Summer is almost here, bringing with it a perfect time for a little housecleaning. Most of us go through the winter months in storage mode: hide out, stay warm and eat. But now that the warm weather is here it’s time to shed that winter coat. A detox is a perfect way to welcome the new weather, and with fresh produce in full bounty, what better time to do it!

Below is my 7-day detox. I recommend reading it through and tweaking it a little to fit your lifestyle if you need to. Remember anything you do will be helpful but try to make a plan that you can stick to. The most important items I recommend doing are the smoothies, not eating after 7pm, and the Gymnema for sugar cravings and balancing the blood sugar so you feel better in the process.

7-Day Detox

Yes: Veggies, fruit, nuts, water and plenty of fresh, organic, local produce
No: Sugar, alcohol, caffeine, gluten, artificial sweeteners (dairy, soy, and egg are optional)
Water: At least half your body weight in ounces daily

Day 1-7:

● 7-8am: smoothie
● 10-11am: snack
● 12-1pm: steamed veggies and nuts for lunch with olive oil,lemon and sea salt
● 3-4pm: snack
● 6-7pm: smoothie

Snacks: a piece of fruit and nuts, celery and almond butter, snap peas and nuts, rice crackers and hummus, plain rice cake with almond butter, steamed veggies and nuts, avocado with sea salt. Even just a few nuts will do if you don’t have time to plan ahead

Simple Smoothie:

Fresh or frozen fruit (½ a banana or ¼ avocado make a good creamy base)
Veggies (pick 2-4: spinach, cucumber, kale, chard, collard, fennel, celery, carrot, parsley, mint, avocado, etc. Careful with some of those if you don’t have a heavy duty blender like a Vitamix)
Handful of hemp seeds, almonds or walnuts
2 scoops Mediclear Plus protein powder by Thorne or other simple whey or rice protein powder
Water to desired consistency (maybe half coconut water)
Optional: Greens powder supplement (Earth’s Promise, Vitamineral Greens, Greens First or Paleogreens)

With Meals (optional): Gymnema Sylvestre 400-1000mg 3 times a day with meals/smoothies (to help balance the blood sugar and eliminate sugar cravings), B complex 100 by NOW with lunch (for an energy boost)

Yoga: 3-6 times/week and meditate at least 10 minutes a day

The supplements, greens and protein powder above are available for purchase online; just Google them.

I love this detox because it is really simple. If you’re busy and don’t have a lot of time to cook and prepare food, this detox is for you because the preparation is easy. If you drink a lot of coffee take a week to ween off prior to the detox, don’t just go cold turkey. The Gymnema will help a lot with the food cravings and will help regulate your appetite and blood sugar so you feel better during the detox.

Since you won’t be spending as much time cooking or eating out, try to keep it simple and enjoy your down time even if it’s brief. Feel free to modify this detox as you need to (make it longer/shorter, easier/harder, etc.). Doing part of it is better than nothing at all.

When you’re finished you can continue as long as you like if you’re feeling good. I find that I get hooked on it and like to continue on with some variation of this and maybe take a day off here and there to have a glass of wine from time to time.

Happy Detoxing!

An internationally known yoga teacher, author and health and wellness expert, Tiffany Cruikshank is the Acupuncturist and Yoga Teacher at the Nike World Headquarters in Portland, Oregon. Her book, Optimal Health For A Vibrant Life, is a 30-day detox for yogis. For her workshop, teacher training and retreat schedule go to www.TiffanyYoga.com, or try her classes online at www.YogaGlo.com