November 24, 2006
I didn't lose any weight... but...
So I spent seven days last week doing a detox -- which included a three-day liquid fast.
You'd think that after not eating solid food for three days, I'd lose weight. No sir. But I do feel smaller. And I'm definitely less bloated. Bonus? After a few months of pretty intense stress and insomnia, I'm sleeping through the night for the first time in ages. And I'm definitely less stressed out at work -- which says a lot since I've been pretty high-strung for the last six months.
Here's the final result -- along with a few other detoxes my colleagues tried out.
SEASON'S CLEANING
By KATHERINE PUSHKAR, DANICA LO, MANDY STADTMILLER, RAAKHEE MIRCHANDANI, and MARY HUHN
November 24, 2006 -- YESTERDAY'S caloric intake has probably already got you feeling a bit sluggish - and when the holi day parties kick in it'll only get worse. Now's the perfect time to sneak in a quick detox. Here are five cleansing courses for every budget and lifestyle. Get your mind, body and soul in shape for the hectic weeks to come - and better enjoy the retox.
YOGA WORKS' 7-DAY URBAN DETOX
138 Fifth Ave.; (646) 442-1478, yogaworks.com
What it is: Running from Dec. 3-9, the program starts with a holistic nutritionist consultation for personalized meal plan and life assessment, then continues with five yoga classes - three detox and two restorative.
Cost: $350
Reality check: The diet (no wheat, sugar, dairy, meat, gluten, caffeine) was easy enough - and the yoga was amazing. It was an actual workout, with sweat and sore muscles and everything. The best was the "in-class private," wherein a yoga instructor spots you for an entire class, adjusting your body into correct positions: For the first time I felt how yoga was supposed to feel.
Serenity high: The yoga made me feel taller, stronger, better and the candlelit restorative class was the most relaxing hour and a half of my life.
Detox low: Although the Yogi Detox tea they gave me was satisfying (I've even had it since), missing my daily large Lipton with milk caused afternoon headaches.
- Katherine Pushkar
EXHALE SPA 7-DAY CLEANSE
150 Central Park South; (212) 561-7400, exhalespa.com
What it is: Nutritionist-supervised three-day prep followed by a three-day liquid fast (including a toxin-absorbing fiber drink mix) and a final day of supervised fast-breaking. The diet is supplemented with five core fusion or yoga classes, an acupuncture detox treatment, and a fusion massage. Detox supervisors check in daily.
Cost: $600
Reality check: Top-notch cleanse where you see vivid results as they, ahem, exit your body. Liquid fasting may sound intimidating, but I never felt low-energy, just slightly loopy from chewing-withdrawal. In the end, it was much easier to stay on the straight and narrow knowing that all solid food was off-limits - there was no temptation to overeat or fudge measures.
Serenity high: Post-cleanse, for the first time in six months, I'm able to sleep through the night. I'm also much calmer, and have noticed a significant decrease in my day-to-day anxiety levels.
Detox low: Peeing a lot. A LOT.
- Danica Lo
"MEDITATIONS FOR MANIFESTING" BY WAYNE W. DYER
www.drwaynedyer.com
What it is: A CD to help you meditate even if you suck at meditating. Self-help guru Dr. Wayne Dyer (yes, the public TV guy) combines deep breathing, vocal exhalation and positive thinking to start and end your day in a fun little pseudo-trance.
Cost: $12
Reality check: Remember the first time you tried alcohol? Or sex? Or sex with alcohol? Pretty great, right? That's kind of what it's like to meditate for the first time. Even if you're clumsy and screw it up, it's still kind of awesome. When I finished with all the deep breathing and "ahhhhs," I had that glowy cheek thing I thought only came from a life of sin.
Serenity high: A literal buzz from all that inner peace and chakras and stuff.
Detox low: Friends annoyed that you won't stop talking about inner peace and chakras and stuff.
- Mandy Stadtmiller
CHOPRA CENTER & SPA AYURVEDIC BODY, MIND AND SOUL DETOX
Dream Hotel, 1710 Broadway; (212) 246-7600, chopracenterny.com
What it is: Ayurvedic doctor-supervised three-day massage, yoga and meditation plan that relaxes your body, quiets your mind and clears out the toxins from your body through special Indian oils, herbs and teas with a deep tissue massage, lymphatic drainage and diet of salads, fruits and soup.
