Since I went to Bali and did a mini juice detox, I have felt very much in control of my health and wellness.
It’s no secret (just read this blog!!) that I am a bit mad when it comes to food and control. It’s always been all or nothing. But lately, the pull to control everything that goes in my mouth has waned. And it started around Halloween.
This was last night’s dinner and it was delicious!! So easy to make. You could add many more vegetables and dips so go on, get creative!!
It was around this time last year that I read Kelly Exeter‘s ebook, Your Best Year Yet.
I loved it and felt myself nodding in agreement on many pages; having a-ha moments.
But I didn’t put it into practice.
Then later in the year, after a mini-melt down, I read it again but still didn’t figure out that I needed to change my attitude and way of thinking before I could create MY best year yet.
Happy New Year!!
I know, I know, I’m quite late to the party. Cannot believe it’s Jan 10 already.
I’ll get to posting about some of my holiday food adventures soon but this post is about my WORD for 2015. Again, I’m late to the party with posting this annual tradition but it’s my first time (I think..lol?).
It was easy for me to choose a theme word for the new year. Remember my Detox Day 3 post? If not, read it here.
Almost everyone over does at Christmas and New Year. All that booze, cheese, crackers, chocolates and celebrating can really suck you in and before you know it you’re eating everything in sight (well, I hope it’s not just me!!). But why not overindulge? Everyone deserves a little down time and enjoyment at the end the year. But too much enjoyment often results in not really enjoying anything (when you need up ill).
As you know, I am constantly battling food to see what works and what doesn’t. But at this time of year I don’t fight it. I eat whatever I want, when I want and don’t feel guilty about it. But, I don’t throw away all my good sense!! There are still a few things I continue to do that I know keeps me healthy amid all the chocolate covered chaos.
These immune boosting habits are great all-year round, but especially when you know your body needs a kick up the keister.
Okay, I survived a 3-day juice cleanse in Bali. Sure, I was hungry sometimes but it was worth it!! I feel amazing!! My bloated belly is gone, my skin is clearing up and I feel a great sense of accomplishment. Now, I must return to solid food. Slowly but surely.
I start day 3 with an early morning Hatha Yoga class – after taking my herbs and litre of water of course. I really love starting my day with fitness so this was a great way to commence my final detox day. Hatha offers a good mix of poses; relaxing and challenging. After the 90 minute class, I’m feeling great but looking forward to some nutrients. I hike up the twenty-some stairs to the cafe for my green breakfast.
I really love the routine and ease of rocking up to the counter, handing over my vouchers and having a green juice, coconut water and wheat grass shot delivered to me. And if this could happen every day, I reckon I could stay on this detox system. Detoxing at home is way harder when you are the one who has to provide all the healthy stuff.
I don’t have much time to linger though. At 10am, I’m off to another sauna session. Armed with magazines and a water bottle, I enter the sweat box in my birthday suit. It’s truly for one person only so when I lay down, only my back has room on the bench seat, which forces my legs up the wall. Hey, I’m actually doing yoga in here!!! Not sure why I bothered to bring reading material. It’s too hot to read. By the end of my 30 minutes, I’m drenched in my own sweat. Good pouring, detoxing beads. A cool shower revives my mind and body before my next appointment.
I meet Levi, the astrologer, in a cabana near the guest house. He’s been working on my birth chart and is now ready to reveal my secrets. I’ve had my chart done before by Jo Tracey who lives in Sydney (and totally recommend her!), but I felt I needed a refresher. Levi pointed out several things that helped me understand my personality and life’s intent. What I really loved about this reading was the list of key words I made during the reading: consistency, sustainable, ENJOY, time, present, less, Earth, rigid, responsible, control – CONTROL LESS.
I do have a need to try to control every minute of my life (and others’) so this was a big slap in the face to hear from a complete stranger (hahaha – not really, eh? He knew things about me that I didn’t even want to know!!). My biggest take away from the session is this: ENJOY EVERY MOMENT.
And I’m trying to follow through on this notion. It seems like a simple suggestion but for me, it’s not easy. I’ve been attempting to “live in the NOW” for several years but I don’t excel at it. Practise makes perfect?
The rest of my afternoon is lazy and easy. I drink heaps of water and finish my prescribed liquids before a 6pm Restorative Yoga class. I’ve done lots of restorative yoga before but this class was quite different. Hard even. Outside of the warm up and closing Shavasana, the class consisted of only 5 poses that were held for up to 10 minutes each!! Ouch! I was regretting not committing to daily yoga. My body is just not up to long holds.
I finish day 3 with an evening stroll around Ubud town. Shop owners are even too tired or lazy to lure me into their place so after a quick hour out, I return to the guest house for an evening enema. I haven’t mastered it yet but as least I’m giving it a go.
I go to bed planning tomorrow’s “breaking the fast” menu. It’s amazing how the mind insists on thinking about food even when I feel totally fine, well even, without solids. Tomorrow I shall murder a pineapple.
Sorry it’s taken so long for me to post the accounts of Detox in Bali Day 2!! Click here to read about day 1.
For the second time, I awake to laughter and squeals before 7am. There’s a school beside the Yoga Barn guest house and boy, they start early! It’s hard to get upset about waking up to happy children though.
