How To Create Your Own Ayurvedic Spring Detox

There are two times a year Ayurveda really invites you into a detox for not only your body but your mind. One of those times are the spring season the other being the fall. I personally love to engage in a detox whether that be just social media or a diet full of kitchari. I will break down what you need to know about the spring detox this month and report on how mine went this Spring season. Don't worry it's not too late to enjoy a detox of your own. April is a perfect month to schedule in 3-7 days. The detox I go over is a simple one there are way more intense detoxes that if you want to try make sure you have the care of an Ayurvedic practitioner to guide you in the right direction.

 

The benefits of an Ayurvedic cleanse is to help remove ama (toxins) from the body. It helps you release stress from the body in particular on your liver & kidneys to help set yourself up for a strong spring/summer season. I enjoy the cleanse/detox for both physical & mental health. I not only follow a nutrition plan but also a mental plan to help hit reset on various habits that I've picked up since the Fall.

 

What does my cleanse look like?

Prep Week

To start the cleanse you will do a 5-7 prep to help get the body ready again both physically and mentally. For example if you drink 3 cups of coffee try and cut back to 1.5 cups. If you want to eat more veggies start incorporating them the week prior so your body has time to adjust. If you want to start drinking bone broth make sure you've tried it before you put it in your overall cleanse plan the next week. Start mapping out your cleanse for the following week and mentally prepping to stick to the plan you set out for yourself. This might look like eating an earlier dinner 2 nights during the prep week, or not snacking 2 of the 5 prep days. The more you can demonstrate to yourself you can do it the more likely you will be to stick to the cleanse.

My actual cleanse 

• 10 days- April 7th-16th
• Eliminate- Sugar, coffee, wine, meat, fruit, dairy, social media
• Podcasts- I can only listen to while in the car
• TV- 1 hour a day
• Add-In- More self-care, bath, self-massage, evening yoga, reading, journaling
• Done eating by 6pm
  
• Bed by 9pm
• Get up at 5am

Typical Day

First thing in the morning-

• Drink lemon water with 1 tablespoon of coconut oil & 1/4 tsp ginger & turmeric
• Bone broth, veggie broth or green juice

Around 9/10am- If needing food otherwise will wait until lunch

• Nuts, cucumber slices, bowl of kitchari (this is my favorite recipe for it)

Lunch

• Cooked veggies with apple cider vinegar, small bowl of kitchari

Dinner

• Large bowl of cooked veggies with small bowl of quinoa or bowl of kitchari or bone broth if not very hungry

Before Bed

• Enjoy a cup of triphala

That is what my cleanse will look like this year and if your brand new to a cleanse like this I would start with 3 days. Sometimes you will also not feel the best the first few days pending what your diet and lifestyle was before the cleanse. This is your basic Ayurvedic cleanse and can be tailored to fit your needs. Last fall I just did a social media/technology detox and skipped the nutrition part. So decide what you feel called to do this season and honor that intuition.

Here are a few handouts that might help you deepen your cleanse if you choose to be on one. Again all of April is a perfect time to embark on one and even into mid-May. It starts by deciding why you want to do one and then designing it to fit your needs. If you have any questions just hit reply and I would love to answer them.

Emerging from detox

Just as important of doing the actual detox is how you come out of it. If you eliminated sugar, coffee, meat and know you will continue with a coffee habit. Start by making the coffee half as strong and only one cup. For meat slowly introduce it back into your diet not meat for every meal. Same with the technology habits. You might realize a few new habits serve you better now and choose to stick with them. This is the perfect time to continue with your new habits and have the next evolution of you emerge this spring season.

 

Weekly Challenge:

Create a cleanse for yourself this spring. Maybe it's around food for 3 days or maybe you take a social media detox for 3 days. Decide what you need more of and schedule it!

 

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Where to Connect with Andrea

Instagram- instagram.com/seasonalandrea
Website- andreaclaassen.com