For the most part, this site is about fasting, but as you saw in the article Dreams of Holistic Detox: Problems with Juice Fasting, fasting really is really tough if your nutrition is completely out of whack. And while fasting IS an extremely beneficial practice, it’s not a miracle cure.
5 Simple steps to make your diet “detoxic”
1. Cut down on sugar, sugar substitutes and nutrient-barren foods that convert easily into glucose.
2. Use olive oil, coconut oil and/or organic butter instead of vegetable oils (olives are technically a fruit).
3. Buy foods without ingredient lists. You’re not going to find Xanthan gum in a whole chicken or a pack of asparagus.
4. Stay away from “health foods” that weren’t around 100 years ago. If people have lived in near-perfect health without it, you probably don’t need it.
5. The less processed something is the better. An apple > apple juice > an apple-flavored drink.
5 Things You Should Be Eating
1. Vegetables of all types, especially green ones. Fruits and vegetables are not equal, the vegetables are much more nutritionally dense.
2. Meat, preferably organic or better yet, pasture raised. Don’t fall for the “fat is bad” myth. Ancel Keys’ seven countries study (which much of mainstream nutrition is still based on) was severely flawed.
3. Nuts and nut butters. Peanuts are technically a legume, but peanut butter is alright as long as it’s mostly just peanuts and not partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (aka trans fat).
4. Fruit, but not too much. Again, vegetables are much more nutritionally dense. But don’t be afraid of fruit, it’s good stuff.
5. Whole grains are better than the usual, but nutritionally they’re not even comparable to fruits, vegetables and meat. Not too much here, but not the biggest issue either.
Detoxic without Detoxing
You don’t need a juice cleanse to feel a whole lot better. Get your diet handled to the extent you can and start fasting weekly for weight loss and more health benefits. Remember, take it SLOW with both the nutrition and the fasting. If you try to do everything perfect right away you’ll burn out. I know you think you’re different, but it happens to almost everyone. Do you remember back in high school P.E. class when everyone had to run the mile and there would be one kid who took off sprinting and burned out after the first 200 meters? Don’t be that kid.
More on the specifics of fasting health benefits and fasting for weight loss coming soon.