The Three Day Cleansing Detox

I thought it was about time I made my own detox (using the help of this great Detox Cleansing help page).

It is coming up to the summer months and that usually means one thing to people: bikini bodies! Although I do not need to lose weight, I feel as if over the last month or so I have been eating and drinking things that have been giving me energy slumps, especially in this heat. When my mother started talking about toning up and eating a bit healthier, we decided we should both go on a 3 day detox. Now, this isn't a don't eat and count every single calorie that enters your mouth detox; it's just eating cleanly for three whole days. Only eating and drinking natural products: no sugar (or sweeteners), no caffeine (or decaf), no white carbs, no alcohol ... you get the point!

As you will probably see, the meals that I have included in this detox are ones which I would usually eat so it's not as if I will be changing my eating habits drastically, just cutting things out. My mother on the other hand ... !

So, here goes: 

The Three Day Cleansing Detox

The NO NOs

- Coffee (even decaf)

- Juice (especially sugar free!)

- Chocolate/ Sweets/ Crisps/ Biscuits

- Cereal :( 

- Bread

So...What can we drink?

- Water (With fresh lemon if desired)

- Fruit/ Herbal/ Green/ White (Caffeine-Free) Tea

Breakfast:

Breakfast should be porridge made with water and topped with berries (or top with cinnamon and have the berries afterwards).

Lunch:

CHOOSE ONE OPTION PER DAY

OPTION 1

Shredded lettuce and spinach topped with: 1/2 grated carrot, 1/4 grated courgette, 1/4 diced onion, 1/4 diced cucumber, 1/4 diced tomato, small handful protein (tofu, beans, legumes, grilled chicken (cubed), fish etc.) and a few almonds. Dress with freshly squeezed lemon, ground black pepper, dried oregano and olive oil (if desired).

OPTION 2

Veggie Filled Tomato Soup (makes 4 large portions): Finely dice 1 large onion, 1 medium orange pepper, 1 large carrot, 1 courgette and 2 garlic cloves. Heat a tsp olive oil in a saucepan before adding the veg; sauté for 10 minutes. Pour in 200ml passata, a tin of chopped tomatoes, 300ml water, 1 tbsp tomato puree, 1 tbsp dried basil, 1 tsp all natural sweet chilli sauce and sea salt + ground black pepper to taste. Boil then simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Garnish with fresh basil. 

Dinner:

DAY ONE

Steamed and Stir-fried Greens Topped with Tuna (for vegan, replace with grilled tofu or mixed legumes) : Remove the florets from a small head of broccoli and steam for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, stir-fry a julienned courgette, a sliced onion, 2 tbsp peas, handful spinach leaves and 3 sliced button mushrooms. Cook 20g (pp) buckwheat noodles for 4 minutes in boiling water before adding to the stir-fry along with the broccoli florets. Serve topped with the tuna/ tofu/ legumes, freshly squeezed lemon, ground black pepper and a halved cherry tomato to garnish.

DAY TWO

Quinoa Superfood Concoction: Cook 1/4 cup quinoa as instructed. Once cooked, mix with freshly squeezed lemon, sea salt, pepper, 1 tsp raisins and 1 tbsp finely chopped onion. Clean and tear a handful of spinach leaves. Dry-fry in a small frying pan along with 1 small chopped onion for 3 minutes. Plate up alongside the quinoa and 80g frozen mixed veg. Top with 3 cooked broccoli florets.

DAY THREE 

Make up a basic salad with shredded lettuce and spinach and grated carrot and courgette. Top with sliced tomato, cucumber, onion, beetroot, avocado and 100g mixed beans.

Snacks:

If you are anything like me, you will probably need a lot of snacks throughout the day to keep you going! I suggest you have one of these between breakfast and lunch, one between lunch and dinner and one after dinner as a dessert!

PEAR/ APPLE AND SMALL HANDFUL OF UNSALTED ALMONDS

VEG STICKS (CARROTS, CUCUMBER, CELERY) WITH HOMEMADE HUMMUS

To make the hummus, combine: 1 drained tin chickpeas, half a chopped onion, 1 tbsp finely grated carrot, juice of 1/2 a lemon, 1/4 tsp garam masala and seasoning. Blitz in a food processor until all the ingredients have combined and the mixture is still a bit chunky (add some water while blending if it is too thick).

STRAWBERRIES WITH 0% GREEK YOGHURT/ SOYGHURT

We cheated a bit and added 1 crushed malteser on top!

It's not just food...

While doing this three day detox, you should try and get at least 8 hours sleep a night as well as 30 minutes walk and 30 minutes of yoga each day.

Follow my Instagram account @fresheather for daily healthy eating tips, recipes and ideas!

After completing this detox you should feel refreshed and energised. Who knows; maybe it will encourage you to break a bad eating or drinking habit ... everyone knows that the first three days are the hardest!