A Balanced Approach for a Healthy You

By Amy Lupton

Scroll below for Liferoot’s Winter Recommendations and Recipes

Per usual when the calendar rolls into January, we see the supplements and weight loss gimmicks everywhere. The promises of losing 25 pounds in two weeks, getting you fit in 30 days, and telling you the latest vitamin craze that will rid everything that ails you.

We have all been suckered into it, and find ourselves juicing kale and celery by the multiple pounds, cutting whole food groups out of the diet, pushing ourselves more and more and stressing our bodies in the middle of winter. While these therapies have their benefits in certain seasons, many people begin therapies that are radical to their bodies in January, right after they have had two months of sugar, alcohol and junk.

What’s wrong with starting a lifestyle change and clean eating approach in January?

Absolutely nothing. January offers a clean slate approach that many love, especially since they have been ignoring their body signals such as sleep, stress, junk food, sugar, and so on since Halloween. They feel the need to shift after the long holiday stint, and jumping on board to a lifestyle change feels like self-care.

And it is ☺️

I am never one to knock an inspiration to feel better. My job is to help people to approach it in a balanced way.

How the Seasons Impact our Body, Mind, and Soul

While every body, mind and soul are different, honoring the seasons and climates have been the way humans have been doing it since the dawn of man up until about 75 years ago. Most of our food availability and what you see in the grocery store is out of touch with the seasons now, as anything can be grown anywhere and flown to you.

Our bodies were designed to eat what is in season, grown where we live. Your brain translates the light available outside into how it will digest the nutrients you are eating. Think about winter and what is growing where you live. Is there a banana tree growing outside? If not, then there might a mismatch if you are eating bananas everyday. This isn’t to say a banana doesn’t have any nutrition, but some greens from your local farmers market (or from your backyard) will yield more nutrients.

If you live in the United States in January, you will find fruits are limited, and leafy greens and root veggies are more abundant. If you live in the Southern United States, citrus makes its way to harvest near a hard freeze, which can be as late as mid-January in Texas. Pomegranates are abundant after a freeze and are very high in vitamin C. Herbs for immune function such as thyme, oregano, bay, sage are hearty, as well as St. johns wort (a great herb for seasonal depression), loquat (vitamin c source), garlic and onions (more immune function) are growing readily.

Funnily enough, the seasons often hand you what you need for the season NOW and the season AHEAD. What the body needs to support itself and the activities that the season requires.

The Best Way to Support Your Body in Seasonal Cleansing

Here are a few guideposts that can help when you are prepping for a cleanse whether it be in January, or another time.

1.If you are doing a raw cleanse, juice cleanse etc, what type of foods are in season now? Typically in January, fruit is scarce naturally (but often grown in greenhouses or shipped from other countries). Citrus is usually the only exception here. Fruit is very cooling and can throw off the body's temperature balance if it's cold outside. Best to stick to juicing things that are in season, such as celery, greens and citrus. If you decide to do a juice cleanse in January, it's best to balance with broth, soups or warming foods. A short juice cleanse is recommended more for summer and warm months, when the body is naturally ready to let go of toxins and is happy with the cooling and fluid nature of juices.

2. Are you prioritizing digestion? Many lifestyle changes require supplements or different foods you might not be used to. Optimizing digestion is paramount. Many say YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT, Liferoot says YOU ARE WHAT YOU DIGEST. Making sure you are properly assimilating your food is best for any cleanse, even in juicing, raw diets etc. We recommend things to get your digestion going such as a tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar in warm water before a meal, a cup of ginger tea, or our Zen Bitters (a dropper full in water before or after a meal). Also, lifestyle habits around digestion can help such as being relaxed when eating, saying a prayer or meditation before a meal, not drinking much liquid 30 min before and after eating, and a few deep breaths after eating can really help assimilate your food properly. Food order and timing can also help with digestion.

3. Are you prioritizing rest? Cleanses and lifestyle changes can be demanding on the body, as it must do extra work to release toxins. Especially in the winter months, make sure you are not overdoing it. This means exercise, work hours, stressful situations etc. These can mitigate and cancel out the beneficial nature of a cleanse.

4. Are you pooping often? A little TMI it might seem, but what you are cleansing must come out. If you aren't pooping regularly (every day at least), then a certain type of cleanse might be needed to help your detox pathways open. This usually includes more fiber, less sugar, and more cooked nourishing foods. If a cleanse you're doing clogs you up, then you might need to re evaluate a pick a different avenue. Always making sure you are hydrated can help move things along.

5. Will you be able to move your body, and lymphatic system? This is very important as the body must move in a positive way to dump toxins. There must be a balance with it, overworking out can stress the body, underworking out leaves toxins to circulate. Do what feels right to you, then give it a 20% push. As always, if your body is tired on a cleanse, honor it.

6. Use Herbs! (See our recommendations below) Herbs are so amazing to help the body in the seasons. Herbs will always acclimate to seasons and offer the best amount of nutrients for what's needed. Gentle herbs can help the liver filter through the sea of toxins, digest what is needed to assimilate the nutrients to cleanse, and move the toxins out. Consider a cleansing tea, bath or tonic to assist in your cleanse.

