The first, second and third days of your juice diet will be the most difficult. Have all your supplies prepared in advance, such as fresh veggies, a juice extractor, some juicer recipes, lots of water, a variety of teas – diuretic Senna or natural stimulants and soothing mint or chamomile blends. You’ll also want ground flax seed to mix with warm water for a morning drink.

In order to detoxify the body with a juice diet, the first day should start with a liter of water and a fiber drink, then an 8 ounce glass of celery juice, wheat grass or something light and purifying, perhaps with apple; then more water during the first hours of the morning and another juice, perhaps carrot, mid-morning, then more water until lunchtime. At lunch, a variety of leafy veggies can be extracted.

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Some people enjoy a heartier juice with tomatoes, cucumber and green or red peppers; while others prefer to keep the heartier juices for the afternoon. The juice diet is very versatile, especially in terms of flavor and richness because you can add spices like cayenne, garlic, parsley, lemon, a little sea salt, and combine veggies to make a sweet beet-carrot combo or a spicy gazpacho. If you’re accustomed to a larger meal in the evening, then save your spicy / savory drinks to the time of day you most need it.

The main idea of drinking juice, water, fibers and diuretic teas is to detoxify the body, therefore you MUST be having regular bowel movements to flush out the waste. If you’re not, you’ll need to increase natural laxative tea dosage and fiber drinks, or perhaps give yourself an enema or go for a colon hydrotherapy cleanse.  In the end, in order to detox your body properly, you need to rely on the natural ability your body has to remove toxins and waste:  breath, sweat (exercise), urine and bowel movements.

Getting into better shape with your diet will also reduce the chances of type II diabetes.

may be collecting and remaining unaffected by exercise, in part, due to hormone changes that never get balanced.

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Why? The answer to questions pertaining to why hormones remain out of balance for prolonged periods of time, why fat is retained in subcutaneous pockets, why elimination is poor and why body fluids are not flowing as they should, pertain to what the body’s been fed in the past / present. Have you been fueling your body with a well-combined mixture of essential amino acids, vitamins, liquid nutrients and fibers or have you been giving it rocket-fuel carbohydrates, fats and rich proteins?  If you’re diet has been poor for many years, then it is important to detox your body and see how you can get a fresh start for your organs and tissues before it’s too late.

Most contemporary women who are troubled by cellulite are over-fuelling their bodies whether they know it or not. To get rid of cellulite, to eliminate fatty deposits, to balance hormones, to get the bowels moving and blood circulating, a detox cleanse is a MUST. If you have stubborn fat, dimples, ripples and bumpy-looking skin that isn’t “beach” friendly, stop spending money on potions and lotions and get rid of cellulite with a simple vegetable juice detox.   Making this part of your detox diet can go a long way toward helping you look the way you want to.

If you drink FRESH carrot, celery, cabbage, beet, leafy greens and tomato juice every day (amongst other veggies you love) and drink a river of water, and do so for several weeks (a month or longer), it’s doubtful you’ll be looking for products to help you get rid of cellulite, because your body will be naturally doing what it does best – fixing itself!

The organs and tissues that are involved in body detoxification are contained within three main systems in your body:  circulation, digestive and lymph.  As your blood flows and is pumped through your arteries and capillaries, it is constantly exchanging oxygen and other nutrients with your cells and tissues and taking back the waste by way of your veins.  This system keeps the flow of nutrient and waste in harmony within your body.  The veins then send the blood through your liver and ultimately is filtered again and the waste ends up leaving through urine or feces.  Your lymph system collects or drains the intracellular fluid where it can be dealt with by way of your immune cells and ultimately dumps into your veins for the final filtering just described.  Then, to follow with this body detox process, the digestive system then is necessary to absorb larger nutrients, electrolytes and water mainly through the colon and eliminate the rest through your bowels as feces.  You really couldn’t design a better “how to detox” program if you had to write it yourself.

How Yoga Poses Work With This Natural Detoxification Process

There are several ways in which we can assist our body in this toxin elimination process it goes through each day.  It isn’t that it doesn’t work, we just have very high demands for the modern way we live our lives.  Any assistance we

Spinal twists are great poses to assist with your body detoxification.

can provide our body with the detox process is that much better for our health and well-being.  Many types of exercise are great to assist your body with one main aspect of its natural detox mechanism which is breath.  Your lungs are a major organ responsible for a big part of the detox process.  The following are simply a few detox yoga poses that assist the major systems previously described.

