Hellobee Boards

Yup. It was supposed to be a 21 day thing but I only lasted 7 days. Work got too crazy and I wasn't able to grocery shop and prep all the food. But I did lose 4-5 lbs. I may just do the first 3 days again, I felt really good after.

I was going to do the blueprint cleanse because I had a few stubborn pounds I couldn't lose but then I found out I was pregnant with LO Explained the excess weight!

I did the Beyoncé maple syrup detox diet before my wedding and my stomach hurt so badly after only a day. I never tried another detox ever again.

My husband and I have done a detox month every year for the past 8 years. It was a big thing to do post-holiday season when we used to live in London. Now that we are back in the US we have continued the tradition and always feel amazing after our month of living clean. The best part is that it invariably changes some of our habits and leads to healthier living the rest of the year.

We used to follow a specific detox plan but over the years realized what the most important attributes are and have simplified to some very basic rules that aren't gimmicky and are all about healthy eating/drinking and giving your system a chance to rest and get nourished.

1. No alcohol for the month.
2. No caffeine for the month.
3. No sugar (except what occurs naturally in fruits/veg).
4. No meat.
5. No processed foods, only whole foods (this means no bread or pasta, even).
6. DO drink at least two fresh primarily veggie juices a day.
7. DO some exercise (a walk, a hike, yoga, a bike ride, a horseback ride--my thing!) 6 days a week.

For years we had a no dairy rule (which is very common for detoxes) during the detox month but neither of us are in the least bit dairy intolerant so last year we allowed some limited dairy (mostly in the form of kefir and some hard cheese grated into salads) and I found that detox just as successful as the others and perhaps moreso.

We usually chose February (it's the shortest month!) but last year I had a family crisis in Feb that meant I was traveling a lot and detox was the last priority so we did it for 28 days in April and it was great to do it during a time of year with slightly different produce in season!

Cutting out caffeine always leads to headaches during the first three days but then they go away. And after last year's detox I decided just to not start drinking tea/coffee after the detox since we knew we wanted to TTC later in the year.

For me the greatest benefit is that my tastes change during/after the detox so that I really crave salads, whole foods and "real" food. It makes me eat healthy the rest of the year because you realize how GOOD those foods are when you eat only them for a month. I eat a lot less meat now--and "accidentally" eat vegetarian a few days a week--thanks to learning to love whole grains, veg and fruits so much.

The key for me is that I learned you can eat AS MUCH AS YOU WANT during a detox because all the foods you are eating are awesome for you--and full of fiber to the point that it's simply impossible to overeat on salad. That said, you have to limit the juices, which have a lot of calories (some of them), but a lot of nutrition (as long as they are primarily veggie--think beet/cucumber/ginger/lemon/kale with one apple--not three apples with a splash of celery and one kale leaf).

That said, I'm pregnant this year and suffering from terrible morning sickness so no detox for me this year! I'm just happy when I get any food in me at this point!

@stratosphere: those sound like good rules

@stratosphere: I am already a vegetarian, and FI eats vegetarian 75% of the time (I am clueless when it comes to cooking meat, and he is lazy in the kitchen) so that part wouldn't be a big deal for us at all. In all honesty, we eat too much processed crap and it's time that we got healthy and cut that stuff out. This sounds like a brilliant start. Thanks so much!