CLEAN AND DETOX
These are two essential words for the start of the year. Cleanse and detoxify. A necessary goal to put into practice since today, to get the year, and our bodies, off to a healthy start.
Many people, in January, as soon as they return to their everyday life, feel drained and less energetic than before. The start of the new year is the best time to take stock of our nutrition and start afresh. It is not just a question of weight loss, but the desire to feel better.
What we eat is so closely linked to how we feel, it is no coincidence that our gut is called the 'second brain'.
Only by cooking ourselves can we be sure of what we are choosing and how the dishes are composed from a nutritional point of view. Quick to prepare, full of flavour, beautiful to bring to the table: January cooking has the task of starting to prepare our bodies for the coming spring season, but also of protecting us from the seasonal ills that are very frequent in this month.
January in fact is synonymous with beginnings and change. It is the perfect time to make a pantry change and start cooking healthier and more authentically. Get rid of the old stuff (in the house, but also in the fridge) and make room for the new. With this idea in mind, let's try to put away, at least for a while, that excess of sugar and fat that characterised our diet in the last weeks of the year!
In order to feel better, take my word for it, (and by 'better' I mean more energetic, less tired and fitter both physically and mentally) we need to flush out the toxins accumulated with the excess (though not exaggerated) of alcohol, meat, cheese and sugar. And let in more fibre, more vitamins, more water, accompanied by a few extra hours of sleep. It sounds difficult, I know, but with a fixed goal in mind, motivation will be stronger.
A little disclaimer: I am not a doctor and what follows is not a diet. It is a lifestyle that works for me and that I find useful to share. But adjust according to your personal needs. My advice will help you change your everyday habits for the better.
SOME GOOD GROCERY TIPS
What does it take to clean our bodies? No magic formula, just one magic word: simplicity. First, it is good to start with good hydration, then take in 'real food', cooked in a simple and healthy way.
Start by getting rid of holiday leftovers, perhaps by incorporating them into salvaged recipes (for example, a great way to save leftover panettone from being wasted would be to add it to a homemade cake recipe, such as a sponge cake, a parfait with yoghurt, a rum baba...). Finish the fatty cheeses and sliced meats, if there are any left, and then move on. Full stop. And go on a good grocery shopping, featuring fresh products, single ingredients, not prepared.
Here are a few hints from my own personal shopping:
Whole wheat pasta, Basmati or Jasmine rice, buckwheat noodles, Carnaroli rice (I love Aquarello), red lentils, chickpeas, quinoa, broken buckwheat, bulghur, miso paste, flaxseed meal, white flour, rye flour.
As proteins I prefer organic meats such as chicken and turkey, fresh cod, fresh salmon, fresh and organic eggs.
Then vegetables, the true allies of our physical well-being. Strictly seasonal vegetables and fruit, such as: black cabbage, cabbage, Romanesco cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, rocket, red radicchio, baby spinach, pumpkin, turnips, beetroot, avocados, potatoes, carrots, oranges, clementines, red apples, pomegranates, persimmons, lemons, limes, fresh ginger.
But also dried fruits, such as walnuts, almonds, sultanas, pine nuts, fresh dates, dried apricots. They are also excellent for breakfast, together with a good unsweetened organic muesli with white yoghurt, green tea, honey and brown sugar.
KICK-START YOUR METABOLISM
Once you have done your shopping, it will be easier to eat well because you will have everything you need.
To kick-start your metabolism, you need to eat favouring proteins over carbohydrates, and eat slowly, and absolutely do not skip meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner, but also a mid-morning snack and a small snack around mid-afternoon.
The rule to follow when organising your meals is simple: cut out sugar and simple carbohydrates in general. Prefer wholemeal to refined. Do not add sugar to drinks and limit sweets as much as possible. Include at least 3 to 5 portions of fresh vegetables, preferably raw or cooked without too much fat, in your meals every day. And 1 or 2 portions of fresh, seasonal fruit. Red meat once a week, fish twice, chicken once, eggs 2 - 3 times, low-fat cheese 2 - 3 times.
THE IMPORTANCE OF HYDRATION
A key step for an effective detox is to hydrate your body properly, increasing your daily fluid intake, favouring water and healthy drinks (without sugar, caffeine or theine, for example).
An adult should drink about 2 litres of water/liquids per day. Even two and a half litres if he or she can. Hydrating well is also essential to make your intestines work properly and only if it works properly will you really be able to detoxify. If you have a hard time drinking a lot of water, try dipping pieces of fresh fruit such as lemons, oranges or berries into your glass or water bottle. This will make the water more flavoured and pleasant to drink. A great substitute for fruit juices full of sugar.
âĻI start in the morning with a glass of room temperature water before coffee, which I drink diluted anyway. You can put a little lemon juice in your glass if you like, but I have never found it so pleasant that I want to do it all the time. A big glass of water works very well for me. Then a coffee and mid-morning and, if you have the chance, a cold extract or a smoothie (but without milk) to fill up on vitamins.
A small note on water: choose the water you drink well. It should have a low fixed residue, as well as a pleasant taste. In many parts of Italy, tap water is pleasant, but not for everyone.
Finally, the last piece of advice I feel like giving you is to... MOVE YOUR BODY! If you don't exercise the right way, it is impossible to be healthy. Everyone has their own work and home rhythms, but it is certainly not by taking ten thousand steps a day or going for a single run that one can keep his or her body in shape.
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