If you’ve been attending parties and events lately where they serve lots of food and alcohol, then chances are, you’ve been binge-eating. There’s nothing wrong with celebrating in Peter Luger on a Saturday night with your friends, but if you’ve been eating out almost every day, then a detox is definitely in order.
1. Drink plenty of water
If you want to flush out toxins from your body, drinking plenty of water is the way to go. It’s recommended that you consume 2 liters of water minimum in order to maintain proper hydration so you may want to drink more than this amount if your goal is to detoxify.
2. Consume probiotics
Probiotic-rich foods like yogurt, kefir and kimchi have good bacteria to enhance gut health and help you get back in shape.
3. Drink tea
Drinking a cup of green tea in the morning can give you some very powerful antioxidants to cleanse impurities and toxins and flush them out of the body. It’s recommended that you drink a cup of tea after a heavy meal. Chamomile is also good for detox.
4. Incorporate metabolism-boosting drinks into your daily routine
You can drink lemon-infused water throughout the day which boosts your metabolism and stimulates your digestive system.
5. Eat more leafy greens
Green leafy and cruciferous vegetables like kale, broccoli and spinach are rich in antioxidants and also help reduce bloating. You can either steam or boil two cups of spinach and sprinkle some salt and pepper, consume as a side dish or you can also strain and drink it.
6. Cut out alcohol
It’s best to completely cut out alcohol for a few days and hydrate well with water. Your body could probably use the break.
7. Eat fiber-rich foods
Remove all processed food from your diet for a week especially if you have been binging on food with rich sauces and desserts. Consume high-fiber carbs like brown rice, oats, sweet potatoes and quinoa so you will feel full faster and lower the likelihood of overeating. Fiber also aids in eliminating toxins from the body.
8. Get moving
It’s always a good idea to have an active lifestyle and even more so if you’re the type to eat out more than you cook your own food. Enroll in a gym, join a fitness group or even something as simple as doing 30 minutes of aerobic exercise (walking, cycling, swimming, dancing, etc.) a day to burn calories, get your heart rate up and burn belly fat.
A weekend of barbecues, parties and all-you-can-eat buffets along with overdoing the alcohol wreaks havoc with your body in serious ways. If you overwhelm your system repeatedly this can lead to weight gain, mental decline and a host of dangerous health issues. Although for the most part, overeating simply leads to feeling bloated, tummy ache, heartburn and nausea, if you do it regularly without taking steps to detox and recover, it can lead to long term problems.
It’s good to celebrate with food and treat yourself to a well-deserved meal every now and then. But moderation and healthy habits are definitely needed if you want to live a long, healthy life.
