Detox the Healthy Way – With Food & Fitness

how to do a detox after Christmas

National Fitness Manager of Genesis Health & Fitness, Sam Merza explains the right way to detox after a month of festive eating and celebrating.

“You are what you do not excrete”

Every day we go through an external beautification routine using skin, hair and other personal care products so that we can look and “feel” our best selves. Now imagine if you went days, weeks or even years without so much as washing your face? How would you look and feel?

Your internal organs might be feeling the same.

Consider the food and drink you consumed over the festive period on a scale of what added extra stress to your body to break down and what is easy to do so.

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For example; Turkey, Veg and potatoes are relatively easy to manage (depending on quantity) whereas handfuls of candy canes washed down with beer and wine put a much higher stress on the body to process.  

Understanding and managing the effect of heavy food at the time, as well as giving our body a chance to rest and recover is vital.

Here are three ways to support your body’s natural detoxification process;

1) Breathe more – Our body uses breathing as one part of its natural detox pathway which can  optimised by focused, rhythmic breathing. The benefits include increased levels of antioxidants, reduced stress markers, drainage support for the lymphatic system and improvements to your circulatory system. All in all – some great wins here. 

Want to know how? 

  1. Breathing deeply into your belly
  2. Hold for 2-3seconds
  3. Release slowly and deeply
  4. Repeat this over 2-3minutes a couple of times a day. 

As your control increases you can progress to techniques such as this one developed by Dr Weil ; inhale for a 4 count, hold for a 7 count and then expel for an 8 count and repeat 3 times. 

2) Drink more – The benefits of water are well documented and most of us know we should drink more frequently on a daily basis. Specific to detoxing the body, think of water as the lubricant that helps the body work efficiently. Your Kidneys and Liver will be working overtime throughout Christmas trying to metabolise and process everything you put into your body. So give them a fighting chance.

Want to know how?

  1. Drink 1 -2 glasses of Water first thing in the morning.
  2. Drink 1 large glass before every meal
  3. Take a bottle of water with you to work and fill it frequently
  4. 1l per 25kg bodyweight is your target

3) Digest More – Your digestive system needs support as well and one of the easiest ways to do that is through your fibre intake. 

Dietary fibre has been shown to increase your levels of antioxidants, to support the activity of detox enzymes in your liver and to encourage frequent passing of food waste. It can be found in two forms which are either soluble or insoluble. 

Insoluble Fibre, found in wheats, grains and green veg travels through the gut and encourages the speedy and well managed elimination of toxins and stool from your system.

Soluble Fibre, found in oats, nuts and fruits dissolves in water and can help with moderating blood glucose levels and lowering cholesterol which ensuring you feel fuller for longer.  

Want to know how?

Simple; Eat plenty of wholefoods from nature and you are bound to get your fill.

Rebecca Wilkinson

Beauty Editor

Rebecca is a freelance content creator and beauty editor for Bondi Beauty. She is a pescatarian, who may yet become vegan. She loves all things beauty, health & travel, has a weakness for coffee and is obsessed with cats and yoga. If she's not answering her mobile - it's probably because she's trying out the latest beauty trend, like massaging crushed pearls into her skin for the ultimate collagen and vitamin boost to skin cells.

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