Spring has sprung and the desire to be as fresh as the budding leaves on the trees is awakening in us.

Winters protective layer of cushion is no longer so necessary. The inspiration to get outside and play as the world comes to life again is sometimes hindered by a lack of energy and stagnation.

The following is a list of 50 ways we can easily cleanse our bodies, shed a few pounds and just feel better.

1. Drink More Water

Most of us don’t drink enough water. Keeping hydrated has many benefits, not only does it help flush toxins from the body it can also help speed metabolism. One study found drinking half a litre of water temporarily boosted metabolism in women by as much as 30%. Drinking water half an hour before meals can also increase the feeling of satiation and lead to less overeating.

2. Far Infrared Sauna

“One study done by American researchers showed that the sweat released by users of a FIR sauna (80 to 85% water) was different from the sweat released by users of a conventional sauna (75 to 95% water). The non-water portion of sweat released in a FIR sauna was cholesterol, fat-soluble toxins, toxic heavy metals, sulphuric acid, sodium, ammonia and uric acid.” Quote taken from “The Science of Far Infrared Therapies” by Dr. Toshiko Yamazaki, MD.

3. Intermittent Fasting

It’s not hard to do, and there a few ways of going about it. Some people choose to incorporate a fresh pressed juice and consume no food from waking until around lunch time. Others will opt for a bulletproof coffee, coffee blended with grass fed butter and MCT oil. Intermittent fasting is an easy way to boost detoxification and speed weight loss.

4. Aromatherapy

What’s easier than smelling the fragrant natural aromas of plants and flowers? Aromatherapy is an effective healing agent especially for reducing stress and improving mood. Since stress is the number thing holding most of us back from achieving optimal health, the more methods that reduce it the better. Essential oils are also a great alternative to chemical cleaners and artificial scents.

5. Coffee Enemas

Don’t give me that look…okay I know it sounds strange but coffee enemas can be really effective for detoxification. The premise behind using coffee is that it coffee contains choleretics which stimulate the release of toxin rich bile from the gallbladder. Popularized by the renowned alternative cancer guru Dr. Gerson, coffee enemas help to increase bile flow and improve the functions of the liver and improve digestion. For more details go here.

6. Epsom Salt Bath

Magnesium salt baths are a great way of relieving muscle tension and soreness. They also increase magnesium levels in the body, a mineral over 80% of us are lacking.

7. Daily Green Drink

Whether its in the form of a green juice, smoothie or greens powder, green drinks are a enjoyable way to boost detoxification and promote weight loss. Abundant in vitamins, minerals, enzymes and antioxidants, green drinks help us to energize and alkalize and are an essential tool in our health arsenal.

8. Dry Skin Brushing

Using a natural bristle brush to stroke the skin helps to increase lymph flow and speed up detoxification. Some of the benefits of dry skin brushing include increased circulation, reduced cellulite, immune boosting, skin exfoliant and increased energy.

9. Herbs

There are so many ways to incorporate more herbs into our diets. Adding fresh herbs to your food has a veritable bevy of benefits. A rich source of phytonutrients, herbs also help to improve digestion and cut the richness of fatty foods. There’s a reason oregano is classically paired with pasta and rosemary with lamb.

10. Practice Meditation

Cleansing the mind is just as important as cleansing the body. Implementing mindfulness techniques is any easy and effective way to reduce stress and boost brain power. New research is coming out showing that meditation can actually grow grey matter and help make us smarter. Meditation can also help regulate our emotions and help grow empathy for others.

11. Oil Pulling

Oil pulling is an ancient Ayurvedic practice from India which involves swishing oil around in your mouth for up to 30 minutes. It’s said to pull toxins from the body, particularly those in the mouth and even the pineal gland. Studies have found oil pulling effective in treating streptococcus, gingivitis, and halitosis (bad breath). Be sure to stay away from conventional GMO oils and stick to organic coconut or sesame oil.

12. Take Probiotics

Probiotics are essential for good health and can help protect us from unwanted pathogens and bad bacteria. Probiotics help to improve digestion and have a direct correlation with mood and energy.

