Let’s talk about Detox. For so many years as a health coach I focused simply on digestion because I believe that good digestion leads to better health. But one day a light went on in my head. I realized that to have good digestion, you must be detoxing properly.  The two go hand in hand.

See, detox is a natural step towards better digestive health. Good digestion leads to less inflammation, and less inflammation leads to less disease and better overall health. Let me say it again, when we decrease inflammation and improve digestion, we help prevent disease.

Hippocrates said it: “All disease begins in the gut.”

If this is true and disease begins in the gut, aka your digestive system, then having a healthy digestive tract and strong digestion is key.

But let me share a secret with you – when the body is toxic, the digestive system is weak.

We see evidence of this all the time.  I mean, I eat a super clean diet and have for over 20 years, yet my autoimmune disease is still a factor.  I know plenty of people who do the same thing — they eat everything right, exercise and make healthy choices, yet their weight won’t budge, or they struggle with fatigue or bloating or mood issues.

Even if you eat “clean” and only buy organic and hormone-free foods, you are still breathing toxicity in, still wearing it in your clothing and slathering it on your body with personal care products.  Recent studies have shown that babies are being born pre-loaded with chemicals in their blood!  Before they’ve even made it our of the womb, the reality of our toxin world has gotten to them.

We live, eat and breathe toxicity every day. Look around your home… from the paint on the walls, to your carpets/rugs, to fertilizers and pesticides sprayed on your green grass, and even the exterminator to get rid of seasonal bugs. Even if you are chemical-free in your home, is your makeup free of chemicals and heavy metals?

Because we can’t lock out all the nasties in the world and living in a bubble is wildly impractical, I look for ways to work in daily detox.

You may cringe when you hear the “D” word, but I have to say that it’s nothing to be scared about. It’s exciting to think about your body and cells functioning at their best!  

• Detox doesn’t have to mean colonics and enemas and living on juices, or water, or only smoothies and salads (though, certainly, those can be helpful tools!) 

• Detox is about lessening the toxic load in your body. As I say, “peeling back the layers and taking out the trash.”

When the burden on the body is too great, we don’t feel good.  The body cannot metabolize properly, detox properly, absorb nutrients and minerals, or stay hydrated. It is a vicious cycle. Detox is necessary to be healthy, happy and free of disease. We all have some low-level inflammation because we breathe and eat and use stuff, but even more so we stress in this busy world.

Stress creates acid in your body. Seriously. Your adrenals pump out cortisol and adrenaline and trigger inflammation and your body goes for a bit of a spin.  To counteract things, your beautiful bod is forced to pull minerals from your bones to buffer the acid waste. The liver, lymph and kidneys must work hard to filter the toxic load.

What happens when the body is struggling to eliminate toxins and waste?

When your digestive system is not working optimally and cannot break down these foods, it cannot get RID of the TOXINS. That means bloat and storing fat and skin breakouts and all that jazz that keeps you tired and not feeling your best. 

Let me lay it out for you:

TOXINS=>WEAK DIGESTION=>WEAK IMMUNE

• Difficult weight management
• Constipation/diarrhea
• Gas/bloating
• Headaches
• Low energy
• Low sex drive
• Skin issues
• Heartburn/reflux
• Moodiness/anxiety/depression
• Get where I am going with all of this?

By detoxing you will improve digestion and ease your body out of the burden of inflammation and toxins in the process.

The goal of daily detox is NOT to ever feel deprived or starved.

The goal is to help you do what I have learned to do in my own life: learn how to optimize your health by EATING CLEAN; learn what foods are IRRITATING your body and restore balance by AVOIDING TRIGGERS; use simple practices to SUPPORT, SOOTHE and STRENGTHEN your system so you feel better!

Join me and I will share my detox recipes, tools and daily routine – you can follow along and see exactly what I do! 

Because the body is sensitive to seasonal changes, I create a new detox program each season. 

Four times a year you can grab a fresh plan with recipes that highlight seasonal foods.  To keep it low stress, I’ve made it easy to follow by creating a quick start guide that takes you step by step through each day.  You get more recipes to choose from, so you can change up the plan or try something new when the program is complete.  Weekly shopping lists and a guide with information about detox are yours too!  The only way I could make it any easier would be to show up in your kitchen and cook for you —- so I do that too — you get access to my live videos and daily posts that make it feel like we’re chilling together in the kitch!

Click below and let’s change your life today.

Now that you’ve learned a little more about the benefits of detoxing, how can you start bringing it into your daily life?

Here are a few of my favorite ways to stay healthy and detox naturally:

1. Upon waking, drink warm or room-temperature water with lemon and 1 tsp raw apple cider vinegar (if tolerated) and add a dash of cinnamon or cayenne.
2. Start your day by being positive – find a daily affirmation that gets you fired up. I love Louise Hay, Geneen Roth, Gabrielle Bernstein and Marianne Williamson.
3. Try getting quiet within yourself even just for one minute – and say “I release what does not serve me” – place your hand on your heart as you say this out loud. Scream if you want to… own that power.
4. Drink fresh green juices or make your own green drink with 1 tbsp. chlorophyll and lemon and lime and water.
5. Aim for one meal that is super easy on your digestion per day like a smoothie, green juice or soup. Give that digestion a rest.
6. Get moving. Exercise is one of the best ways to detox your body.
7. Drink plenty of water and add lemon, lime or grapefruit to flush the toxins.
8. Skin brushing is my favorite way to support the liver and get rid of those toxins.
9. Tongue scraping. Every morning, use the back of a spoon or purchase a tongue scraper and gently rake it across your tongue to remove any coating (which is usually yeasts and bacteria! – ICK!)
10. Have an attitude of gratitude. Did you know that negative thinking can hinder healing and impact your immune function? By making your internal dialogue one of gratitude and happiness, your body will respond.

Here’s to you!

XO,

Coach Sarah