The Best Foods To Speed Up Your Detox!

You've been hearing it your whole life, and I have to tell you - your Mum was right. If you want to be grow up to be healthy and strong then you have to eat all your veggies.

I don't know if you realise this, but eating more vegetables is one of the simplest and smartest things you can do to speed up fat loss. You think you're being so smart putting in the hard yards at the gym, saying no to breads and pasta and obediently scarfing down your protein breaky? Well, okay, you are being pretty smart with all of that, but is it possible that you're doing so many things right on your quest for health and vitality, and yet still neglecting this one very simple element?

Forgive me if I'm jumping too rapidly to conclusions, and I must admit I have met more than a few readers who eat truckloads of veg, but for the most part? Yes, yes it is possible. If not completely probable.

9 serves of vegetables per day?! is she crazy?

In The 9 Habits of Healthy People, respected nutritionist and doctor, 'Dr Jonny' says this of vegetables (and it's point #1!):

Eat your vegetables. No kidding. And I’m talking at least 9 servings a day.. Unless you’re following the most stringent first stage of the Atkins Diet, you should be able to consume 60-120 grams of carbs a day (depending on your weight and exercise level), and you’d have to eat a stockyard full of spinach to get to that amount. Every major study of long-lived, healthy people shows that they eat a ton of plant foods. Nothing delivers antioxidants, fiber, flavonoids, indoles, and the entire pharmacopia of disease fighting phytochemicals like stuff that grows.

As if that's not convincing enough for you, I've also heard Dr Jonny say that the most important supplement for fat loss is fiber. More veg = more fiber, yes? And this is the key to detoxification, because when you lose body fat it's actually toxins which are being dragged out of your fat cells and into your blood. Fiber is what swooshes those toxins out of the body, which I really think is a far better option than leaving them in there.

Don't you?

but it's too hard/i don't have time/i only like spinach/it costs too much!

It's pretty simple really. Either your love yourself and your desire to lose weight and be healthy or to lose the final 5 is strong enough to do what it takes, or you care more about your convenience or 'can't quite be bothered' eating.

And seeing as how you're a Bikram yoga kind of person, I'm guessing it's the former :)

the best veggies for fat loss and health

Here is a list of especially nutritious and yummy vegetables for speeding up detoxification both in and out of the sweat room. You'll notice they are mostly green - I'm a big believer in eating predominantly seasonal and local vegetables, and I think green is best. Add some colour now and then, but do remember that when we talk about vegetables I'm talking low-starch. This does not include pumpkin, potato, sweet potato, corn (that's a grain anyway), and most root vegetables.

Enjoy!

• Cruciferous veggies are great for fat loss, especially as regards your lower body. These include cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, and brussel sprouts


• Zucchini


• Squash


• Green or yellow beans


• Spinach (a great source of iron, and it really does make you strong!)


• Any sort of lettuce or leaf (organic please as they are sprayed
  directly)


• Cucumbers


• Kale


• Silverbeet (these two are great options in salads, and bitter vegetables such as Kale are great for digestion)


• Spring onions


• Any fresh herbs; fresh chilis


• Celery (yummy snack with almond or cashew butter)


• Green capsicums


• Olives


• Artichokes


• Pickled foods like eggplant, green tomato (pickled stuff is great for
  lowering blood sugar response!)


• Onion


• Mushrooms; unless you have ever had fungal issues such as
  thrush or candida

If you feel so inclined, I'd love for you to comment and share either your favourite way to eat your veggies, or a question about what you struggle with most when it comes to getting all your greens.

Not just Food for Yoga - Food for Life!

Kat

If you enjoyed this post then please visit me over at my regular blog BodyIncredible.com or Woman Incredible (female specific!) for tips on nutrition, lifestyle, motivation.