January Detox

[Suzi Edwards]

So I spent some of yesterday evening eating anything left in the house with sugar, wheat or dairy in it. January is detox month. No red meat, no sugar, no caffeine, no dairy, no wheat, no alcohol, no cigarettes (not that I eat these) and no preservatives.

Yesterday I ate one half of an anchovy fougasse, a camenbert baguette, a piece of rhubarb and creme patisserie tart (all from Paul the bakery in Covent Garden) a lamb madras, bombay aloo and a garlic naan, some pidmontese chocolate biscuits from Carluccios and a couple of vodka tonics.

I feel prepared treat my body like a temple for the month of January excepting the meals out I already have planned. There are only three and I figure I can try to detox at two of them.

Is anyone else detoxing? Let's share our tips and experiences on this thread.

[Kevin72]

It's not a full fledged detox, but we use Lent as a way to get some distance from all the rich Holiday eating. No meat (except seafood) and no sugar. I can't quite make it to the no alcohol or caffeine restrictions.

Lent starts early this year and we're already looking forward to it! That way we can still burn off all the leftover Holiday food in January and don't have to worry about Superbowl food.

[Yuki]

I try to abstain myself from junk food that I had a lot of in Christmas and eat really plain food before school starts. It will be chicken congee and noodles for a while... I will need to lose the 4 lbs that I gained during the winter break.

[Jinmyo]

Well, I'm going to defrag my drive.

[jeremysco]

Yep Im there as well so wish me luck.

I am starting off with a singularly masochistic cleanse that is no dairy, no wheat, no alcohol, no sugar (except in fruit etc)

I really dont think that I could totally give up red meat so I admire you for that. Fortunately the fags went altogether a couple of years ago. Dieting/detox and no fags at the same time was just the hardest thing so good luck Tarka!

[Luckylies]

I'm sorta clensing..yet not true detox. No crappy high fat snacks. no nibbling on whatever i'm cooking. not lots of booze and wine. alot less red meat (god, I never want to see lamb again) fish, lots of fish.

[Suzi Edwards]

Yep Im there as well so wish me luck.

I am starting off with a singularly masochistic cleanse that is no dairy, no wheat,  no alcohol, no sugar (except in fruit etc)

I really dont think that I could totally give up red meat so I admire you for that. Fortunately the fags went altogether a couple of years ago. Dieting/detox and no fags at the same time was just the hardest thing so good luck Tarka!

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I did the same detox last year. Once I got over the raging headache caused by going cold turkey over sugar and caffeine I was OK. In fact, I haven't had any caffeine since January 2004 apart from when Starbucks stiffed me and gave an extra shot caffeinated soya latte. It was like I'd taken some crack cocaine. I couldn't sit down, pin pricks of sweat, raised heartrate. So at least I won't have to do the caffeine detox this time! I do have green/white tea sometimes but I tell myself this is good caffeine. Do anyone know relative comparisons of green tea and freshly ground coffee?

I pointlessly started smoking again three months ago after two years of not smoking. I fear this will be the hardest bit of my detox.

*bites nails*

[JAZ]

Is anyone else detoxing?

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As I sit here drinking coffee (with milk) and a Bloody Mary, eating toast (with butter and jam) and cheese, I think I can safely say no.

[patti]

I'm delaying any dietary changes until Monday, Jan. 3rd.

Yeah, that's the ticket. Monday.

[ghostrider]

So I spent some of yesterday evening eating anything left in the house with sugar, wheat or dairy in it. January is detox month. No red meat, no sugar, no caffeine, no dairy, no wheat, no alcohol, no cigarettes (not that I eat these) and no preservatives.

This is a fascinating post. I am full of questions. The big one being, how do you stay awake & focus your mind during the day?

I guess that principally relates to caffeine. I'm an avid black tea drinker. (On average, a cup of tea has 1/3 - 1/2 the caffeine of a cup of coffee. More detail in an excellent article here at Upton Teas; go to their "Online Information Library", then their Winter 2003 newsletter. You'll see that some studies have found that green tea has approx. 1/3 the caffeine of black tea, while others find little discernible difference. The article will give you some indications of why this is.)

How does wheat qualify as a toxin? I know that some folks have an allergic/systemic reaction to it, but otherwise.....?

I already have a rather low-tox diet in the above terms, recently cut out major quantities of dairy & sugar after a diabetes scare (false alarm).

