How to Recover From an Indulgent Holiday Weekend
Get back on track
Okay, so a holiday weekend is over and you overindulged and the scales show a slight gain and your pants are fitting a bit tighter than they did last week.
There are ways to get back on track and lose that bloated feeling fast. Our experts share their best tips.
Drink plenty of fluids
The good news is that you can easily get back in shape in no time if you overindulged for a few days.
After an indulgent weekend with too much food and alcohol, the body is dehydrated. To get back into shape quickly and feel like a new person it's all about rehydration.
Tetyana Kuzmenko, nutritionist at KptnCook, shared four ways to increase your fluid intake:
- Drink more water. At least one glass after you wake up and before breakfast. I suggest coming up with a routine e.g. drink one glass of water before every meal and gradually increase the numbers of cups you drink throughout the day.
- Besides water, I recommend drinking tea. It helps to settle down the stomach and mind - especially chamomile and peppermint tea. Leave out coffee for at least one day.
- Eat light vegetable soups with white meat, making sure you get vitamins and proteins and cut down on the carbs.
- Do a juice cleanse. It doesn't have to be for a whole week - two days is usually enough, especially if you are doing this for the first time.
Avoid a carb load cure
Whatever you do, don’t try the greasy cheeseburger and French fries cure.
Dr. Gabrielle Francis, a naturopathic doctor, chiropractor and acupuncturist, said, “A good place to start is the detox shake I recommend which is packed with antioxidants, protein, fiber, flaxseed oil, and green juice. This shake leads to a cleaner liver, but it can also be used on the morning after to help you replenish lost vitamins and bounce back. Also, the more hydrated you are, the more your symptoms will ease. Replenish with electrolyte replacements like coconut water and vegetable bouillon along with 8-10 glasses of water to flush toxins.”
“Pass on the leftover pizza and eat easy-to-digest foods like oatmeal, rice, and soup. Supplements I recommend are B-complex, Emergen-C (1-2 packets daily), and vitamin C (1,000 mg) to replenish your vitamin levels. And herbal remedies to support your liver, like dandelion tea (1-2 cups) or milk thistle (per bottle instructions).”
Sleep is also important. Get at least 8-10 hours. If you make it to an acupuncturist, she said to ask for the add-on points ST 36, LI 4, ST 44, LV 3 and PC 6.
Sweat it out
Lisa Jendza, owner of The New You Body Wraps detox body spa, gives her best advice:
- Get into a sauna for 30 minutes to burn about 700 calories (providing the person is in good enough health)
- Drink raw vegetable juice, or make a green smoothie with a lot of greens (sans the fruit, which adds too much sugar)
- Increase water intake (divide weight in half and drink that many ounces, minimum. Example 150 lbs, drink 75 oz of water per day)
How it works
“Sauna therapy and a mineral wrap is typically all it takes to lose 2 lbs. Sauna therapy is known to elevate the core body temperature, inducing an artificial fever which then kills mold, bacteria and foreign organisms. It also sheds weak and damaged cells, speeding up apoptosis, or cell turnover. In order to move out the waste, the body will use all detox pathways, increasing perspiration, urination and defecation. This process creates a cardiovascular workout, burning around 700 calories per 30 minutes. To improve the results of this, dry skin brush prior to sauna therapy, or have lymph drainage performed. Some essential oils or skin care products with herbs can improve the effects,” Jendza said.
“Once the pores are open and circulation is boosted, the mineral body wrap is the most effective. A trained professional will wrap the entire body in latex-free, cotton elastic bandages, following the lymphatic system. This will move lymph and compress the interstitial fluid into the arteries to be moved out, while hydrating the body via the bandages with Mineral springs. Minerals are touted as the fountain of youth, providing cellular respiration and oxygen transport,” she said.
So go ahead, drink plenty of water, exercise, drink green juices and sweat out those toxins. You’ll feel like new in no time.