First of all, consider the spinal twist.  It has many variations, consider Marichiyasana 3/Marichi’s Twist or Ardha Matsyendrasana as suitable asanas (poses/postures).  It is based upon the idea that the twisting motion, combined with full deep breaths, assists your body in gently squeezing and moving the toxins through your body – like gently squeezing and wringing out a sponge.  Photo Credits

A second pose is often referred to as a resting pose in many yoga fitness traditions.  It is called Adho Mukha Svanasana  (downward-facing dog).  This is a well-known pose by name and has many benefits.  One of the benefits as we are describing here is with circulation and lymph flow.  Also, by the nature of your position, it is also a gentle abdominal stretch and digestive aid.  Photo Credits

Finally, Viparita Karani, the pose that is easier to call legs-up-the-wall is a good one for detox purposes.  Again, by opposing gravity, the flow of circulation and lymph is enhanced.  Additionally, as you rest on your back, it soothes your nerves and allows your body to go into a parasympathetic mode rather than the daily fight or flight, stress response mode it may typically be in.  All three of these yoga poses for detox can be done in a sequence or practice that can be done daily.  The benefits of your yoga practice will also enhance your mental and emotional well-being, another important aspect to the detox process.

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Let’s take one of those factors above:  exercise.  Detox exercises are just as much a part of a detox program as is diet or any other type of factor.  You cannot simply do one thing and expect to have your body fully cleansed or nourished.  Just like you can’t just take a supplement and expect all the detox magic to happen without any dietary or mental changes.  Yes, you see, even your thinking can cloud your body and has toxic effects all its own.

A vegan diet includes grains and protein from sources like quinoa and beans.

There are many different types of diets to consider also with this whole detox process.  The main thing that you should understand is that many different types of diets work and it is up to you to determine which particular one you would like to follow.  The biggest factor is to pick one that you think you will or can follow.  The best detox diet in the world will never work for you if you keep eating French fries and drinking diet soda.

So, it is clear that committing to your program is the key.  Just like any worthwhile endeavor in life, if you want to see results you must keep dedicated to your pursuit.  There is no detox inheritance waiting for you, you’ll have to do some work yourself.  Some people go full speed ahead and see the amazing changes in their energy, mental clarity, emotional well-being and physical body quite rapidly.  It is no surprise, right?

One way you might choose to go with your diet is either with raw foods or vegan.  They are similar in many respects because under the broad category of raw food would come vegan.  But, not all vegan foods are raw.  Raw foodists are often quite purists in their dietary ideals and you should know that it is very different than your traditional diet.  If you don’t think you have the dedication required to eat a purely raw diet but still want to reap the benefits of this type of plan, you might consider a vegan diet.

Vegan refers to the fact that you will be eating no animal products of any kind.  There are many celebrities that have adopted a vegan diet, Alicia Silverstone comes to mind.  So, like with many body detox plans, the notion of eliminating meat from your diet is widely held to be a good idea.  It is also recommended to eliminate alcohol and any type of drugs (medically required are an exception) from your diet during your detox process.  A vegan diet also contains no animal products like milk, cheese, eggs, etc.  So, if an animal is needed in any way to produce the food item in question, then it isn’t vegan.  This is also a rigorous program, but not quite as much as the raw food plan.  Eating vegan can still allow you to cook food items and use sauces and things.  Most raw food diets are hard for many because of the restrictions regarding food temperatures and any sauces and things that are wanting to be used.  There are many raw food recipes and meals that are delicious.  They are not just based on eating vegetables pulled from the ground, washed and eaten.  In fact, there are several raw food restaurants and marketplaces that cater to this specific group of people.

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Raw foods are not only limited to salads.

Vegan refers a diet that is free from all animal products.  Many of the foods that we have available in the U.S. have animal by-products or are actual animal products themselves.  For example, no vegan would eat an obvious meat choice like chicken or pork.  Likewise, they will not eat eggs or fish either.  For that matter, strict vegans do not eat cheese, milk, or any other product that requires an animal to produce directly or indirectly.  Gelatin, for example is an animal by-product and is found in certain mints and other desert items.  A vegan would not eat these items.  This type of diet is definitely hard to maintain in our culture of fast and convenient.  However, it is also this pace of life and diet that is leading to say much of the accumulation of toxins in our bodies.  So, a good place to learn how to detox might just be in a vegan’s home.