7am
I sit up and reach for my water bottle and herb capsules. I must drink a litre of water before anything else enters my system. After a couple mouthfuls, I’m forced out of bed and to the toilet. Elimination is key to a good detox.
A few scrapes of my tongue is next up in my morning regime. Rinse with filtered water. Bali is like Mexico: Don’t drink (or brush teeth with) the water.
In my room fridge is a bottle of coconut kefir. It’s a probiotic – great for good gut health. I have my morning shot then jump in the shower.
9am
I have a busy schedule today so once showered and dressed, I wander to the cafe for a coconut water, green juice and more plain water.
I feel satisfied with my liquid breakfast now it’s time to get naked.
10am
I head to the Spa for my infared sauna booking. I like saunas because they make me sweat. I’m not a huge sweater (unless nervous or anxious which is just embarrassing). Another litre of water is downed during my 25 minute stint in the tiny wooden heat box. A cool shower feels heavenly afterwards.
11am
No rest for the wicked now though; I’m off to a Yin Yoga class. I’ve never been to a yin class but I choose it for its gentleness. During a detox, there’s no point pushing the boundaries on your energy levels. Slow and easy does it. There’s a lot of hip openers, which is not easy for me so the 90 minute-class is not as easy as I would have hoped for. I do my best to relax into the poses and enjoy the pain. Hahahahahahaha
1pm
From class, I race to my room for a quick rinse and more peeing then back to the Spa for my Kati Basti massage. Now, this is more like it. All I need to do is lay face down and let some Indian man pour oil into a donut (hmmmmmm donut) shaped clay mould on my lower back. It’s warm and relaxing. The entire treatment is focussed on my lower back, which in Ayurveda, it’s said to house excess Vata. I won’t go into the basis of Ayurveda now but it’s a very interesting way of life from India. My dominating dosha is Vata so this was a valuable session for me. But, what massage isn’t awesome?
230pm
Believe it or not, another appointment but I will keep the details private. I have my second coconut water during this one and of course, more water. During the day, there are many trips to the toilet – to pee. Contrary to what many people think, there is no diarrhoea during a safe detox.
PS. I cheated a little by scraping the inside of the young coconut with my straw. The gel-like meat gets stuck in the straw. It feels like a may suck my eyeballs into my skull as I try to get at that coconut meat.
530pm
Each Wednesday at the Yoga Barn, the American yoga teacher, Levi holds a free community talk on Astrology. Levi does this as a way to promote that fact that he is an astrologer and does readings. Even though I’ve already booked a session with him for tomorrow, I attend the free seminar where he answers general questions about the stars, sun and moon. Afterwards, I stop in at the cafe for the last of my liquid meals for the day: herbal tea and green juice.
730pm
My last appointment for the day: Sound Medicine. I feel like I’ve walked into a 1960s hippy commune when I enter the room. There’s all sorts of musical instruments – everything from drums to Tibetans bowls as well as colourful silks and pillows. There are 3 hosts: 2 are bearded and one’s in a flowing dress. We start off with a sing-along. Now, I really feel like flower power is upon me. Peace man. Once we lay down on our mats we are to be still for the rest of the session. It’s easy at first but then my entire body and soul aches and screams for me to shift and fidget. The girl beside me (who is also on the detox) stomach is growling. Sometimes, there’s a drum or cymbal sounding right over my face. Then, a piece of material is placed on my stomach. Suddenly, my body relaxes and I am calm again. When we are told to open our eyes, I see the red silk on my tummy and I’m amazed at how this was able to still me.
9pm
I’m so tired and hungry that I don’t even attempt my enema. I shower and go straight to bed. I try to read but there’s no point. I can’t stay awake. Day 2 is over. Bring on Day 3. I’m already planning my return to food on Day 4 (breaking the fast).
Okay, so I know this post is well overdue. It’s been over 2 months now since I actually did my detox in Bali and over a month since I wrote the first post in this series. I won’t lie. Life’s busy and getting busier each day.
Many of you may have forgotten about my detox series but here I am, back to remind you that I did do a mini detox in Ubud and it was fantastic. So, let’s get on with what happened on day 1.
~
I wake up eager to start the day even though I had a fitful night. I regret not bringing my fleece onesie along. I didn’t expect it to be so cool. But, there’s no time to dwell on that. It’s the first day of my mini juice cleanse and I’m pumped to get started!
I arrive to the Kush Spa just before my 8 o’clock appointment. I pour myself a glass of water from the fountain and sit back in a wooden chair. It’s hard and uncomfortable, kinda like what most people think a detox will be.
The deck of the Colonic Hut looks onto a small rice field. It’s dry and brown but the birds love it.
A petite woman arrives and heads to the door. I sit up in my seat.
“Hi, are you Andrea?” I ask.
“Yes. You must be Jennifer,” she responds. “Follow me and we can start.”
Her accents suggests she is American and her smile shows that she is friendly and approachable.
She shows me to a small office just inside and to the left of the main entrance.
After some chitchat Andrea gives me a questionnaire and leaves the room. It’s basic health stuff until I get to this:
Draw your poop
Kai Chronicles 