Detox Days

Part of my circle of friends is very much into detox diets and fasts as a method of controlling health (and weight, I suppose, though none of us are very big people). Now I am on the detox bandwagon. Thanks to Tracey and Rachel, I am doing a two-week detox program of herbal supplements and a caffeine/sugar/alcohol-free whole-grain vegan diet. Today ends the first week of four herb-scented, enormous, brownish pills a day.

I have fallen into some really bad eating habits over the last couple of months: sweet snacks and desserts every day; mindless consumption of beer or wine with most dinners; buttered toast (heavens!); bits of cheese at parties; an occasional pizza. I was dragging myself down. Reverting to better practices was hard, so the detox is a line drawn in the sand.

The 'Quick Cleanse" seems to be having a good effect on my digestion and I have been feeling energetic and well. The detox headaches were mild and I am accustomed to the healthy vegan diet already, so it was more a matter of falling back into my good cooking habits than a shocking new lifestyle.

But the few times I have toppled off the wagon, I have noticed it. Yesterday was a big screw-up. After I locked myself out of the house, I opted to go have a curry & naan for lunch instead of sitting on the stoop waiting for Tod to notice his phone ringing and rescue me. And at dinner time, I ate a heap of oily stir-fried greens and sauced vegetables at an Asian restaurant. The consequence is a bloated, uncomfortable tummy that feels a lot like it did a couple of weeks ago. I hope a few of days of diligent detox eating will bring me back into line.

Such dramatic effects from simple mistakes make me wonder what is the best possible food style to maintain my health? Is curry out of my life forever? Can I never have "deep fried nasty" again? And what is going to happen to me when I have a glass of wine?

Sigsy has been on a one-month raw food detox that she is loving so much that she plans to keep going. I wonder if I ought to do that over the summer? I don't think I have the patience for all the blending that takes the place of cooking, but seeing how much she glows right now and how energetic she is makes me want to try it and see.

But first I have to get through the second week of the herbal detox.