Summer weekends are often jam-packed with outdoor events. However, while many of these outings feature swimming and walking on the beach—many still focus on rounds of sugary cocktails on the backyard deck, appetizers on the patio, or camping and cottage trips filled with barbecues and beer.
Returning home after a weekend of indulgence, your body may be begging for a few days of detoxification to cleanse your system of all the rich foods and alcohol. Luckily, you can keep detoxing simply by incorporating the following tips into your daily routine…
1. Brew a Cup of Green Tea
You’re probably already aware that green tea is rich in antioxidants and catechins, which National Institutes of Health research shows quickens the liver detoxification process. However, the power of sipping a warm cup of tea can actually counteract the jitters and anxiety caused by pounding too much caffeine over the weekend.
Following a few days of too much coffee, alcohol with soda, and energy drinks, green tea will do the body good and promote hydration. So after your first morning cup of java, do your body a favor and switch to green tea.
2. Eat your Fruits and Veggies
Following a weekend of indulgence it’s important to return to a clean diet—rich in fresh foods like fruits and vegetables—in order to detox the body fully.
This means steering clear of processed foods for a few days and focusing on a “clean diet,” which is a diet focused on fresh foods that speed up the detoxification process. The Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry points to detoxifying fruits and veggies, such as leafy greens, beets, garlic, tomatoes, artichokes, avocado, and citrus fruits, all of which promote healthy liver and kidney function.
3. Drink Lemon Water
Start your day off with a tall glass of room temperature water with some freshly squeezed lemon. This will help encourage hydration and aid any digestive woes. Admit it, your tummy might feel a bit troublesome after a weekend of beer and junk food.
However, lemon water does the trick when it comes to restoring both hydration and balance in your body’s pH levels, which can fall out of whack after a weekend of imbibing. If your pH drops below 7.35, acidosis can result—causing symptoms of fatigue, sore muscles, and headaches, according to one of America’s foremost nutrition experts and author, David Wolfe.
4. Prepare Meals at Home
The last thing you’re probably thinking about is ordering pizza after a weekend filled with pot lucks, and all-you-can-eat ribs. However, it’s a wise idea to take restaurant meals off your menu the week after a decadent couple days of eating.
Make this an opportunity to cook at home where you’ll have complete control of the healthy ingredients going into your dishes. That way, you can incorporate the detoxifying fruits and veggies mentioned in the previous slide.
5. Get Sweaty
The best way to put a weekend of indulgent eating and drinking behind you is to sweat it out—quite literally! Cardio in particular will encourage sweat to aid the elimination of toxins.
Look to gentle activities—like hot yoga, or take some time to sweat in the sauna or steam room at your gym. Trust me, yoga is detoxifying by nature with poses, like abdominal twists, to help move food waste through the digestive tract while detoxing your internal organs.