Cost: $2,000; $1,500 if you don't stay at hotel.
Reality check: Three days, five blissful treatments and lots of snoring. The soothing, oily massages left me in a relaxation fog. And, while I didn't watch TV, talk on the phone or read a newspaper during my stay, I became increasingly fixated on food, lovingly staring at Ray's Pizza through my hotel-room window.
Serenity high: The hot Agni herbal wrap where the therapist coats you in Brahmi oil and delicious- smelling green herbs, wraps you burrito-style in steaming hot towels and a metallic silver top sheet and lets you cook. Icy-cold towels are placed on your head and face to keep you from overheating.
Detox low: Starvation. I "pigged out" and snuck an extra salad and soup the first night, two apples the second day.
- Raakhee Mirchandani
"THE CIMINELLI SOLUTION: A 7-DAY PLAN FOR RADIANT SKIN" BY SUSAN CIMINELLI
Susan Ciminelli Day Spa, the Penthouse at Bergdorf Goodman, 754 Fifth Ave.; (212) 872-2650, susanciminelli.com
What it is: A weeklong program with a diet of fresh vegetables, antioxidant fruits, low-fat protein, nuts and herbal teas. The daily routine includes skin care, yoga, deep breathing, aerobic exercise and abdominal massage.
Cost: $25 to sky's the limit. You can DIY with just the book, or add on a la carte treatments from the spa ($100 and up).
Reality check: I cleared my schedule for three days in order to shop, cook, do yoga, pay attention to the 10-minute twice-a-day beauty regime, and soak in baths. Breakfast with eggs and ground flaxseed scrambled in olive oil was better than I expected, but goat's milk yogurt and tart pomegranate seeds wasn't a good first meal. The treatments at the spa (lymphatic drainage massage, seaweed wrap) left me in a state of bliss, practically unable to form sentences.
Serenity high: When my co-worker, unprompted, asked if I had gotten a facial, because my skin looked great (I had a mini facial three days earlier). And I lost four pounds - an unexpected bonus.
Detox low: Not being able to have a glass of wine with a Sunday-night bowl of pasta was a drag.
- Mary Huhn ¶ 11:34
So I spent seven days last week doing a detox -- which included a three-day liquid fast.You'd think that after not eating solid food for three days, I'd lose weight. No sir. But I do feel smaller. And I'm definitely less bloated. Bonus? After a few months of pretty intense stress and insomnia, I'm sleeping through the night for the first time in ages. And I'm definitely less stressed out at work -- which says a lot since I've been pretty high-strung for the last six months.
Here's the final result -- along with a few other detoxes my colleagues tried out.
SEASON'S CLEANING
By KATHERINE PUSHKAR, DANICA LO, MANDY STADTMILLER, RAAKHEE MIRCHANDANI, and MARY HUHN
November 24, 2006 -- YESTERDAY'S caloric intake has probably already got you feeling a bit sluggish - and when the holi day parties kick in it'll only get worse. Now's the perfect time to sneak in a quick detox. Here are five cleansing courses for every budget and lifestyle. Get your mind, body and soul in shape for the hectic weeks to come - and better enjoy the retox.
YOGA WORKS' 7-DAY URBAN DETOX
138 Fifth Ave.; (646) 442-1478, yogaworks.com
What it is: Running from Dec. 3-9, the program starts with a holistic nutritionist consultation for personalized meal plan and life assessment, then continues with five yoga classes - three detox and two restorative.
Cost: $350
Reality check: The diet (no wheat, sugar, dairy, meat, gluten, caffeine) was easy enough - and the yoga was amazing. It was an actual workout, with sweat and sore muscles and everything. The best was the "in-class private," wherein a yoga instructor spots you for an entire class, adjusting your body into correct positions: For the first time I felt how yoga was supposed to feel.
Serenity high: The yoga made me feel taller, stronger, better and the candlelit restorative class was the most relaxing hour and a half of my life.
Detox low: Although the Yogi Detox tea they gave me was satisfying (I've even had it since), missing my daily large Lipton with milk caused afternoon headaches.
