Detox Your Body, Mind, and Soul

So we have already thoroughly established that hot yoga deeply detoxifies your cells, so lets explore some other ways in which you can clean your body out!
The most obvious way to a healthy lifestyle and a happy body is through your diet. The saying "What you eat is what you are" has a lot of truth. When you fill your body up with pesticide ridden, antibiotic pumped, unnatural foods your body doesn't know what to do with it! Just like when you accumulate a lot of junk in your house, you cant always just throw it away. Often times it simply piles up further and further until you decide to do an intense spring cleaning, and get rid of all of it! Your body functions similar. Eating non-organic and highly processed foods leads to a pile up of toxic waste in your lower digestive track, concentrating in your colon. I know, its absolutely disgusting but its the horrible truth. So, how do we rid our bodies of this 5-10lbs of excess weight and restore our body to its natural, healthy state?
DETOX!
Now a new problem arises. Which of the thousands of detox plans out there do you choose? This can be a particularly tricky question, especially if you don't know much about the topic. When selecting a plan be sure that it is riding your body of processed, material without using processed or highly sugary food/liquids to do so. For example, if you choose to do a cranberry juice detox, do not chose the cranberry juice that is nice and sweet such as a Ocean Spray brand. Instead, choose the bitter, low sugar, organic brands that may be slightly more expensive, but will do the job you are purchasing it to do. Another detox plan that is deceivingly high in sugar is an Odwalla detox. These delicious drinks are so yummy largely because they are extremely high in sugar.
There is one detox that I find to be extremely effective, either as a short 3-7day detox or as a permanent eating strategy. The raw food detox diet. There is lots of great information out there on this strategy but my favorite book is by Natalia Rose a well informed raw food specialist. The raw food diet consists of eating healthy foods straight from the earth, such as organic fruits and veggies and sprouted whole grains. It makes sense when you think about what we have gone over so far. The closer your food is to its natural form, or the earth the better it is for you. However, when using this method as a short detox plan opposed to a lifestyle it is important to keep it to the minimums, no salad dressing veggie dips, or animal products of any kind, simply the fruits and veggies themselves. If you own a juicer or blender, it is also great to juice or smoothie your foods to aid in the "quick exit" of your food from your body and ultimately washing away toxins. Along the same note, you should always be drinking a LARGE quantity of water when you detox. It not only helps washing away toxins, but it also helps keep your body hydrated so your digestion system doesn't dry up ultimately clogging your colon and defeating the purpose all together. Another great addition to your detox plan is clensing your colon. Colon cleansing can be done various ways, the easiest way would be to pick up an enema from your local pharmacy or drug store and administer it to yourself. For a full and thorough cleanse, schedule a colonic appointment. The best place to go in the Seattle area is definitely The Tummy Temple on NE 65th st. The tummy temple's main focus is on the education of and administering of colonics. They also offer nutrition counseling, acupuncture and massage therapy services. Their staff is extremely kind and are there because they love helping people and they truly believe in what they do.
Lastly, it is important to realize that Detoxification means removing poisons from your body. Therefore, it is important to see how they got there and your body's physical responses. When you eat food that is high in toxins, those poisons enter your cells disrupting their cellular chemistry, decreasing your overall energy. Often times these foods make you have a head ache, stomach ache, or feel fatigued. Unfortunately, when detoxing, all those feelings which are bottled up in your cells are released, and you can feel it! Common symptoms of detoxing are:

• Fatigue- this is because your body is utilizing all its energy to heal your body.
• Cravings- You will most likely crave those toxic foods your body is used to you giving it. Just like a smoker craves cigarettes, you will crave the food you are used to eating.
  
• Irritability- This is unfortunately mostly mental. Most people are used to snacking or eating out of boredom, so naturally you can become stressed or irritable when you cut this out.
  
• Physical Pains- These include aches, pains, sleep problems, gastrointestinal disturbances, and nausea.

The best thing you can do is rest and keep your body hydrated while your cells are cleansed and your body slenderized and revitalized!