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Do you need a restart health-wise? The holidays are a period of excess and poor habits. Come January, many of us need a boost when it comes to our bodies: our digestive systems need a break from heavy fatty & fried foods, our livers need a detox from all the drinking and our minds need sleep to recharge. The best thing to do is to kick things off with a cleanse- leave the thinking to the experts and let your body heal. Below, we roundup the city’s four best options.
Body Awakening’s 5 Day Cleansing & Detox Kit
The Program: Body Awakening’s Cleansing & Detox Kit comes with a very detailed Instruction & Guidance Manual that explains how to pre-cleanse and post-cleanse, phases that they deem crucial to healthy detoxing. The actual program that lasts five days involves nourishing your body with spirulina capsules, chlorella tablets, imbibing True Greens superfood powder, psyllium seed husks, raw honey and flax seeds drink blends and sipping on goji & chrysanthemum flower TCM herbal tea, goji & red rate TCM herbal tea and laxative tea throughout the five days. All of this is supplemented by vegetable broth and juices (recipes in the manual).
How It Works: Body Awakening offers your digestive a rest by providing your body with the vitamins, minerals and nutrients it requires to continue with its basic functions while the superfood qualities of the specially curated ingredient list helps to repair and boost your immune system. An added bonus is that your body will start to metabolize excess fat cells (where toxins are stored) and damaged cells.
Why We Love It: For those who need more than a liquid-based cleanse, the Body Awakening manual offers various options for how to personalize the program according to your needs, for example a light cleanse where you eat one meal a day, an off and on structure where you eat normally (albeit staying away from fried, processed or sugary foods) for two days and then follow the cleanse for one day, rinse and repeat. There is even a more gentle and longer option, whereby you continue eating normally (though healthfully) whilst supplementing with the superfood ingredients. Co-founder and in-house nutritionist Jessica Simkin provides phone and email support before or during your cleanse for those who have questions and concerns. Research shows that support and encouragement are key to successful cleanse programs.
Body Awakening Cleansing & Detox Kit, HKD 1, 400; order online or contact info@bodyawakening.net.
Genie Juicery Fruit Free x Raw Food Cleanse
The Program: Genie Juicery lets you pick your passion! They allow for extra flexibility so you can mix their Fruit Free Cleanse with their Raw Food Cleanse: choose four juices from their extensive menu of veggie-only cold-pressed juices (each bottle is 473ml) and four raw vegan food/snack choices (think zucchini pasta, coconut macaroons and rawnola bars) based on your tastes and preferences to pump your body with the maximum nutrient content, whilst giving your tummy a break from processing heavy foods like meat, dairy and wheat. Ideally you would do this for at least three days but you can choose from one day, two days, or even up to six days if you want to give your body a full flush.
How It Works: Forget sugar rushes and insulin spikes, thanks to the uber-green, zero fruit juices like Salad Bowl (beetroot, spinach, kale, parsley, celery and cucumber) and Green Dream (coconut h20, cucumber, celery, spinach and aloe vera) you are filling up on nothing but chlorophyll goodness and a ton of vitamins and minerals whilst keeping your blood sugar stable and your energy levels balanced throughout the day. Raw vegan dishes like Pesto Zoodles and Chia Pudding offer fiber and a host of other superfood benefits, not to mention that your palette gets to chew on some delicious nosh! Genie Juicery has a knack for creating yummylicious raw treats like their crispy Tamari-coated nori snack.
Why We Love It: Genie Juicery is well-known around town for making some of the tastiest cold-pressed blends we have ever tried. If you aren’t as concerned about too much fruit, then make sure to dive in to their menu of over 30 different delicious totally raw and vegan drinks. On top of fruit and veggie cold-pressed juices, you can opt for superfood smoothies, vegan protein shakes, alkaline/cleansing waters, sparkling ginger kefir and plant-based nut mylks. You can also add-on certified organic supplements to your cleanse like chia seeds, psyllium husks and raw cacao nibs for extra nourishment. And don’t forget to visit their IFC juicery (Shop 2096B, Podium Level 2) and warm yourself up with one of their brand new hot vegan coffees- the Peppermint Chocolate Hazelnut Latte is so incredibly refreshing, or how about a Turmeric Latte?
Genie Juicery Fruit Free x Raw Food 3-Day Cleanse, HKD 1, 700; order online or contact sales@geniejuicery.com.
Crave Healthy Foods Crave Metabolism Kit
The Program: The Crave Metabolism Kit is a one-stop solution for busy Hong Kongers- leave everything up to the passionate team at Crave Healthy Foods and they will set you up with nourishing, balanced and glycemic meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner), snacks and drinks (including cold-pressed juices, smoothies, cleansing teas and healthy coffee)- all delivered to your door/desk. No cooking, no choosing, no thinking! You can focus on work, hobbies and your personal life whilst they sort out your nutrition and overall health.
How It Works: The first step in Crave Healthy Foods‘ program is a an assessment with their coaching team to help define your goals together and ensure that the meals, snacks and drinks are tailored to your specific needs. Then you can sit back, relax and await whilst their chefs and nutritional consultants prepare and deliver mouth-watering menus like their Baked Egg in Avocado for breakfast, Butternut Squash Quinotto for lunch, Kale Gratin for dinner and snacks like Brussel Sprout Chips, Beet-le Juice and a Mint Chocolate Chip Smoothie. How incredible does that sound?
