Life on the Detox train ChOo CHOoooo

Pining for cupcakes at the market

Smoked Duck-Comte-Iced latte-Brioche-Cheese in general-cupcakes-strawberry milkshakes-coffee in general.. Oh and did I mention cheese??

These are just a few of the yummy treats I had on my 'cravings' list. Created after the fabulous Mr Yorkeston, who is coming to stay in a week, offered to help me work through the list to make up for the month gone by. That's what friends are for right?! He could also be trying to sabotage me by ruining all my good work.. hehe

Cravings aside - the detox (schmeetox) went really well! Near the end I was actually beginning to feel like I'll actually miss it... I have loads more energy, my skin is clearer, I don't yawn every 30 minutes and even my hair feels healthier.. (Maybe due to a new conditioner - but I'll praise the detox for now!)

It was definitely an interesting couple of weeks. I pretty much avoided the general public and eating out. Didn't even step into a pub :) But to be honest, I have really enjoyed discovering new foods, types of cooking and recipes. Particularly Quinoa- a rice type grain that expands to five times its original size and is super tasty.

Don't get me wrong there were temptations.. Work was the hardest - surrounded by all the delicious goodness (smoked duck!!) was tough at times. But its just meant I had to be very organised, taking carrots and all sorts of healthy snacks as well. Certain colleagues weren't very supportive at first, placing brioche all over the shop just to tempt me (bastards!) but caught on once they realised I was serious about it. One even did a detox of his own ( but will still have a few glasses of wine and a massive slice of Beaufort... go figure!)

The neighbouring coffee shops were very nice, bringing me a cup of peppermint tea and a lettuce leaf every day at midday! I realised that they do banana soy smoothies 9 days before finishing!

Part of the detox is doing cold showers and having mineral baths and massages. Pretty nice to have an excuse to get a massage, and take a time out in the bath! Cold showers took me a few days to get used too, allergic reactions didn't help! Also been doing exercise everyday which has been great fun. Getting to know the local area - its actually really beautiful. We have a great park about ten minutes away, which you can get to by running down the canal or through the other park.

I have also discovered this very beautiful but eery cemetery just behind my place. Its a bit harry potter/thriller and very well maintained. There are some tombstones that are over two hundred years old. Its very cool! Only problem is that I am terrified of Zombies (I joke you not) and get a little spooked when running early in the mornings. I even take my phone just in case, although I'm not sure that 'The Bill' would respond to a zombie attack..

The scary zombies on my morning runs

I've also been going for walks and discovering Green Park, Hyde Park and Kensington Estate. Its been great fun and they are all reasonably close to work, Brilliant! Plus the weather has been superb - three words I never thought you would here me say (or in this case type) - Beautiful Sunny London!

My commitment was tested a few times throughout the detox. Firstly with the (untimely) arrival of Brendan and Ben, also known as Brenno and Lango. Two unsightly characters I met Prague last year. They were army boys, on mission in Afghanistan, enjoying their only days off, gallivanting through Europe. I met them through Nick and we all spent the week pissing up, drinking 4 litre cocktails and watching State of Origin! So it goes without saying that I really wanted to have a good night out with them but couldn't BOOOO! They stayed at mine or a few days which was nice. But I felt bad I couldn't meet them out for a drink!

   Andy and I at the markets

Then I had a Sunday off and caught up with my lovely lady friend Andy, someone I also met in Prague (love that place). She was on a mission to introduce me to the local markets, and that we did. I bought some awesome funky earrings and a particularly cool shirt (Andy and I actually got the same shirt and have to co-operate to make sure we don't wear the same shirt by accident!). All in all it was a great day, it was very hard not to eat all the incredible yummy foods the market has to offer, I found some stuff in the end, but had to scoot past the cupcake stalls very very quickly!! PAIN

Kaytlyne & I at the folk fair

On the last week of the detox I had Kaytlyne and two of her friends to stay for the weekend. It was really great to see the girls again! It had been 6 months since I had seen Kaytlyne :(

I took the Sunday off work and we went to the Tate modern where there was a children's folk fair on. It was so nice to hang out in the sun, have a picnic and catch up with friends. Fern and Anthony were there for little Alfie and we watched him have a little sing along and have a really fun time. That kid is going to grow up to be a big cheese fan I promise you that! 

 Speaking of cheese.. I went (with the view of participating) to the Gloucester cheese Rolling carnival! It was during the detox but luckily there was actually not any cheese to be eaten there... It was possibly one of the funniest days of my life! I brought my afore mentioned friend Andy, her housemate Anthony and his bestie, Andrew. As soon as I arrived at the train station I knew we were in for a great day! The whole event is held atop Coopers Hill in Gloucester.  A man in a full body white jumpsuit stands at the top of the hill and throws a wheel of Gloucester cheese down the hill. 15 or so contestants then chase down after it. Most of them lose step about 5 steps down and no-one reaches the bottom unscathed! I was actually planning on entering but the walk up the hill killed me, and then watching the first race definitely cemented my decision not to enter!! It was hilarious fun, watching borat, a naked guy (with a g-string on), spiderman and a guy with a horse mask crash tackle and smack their way down the hill! Maybe next year I'll have the nerve to enter. And six weeks accrued annual leave to I can take time to heal my broken limbs!

