Just a week of detoxing could give you an increase in energy, clearer skin, less bloating and even boost your immune system. Sound good? Here are a few easy tips to follow if you want to detoxify after the festive season.

A detox flushes out all the ‘bad guys’ (toxins) and gives you a fresh start. It’s not a quick fix of supplements or fasting that will undo all the over indulgences synonymous with the Christmas and New Year period. Au contraire. You now need to treat your body to the light and fresh ingredients it craves after all the mulled-wine and mince pies.

If that sounds good, simply try these tips for a few days, a week or longer, and allow them to gradually become part of your daily routine for 2013.

• Give your body a break from the Big Five: caffeine, alcohol, sugar, flour and animal products. These are the common foods that your body has to work extra hard to digest, and that’s the opposite of what we want. But there’s no need to go cold-turkey. Simply cut-down on the coffee, red-meat, sugary-snacks, fatty-foods and pasta for a few days and let the results speak for themselves.

• And what can you eat instead? Plenty! Think fresh, whole, organic foods. Eat plenty of vegetables and fruit, like sweet potatoes, avocadoes, fresh ginger, coconut, lemons, beans, legumes, small amounts of nuts, seeds, organic poultry and wild fish. The internet is absolutely exploding with mouth-watering recipes to help turn these ingredients into quick, delicious meals.

• Goodbye coffee, hello herbal tea. We all heard of the ‘eight large glasses of water’ a day rule; how about adding decaffeinated herbal teas as another great ingredient in your detox regime? Green tea may have some caffeine in it but it is still a good substitute to coffee. It energises the body and is a potent antioxidant that cleanses the body from unwanted impurities.

• Detox your skin by sweating out toxins through moderate exercise, like yoga or jogging. For a lazier alternative, you could visit the sauna at your local gym. And for a more practical and affordable option? Showering. Simply stand under a hot shower for three minutes, followed by a 30 second cold spurt. Repeat three times and dry off quickly. Experts say this boosts the circulation and flushes out toxins by opening up the pores for clearer, revitalised skin.

• Go the extra mile by adding superfoods like spirulina, maca and wheatgrass to your diet. Spirulina is bursting with nutrients that nourish the brain, heart and nervous system. It is the richest and most digestible source of protein. Maca can assist with strength, energy and endurance and is even known to be an aphrodisiac. Meanwhile, one of the best-known benefits of wheatgrass is that it boosts the digestive system. These natural plant extracts can easily be incorporated into your daily diet by mixing them into a fresh fruit smoothie.

Finally it’s not only about what you do but the attitude that you take. Don’t feel deprived but empowered that you have made the healthy choice, and enjoy the benefits that come with that.
Have you tried any detox tips that really worked or really failed you? We’d love to hear about them in the comments section below.