So, vegans and raw food purists have a lot in common.  For a moment, let’s discuss the specific benefits of eating raw foods as part of your detox diet.  There can be a lot to manage when you first get into detoxing your body programs.  You can make your life much simpler by picking some type of process and just sticking with it.  Now, for most raw foodists, this is not some fad or temporary diet.  They eat this way for all food at each meal.  You may find that this approach speaks to you as well.  First, begin your detox process by eating organic raw fruits and vegetables.  Not only will they provide much needed vitamins and nutrients, but the added fiber will help clean your colon.  Additionally, if you supplement with certain herbs or other health products, make sure you are going with the organic remedies – again, same reason as eating raw.  Drinking pure water in very adequate amounts is also a critical aspect to your detox.

Specifically, when you are eating raw foods, you will be getting the most active and alive aspects of the foods into your system.  With a lifetime of toxic accumulation, this is one of the best things you can do.  Your colon and other body tissues are constantly interacting with other microorganisms and such to keep you healthy.  When the accumulation of toxins and waste products builds up to a critical level, your body vitality and function will suffer.  The cells and tissues of your body will not be getting the ideal nourishment even from the foods you put into your body.  Once you are cleansed, then you can begin to rebuild your intestinal health and vibrant well-being again.

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The focus of this article is to address another component of the physical body aspect of detoxing, which is exercise.  You see, what you put into your physical body in the way of foods and drink or even medicines, pollution and commercial agricultural by-products is only one aspect of what needs to be addressed.  Sure, if you are constantly eating processed foods, soda/pop, and other refined food products then you have an obvious source of toxins entering your body.  If, on the other hand, you simply eat commercially grown fruits, vegetables and take some prescribed medication, you may not be aware that there are potential toxins accumulating in your body from that as well.  This is by no means a case for you to stop taking your medications to live on a water fast alone.  The point is that there are toxins that exist in our environment and are entering our bodies in a variety of ways.

What Type of Exercises Help With A Body Detox?

Running is great exercise to help with your body detox.

The key point to be made with exercise is that any is a good thing.  It doesn’t require an expensive or exclusive gym membership or fancy machine to get the kind of exercise necessary to detox your body.  Since one of the main forms of natural body detoxification is through your sweating, this is what you’ll need to produce more of.  So, exercise that causes your heart rate to increase and your body to heat up is what is most important.  However, you can also get a lot of benefit from having your breath rate increase as well.  It is really not possible, to any large degree, to have one without the other, it just deserves mentioning.  This is because your lungs are another natural source for detoxifying your body.  Cleansing breath and breathing is becoming a lot more common language.  It involves breathing in the nose deeply and out the mouth fully.  It can sound something like wind entering your nostrils and then a “haahhhhhhh” sound as you exhale.

There is no specific how to detox exercise book or manual.  You just need to use your body feedback as a rule.  Running, cycling and other traditional forms of cardiovascular exercise could be used for detox purposes, but you don’t need to really push yourself.  In another type of exercise, like yoga, specific poses and postures are known to have detoxing benefits for your colon and internal organs.  For example, postures that involve spinal twists, downward dog and legs up the wall are great yoga poses for detoxifying your body.  With all of the forms of exercise mentioned, it is critical that you are consuming adequate amounts of water that may be much more than you are used to.

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One thing is for sure, we spend millions of dollars on treating and dealing with health problems that are most likely related to this increased toxic load whether directly or indirectly.  Who knows exactly what types of cancers, autoimmune diseases, neurotoxicity problems and other hormonal dysfunctions are due to such agents?  Well, there is something that you can do to at least mitigate the potential of these things accumulating in your body and stagnating.  You can detox your body.   Toxins are not good for us in any concentration.  We have simply been guided to believe or understand that if the levels are below some threshold that has been set, then we should be fine.  Well, I don’t know about you, but I don’t want any more than zero toxins in my children’s bodies or my own.

It is understandable that we should know at what level these toxins cause obvious signs and symptoms of disease or problems, but it shouldn’t take that much for us to change the way we see taking care of our internal cells, tissues and organs.  Modern medicine has come a long way, but it still can’t compete with your body’s own natural detoxification process.  There are several organs that function as your body’s cleansing organs.  They are your liver, kidneys, lymph system, lungs, skin and colon.

