Christa Nicola is not only the founder of one of our favourite wellbeing ranges WELL WELL WELL INC, but she is also a private personal trainer so knows a thing or two about shaping up for summer! We asked Christa for her take on why exercise is an important part of a detox regime…..
Exercising whilst on a detox is a good idea as long as you don’t over do it. You just need to listen to your body. It also depends on how strict the detox is. If you are consuming very few calories, for example on a juice cleanse, then you won’t have the energy to do high impact exercise.
While on a detox or cleanse you want to encourage your body to get rid of as many toxins as possible. Exercise is a great way to do this as you detox through your sweat. Exercise that causes your heart rate to increase and your body to heat up is what is most important. You also want to focus on your breathing as much as possible while exercising. The best way to understand this is to lie on your back and place your hands on your belly. When you breathe in your belly should expand and when you breathe out your belly should come in. This will stop you from getting out of breath, calm you down and help oxygen reach all your muscles.
Running and cycling can be used if you are lightly detoxing. I prefer walking while focusing on deep breathing. This will really help calm your nervous system and allow it to detox and function efficiently. Elliptical trainer in intervals is also a great way to start a sweat…. so 2 minutes slow and 1 minute very fast for 20 minutes. Light cycling for 20 minutes is also very effective. The goal is to create a little bit of a sweat.
Yoga is probably one of the best things you can do while on a detox. Specific poses and postures are known to have detoxing benefits for your colon and internal organs. For example, postures that involve spinal twists, downward dog and legs up the wall are great poses to help your body detox whilst calming your nervous system.
Christa’s Top Tip? – Remember to drink lots of water!!!
