How To Avoid The Number One Mistake Often Made When Finishing Up A Cleanse
Ah yes! You did it. You reached the promise land. No more sipping on herbal tea when all you really want is a big cup of coffee. No more trying to convince yourself and your friends that your afternoon detox greens are as satisfying as the poke bowls they all just chowed down in front of you at lunch. During the course of that 60 minuet meal you know it crossed your mind at least a dozen times to just say F*CK IT! Your inner dialogue all like
“You know I’m really feeling it would be fine if I ended this cleanse a day or two early.”
Or
“This cleanse isn’t agreeing with me. I’ll re-stratagize and start over in a few days.”
I mean I don’t know about you but I can personally come up with a ton of creative excuses to bail on my cleanse. Needless to say by the end of your cleanse your so over the careful juice and meal planning and so ready to indulge in one of the various traits you’ve caught yourself daydreaming about. So this` leads me to the number one mistake that most people make when ending a cleanse.
Marking the finish with a celebratory binge.
The celebratory binge takes many different forms. For some it is just eating a huge bowl of ice cream and for others it is a whole weekend binge fest (generally I see this happen /I have admitidely done this myself, when you plan to end your cleanse on a holiday weekend or another party like occasion).
Many a cleanse was broken by me in just this fashion. Every singe time I felt like total shit. Then finally I was like, “What the fuck am I doing?” "What is the actual point of putting in all that hard work to get my body's systems back on track just to set immediate havoc on them the moment the cleanse period ends? Yea I get the whole detox to retox mantra and I totally subscribe to it in my own way but at some point I realized I was just wasting my own efforts by not easing out of a cleanse with care.
Here is a quote from Tom Woloshyn's book The Complete Master Cleanse . Tom gives a perfect analogy that explains exactly why the transition period off of the master cleanse is so important. And yes this advice applies to the transition from any cleanse back into regular eating.
“This important transition period of moving from lemonade to food will prepare your digestive system for more and more complex foods so that it does not become overwhelmed. Just as you wouldn't try running a marathon after being a couch potato for three years, you wouldn't break a cleanse by launching into full-feasting mode. You want your digestive system to get well-deserved brake so that your body can start back on the right track. ”
Makes total sense right? You wouldn't start off with a 2 hr intense workout after you haven't worked out for a week or two. If you've ever tried this you that you know how that plays out. Best case scenario you feel great during the workout but by the next day your sore as hell and can barely get in and out of a chair. Worse case scenario you actually hurt yourself because your body is not ready. Well the same things happens when you don’t properly transition from a cleanse back into normal eating.
So How Do We Avoid This Mistake?
Well it is actually pretty simple. Treat the transition as part of the cleanse itsself. When planning your cleanse include the transition period into your time frame. As I mentioned earlier one of the biggest mistakes people make is planning a cleanse prior to a celebration. So rather then doing a 3 day juice cleanse and ending it the day before your friend’s wedding festivities, plan ahead and end your juice cleanse at least a week ahead of time. The best foods with which to break your cleanse are soups, vegetable purees, superfood smoothies, and steamed vegetable and gluten-free grain bowls. It is best to eat in this manner for at least three days following your last day of all juice and liquids. If you need some inspiration for post cleanse recipes this article by The Chalkboard Mag provides 9 yummy recipes that are designed to help your body transition from juice to more complex foods. .
So Remember......
Post-cleanse, don’t simply dive right back into old habits of making poor food choices, but take the opportunity to start anew, focusing your diet on plant-based, green vegetable-rich meals. Don’t let your hard work go to waste! Below are some easy daily detox tips and foods that you can incorporate into your day to day.
EVERYDAY DETOX FOODS
Detoxifying foods that you can add to any diet:
Hot water with lemon
Dandelion root tea
Cranberry juice and water
Ground flax and chia seeds
Unsweetened yogurt
Raw sauerkraut
Whey protein
Artichokes
Beets
Celery
Asparagus
Leafy greens
Daikon radishes
Onions
Garlic
Cruciferous vegetables (cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage)
Broccoli sprouts
EVERYDAY DETOX TIPS
- Drink more water. It’s the best way to flush toxins out of the body.
- Chew slowly. Digestion begins in the mouth.
- Avoid overeating. Less is more, especially when breaking a cleanse.
- Keep it simple. Avoid eating too many different foods in one meal to ease digestion.
- Find a good probiotic. Good bacteria keep your digestive tract healthy.
- Pay attention to your elimination habits.
- Eat organic and avoid processed foods. Cleaner food means fewer toxins.
- Avoid alcohol. It’s toxic.
- Exercise. You’ll sweat out toxins as you move.
- Take time to meditate. Deep breathing helps cleanse the body.
- Get plenty of sleep. Your body heals itself as you rest.
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