Colon Cleaning And Function

This is an illustration of your large intestine.

The colon is the last several feet of your digestive tract that is used by the body to absorb water, nutrients, electrolytes and prepare waste for elimination.  Part of this waste material is toxins that have been processed by your body for elimination through your feces.  A colon cleanse, combined with specific detox diets and proper organic food choices can go a long way toward putting you back on the road to optimum health.  This is not medical advice, it’s just common sense.  If your colon is stagnating and not moving waste through your body as it once did, then it will cause you physical health problems or challenges at some point.  Does this necessarily mean that you are destined for colon cancer or some other horrible disease, who knows.  There is no definitive answer on what causes any diseases.  While there is continuous research aimed at finding genetic markers and the like, clinicians still know that food choices as well as environmental factors still play a major role in determining overall health.

Colon hydrotherapy is the term given for the procedure whereby a licenses and skilled professional colon hydrotherapist uses water to gently flush your colon.  It is more thorough and complete than an enema.  This procedure washes and cleans your whole colon and facilitates the detoxifying your body greatly needs.  Colonics cleanse the colon by helping to break down toxic excrement so it can be more easily eliminated.  In some senses, the cleansing helps to rejuvenate your colon.  The gentle flushing of your colon also stimulates the muscles of your colon walls to stretch and contract.  This gentle movement is what the muscles do ordinarily to move waste through your bowels.  So, this is like a massage for your colon.  The addition of this extra volume of water into your colon also allows your body the opportunity to absorb more of what it needs to keep you fully hydrated.  This will assist your overall cellular hydration and body function.  All in all, colon hyrdotherapy is a wonderful addition to a body detox program.

So, for the sake of this article, let’s assume that you are wanting to do a body detox and lose some weight or cleanse your colon or what ever you have in mind for your physical cleansing aspect.  If you only focused on that one aspect of your detox, you would not get nearly the results you had hoped for.  For example, what people find is that when they are trying to lose weight with a detox diet, if there are other factors that are inhibiting their cleanse, the weight will not come off.  Then, what happens is you will end up blaming the supplements or the diet itself, when the real problem might be that you are not addressing other core toxic issues in one of these other aspects mentioned.

Addressing Your Mental Detox

Toxic emotional and mental thoughts are also a problem.

A big part of what keeps our bodies holding onto all sorts of toxins is that energetically we don’t know how to release them.  Your body is only the physical structure that is a manifestation or symbol of your emotional, mental and spiritual self.  What you are holding in those other areas will show up in your physical body.  So, in order to really do a thorough body cleanse, you will need to address these issues at some point.  It doesn’t have to mean a bunch of sessions with a therapist or counselor to address your past.  It may involve this if you think that this is an area you could use help with, but it need not.

The whole point is that you are one symbiotic and holistic body.  There are other factors at work than just your diet as a reason why you are accumulating toxins in your cells and tissues.  If your body is functioning at its optimum level, then much of this toxic debris and waste will be naturally flushed through your body’s natural elimination means.  This happens through your breathing (your lungs are a big source of toxic elimination), your sweat by way of exercise and through body elimination processes (urine and stools).  The only reason that your body may be more sluggish in eliminating a build-up of toxins in your colon is because one or all of these aspects of the body detox are not being fully addressed.

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You'll have to give up this type of diet during your body detoxification. You will be eating more foods that are 'alive' and full of active minerals, vitamins and antioxidants.

Okay, now that you are here, let’s discuss some of the do’s and don’ts about a detox program, how to detox, what to eat, how much fluid to be drinking, supplements, and all the rest.  Some people even wonder whether a detox diet has any validity or not.  Well, if you’re a skeptic, hopefully this site will help clear up some of the myths and misconceptions about what a detox really is.

Detox Your Body The Safe Way

If you are embarking on your first detox diet or program, then you need to know how to do it safely.  Most detoxification procedures that have any merit should give you the adequate information to make your diet one of the largest components of your plan.  While it can be very helpful to supplement your food choices with the right herbs, teas and detox supplements, the key will be in the organic food you eat and the amount of water you drink.

As just mentioned, you should pay particular attention to make sure that your foods are organic.  To the degree that you are trying to eliminate toxins from your body, your choices in food items will make a big impact.  Choosing organic vegetables and fruits is no longer difficult and often very similarly priced.  On the more exotic foods, you may find organic to be a bit pricey, but remember, this is your health you are dealing with.  It just makes sense to go for the cleaner produce – especially when you are hoping to detox your body.

