Every now and then, I try to do a fasting lemon water detox. The longest I have done is ten days of just lemon water throughout the day and no food with the exception of a smoothie at the end of the day when my brain thinks it wants food. The shortest I have done is half a day, which I suppose no one would count as a “detox”.
I try to time my detoxing with when M goes out of town. It works nicely since I do not like to cook and hate to cook just for one, especially. Though I can easily live off of ramen and cereal for a few days, I felt that this week was the perfect timing as my body was also literally sending out screams of “stop feeding me!”
When my physiotherapist massaged my hip joints and pushed around the belly, she suggested a break from the booze and food would be good for me. I hadn’t told her that I already had a plan, so I took it as a sign from Lady Universe of encouragement to go forward with the detox plan.
So, I half started upon dropping M off at the airport on Sunday night. Monday night, I did go off plan as I already had agreed to go on the taco, rose wine night with friends. Then, it was back on it fully from Tuesday. Here we are three and a half days later and I feel great, a little sleepy still, but physically better.
It’s as if my body has said “Thank you π”.
Although I had planned to just do lemon water and a smoothie every day until M’s return on Sunday, I was doing some more reading and realized that to avoid a bounce back effect once I return to eating fully, I am going to ease myself back to a new regular diet with a focus on vegetables and mostly raw food. In fact, I may stay 90% vegetarian for a while yet just because I think my body is still in need of a healthy routine for a bit more.
There are some things I have learned from the past few days. One is that I do not need to consume so much food – ever. Another is that I do not need to eat just because it looks good or I can. While I do enjoy the pleasures of food and the community of eating with others, I can have a better awareness of how much and what I actually consume. I can eat with others without eating as much. I can also be choosier about the quality and type of food I eat if I eat less.
I’ve also learned a few things in other areas just from my not focusing on meals and food.
One is that other people seem more affronted by my lack of eating than I am. It’s as if it is some kind of personal attack on them if I choose not to be eating or drinking. Some go so far as to avoid inviting me out or interacting with me during mealtimes because they assume, for me, that it would be awkward – really it’s awkward for them. Luckily, I do not mind as it’s one less angst I have towards being social.
Another is that people put a lot of assumptions around food which reveals more about themselves than it does about me.
So, I have been enjoying a quiet week. Some social interactions, but not a lot. I am no longer thinking about my next meal and yet staying very active and productive. My body seems to have cleansed itself decently as my bathroom visits are less frequent (sorry for the TMI, but it’s an important point when detoxing/cleansing). My sleep is OK, but I think that is more related to heat and needing to get up early to avoid the heat after 10am than my diet. I’ve done more walking and exercising these past five days so far than I have in months.
With that, I am happy to report that my reboot detox 2023 is going successfully well!
~T π₯πβοΈ
