As I’ve become more conscious of what I’m eating and shifting towards a healthier lifestyle, I’ve realised how much I’ve neglected my body nutritionally in the past.
To everyone’s disdain I used to feast on cakes and chocolate, fast food and pizza without putting so much as an ounce of weight on. Even now, I’m exercising and trying to eat clean but it’s not so much for weight loss as it is for overall health and wellbeing.
Every 35 days, your skin replaces itself, your liver takes about a month and these new cells are made from the food you eat – you literally are the food you eat. I don’t know about you but I want to be fit and healthy from the inside out, built with good foundations not stodge.
Eating clean has actually been really enjoyable and much easier than I thought. Little things like having breakfast and switching from crisps and chocolates to fruit and nuts has made a huge different to how I feel and my energy.
After a few weeks of eating healthily, I was thinking about how badly I’ve eaten in the past and the lingering effects all of that rubbish has had on my body and my system. I felt like I needed to hit a ‘reset’ button, so one day in a rather gung-ho fashion I ordered a 3-day juice detox. The old me would have recoiled at the thought of just drinking juice for 3 whole days but I was actually really looking forward to it. My colleagues, however, were expecting mood swings, headaches and the odd temper tantrum. Thanks, guys!
I did a juice detox…and survived!
So how did it go down? As I’m not a huge drinker and the only form of caffeine I have is green tea, I got off quite lightly. No alcohol and caffeine withdrawal headaches or mood swings for me. Although I thought about food a lot (mostly carbs), I didn’t actually feel very hungry which was the biggest shock for me. My juices were quite thick, almost smoothie-like and between 5 of those per day plus 3 litres of water and some green tea, I was actually satisfied. I didn’t have quite as much energy as I usually do and needed early nights but aside from that, I was perfectly fine.
In terms of how I felt, I was sleeping like a baby and walking with a spring in my step. I had quite a few comments on how well I was looking, my skin was glowing and my eyes were brighter, maybe due to all of the water I was drinking and the early nights. The detox also made me think about my relationship with food; I didn’t need as much as I thought to get through the day and I realised I eat due to boredom and habit rather than being hungry.
So if you’re looking to give your digestive system a little break, cleanse your system or just give yourself a little kick-start into healthy eating try giving a juice detox a go!
Love Reena x
As I have been so busy and on the go these last few weeks, I made a big batch of one of my favourite healthy snacks to grab and pack with my lunches. These date truffles are so delicious I thought I would share them with you too! They are super easy to make and keep in a sealed container the freezer/fridge for around a week so are great to make on sunday afternoons in preparation for the week ahead. The dates and pecans mix together to make a truffle-like texture and they taste divine!
Ingredients- makes roughly 12 truffles
3 cups pitted medjool dates; these are the squidgier ones and tend to work the best
1 Tbsp warm water
1 cup pecans
1/2 small cup unsweetened desiccated coconut (optional)
Confession time...these aren't mine! Unfortunately I had eaten them all before I wrote this post.
However I promise they looked very similar to these with the coconut on top so this is how yours should come out too! Oops!
Method:
First break the pecans into small pieces so they blend easier with the dates.
Next, place the dates and warm water into a food processor or you can blend them together with a hand blender and blend them until smooth. I find that a hand blender works best but either works.
Add the broken pecans and blend until they form a smooth paste-like substance. If it hasn’t all blended together quite as well as it should then add another tbsp of warm water and re blend.
Scoop the paste into a bowl; it should be a sticky consistency.
Use your hands to shape the paste into 3/4cm balls or however large/small you would like them, and set out on a baking tray. You can also roll them into your desiccated coconut so they are covered in coconut all the way round before placing them on the baking tray. This is optional and I tend to do half with and half without coconut.
Place them in the freezer to allow them to set for around 30 mins. Then place them in a sealed container and put them in the fridge or back in the freezer. I prefer to keep them in the freezer but there’s no right or wrong way.
Enjoy!
Love
Holly x
In order to stay healthy on-the-go and at work, you need to get into the routine of food preparation. This will stop you from reaching out for crisps, chocolate, commercial sandwiches and other processed foods- and save you money too!
Every day I always prepare 2/3 huge fresh salad boxes to take to work with me depending on if I'm working for a half day or full day (and because I like to eat a lot!). Although lunch is usually provided on set, it's usually in the form of white bread, processed meat, more bread, cheese, crisps and because I like give my body healthy nutritious food, I find it’s a lot easier to take my own food with me; and also a lot more enjoyable to eat.
You obviously don't have to make salads if that isn't what you enjoy but this is just an example of what I do and it helps to keep me energised and healthy throughout the day. You can make your own fresh wholemeal sandwiches so you know exactly what's in them or sometimes I like to make extra food for dinner and portion some out for lunch the next day which is quicker if you are short of time.
So get your tupperware out and start preparing your own lunches and you will notice a difference in your cravings and it will help keep you energised and healthy throughout the day! It's so easy to do you just need to get into the routine, be dedicated and get preparing!
Love Holly