8. Alternate therapies are amazing cleansers! There are many therapies besides a juice cleanse, fast or diet that can be highly effective at cleansing the body in a gentle but effective way. We highlight them in our seasonal cleanses, and encourage you to work them in your day to day. These practices such as tongue scraping, castor oil packs, clay masks, detoxing bath soaks, Gua Sha and Dry skin brushing can really make a difference.

Liferoot Winter Cleanse Recommendations & Recipes:

In January, we love doing broth and soup cleanses. You can accompany this with raw seasonal salads, rich proteins, and grass fed butter on root veggies. Some sample broth “cleanses” would be eliminating grains, and concentrating on broth, veggies and proteins for a period of time such as 3, 7 or 10 days.

To balance the seasonal energetics of cold: focus on warmth, spice, and nutrient dense vegetables & proteins. Nourishing broths & soups, hydrating herbal teas, and warming spices feed our physical well being during this time.

Did you know you are more likely to become dehydrated in the winter months? Stay on top of drinking water, herbal teas and hydrating foods like soups. Lemon water is also cleansing, helps your liver and lymphatic system.

Seasonal Winter Produce & Seasonal Market Finds:

Root Veggies, Greens, Celery, Broccoli & Brussels, Leeks & Onions, Thyme, Sage, Bay Leaf, Broth Bones, Animal Proteins, Chai and Herbal Tea Blends

Herbal Insta Pot Bone Broth

This can also be made in a slow cooker if you don’t have an Instant Pot, or on the stove (will require about 24 hours cooking time). Just follow recipe and use your own cooking times.

Ingredients: Chicken or Beef Bones (leftover bones from roasted chicken dinner is great), Filtered Water, 2-3 tbs. apple cider vinegar, Optional: vegetable scraps, like celery leaves, carrot peels, onions. Herbal Options: 1/2 tsp thyme, sage, rosemary, 2 bay leaves, 1 tbs astragalus, ashwagandha, or a small handful of dried mushrooms (reishi, shiitake, chaga, or other medicinal mushrooms), Instant Pot, Half gallon jars for storage.

Fill the Instant Pot with your bones of choice. Fill the stainless steel pot about 3/4 of the way up with bones. Cover the bones with water.
Add a few tablespoons of apple cider vinegar. The acidic vinegar pulls nutrients from the bones into the broth water.
Press the soup or broth button on the Instant Pot. Set it to low pressure and the maximum cooking time of 120 minutes. You might need to do this twice for richer, thicker more dense and collagen rich broth.
To add additional medicinal herbs, add herbs at end of cook, let simmer for about an hour in insta pot with herbs added.
Let cool and strain. Pour the broth into half gallon jars. Store them in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Superfood Hot Chocolate Recipe

1 tbs raw organic cacao
½ cup organic coconut milk (canned version) + ½ cup water (or 1 cup any milk or non-dairy milk)
1 tbs/scoop of collagen powder
1 tsp organic maca powder
½ tsp each of herbs of your choice (we love ashwaganda powder for this recipe)
Dash of cinnamon
Pinch of pink sea salt
Sweeten to taste with stevia, maple syrup or honey
½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
Other herbal pairings to spice it up!
Cocao, Collagen, Maca, Peppermint
Cocao, Collagen, Ashwaganda, Maca, Lavender Flowers
Cocao, Collagen, Maca, Turmeric, Black Pepper

Instructions:

Pour milk and water into saucepan, gently heat. While milk is warming, mix dry ingredients in mug. Pour half the warm liquid into mug and mix to ensure the liquid and powder are thoroughly blended. Mix remaining liquid and vanilla extract in using a matcha whisk or electric whisk for extra frothiness. Sweeten to taste. Enjoy!

These are some products we love for a Healthy Winter & Seasonal Cleanse.

Liferoot Zen Bitters- Use to help with Digestion, Liver Stagnation and Stomach upset. Helps to assimilate nutrients that you are eating. Remember, you are what you digest!

Bone Broth Herbs- The addition of herbs to your traditional bone broth preparation can elevate the nutrition of your bone broth. This herb blend helps support digestion, immune boosting, as well as adding in key nutrients that are lost during the cooking process.

Winter Cleanse Castor Oil- This is a great substitute for your Castor Oil in winter months, made with all organic ingredients.

Winter Cleanse & Balance Tea- This is a gentle cleanse tea made with beautiful winter botanicals. Drink for a 4 week duration.

Winter Detox Bath- This cleansing bath is recommended 2x a week, helps lymphatic movement and cleansing.

Cleansing Grains- Powered Packed herbal and flower nutrients for the face. Can be used as a daily cleanser or leave on for a clay mask that pulls out deep impurities. This is a gentle, but powerful cleanse, non-soap alternative, that is an old but effective remedy for balanced skin.

Respiratory Wellness Steam- A blend of dried herbs used in steamy warm water to slowly inhale and get botanicals to the respiratory system. This can be very effective for sinus, colds, flus, sore throat and coughs, but also effective as a gentle cleansing agent to the lungs, nose and throat

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