10 Day Detox: My Lessons

Having never tried any diet before, I hesitated for a while before giving in and doing Jane Mukami\’s detox program. You can learn more about the program and purchase the ebook here www.janemukami.com/products/10daydetox.

Losing weight has been on my goal list for a couple of years now and so when the call was made this year,  I saw this as a step to exploring a new idea and discovering how best I can achieve the results I am looking for. The timing was right for me, my husband was travelling for a week which meant if the side effects they warn about like being moody, sensitive and irritable were true he would be spared the same.

The program is advertised with three promises as shown on the picture above. I must say I was glad to have experienced all three as I will share in a second. Overall, the program is very do able. The ingredients are easy to come by and the book offers step by step instructions that are easy to follow. The program is very popular in Eastern Africa I think given the fact that Jane hails from Kenya. She also offers a support group on Facebook where those doing the program share their experiences. I must warn you however that you must polish up on your Swahili as a good number of them write in both Swahili and English.

Being a life long learner, I drew some lessons from doing this detox and I would love to share them below.

1. Preparation plays a big role in the results you will get

Like most things in life, it helps if you are prepared before you dive into this detox. The author has a section in the book on this and you benefit by reading the same and internalizing it. In my case, when my Kenyan friend got me the book late last year, I immediately started practicing taking the green smoothies. With time, I found they were palatable and this helped when I commenced the detox.

Preparation is also required for each day of the detox. I found it helpful to prep my ingredients for the smoothie in advance. Day 5 was the toughest for me. I woke up with terrible nausea only to realise I had not prepared any ingredients. Because I was also hungry I found myself consuming a pawpaw to curb my hunger in order for me to prep the smoothie and also prepare breakfast for our children. Day 6 would prove to be equally tough as I struggled with cravings and eventually gave in and baked three vegetable samosas which I later discovered taste much better than the fried ones.

2. Do not believe everything you hear or read about

Prior to consuming a green smoothie I heard all sorts of woes about them including one who wrote \”I have to take my smoothie in the dark for me to be able to consume it\”.  In my opinion, all the smoothies were delicious save for the one that had water melon and banana I struggled with it and was not surprised that day I ended up with samosa in my mouth instead.

There are some things in life you have to experience for yourself in order to determine whether it works for you and I think a detox program is one of them. In my view, we have different bodies with varying metabolism levels and they therefore react differently to what we subject them too. This would explain why some people can lose up to 8 kgs and yet others record a smaller figure or even none at all.

3. Change can only happen in the discomfort zone

To say that doing a detox is comfortable would be to tell a lie. Everyday I had to push myself and connect with my why  I was doing the detox which was to lose weight and also learn more about how I can eat better this year. Throughout the process, I operated in my discomfort zone which like Michael Hyatt correctly observes is “where change happens”.

In the program, we are cautioned that in order to maintain or continue to lose weight, we have to practice clean eating. A detox forces you to eat clean and you also discover that we do not need a lot of food to survive. In this video, youtu.be/I1CQHWhKl_E, Dani rightly observes that the secret to lasting weight loss is sustainability. We have to discover what works for us and keep at it so that we can get and maintain the results we desire.

Overall, I am happy I pushed myself to start and finish this program. Although in my early thirties I managed to lose 13 kgs in about 1- 2 years after having our two children, through clean eating and exercising. Life happened and I gained back almost 10 of these kilograms. All my efforts to work out have not yielded the desired results. This detox allowed me to discover that it is what I have been putting in my mouth that is sabotaging my results.

In spite being on the program I was productive and mentally acute. I did not feel lethargic and continued to take care of the children and prepare their meals. I also noticed that I slept better plus I lost 3.2 kilograms. Going forward, I will continue with clean eating and exercise and hope that this will be the year I finally lose those excess kilos and attain my ideal weight.