and coffee. It is your detox and your decision. Give the detox a try…you will feel better and your body will thank you for it.
