A NEW BEGINING
So, you’ve completed your detox... first of all, a huge congratulations from us, because we couldn’t be more proud of you - we’re so impressed with how everything went, the level of commitment and dedication, as well as the energy you brought to the process, made this such a beautiful experience for all of us to share in.
Now is your time to move back towards a way of eating that feels more sustainable for you, and that may be the similar to before the course, or you may feel there are some things you picked up during the course that help you create a new normal.
We want you to take away the experiences you’ve had during the course, and remember that you can come back to any of these practices whenever you feel the need.
As we mentioned last week, there may be some things from the course that you noticed worked particularly well for you, each of our bodies tend to feel attracted to different things, and these might be things that you tend to gravitate toward when you feel your body needs a little cleansing.
We’re going to look below at how you can continue to implement some of these tools in your more regular life, and when you might feel the need.
But before that, I want to talk about nutrition.
This detox has hopefully helped you get a little deeper of a connection with your body, and may even have given you more understanding of your own mind, and that’s amazing.
And with this increased sensitivity, we want you to put it to use, and that means following your body’s desire to maximise it’s nutrition, especially in the world today, considering our soils are so depleted - some fruits and vegetables contain 10 times less minerals & vitamins than 70 years ago, simply because the soils don’t contain those substances anymore.
So in this modern world, we have to be a little smart with how we nourish ourselves, because if we’re not aware of which foods contain what, it’s quite easy to become depleted or deficient.
Including a wide variety of foods in your diet to cover all your nutritional needs should help you avoid deficiencies, and below are a list of foods that contain particular nutrients that I see people can often become deficient in.
Before that, I highly suggest everyone to spend 7-14 days tracking all of the food they eat in an app called cronometer - X amount of grams of banana, X amount of celery juice etc, and each day plug in everything you eat - the app will show you which of your nutrient targets you hit, and which you didn’t, it’s very easy to use.
From here, if you have deficiencies, you either need to adjust your diet, or supplement accordingly, supplementation can be an easy way to give your body what it needs, as well as give you peace of mind.
Deficiencies can contribute to low energy, chronic fatigue, brain fog, hormone imbalances, and other issues (deficiencies are not the only cause of these things, there can be other reasons, but deficiency can contribute).
Take your nutrition seriously, because this body of yours is the only one you’ll get, and it will carry you through this world for the rest of your life - if you keep it well nourished, you’ll feel well, and it will take you far.
SO.. THE NUTRITION!
ZINC - healthy hair growth, strong nails, proper DNA replication, wound healing, high immunity.
Hemp hearts, chickpeas, pumpkin seeds, lentils, oats, red meat, poultry, grass fed dairy.
Vitamin E - healthy skin, good brain function, vision, immune health.
Sunflower seeds, almonds, avocado, papaya, mango, olive oil, avocado oil, bell pepper, sweet potato, spinach, pumpkin.
Copper - energy levels, build connective tissue, bone & blood vessels, nervous system function.
Cashews, pineapple, leafy greens, spirulina, quinoa, dark chocolate, sweet potatoes, chickpeas, tofu, shiitake mushrooms, sesame seeds, oysters, liver.
Selenium - reproductive health, thyroid function, well regulated metabolism.
The best source is brazil nuts, 1 nut provides the necessary RDI. Other sources are alfalfa, cruciferous veggies, sesame and tofu, coconut water, red meat, poultry, oysters, eggs.
Magnesium - blood/lymph fluid balance, blood sugar regulation, muscle & nerve function, protein synthesis.
Coconut water, quinoa, pumpkin seeds, dark chocolate, banana, dark leafy greens, cashews, almonds, avocado.
Iron - red blood cell production, digestive health, enzyme production.
Dark chocolate, lentils, chickpeas, tofu, cashews, chia, flax, hemp, pumpkin seeds, figs, raisins, prunes, quinoa, oats, tofu, red meat, shellfish.
SUPPLEMENTS
I highly suggest continuing to supplement B12 & DHA after the course - this is essential for anyone who is plant based, or predominantly plant based.
B12 is best taken in the morning on an empty stomach, and DHA/EPA is best taken with meals.
Regarding herbs, you can always continue drinking herbal teas - choose your favourites, or rotate based on what felt good for you.
Dandelion, burdock and milk thistle are all great liver supporting herbs to continue using regularly.
For women, chaste berry, red clover, raspberry leaf, liquorice, rooibos, peony flowers & shatavari are all great for hormonal health.
Potassium Iodide you can use on and off - not constantly, but 4 weeks on, 6-8 weeks off, and repeat like this for 6 months. Take 3-6 months off, and you can again repeat that same cycle.
Regarding herbal tinctures, these can be taken at any time, but are most effective alongside practices/periods of detoxification, and should not be taken daily for extended periods (3+ months). An approach that works well is 6-8 weeks of using tinctures, and 6-8 weeks off. Although they don’t need to be used year round.