Good luck with kicking the smoking. If you need additional motivation, remember that nicotine acts much like cholesterol in the blood & can set you up for a dandy early heart attack, like the one I was lucky enough to survive a year & a half ago. It's easy to stop smoking when you're trapped in a hospital bed for a week with all kinds of tubes stuck in you; it's better if you can do it before you reach that point.

Edited January 1, 2005 by ghostrider (log)

[Tess]

I'm getting back with the Weight Watchers program; does that count? It does mean drinking much less than I have been over the past couple of weeks and eating more whole foods. I would love to do a full-fledged detox routine at a spa or something but unless I have someone to organize it for me, I'm just too lazy.

[Suzi Edwards]

This is a fascinating post.  I am full of questions.  The big one being, how do you stay awake & focus your mind during the day?

I guess that principally relates to caffeine.  I'm an avid tea drinker.  (On average, a cup of tea has 1/3 the caffeine of a cup of coffee.)

How does wheat qualify as a toxin?  I know that some folks have an allergic/systemic reaction to it, but otherwise.....?

I already have a rather low-tox diet in the above terms, recently cut out major quantities of dairy & sugar after a diabetes scare (false alarm).

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Strangely enough I found it much easier to concentrate once I'd got over the early days of the detox. I used to think I had a really stressful job, but once I ditched the caffeine I realised that it was just the five starbuck's lattes a day that made me stressed. I've even got our MD to ditch the caffeine after he noticed the change in me.

I think the theory about cutting out wheat is that most people eat way too much wheat and very little other grains. I have only one friend who even thinks about eating whole grains once in a while. Anything eaten to excess can have a negative effect on the body and, according to Dr Gillian McKeith, lead to food intolerances. I'm not sure about the medical basis for that, but I did become allergic to penicillin after taking it for three years to get rid of childhood spots. I've found that eating wheat has a positive effect on my asthma, so it's a no brainer for me.

I don't think Weight Watchers can count as a detox, but good luck with it. I used to love going and attempting to basically strip naked at weigh-in to "lose" more weight.

[ghostrider]

Thanks tarka. My wife says the same thing - she cut out caffeine 20 yrs ago. Still smokes tho. Don't know that I'll ever have the will to give up tea, particularly since I've given up so much over the course of my life. We'll see.

(I was editing in some add'l comments on caffeine while you were posting.)

I think I eat more whole-grain oats than I do wheat, OK, one less thing to worry about.

. Anything eaten to excess can have a negative effect on the body....

There's a world of truth there.

[pam claughton]

sort of a de-tox. Starting Monday, Jan 3rd. Am cutting out dairy completely...sadly. Was just diagnosed lactose intolerant, and as much as I LOVE cheese, cream, butter, all that good stuff, it doesn't like me anymore. :( Though I did try out some lactaid pills for the first time last night and they seemed to work. There was absolutely No Way I was going to miss out on my friend's old family recipe of lobster newburg, that was all big chunks of sweet, fresh lobster tails, in a thick, decadent cream sauce, served in toast cups. I liked the sauce so much I took extra and dipped my filet mignon into it. Well, if I was going to be bad....

Yes, so Monday, it's done with dairy, out with high fat, loading up on lean proteins, and los of veggies....oh and I need to start that exercise thing again. Am going to try the Eat Less, Exercise More diet. My chef friend, says it's really quite effective.

Will also be cutting back on the daily glass (es) of wine, at least during the week. But the caffeine stays. Am looking to lose weight, especially the ten pounds I've gained since I started working from home.

Pam

[cakewalk]

Detox? Nah, just no junk. Or at least not so much of it.

And, most important -- I have to get my butt back to the gym on a regular basis.

January shows the highest number of gym registrations for the year. Gee, what a surprise!

[foodie52]

I don't know if you can get this brand in London herebut check out the frozen section of your market.

I don't buy wheat bread anymore, having discovered this line of bread. Makes much more sense, eating whole grains. And it's delicious.

(By the way, a friend of mine had amazing luck with hypnosis, when trying to quit ciggies. She hasn't smoked since her one session, 3 years ago.)

Edited to make link work

Edited January 1, 2005 by foodie52 (log)

[highchef]

Wow, did I need this thread. I'm going all out, seems my siblings are too. Everyone of them has quit drinking and smoking this year, so the pressure is on me cause I'm the holdout and there are 9 of us. Good luck everyone.

[Rebel Rose]

As I sit here drinking coffee (with milk) and a Bloody Mary, eating toast (with butter and jam) and cheese, I think I can safely say no.