13. Garden

What easier way to procure cleansing, organic and nutrient dense food than to grow it ourselves. Not only that but the beneficial microbes we come into contact with while gardening help to strengthen our immune systems.

14. Listen to Music

Music is a great way to either stimulate the mind or unwind, it has the uncanny ability to distract us from our woes as it releases the feel good hormone dopamine in the brain. Keeping healthy is so closely correlated with our stress levels, listening to music can help reduce stress and bring on more positive mind states.

15. Cut Out Sugar

Sugar is a drain in more ways than one. When we hop off the blood sugar roller coaster we create more stable internal energy. Excess sugar is associated with chronic diseases like diabetes and cancer, inflammation, lowered immunity, candida and parasites.

16. Lemon Water

Fresh lemon water is alkalizing, cleansing and delicious. Adding lemon to water is a great way to stay hydrated with the added vitamin C and antioxidants rich in lemon.

17. Go Organic

Reducing the toxic load on the body starts with switching conventionally grown chemical fruits and vegetables with organic local ones. Pesticides are not only bad for the environment but they accumulate in our bodies and are dangerous even in small amounts.

18. Get a Massage

Massage helps to stimulate the flow of lymph and improve circulation, this in turn can help remove metabolic waste and increase energy. Massage is also an effective stress management technique.

19. Try Acupuncture

The principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine are solid and effective, acupuncture being an optimal way to increase qi or lifeforce energy. When certain channels are blocked we feel stagnant and low energy, acupuncture helps to bring back flow.

20. Sleep More

Sleep is arguably the most important part of detoxification and its also been shown to help with weight loss and squelching cravings.

21. Ditch the Plastic

Plastics are ubiquitous with our culture, everything seems to be stored in plastic. Soft plastics in particular leech harmful endocrine disruptors into our food and water. Ditch the plastic and stick to glass or stainless steel storage vessels.

22. Invest in a Good Water Filter

We’re made of mostly water, so it makes sense to drink only the purest form. City water is filled with toxic fluoride and chlorine which kills beneficial microbes. Not only that but tiny remnants of pharmaceutical drugs remain in the water supply and we end up ingesting them.

23. Eat More Antioxidants

Fighting the internal effects of environmental pollution can only be done by zapping free radicals. Antioxidants do just that and are abundant in plant foods, so eat up!

24. Destress

The number one thing holding us back from achieving balance is high stress levels. Do everything you can to keep stress down.

25. Avoid Antibiotics

Antibiotics are useful in some situations, but be wary and only take them if absolutely necessary. Often, a cold and flu will pass with time and there are so many natural immune boosters. It takes a long time to rebuild those beneficial microbes, but not long at all to destroy them with antibiotics.

26. Natural Alternatives to Painkillers

Painkillers do quite a number on our poor livers, they also exacerbate the inflammation instead of getting to the root of the issue. In the long term, it’s better to eat an anti-inflammatory diet rich in antioxidants

27. Eat More Weeds

Dandelion, burdock, chickweed, these are just a few of the edible wild plants that sprawl all across North America. You usually only have to look as far as your backyard to find these detoxifying and nutrient dense plants.

28. Learn to Love Spicy Food

Chilis are a great detox food and they boost metabolism, stimulate circulation and have anti-inflammatory properties. Start slow and gradually your taste buds will acclimatize and learn to love a bit of heat.

29. Foam Rolling

If you’ve never foam rolled, your in for a treat. Foam rolling is beneficial for releasing lactic acid in the muscles and releasing tension. It’s a form of self massage using a foam tube about the width of ones back. They can be purchased for a lot less than a professional massage.

30. Dance More

Dancing is 3 points in one, exercise, music and meditation. Dancing until you break a sweat to your favorite tunes is an fun way to release toxins and get moving. Turn on your favorite tunes and boogie down!

