I’m Doing a Detox

I know, right?

No…I didn’t stutter. I’ll give you a moment to pick up your collective jaws from the floor before I back up and explain.

First, we all know my VEHEMENT disapproval of cleanses and detoxes and the science I’ve got to back that up. At the very basic premise–you can’t add a supplement or food to the body in order to clean to detoxify it. Your body already knows how to do that. It was literally created to do so. It didn’t forget how. I promise.

Second, I actually think detox is quite possibly the wrong word for the endeavor for which I’m going to embark–but I haven’t landed on a better one to suggest to my nutritionist friend for her program after studying the materials at length, so, jury’s still out on that one.

So, then, why?

I’ve actually got a few reasons why I would like to give this *specific program a try.

I know the certified nutritionist running the program. She is trained, professional, knows her stuff, and I feel comfortable asking her questions throughout the five-day period as it pertains to my specific needs and being open and honest.
Real food. No supplements, processed replacements, or gimmicks. There is no franchise, MLM, or larger company behind this
You choose your food. We received a recipe guide with meal suggestions, alternative meals, snacks, and then even a supplemental guide with even more alternatives we can put in place of different meals and snacks. There’s no prescribed menu.
You eat what you want when you need to. There’s nothing in this program that tells you that you eat X amount at X time and that’s all you get. You eat according to your needs. This is in line with how I fuel my body according to the principles of intuitive eating and using a hunger/satiety/fullness scale.
New recipes! (I should’ve said this list was in no particular order) I *might* have failed to mention that this is five days of a vegan diet. This is an experiment for me in trying new and different things. I am pretty good at providing advice to my clients for vegetarian options when that is something they prefer/need, vegan is out of my wheelhouse completely–I need my meat!–which leads me to…
Referral. In my business, I want to be able to confidently refer my clients to providers I trust when the scope of care is beyond my reach. There are limits in the arena of nutrition that I cannot tackle due to my certifications and I HAVE to refer out–I want to know what the service is like that my clients will receive. What better way than to experience it myself? Plus, then I have the benefit of providing firsthand knowledge too in allaying referral fears.
Supporting local business. Uh, duh. Not only is that a no-brainer all the time, it’s even more important with the state of affairs in the world right now.

*(I said this specific program–as in: I’ve only ever even considered trying this and only this for the reasons outlined above in a very calculated and pragmatic manner. I will NOT, repeat, NOT, be entertaining other supplements, detoxes, and/or cleanse programs. Please do not solicit them to me. You won’t likely appreciate the candor of my response.)

Now, to say I walk into this with a little trepidation is an understatement–I’ve got my arsenal of backup with me too. The idea of straying from my everyday diet (as in the food I consume on a daily basis) to something out of the norm raises the anxiety level a bit, and just the word “detox” sends a thousand restriction warning bells off in my head. But, I don’t go at this alone, either. Not only do I have the support of the group and nutritionist providing the program, I have the support of my own sports dietitian if I need it, a myriad of tools that I can call upon that arrest the eating disorder shackles daily, my triathlon coach, and the people in my life that keep me accountable to my goals everyday. As y’all know, THAT stuff is priceless!

I really want to do this too as an experiment…shake things up, try some new dishes, see what’s out there, and play a little scientist too and see how my body reacts on a vegan diet for a few days. Do I see it as a lifestyle change? Heck no! But, I’m honestly curious to see how my body reacts and feels. Oh yeah–I forgot to mention too. For me, there’s no scale involved in this one. It’s packed up for the duration, no before or after weights, and I’ve talked to my coach about the intensity of the workouts I’ll have during that period of time so I won’t be taking any before/after high intensity workout weights to be tempted to see what’s going.

I also have an out. I can call it quits at anytime. If it starts to play too much emotionally or is triggering me beyond a certain point, it’s done. My mental well-being and health are always more important than an experiment. But that’s why ALL the pros are at the table in this one. Should be a fun ride though…I’ll keep y’all posted! More later.