- Katherine Pushkar
EXHALE SPA 7-DAY CLEANSE
150 Central Park South; (212) 561-7400, exhalespa.com
What it is: Nutritionist-supervised three-day prep followed by a three-day liquid fast (including a toxin-absorbing fiber drink mix) and a final day of supervised fast-breaking. The diet is supplemented with five core fusion or yoga classes, an acupuncture detox treatment, and a fusion massage. Detox supervisors check in daily.
Cost: $600
Reality check: Top-notch cleanse where you see vivid results as they, ahem, exit your body. Liquid fasting may sound intimidating, but I never felt low-energy, just slightly loopy from chewing-withdrawal. In the end, it was much easier to stay on the straight and narrow knowing that all solid food was off-limits - there was no temptation to overeat or fudge measures.
Serenity high: Post-cleanse, for the first time in six months, I'm able to sleep through the night. I'm also much calmer, and have noticed a significant decrease in my day-to-day anxiety levels.
Detox low: Peeing a lot. A LOT.
- Danica Lo
"MEDITATIONS FOR MANIFESTING" BY WAYNE W. DYER
www.drwaynedyer.com
What it is: A CD to help you meditate even if you suck at meditating. Self-help guru Dr. Wayne Dyer (yes, the public TV guy) combines deep breathing, vocal exhalation and positive thinking to start and end your day in a fun little pseudo-trance.
Cost: $12
Reality check: Remember the first time you tried alcohol? Or sex? Or sex with alcohol? Pretty great, right? That's kind of what it's like to meditate for the first time. Even if you're clumsy and screw it up, it's still kind of awesome. When I finished with all the deep breathing and "ahhhhs," I had that glowy cheek thing I thought only came from a life of sin.
Serenity high: A literal buzz from all that inner peace and chakras and stuff.
Detox low: Friends annoyed that you won't stop talking about inner peace and chakras and stuff.
- Mandy Stadtmiller
CHOPRA CENTER & SPA AYURVEDIC BODY, MIND AND SOUL DETOX
Dream Hotel, 1710 Broadway; (212) 246-7600, chopracenterny.com
What it is: Ayurvedic doctor-supervised three-day massage, yoga and meditation plan that relaxes your body, quiets your mind and clears out the toxins from your body through special Indian oils, herbs and teas with a deep tissue massage, lymphatic drainage and diet of salads, fruits and soup.
Cost: $2,000; $1,500 if you don't stay at hotel.
Reality check: Three days, five blissful treatments and lots of snoring. The soothing, oily massages left me in a relaxation fog. And, while I didn't watch TV, talk on the phone or read a newspaper during my stay, I became increasingly fixated on food, lovingly staring at Ray's Pizza through my hotel-room window.
Serenity high: The hot Agni herbal wrap where the therapist coats you in Brahmi oil and delicious- smelling green herbs, wraps you burrito-style in steaming hot towels and a metallic silver top sheet and lets you cook. Icy-cold towels are placed on your head and face to keep you from overheating.
Detox low: Starvation. I "pigged out" and snuck an extra salad and soup the first night, two apples the second day.
- Raakhee Mirchandani
"THE CIMINELLI SOLUTION: A 7-DAY PLAN FOR RADIANT SKIN" BY SUSAN CIMINELLI
Susan Ciminelli Day Spa, the Penthouse at Bergdorf Goodman, 754 Fifth Ave.; (212) 872-2650, susanciminelli.com
What it is: A weeklong program with a diet of fresh vegetables, antioxidant fruits, low-fat protein, nuts and herbal teas. The daily routine includes skin care, yoga, deep breathing, aerobic exercise and abdominal massage.
Cost: $25 to sky's the limit. You can DIY with just the book, or add on a la carte treatments from the spa ($100 and up).
Reality check: I cleared my schedule for three days in order to shop, cook, do yoga, pay attention to the 10-minute twice-a-day beauty regime, and soak in baths. Breakfast with eggs and ground flaxseed scrambled in olive oil was better than I expected, but goat's milk yogurt and tart pomegranate seeds wasn't a good first meal. The treatments at the spa (lymphatic drainage massage, seaweed wrap) left me in a state of bliss, practically unable to form sentences.
Serenity high: When my co-worker, unprompted, asked if I had gotten a facial, because my skin looked great (I had a mini facial three days earlier). And I lost four pounds - an unexpected bonus.
Detox low: Not being able to have a glass of wine with a Sunday-night bowl of pasta was a drag.
- Mary Huhn ¶ 11:34
