I have been working with a client and her nutritionist on a serious course of training for weight loss to improve her health. She has allowed me to share this with you all and although I have decided not to use her name we can speak about some things that came up on our journey together and our research into what is making her feel the way she does and why. We have been looking at liver cleansing foods while she has been with me and I thought I should let you know about why a happy liver is what we need to create a happier, healthier body.
This client was always tired, bloated and sluggish. She became overweight because she was too tired to exercise after a hard days work . It was a pretty bad rut she had gotten into but one that I'm sure many of us have experienced at different times in our lives. We tried many different things and found that looking at a plant based diet with wholegrains and some fresh fish was the way forward for her. Of course cutting out processed foods, alcohol and refined sugars got her on the right track to getting her body regulated and cared for! Now I am happy to report she is looking and feeling better than ever. Eating well is the first port of call as it fuels our training. A good training regime will not survive a bad diet! We are not suggesting you never have a cocktail or eat chocolate ever again but we must be realistic about our health if you feel like crap take a couple of weeks to clean up your food and training and then your body can cope much better with whatever you throw at it, you’ll be much more energetic and less likely to get colds, flu’s or tummy bugs if the immune system is happy!
As you probably know already our modern over processed foods and high paced lifestyles put our livers under enormous strain. The liver is often unhappy and clogged up making it difficult to perform its duties at an optimum level. Instead of boring you with the details of the what and the why here are 10 liver friendly and cleansing foods you can incorporate into your already existing diet, they are easy to find and easy to use and cook with.
GRAPEFRUIT- Increases the natural cleanish processes of the liver. Helps flush toxins from the body. I like to just cut this up and eat it, I have used it in summer salads and put a slice into water!
AVOCADO’S- They help the body produce glutathione which is necessary for the liver to clean itself. Great with eggs, fish, smoothies, stuffed with tuna and making vegan cheesecakes and desserts.
BEETROOT’S – My all time favourite, helps to stimulate and improve the all over function of the liver. The same can also be said for Carrots. Both are full of beta carotene and are very high in plant-flavonoids. Juice them, roast them, bake them, add to dinners and salads, make soups.
Turmeric – helps boost liver detox. Try to by it fresh if you can, it's cheap and wonderful. Make a cleansing tea with ginger, lemon and a pinch of turmeric, add to soups, smoothies, curries, chilli’s, hot pots, experiment!
OILS – Organic oils such as Cold-Pressed Olive oils, hempseed oils and flaxseed oils are great for the liver when used in moderation. By creating a lipid base the body can suck up harmful toxins which takes some of the burden off the liver. Put onto steamed veg, garnish your soup, put it on salads.
APPLES – apples help cleanse the digestive tract which in turn helps the liver handle toxic load! Chop it up and put it into salads, juices, smoothies, grated into your porridge or poached.
LEMONS AND LIMES - High in Vitamin C, which help to synthesise toxic materials into substances that can be absorbed by water. Add some to warm water to feel it's full benefit first thing in the morning or last thing at night. Or add to the water you drink throughout the day, squeeze onto salads, steamed broccoli.
GARLIC – helps to activate enzymes that help to flush the liver out. Garlic is essential to most recipes so it won't be a tough one to incorporate, I like to crush it and use it raw or sauté it.
GREEN VEGETABLES – leafy greens help to remove waste from organs and blood ( if you have any thyroid issues you shouldn't eat much of it except when mixing it in with other foods), broccoli ( cruciferous veg ) helps enzyme production. Add to juices, smoothies, steam it, put it in salads. They are very versatile. I like to use good quality olive oil on raw leaves.
GRAINS – Quinoa, buckwheat and millet are best they are gluten free and so they won't interfere with your liver cleanse. A fantastic base for any dish, granola’s, brekkie bars, porridge the list goes on.
If you have any questions feel free to email us. There are some amazing chef’s out there with plant based recipes like Susan-Jane White, The Alkaline Sisters, Hemsley and Hemsley ( they cook with meat too but they are very ethical), Rozanna Purcell and many more! Happy liver cleansing everyone!!!