If you have anti-parasite herbs, or other herbs you didn’t finish using during the course, you can take them now - in the mornings alongside water before other juices/foods, anti parasite herbs you can also take again in the afternoon between lunch and dinner, and before going to bed.
You can use these anti-parasite herbs for 4-5 weeks, take 4-6 weeks off, and then take them again for 4 weeks (optional).
Activated charcoal should not be a daily part of your routine anymore, you can use it during periods of detoxification, and after enemas (bentonite clay and diatomaceous earth can also be taken in the mornings with activated charcoal during periods of detox).
The psyllium mix/pudding is something that can be taken on juice fasting days if you ever decide to incorporate one/some in the future.
If you decide to do microdosing, incorporating DHA/EPA and lions mane mushroom alongside is very powerful for supporting the creation of new neural pathways.
REGARDING FOOD AND DIET
As we talked about in the zoom of week 5 - it’s important you find the diet that works for you, try not to put yourself in any box or confine yourself to an idea, explore and experiment with different approaches, to create what makes you feel best.
What your body wants & needs will likely change over time & with the seasons, sometimes asking for more density, and other times asking for more lightness.
Do your best to follow it’s rhythms, it’s an ongoing process of trust and connection.
If you feel hydration in the mornings helps you, then great, that might be something you continue some or most days after the course, but if you feel a more dense breakfast suits you better, there’s nothing stopping you from doing what works.
The contents of what you explored these weeks are not how you need to approach life, they are simply a way of doing things that can create particular effects in the body. Your body will always need different things, and so will your mind, be flexible, and trust that your own body, and your ow feelings, are always the best source of direction & guidance.
As we talked about in the zoom, and it aligns with what I said above about food - your body is the best source of direction in terms of when and how long to detoxify for.
The changing of the seasons is a great time to do a quarterly cleanse, it will help align your biology with the rhythms of nature, as well as connect with yourself.
This can be as simple as a few days, or may be a few weeks - it’s entirely up to what you feel is necessary and appropriate.
The most important thing with your detox, is that you try to focus on detox at the right times - which means moments of your life when you can give the process the necessary attention it deserves, as well as a time when you won’t be too distracted or influenced by external factors, so that you can put the time and energy into your own food/juice preparation, as well as spending some time alone to connect with the mental/emotional process.
With that in mind, let’s have a look at how you can continue to implement some of these practices.
Regarding food, you can use the approaches to eating we explored, whenever you like - if there are days you feel your digestion slower, or you just want to come back to a more simple way of eating, then you can use the approaches from the preparation weeks, and weeks 1 & 2 - such as juice + fruit for breakfast, salad for lunch, and cooked meal for dinner.
You can also use the 1 meal a day strategy anytime you feel you need it - it can be a great way to help the body catch up if digestion is slow. Just be sure you’re eating enough calories in the form of fruits and juices throughout the day.
Fruit days or fully raw days are also okay to incorporate at any time you feel your digestion is slow, or you need to keep food more simple.
All of these approaches you may still find helpful to use on some days of the week, try to let your body lead you.
In regards to some of the other practices, let’s have a better look.
Juice fasting: A one day juice fast can be done semi regularly to help keep your digestive system functioning optimally if you feel it’s a helpful practice for you. Try to do it after a plant based day of eating that was relatively simple.
1-5 day juice fasts can be helpful to do around the change of seasons, not everyone will feel the need for this, but for those who have health issues they’re still working on, this can be a great way to keep making progress with them. Always prepare for and exit your juice fast as recommended during the course.
During juice fasts you may use enemas and other practices you were using during the course, then return to normal again slowly after your fast.
Water fasting: you may continue to implement 18-36 hour water fasts semi regularly, it is best to take a plant based day of eating before the fast if it is longer than 20 hours.
Continue to choose a day when you can rest, working is not a good time to water fast.
You can use enemas during your water fast.
Dry fasting: you can use dry fasts if you want to, but they should be used at moments you are also focusing on hydration in your day to day life.
Last of all, enemas: you can continue to use enemas if you feel they’ve been helpful for you, they have been for us. Use them in combination with days of more simple eating, or alongside a day of juice or one main meal a day. You may go through periods of feeling to do some enemas, and then you may feel long periods that you don’t need to do them. It’s completely down to your body, try to connect with what it needs physically, not what you think mentally.
All of these practices and approaches can be used semi-regularly if you feel they’re useful for your health, but if you feel well, that your health is good, that you have no issues, then there is no need to push.
Follow your body, if there are signs or symptoms, keeping some contact with these practices may be helpful, but remember that detox is not always the answer to physical symptoms, there are other important elements of our health we have to attend to as well - exercise, nutrition, stress, community/friendships/relationships, time in nature, sleep quality, and so many other things.