The A team - Angie Anthony Andrew and Andy

Regardless I managed to commit to the detox and feel much better for it now! I have stuck to alot of the same foods and have decided to pretty much delete dairy from my diet (except for the odd cheese and coffee obviously). The first thing I had coming off the detox was banana on wholemeal bread! But then I got to work and had some SMOKED duck... MMMmmmm

All in all it was good fun, very interesting and well worth doing. Any one interested in doing it, the Book is 'Detox yourself' by Jane Skrivner!

   Coffee post detox

Over and Out

Detox Schmeetox

Its that time again...

Its been a while and my only (and pretty good excuse) is that I have been all consumed by this detox I am on.

Detox? I hear you asking, Detox? WHY why WHy would someone do that willingly?

Well, I must admit, it has been challenging (especially in my line of work), I have had my moments where I could literally kill for a slice of Comte or smoked duck.. But I have hung in there and am feeling fantastic :)

But let me take you back, back to the beginning, back to basics, how it all began.

Fi had been told, by one of our friends, about a great detox we should try. To be honest, when Fi suggested it to me I wasn't too keen at first, mainly because the whole diet concept can be a bit crazy and thought of doing a detox where I work just seems crazy! But it is actually more than a diet or a detox, its all about eating and thinking healthier. Doing things to help your body like dry-skin brushing, regular massages, exercise and exfoliating. 

So I went and got the book and was actually really intrigued by it. Bring it on I say!

In the week leading up to D-day (get it D for detox.. haha) I kept thinking about all the foods I was about to give up for a month. Cheese for starters! The alcohol was not going to be a problem because I have barely drunk in over a month anyway. Chocolate is obviously something us girls were a bit upset about losing.. Coffee is the one thing I was stressing out not getting, so I started to cut back in the weeks leading up, to make the headaches a bit easier!!

We had all decided to start together on the Monday after Amandas birthday, so that we could have one last blow out (As you do when your about to Detox, ruin your body even more!). It turns out we have all started at different times any way!

In the days leading up to the detox all I could think about was Yum Cha (or Dim Sum as it is called in London) so my Rocamadour loving Canadian friend Cath and I went for a tasty treat. We found a really great place in China Town, that I will definitely be frequenting once this detox is over!!  After wards we faffed around and I went to meet up with some friends from home and had my last COFFEE for 30 days :(  Had to go to Flet Whyte, in Soho, coz its the best in London! Withdrawals Withdrawals Withdrawals!!

D-Day had arrived and I was up and ready to go! I over did it a little with the cold shower, a bit too keen and gave myself an allergic reaction! I realised we can have porridge for breakfast which is a relief.. Something a bit substantial for breaky certainly helps to keep me going!

I had the day off which was good, got to concentrate on following the program and getting my house food ready. Which included putting all sugar, flour, biscuits, coffee, and pretty much everything that is processed into bags and hiding them in my cupboard!

Day two was not so easy, considering I had to work. To be honest its was FARKING hard. Everyone kept trying to tempt me and no-one thought I would stick to it! It was actually really annoying because everyone kept trying to talk me out of it which was the last thing I needed. I was out to prove them all wrong!

One thing about the detox is that its supposed to 'give you back two hours a day'. But its actually really time consuming! Between the exercise, relaxing, massage, breathing and cooking and preparing all the food... Its pretty much taking up an extra 2 hours a day! Oh well it will all be worth it in the end right!

The first week was a bit tricky at times, especially at work, but not nearly as hard as I imagined it! I have started a cravings list that will be worked through with my dear friend Yorko when he comes for a week in June. It is helping me stay sane! 

Week two started off really bad because my back was really sore and I had horrible neck pains and could barely move! Made me feel really whoosy and obviously couldn't do exercise which sucked! I also got a bit fluey and managed to convince myself that I had the SWINE FLU! Ahah, luckily I have a housemate who is a nurse and she convinced me that I will be just fine! 

After a few days rest I was good to go again! All the rituals have become like second nature now, and the cooking is becoming easier and more inventive. I have started going for walks/jogs in Hyde Park before work which has been really nice. Gets me in a good mind set for work too which is well needed :)

We've actually been very quiet at work which is making the detox a little more challenging. Because there isn't much to do except eat! Although I am proud, my boss has been inspired and is riding to work every day and eating healthier :) Finally convinced them all!

I'm into week three now and I have my rhythm well down pat. There is a great cemetery behind our place that I go running at everyday, and I have taken to turning up the music really loud in my room and dancing around like a crazy person for half an hour. You know, the one at the club who is in the middle flapping her arms around like a banshee making you want to cringe? Yep, that's my room dance style baby! 

I think my bladder is finally adjusted to the amount of water I have been drinking which is nice! Don't need to pee every bloody fifteen minutes anymore!

So that's pretty much it for now! I'm feeling great, loads more energy, I wake up early and feel alert and ready to go without the need for an alarm, or a snooze button. My skin is alot clearer and I'm sleeping very heavily (rather than waking up all the time) and even feel a bit more positive!

I'll keep you all posted.. I'm sure there will be a chocolate or coffee craving soon that might need to be vented!!