Hmm, mm. Diet Coke and a Bloody Mary here. Not a good way to start a detox. I checked my calorie sources at FitDay.com and discovered that my alcohol intake is almost 50% of my caloric count. I will have to cut back on carbs and protein! (Just kidding!)

I'm on the boat Monday as well. I need today for recovery and Sunday to gird my loins. Which require more girding lately. . .

But it will be fish, chicken, more greens and vegetables, and grains. Sparkling water, sometimes flavored with cranberry or pom syrup, and only one glass of wine a day. All my vitamins, and one hour of exercise per day. Good thing we've got 16 oz. wine glasses . . .

[jschyun]

Oh man, I read this thread right after eating a huge dim sum meal topped off with half carton of ginger gelato. Damn you people.

But yeah, I did gain quite a bit of weight in the last week, so must figure out something re slimming back down to fit into now too tight pants. I'll eat a salad for dinner tonight.

[marie-louise]

Is anyone else detoxing?

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As I sit here drinking coffee (with milk) and a Bloody Mary, eating toast (with butter and jam) and cheese, I think I can safely say no.

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Another no from California. Although I have to say, I do most but not all of what you are referring to as "detox" on a regular basis. I've never smoked, don't eat much red meat, and avoid transfats, foods with preservatives, and high fructose corn syrup at all times. I try to eat organic food whenever it's an option. I only drink one-at most two-glasses of wine and 1 cup of coffee (with half-and-half) a day. I rarely eat dessert. However, try and take away my Acme bread, Strauss butter, Rusticella pasta, and anyone's cheese and I'll start snarling at you!!! As Julia Child used to say-moderation in all things. This is what I can eat year in and year out without feeling deprived.

Edited January 1, 2005 by marie-louise (log)

[bloviatrix]

Detox? Nah, just no junk. Or at least not so much of it. 

And, most important -- I have to get my butt back to the gym on a regular basis.

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I'm with you on this one. I didn't make it to the gym once in December.

But I'll try to minimize my cravings for my beloved yogurt and dill potato chips.

[Suzi Edwards]

Oh man, I read this thread right after eating a huge dim sum meal topped off with half carton of ginger gelato.  Damn you people.

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Ginger is very, very good for you!!! I wouldn't too much ;-)

BTW, to anyone who tries to claim that they do "some" or "most" of this but then talks about cheese and wine, you're really not detoxing. You're eating a fantastic healthy diet that would put most people to shame. But you're not detoxing!

[Ling]

I tried to detox about a year ago, but I only lasted 2 days.

I gained a few pounds over the holidays too, but I think they'll come right off as soon as I cut down on the sweets. I don't plan to eliminate anything though. I'll still have desserts on the weekend.

[Rebel Rose]

That's true. A real detox is a purge. I've done it before, and felt much lighter and energetic afterwards, but suffered from edginess and fatigue during the detox. January is a horrible time for me to do this due to various business deadlines, so I can't join in with a real detox experience.

Thinking on it, the last time I detoxed was before I discovered valerian root, which has a wonderful calming effect on me. I even took it when I had stitches (pitting an avocado and missed) instead of painkillers or aspirin. I felt SOOO good. And now there's a valerian-mint tea. (Valerian is stinky.) If I ever work on a real detox again I'm sure I would rely on that tea to take some of the edge off.

Tarka, do you have any special teas, beverages, vitamins, etc. that you rely on to help you get through the detox side effects?

[lovebenton0]

Lots of fresh fruits and vegs, corn, oat and rye breads. I don't do alcohol anyway, and only decaf coffee and caffeine-free herbal teas as part of my usual regimen, so cutting back even on the decaf coffee is my change there.

Fish and chicken are usuals in the diet, but I'll be eating less meals with any kind of animal protein in them for all of January. This is not hard for me, I was a vegetarian for over four years and still do not consume nearly the amount of meat my DH does. Dietary restrictions require that I try to maintain a low intake of sodium/fat/cholesterol aggravating food items as possible.

My DH will still require some dairy and protein so although I'll be cooking some I won't be eating it. All with the major exception of a family gathering (we do our Xmas in January) in two weeks and I'll eat everything that day. Just in more moderation than usual for the tox items. Confess I'm making squash soup for that -- far from a detox -- and bread.

Yes, this starts on Monday, January 3rd and goes through the 3rd of February, cause then it's DH's birthday on the 6th and I need some retox time before that. It falls on Superbowl Sunday this year and I'll be danged if I'm missing the blowout I have planned for that!