Tomorrow I leave for Hawaii, so this surf and sun girl is really excited. I grew up by the ocean and almost aways in water, so needless to say I can't wait to get some salt and sun in my hair. Oh, and get a little bit of vacay time in too!
To get myself as bikini ready as possible, (which can be quite a feat right after the holidays) I followed my quick 5 day "cleanse" protocol. This is a jumpstart that isn't too extreme and since I'm really not a fan of not eating or having to exercise 3 hours a day, this is something that I know you can implement fairly easily. It's also a great way to jumpstart your new year without too much sacrifice. Plus, it's only for five days! This is the protocol that I normally follow if I'm trying to look my absolute best for a photo shoot, big event or trip to the beach. Check out the protocol below. Because today is my "day 5" I will update my final two meals at the end of today so you can see how I finish it all off.
Guidelines ::
- Eat under 50g of carbs each of the 5 days.
- Focus on only healthy fats, protein and non starchy vegetables only.
- Stay away from all grains, including rice.
- Stay away from all starchy vegetables like squash, sweet potatoes and other root veggies.
- Limit salt as much as possible. If you can go without salt entirely, then do it. Be careful of salt in food, especially out at restaurants.
- Intermitment Fasting :: This means starting the day with a bulletproof coffee or tea rather than breakfast so that your body continues to fast after you wake up. I shoot for 12-14 hours of fasting before I break it with food. If you feel really hungry, shaky or foggy brained then please don't do this and have a full fat breakfast.
- Sauna 20-30 minutes per day and/or take an extremely hot bath with epsom salt
- Increase water intake as much as possible to flush out toxins
- Get at least 8 hours of sleep per night
Here's what my 5 day cleanse looked like ::
Day 1 ::
Sleep :: Went to bed at 12:30AM -> Woke up at 9AM
Warm lemon water with cayenne pepper to start my morning
Breakfast :: Bulletproof matcha green tea at 930AM
Exercise :: 45 minutes of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and weights ::
20 minutes of 30 seconds on and 30 seconds off sprinting on the treadmill.
Two 4 minute tabatas on the rowing machine. Tabatas are 4 minutes of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off (for a total of 8 rounds).
20 minutes of front squats, overhead press and planks
Sauna for 25 minutes
Post Workout Snack :: Two hard boiled eggs, no salt.
This is a picture of my lunch from day one. Grass fed beef with a ton of veggies, guacamole and some full fat greek yogurt.
Lunch :: 1/4lb grass fed ground beef cooked with asparagus, spinach, brussel sprouts, butter and turmeric with guacamole on top and a dash of whole greek yogurt.
Dinner :: Chicken sausage with cooked cabbage. I cooked this in butter with some apple cider vinegar, walnuts and a few apples. This recipe will be up on the site soon!
Day 2 ::
Sleep :: Went to bed at 9:30AM -> Woke up at 7:30AM
Warm lemon water with cayenne pepper to start my morning
Breakfast :: Bulletproof matcha green tea at 9AM
Lunch :: 1 leftover grass fed burger with some asparagus and bell peppers. Asparagus is a great diuretic (pulls water out of your muscles) so I'm trying to incorporate that a lot over these 5 days.
Workout :: Spent much of the day packing and moving into my new apartment so this was a workout in and of itself.
Sauna for 25 minutes. Saunas are a fantastic way to detox your body. They heat your organs up from the inside out and help get any unwanted toxins out. It's a great way to jumpstart weight loss as well.
Dinner :: Chicken breast cooked in a little bit of coconut aminos with a big salad and zucchini.
Day 3 ::
Sleep :: Went to bed at 10PM -> Woke up at 8AM
Warm lemon water with cayenne pepper to start my morning
Breakfast :: Bulletproof matcha green tea with grass fed whey protein powder at 9AM
Lunch :: Mexi "Bowl" with lettuce, chicken, salsa and avocado.
Workout :: I spent more time today moving a ton of furniture so this was my major workout. Shoot for some HIIT and heavy weights for your workouts if you aren't moving.
Spent 25 minutes in the sauna and then another 10 in the steam room.
Dinner :: Grilled lamb with butter and a large salad with kale, parmesan, almonds, cucumbers and carrots.
Day 4 ::
Sleep :: Went to bed at 10PM -> Woke up at 6AM
Warm lemon water with cayenne pepper to start my morning. Also had a cup of dandelion root tea. Dandelion is a diuretic which helps pull water out of your muscles for a leaner look.
Large matcha green tea
Workout :: 45 minutes of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and weights ::
20 minutes of 30 seconds on and 30 seconds off sprinting on the treadmill. I did these with an incline of 5.
Two 4 minute tabatas on the rowing machine. Tabatas are 4 minutes of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off (total of 8 rounds).
20 minutes of single leg deadlifts, push ups and planks
Sauna for 25 minutes
Post Workout Breakfast :: 2 hard boiled eggs and a piece of grilled chicken
Lunch :: Large salad from Roam burger. Greens, carrots, pomegranate seeds, tomatoes, avocado and turkey.
Sauna for 25 minutes
Dinner :: Greek chicken cooked in lemon and pepper with a side of zucchini, cucumbers and eggplant.
Day 5 ::
Sleep :: Went to bed at 10:15PM and up at 6AM
Warm lemon water with cayenne pepper to start my morning.
Large matcha green tea
Workout :: 45 minutes of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and weights ::
20 minutes of walking up a steep incline for one minute, then resting one minute.. I did these with an incline of 16.
3 rounds of 10 box jumps, 10 each leg single leg squats, 20 lateral jumps and 10 push ups.
Sauna for 25 minutes
Breakfast :: Bulletproof matcha green tea with a scoop of protein powder.
Lunch :: Baked chicken with olive oil, lemon and garlic with a side of broccoli and one hard boiled egg.
Snack :: 4505 chicarrones from Whole Foods (yes, these are amazing!)
Dinner to follow soon and then off to Hawaii tomorrow!