Why We Love It: Crave Healthy Foods‘ detox program is designed to target all areas of your life. Whilst the focus is on intelligent nutrition, they also offer fitness training & yoga sessions, massages and personal coaching services to address the needs of your mind and muscles too! Even more awesome: everything you consume on the program is made with 100% organic ingredients! No nasty pesticides, no GMOs, only a boatload of nutrients in the form of vitamins and minerals galore. Plus, the Crave team creates seriously gourmet fare so it’s perfect for the foodies amongst who want to feel indulged whilst following a totally clean eating plan!
Crave Healthy Foods Crave Metabolism Kit, price upon request; contact info@cravehealthyfood.com.
BE-JUICED’s Cold-Pressed Juice Cleanse
The Program: BE-JUICED has a simple motto: Good In, Bad Out- their cold-pressed juice cleanses are the perfect antidote to the excess of holiday parties. Just replace your daily meals with six 500ml bottles of fresh, cold-pressed raw fruit & vegetable juices and nut mylks. Choose from one of their pre-designed cleanses: Level 1 Reboot, Level 2 Grounding and Level 3 Veggiecation. As the levels go up, the juices get greener and less fruity- Level 1 is great for juice cleanse beginners. They offer over 20 varieties of juices and mylks (they have just launched 11 new ones!) to keep things exciting and those who prefer a more bespoke option can even customize their cleanse by picking their favorite juice combinations. Duration-wise, you can do a one day pick-me-up or you can elect to go for 3, 5 or even 7 days. It’s up to you and your body’s needs!
How It Works: BE-JUICED‘s drinks are freshly pressed using the world-famous Norwalk Hydraulic Press Juicer, developed by Dr Norman Walker, a renowned raw vegan diet and cold-pressed juicing pioneer, who advocated the consumption of raw fruits and vegetable juices as a mainstay of a healthy diet. The Norwalk machine uses a hydraulic press system to extract juice from fruits and vegetables without heat or oxidation, both of which kill the nutrients, enzymes, minerals and vitamins that your body desperately needs.
Why We Love It: Not only do BE-JUICED juices come in bottles with a seriously funky design, they have some really awesome flavors like the super clean Green Machine with kale, spinach, green apple and coconut water, or the energizing Morning Squeeze with grapefruit, orange, lemon, ginger and cayenne pepper, or the heartier Coco’s Banana Split with banana, cacao, almond, dates, maca, vanilla bean, lucuma and Himalayan salt. Plus, as a pre- or post-cleanse treat, make sure to visit their flagship juice bar in Soho (45 Peel Street) and dive into their delicious and superfood-packed Acai Bowl!
BE-JUICED Level 1 Reboot 3-Day Cleanse, HKD 1, 580 ; order online or contact info@bejuiced-hk.com.
Punch Detox Level 3 ‘The Olympian’ Cleanse
The Program: Punch Detox has been helping busy Hong Kongers get their juice on since 2010. They offer three cleanse levels, depending on what your lifestyle requirements are: Level 1, their most popular and great for beginners’, Level 2, just right for intermediates and those who follow a fairly clean diet, and Level 3, The Olympian, which we recommend for those who really want to reset. This extremely alkaline cleanse was inspired by Punch Detox advocate and former Olympic swimmer Robyn Lansam and consists of mostly pressed vegetables, with juices that are very low-sugar.
How It Works: When you give your body a break from solid food, your digestive system and your detoxing organs such as the liver, the kidneys and the gall bladder all get a much-needed break from the hard work that is required to digest and break down heavy foods like meat, dairy products and processed foods in everyday life. During this time, the heavy dose of goodness in Punch Detox’s juices provide your body’s systems with the sustenance it needs to rejuvenate itself.
Why We Love It: Punch Detox is committed to creating tasty, nourishing juices made from the highest quality ingredients they can find. Their cleanse drinks are pure, unpasteurized cold-pressed raw and vegan fruit and vegetable juices made from organic ingredients using a specialty US-made hydraulic juicer that perfectly extracts the vitamins, minerals and enzymes. That means you get all the benefits from their multi-colored rainbow of juice cleanses! They do their absolute best to source from local organic farms as much as possible and they supplement with produce from Thailand and California. Their juices are designed by the founders themselves, both of who are certified in nutrition and the culinary arts. The savory GazPUNCHo with tomato, cucumber, cilantro, garlic, sea salt, cider vinegar, olive oil, cayenne pepper and the superfood-filled, refreshing Peppermint Punch, with peppermint, cucumber, coconut water and maca root are testimony to their passion for deliciousness AND nutritiousness.
PUNCH DETOX Level 3 Olympian Cleanse, HKD 1, 680; order online or contact info@punchdetox.com.
Images courtesy of Body Awakening, Genie Juicery, Crave Healthy Foods, BE-JUICED, Punch Detox and yin and yang of grapefruit via photopin (license).
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