When It Comes To A Cleanse, How Much Should You Drink?

Let’s be clear.  The only thing you should be drinking is water, possible a little fruit juice or what ever type of detox

You can blend up your own smoothies and vegetable drinks.

products you may be using.  Other than this, you should not be consuming any alcohol, pop or soda, or coffee.  While this may be hard on your normal routine, it will benefit your colon in the end.  What you are assisting is your natural body detoxification process.  Water is an essential component to cellular and organ function and health.  Your colon cleansing will be accomplished by the movement of waste through your body.  Water and some light fruit juice combined with the proper foods and supplementation will accomplish this.  The idea is to work with your body in its own natural detox way, don’t try to force something that is not a natural process.  However, you can assist and amplify the results through proper conscious dietary choices.  It’s always funny when I hear critics say “do detox diets really work?”.  They usually have never done one and consider things fast food and smoking or alcohol simple necessities of life.  Don’t get me wrong, enjoying alcohol or a hamburger time to time are fine in moderation.  I do not think anyone can defend smoking in this day and age.

Here is a basic rule of thumb to use for how much water you should be drinking:  divide your body weight in half and drink that much water in ounces, plus one glass.  For example, if you weigh 130 pounds, that would be 65 ounces of water.  There are approximately 8-10 ounces of water in a normal glass.  So, this would be approximately 8 glasses, PLUS one equals 9 glasses of water each day.  You cannot really screw this up, the key is simply to be drinking a very healthy amount each day of your detox.  The same rule could apply if you are simply trying to do a thorough colon cleansing, although the process is quite similar for both.

What Is The Difference Between A Drug Detox And A Body Detox?

A drug detox is a specific process for decreasing the body's dependence on drugs from an addiction.

One of the main differences is that with a drug detox you are trying to get clean from some very addictive substances.  These drugs have wreaked havoc with not only your body but your brain and mind as well.  Going through the detox process from prescription or recreational drugs is no picnic.  In fact, it can be very scary and cause a lot of stress in the person’s life.  This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t do it.  It can be one of the most important types of detoxifications around.

However, the information you are reading here and on the rest of this site is more related to how to detox your colon and cells for purposes of becoming healthier and cleaner.  People struggle with low energy levels or are carrying extra weight and feeling sluggish.   These are the main types of people that we can help.  Also, if you are addicted to drugs of any kind, you need to work with a professional in that area as well as a mental health provider.  When we say “detox your body” here, we are talking about from the normal toxins that exist from our environment in our daily lives.  Included in these are things like:  pesticides (on the foods we eat), air pollution, drugs (prescribed or recreational), smoking and other accumulated types of toxins.  An effective cleanse can help eliminate a lot of this type of toxic stress on your cellular physiology.  They simply need to be done occasionally as we continue to live in such environments in this age.

As a closing point, remember that when you see “how to detox” on this site, we are speaking to the more specific notion of cleansing rather than drug detoxification.  It is worthy to note, however, that as you participate in a cleansing diet with adequate hydration and proper vegetables and fruit, that it will assist you in eliminating other toxic substances from your body – not the least of which can be contributed to by drugs.  Best of luck!

Detox Your Body Without The Yo-Yo Effect

It is a very common phenomenon. You can avoid it by choosing to eat a more vegetable based diet as a routine.

That previously mentioned flaw to diets, the snap-back effect – it’s a common problem for many people not only trying to lose weight but even those learning how to detox.  You’ve probably experienced it yourself if you are looking to lose weight with your detox.  The smart way to detox your body is to go about it like any pursuit that is worthwhile, commit to it.  Some detox diets are only for a brief 2-3 day period.  We’d call this more of a quick fast or fasting cleanse, but you’ll see it as a detox in places too.  Most sources will recommend at least a 10 day time period to plan for your detox program.  This is ample time to allow your body to go through its natural process of elimination, followed by further cleansing and more elimination.  Combined with the suggested fruits, vegetables, supplementation to support your cleanse and adequate hydration and you will be in good shape.  Great shape even, in no time!  As you learn how to detox this way, you’ll be much better about your body’s ability to be more alive, vibrant and full of life.

So, rather than trying to be the hare and finish a brief episode of colon cleansing and then race on to your next diet, give yourself some time to be the turtle and ultimately win for your health.