Warning: You CAN outsmart a detox! – Waterloo Community Cleanse Day 2

I have made it through day two. No worries! Like I once said, I have done cleanses before. However, with my mother often asking me if I want to eat (which means her homemade Mac n’ Cheese) has made it somewhat more difficult, but nevertheless I am holding out.

Or so I thought.

One thing I realized about this detox, is that unless we know enough to make the right choices on our food list, we can stay loaded with toxins by not eating enough of certain detox foods. These detox foods include fresh fruit, fresh vegetables,and legumes. These are the scrubbers that will clean our bodies. They pass through the body quickly, have loads of vitamins and minerals and fiber that will help our bodies rid itself of junk.

Now, of course our bodies need other things too. Fats, for example, help provide the fuel for your metabolism and weight loss, help your heart, aid in the absorption of nutrients and so on. Non-gluten grains is also needed for fiber, protein and other benefits. These are also the arguably more hearty, tasty options in a detox. How can we deny sandwiches, rich nutty tastes and other items that mimic our comfort food?

That is what I realized today. Before I knew it, I found myself munching on loads of puffed millet cereal with almond milk, walnuts, almonds, banana with almond butter, sweet potato with pumpkin seed butter and a Larabar, which also has almonds. My fruit intake? Outside the banana, an apple, mango and raspberries. Not too shabby. But my vegetables? Ummm…my noon salad. One large salad – the “large” is not a justification for “ONE”. Gee, no wonder I’m doing do well; I’m still indulging tons in my own special way.

Don’t get me wrong. I just said that nuts and seeds are very good for you, especially when raw. But like any fatty food, no matter how good the fats, an excess of it will only lead to a fatty body, especially when it’s replacing our nice scrubber vegetables. Even if adequate vegetables are consumed, they still should not be consumed in excess.

What is excess? Shockingly, more than we assume. Portion and packaging sizes are so huge today (and buying nuts in bulk is so appealing) that we sometimes lose sense of just what is a healthy dose. I certainly wasn’t certain myself. After a bit of research, and memories of an old health plan I followed that listed portion sizes, one serving of nuts is approximately a small handful, or 8-14 nuts. For the butters, no more than a tablespoon tops. So guiltily, I’ve had nearly 5 servings of nuts.

Does this mean I’m off the bandwagon? Of course not! “Cheating” or not, I have followed the proper restrictions, I have not put anymore junk into my body, and after tonight’s excessively difficult Hot Yoga Power Flow class (believe me, I do this class regularly…but tonight’s instructor was intense and the room was very hot), I would like to say I’m justified at least part of those servings.

Tomorrow is a new day. And I promise that it will be a green and crunchy day.