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Now that 2020 is in full effect, you might be considering a detox diet to kick off the new year. Before signing up for a drastically-low-cal juice cleanse, consider this: When you hop on a fad diet hoping for magic-bullet changes, you’re more likely to feel deprived and fatigued than fresh and strong.

That said, to help you approach detoxing with care, we chatted with three of New York’s top dieticians for tips to start you off on the right foot.

Figure out what you want to detox from
The first step of any detox is determining what you want to detox from. “Are you a busy professional who eats out two meals per day, seven days per week? Do you always snack on a bag of chips after lunch at work?”Jennifer Maeng, clinical and culinary nutritionist and founder of NYC-based Chelsea Nutrition, urges you to ask yourself. “After pointing out some of the habits, you can target one at a time.”

If you’re unsure where to start, Maeng says to start with things like alcohol, processed food/drinks, refined sugar/oil and BPA. NYC-based dietician Amy Shapiro of Real Nutrition adds that, for some people, it helps to remove inflammatory foods like dairy and gluten. “If you do eliminate full food groups, be diligent with your diet to ensure you are meeting your nutritional needs through other food groups,” she reminds.

Lastly, instead of detoxing totally and completely from the “toxins,” Maeng suggests cutting them down slowly to see if you can take a break from them for a while. “If you stop cold turkey, you may feel deprived, and want them even more,” she explains.

Don’t eliminate full food groups
“Many think that fruits, grains or carbohydrates, in general, are bad for weight management but what is more important is what type of fruit, grains or carbohydrates you are eating,” Maeng explains.

Avoid processed foods
“I always recommend avoiding processed foods as much as possible,” Maeng says, noting that they’re the most unhealthy foods you can consume. So, by eliminating them, as opposed to full food groups, you’ll be able to detox without missing out on key nutrients (and cravings).

Stay hydrated
“Many people underestimate the importance of hydration,” Maeng starts. “We are made of water and we require water for proper bodily function physically (and mentally).” As a general rule of thumb, you should aim to drink half your body weight in ounces of water to stay adequately hydrated.

Eat foods that naturally benefit your health
“The body has systems (like the liver, kidneys, and GI tract) that work to detox your body naturally, so instead of doing a juice cleanse or fad detox, aim to add foods that will aide these systems,” says NYC-based dietician Fiorella DiCarlo of Fiorella Eats. “To aid liver function, one can take a break from alcohol and extra medications like over-the-counter pain medications. For kidneys, aiming for 2.5 liters a day of water or non-caffeine beverages and some sugar-free cranberry juice three times per week can help. To help regulate the GI tract and stay regular with bowel movements, make sure to consume live active cultures (like in kefir) at least three times per week (or every day for two weeks after a bout of antibiotics). In addition, to keep bowels moving, aim for 28-30 grams of fiber per day, stay hydrated and make sure there is enough fat to lubricate the bowels.”

Reassess your daily routine
“At Chelsea Nutrition, rather than just detoxing and trying a fad diet, we recommend reviewing and reassessing daily routines and habits (including eating habits!) to see what needs improvement and what you would like to continue,” Maeng says. “This is important as habits such as eating late-night meals and snacks before bed, going to bed late, not getting enough sleep, etc. It can really impact your weight, energy level, hormones and mood.” As such, by reassessing your whole routine, you’ll be able to sustainably achieve your desired results, as opposed to relying on a one-and-done cleanse.

As always, consult your doctor or nutritionist before making any major changes to your diet.

xx, The FabFitFun Team