I'm beginning my detox with 2 weeks on a macrobiotic diet. It's really not very complicated, if you follow these basic rules. In my next post I'll share tips to meal planning and some recipes. Here are the rules:
Principle Foods
Principle Foods
- Whole grains: Approximately 40 to 50 percent by volume for the amount of food consumed for one day
- Vegetables: Approximately 35 percent of the day’s total percentage of food from greens, roots, and ground varieties
- Beans: Approximately 5 to 10 percent beans or bean products (tempeh, tofu, so on), either canned or dried
- Fruits: Approximately 5 to 10 percent, according to sweet cravings
- Beverages: Grain-based teas, herbal teas, vegetable juices
- Oils, nuts, seeds, and limited dairy products: Approximately 5 to 10 percent natural vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds
- Reduced animal protein: Approximately 5 to 10 percent fish only (preferable), or eliminate and substitute with beans or soy protein
- New foods: Devote a small percentage of your dietary template to exploring new foods, such as sea plants or fermented foods (sauerkraut, pickles, miso, etc.)
Foods to Avoid
You'll need to make changes in the way you eat to achieve the best results. By avoiding the following foods, you may increase energy, sleep better, stabilize blood sugar, reduce inflammation, and tame cravings.
You'll need to make changes in the way you eat to achieve the best results. By avoiding the following foods, you may increase energy, sleep better, stabilize blood sugar, reduce inflammation, and tame cravings.
- White rice and white flour
- Meat and eggs
- Milk, cheese, cream, butter, yogurt, and ice cream
- Heavy use of spices
- All grains with gluten
- Refined oils
- Caffeine
- Alcohol
- Recreational drugs
- Medications (with some exceptions for current prescriptions)
- Fruit juice
- Tropical fruits, including coconut
- Any food containing white, brown, or any other refined sugar
- Foods containing chemicals, preservatives, dyes, and insecticides
- Nightshade vegetables (There's actually no conclusive evidence that these are really bad for you, except if you suffer from arthritis, have cancer, or AIDS. If so, then you should definitely eliminate them from your diet.)
Here's a good list of all the foods you should reduce consumption of, or avoid. In addition, to maintain proper yin/yang balance, all extremely yang foods and all extremely yin foods are avoided. All animal foods, including eggs and dairy products, are believed to have a strong yang quality. Extremely yin foods and beverages include nightshade vegetables, refined sugars, chocolate, tropical fruits, soda, fruit juice, coffee, and hot spices. Today, people tend to crave and consume a large volume of these yin foods in order to (unknowingly) balance a high intake of yang foods, like meat. These cravings are simply the results of opposites attracting.
Food Principles of Macrobiotics
These principles, if used daily, are effective ways to control and sustain your health, balance nutrition, and condition your body.
- Enjoy your food
- Only eat when you're hungry
- Emphasize seasonal and local foods
- Be mindful of quantity and quality
- Avoid dietary extremes
- Chew your food thoroughly
- Use the Power of Five in food preparation: The five food groups, flavors, textures, cooking styles, and colors.
Since I'm doing this for detoxification, I'll also be incorporating
The 6 Golden Rules of Detox
1. Drink 8 glasses of water every day (about 3 pints)
2. Eat a tablespoon of ground seeds every day
3. Eat a serving of supergreens mix every day
4. Eat a serving of cruciferous vegetables every day
5. Have a small garlic clove or onion every day
6. Drink one juice or smoothie every day (veg or fruit, depending on the diet)
“Just because you’re not sick doesn’t mean you’re healthy.” - Author Unknown
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