Today, Friday, March 23, 2018, my life is about to change…at least I hope so, if Author of THE RED TEA DETOX, Lynn Swann Miller, is to be believed. As I indicated in the article, A Beginner’s Guide to Intermittent Fasting, I began a journey into the Red Tea Detox world  at 2:00 p.m. today. Part of the recommendation in the book are to keep a journal of the process, as well as “go public”. So, that’s what this new, albeit temporary, series is designed to be – my public diary of the whole process. I’m not certain how often I’ll post. I’m hoping it’ll be daily, but I’m not making any promises.

The journey begins with a 7 day fast, which includes a 72 hour herbal tea fast. So, for the next 72 hours, until 2:00 p.m. on Monday, I will be drinking mainly the special tea recipe (minimum of 48 ounces – 6 cups per day), along with other herbal teas, one gallon of water per day, and bone broth. (my addition). I’ve also decided to add Ocean’s Alive (raw phytoplankton) to my drinking water. Being a nutrition nerd, I can’t help tweaking this plan just a bit. I’m just concerned about getting the proper nutrients over the next few days.  Lynn recommends super greens powder, so I feel comfortable doing this.

After the initial fast, I’ll be doing 24 hour intermittent fasting, while continuing to drink the tea and gallon of water, for the remainder of the week. This means I’ll get one meal per day, which, for me, will be every day at 2:00, until Friday, March 30 at 2:00 p.m. At that time, I begin Phase one…

 

The 7 day fast is designed to cleanse the body and prime it for the the main, 4 phase, portion of the detox, which takes 14 days. The whole process will take 21 days, including the 7 day fast, after which time, I’ll re-evaluate my situation, and see if I want to repeat the process. Here’s the layout of the next three weeks, as much for me as for you.

7 DAY FAST – 72 – hour fast – followed by four days of 24 hour intermittent fasting

PHASE ONE – Days 1 – 5 – a basic cleansing/alkalinizing diet consisting of veggies and protein along with the red tea, herbal tea, green tea, green drinks, green smoothies, protein smoothies and water –  Skipping breakfast – eating 3 meals between 12 – 8 pm.

PHASE TWO – Day 6 – is a 24 hour fast, beginning with the evening meal  on day five.

PHASE THREE- Day 7 & 8 FAT FAST – Eat between 1000 to 1200 calories – 80% to 90% of these calories will be from healthy fat sources

PHASE FOUR – Day 9 – 14 – Calorie restriction based on my personal BMR (basal metabolic rate). To calculate your BMR, FOLLOW THIS LINK. This is the rate at which my body burns calories while at rest. My personal BMR is 1553. According to the book, I’ll create a calorie deficit of 30%. Which means I’ll subtract 466 calories from my daily BMR. So, I’ll be aiming for a caloric intake of around 1087. She also recommends low carb, keeping carbs BELOW 30 grams/day if possible. (throughout all four phases)

So, that’s the detox in a nut shell. If you’re wondering what this special red tea recipe is, I’m sorry to say, I don’t think I can give it to you. I had to pay for the book in order to get the recipe for myself. I searched EVERYWHERE online, and couldn’t find it. Anyway, it’s not just the special tea, it’s the whole package.

I’ve been told over and over in school and online how bad low calorie diets can be, as well as not eating breakfast. I’m a bit concerned about this whole thing. However, that’s EXACTLY why I’m doing this. I need to know how it affects me, so I can talk to people about it.

This past Monday, I dipped my toes into the intermittent fasting waters, AND started to drink the red tea. I skipped breakfast, drank 6 cups of red tea and 1 gallon of water every day. In 4 days, I lost 2.5 pounds. Not too shabby, since I didn’t change anything else about my diet. I continued walking my dog everyday. The only difference was I did it on an empty stomach (aka – fasting/fat burning phase). I think it helped?!

Anyway, that’s it for today. I’ll let you know how my weekend and the first three days go. I’m off to heat up some bone broth for dinner. YUM!

NAMASTE MY FRIENDS!