31. Drink More Tea

Every type of tea has its benefits, for black tea it’s the caffeine, green and white tea are rich in antioxidants, herbal teas all have their different medicinal characteristics. It’s worth getting an array of different compounds from the various teas.

32. Embrace Raw Food

Raw foods are life giving foods, rich in enzymes, vitamins and minerals. For most people incorporating more raw foods improves digestion.

33. Drink Apple Cider Vinegar

It might sound strange but ACV is an incredibly cleansing substance. ACV improves digestion by boosting the levels of HCl in the stomach.

34. Try Laughter Yoga

What holds people back from losing weight and feeling amazing? You might be surprised to hear the answer isn’t as much food as it is stress. The best relief from stress is laughter.

35. Have More Sex

After laughter for stress relief, comes sex. It releases feel good bonding hormones and endorphins that make us feel amazing.

36. Switch to High Quality Salt

Iodized salt is junk, it’s like comparing spam to prime rib, seriously. Switching to high quality salt will drastically improve the nutrients you’re getting from your salt.

38. Fulvic Acid to Detox Heavy Metals

Fulvic acid is a powerfully detoxifying substance which is created by soil based organisms to make minerals. It’s one of the most powerful free radical scavenging substances on the planet and can help rid the body of toxic heavy metals.

39. Eat Turmeric

Turmeric is an amazing superfood rich in the powerful anti-inflammatory compound curcumin. There have been hundreds of studies done on the healing properties of turmeric, it fights cancer, protects against radiation and protects the brain from alzheimers and Parkinson’s disease.

40. Remove Amalgam Fillings

Having a constant source of heavy metal leeching into our bodies isn’t a good thing.There are alternative or holistic dentists which will remove amalgam/mercury fillings and use safer materials. It’s worth looking into if serious about detoxification.

 41. Drink Kombucha

Glucuronic acid is a detoxifying and cancer fighting substance that helps the liver to remove toxins. Kombucha, the fermented tea drink contains glucuronic acid and aids in detoxification.

42. Embrace Sea Vegetables

Seaweeds are high in important minerals and help to strengthen and protect the thyroid. Many of us aren’t getting enough minerals from our diets because modern agriculture causes soil degradation.

43. Ditch the Dairy


Conventional dairy causes problems for many people. It’s useful to eliminate for a month and see what comes up. Many people see improved digestion and more energy.

44. Avoid Screens After Dark

Screens emit blue light which interferes with our melatonin production and interrupts our sleep.

45. Fall in Love with Cruciferous Vegetables

Cruciferous vegetables particularly broccoli, are high in sulfurophane, a super potent cleansing and protective substance. They also have indole-3-carbinols which help to break down harmful pseudo-estrogens in the body.

46. Ditch the Microwave

Sure they’re convenient, but its convenience that’s gotten us into this mess. Microwaves destroy key vitamins and enzymes in our foods, and when you heat things up in plastic, some of it can absorb into the food, ick!

47. Overhaul of Personal Hygiene Products

There’s hardly any regulation when it comes to personal hygiene products. Most are filled with petroleum based, carcinogenic endocrine disrupting chemicals that we really don’t need in our lives.

48. Avoid Anti-bacterial Soaps

Normal soap works just fine at cleaning our hands and bodies. Switching to anti-bacterial soaps and hand sanitizers isn’t necessarily good for our health, it’s important to be exposed to some bacteria.

49. Get Back to Nature

Spending time in nature, disconnected from our internet and phones is the most cleansing thing we can do. Reconnect and ground, spending time in nature is a great excuse to meditate and ponder life’s wonders.

50. Breathe Deeply

Inhale, exhale, make it count, shallow breathing isn’t making the most of these powerful lungs we have. Deep breathing helps to bring more oxygen to the cells, its stimulating, invigorating yet calming at the same time.

Relephant Read:

Why Should You Do a Spring Cleanse? 

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Author: Chantelle Zakariasen

Assistant Editor: Yoli Ramazzina / Editor: Catherine Monkman

Photo: Flickr, via Lauren Finkel, Ana Sofia Guerreirinho & Vladimir Pustovit