When I told one of my friends I’m doing a Spring detox he quipped, “what could you possibly be detoxing from?” He asked, so I told him. My Daily Cuppa, one too many Happy Hours a week, my Cupcake Habit. There are more and I don’t track what I eat closely enough to guesstimate how much refined sugar or caffeine I consume but Sidney’s, the cafe upstairs, recently introduced Cappy Hour ($1 off most espresso drinks) and I found myself heading up around 3:30 or 4 to re-caff. Almost daily.

What have I cut? Caffeine, alcohol, refined sugars, puffy white things (including bread for the most part), salt, spices (most of them). Processed food — eliminated altogether.

The first five days were almost painful at times. I was eating so much green stuff I started to feel rabbity. It seemed like everyone around me was eating tasty foods while I ate bland salads. Near the end of day five, the clouds began to open up a bit.

I don’t need to lose weight, and that’s not the point of my detox, so after talking with my partner-in-detox Patrick (currently doing something called the Peak Condition Project) I decided to add eggs, some cheese and soy milk (in moderation) back into the picture. Nuts, also okay in moderation.

You’re probably getting the sense from reading this that I’m allowing myself a lot of slack. You’d be right. The first week was the most intense. Now that I’m more than two weeks into it, I’ve evened out. The detox officially ends April 30. Here are some pointers on how to do a healthy spring clean for your body.

1) Take food with you everywhere. Prepare it in the morning and be sure you have some with you at all times but especially when you know you’re going somewhere you might be tempted to eat something more tantalizing than carrots.

2) Allow yourself some slack. I don’t mean give in to every whim and craving. Just allow yourself some moments of downtime during the detox. I haven’t had any espresso or coffee (not even decaf) in two weeks because I know even one sip would put me be back on the road to withdrawal hell. I have had a total of about five fries and several bowls of granola. This weekend I ate a sweet potato at a restaurant that definitely had cinnamon and maybe sugar in it. Oh well.

3) Drink tea. Good tea. If you don’t know about good tea, get educated on it.

4) Be prepared to discover new foods/sensations. One thing about cutting out refined crap and getting back to organic is you notice more. You taste and smell more. I discovered this incredible tea. I’ve also rediscovered the joy of crunchy lettuce.

5) Be prepared for crazy energy. You’ll find that your day isn’t regulated by caffeine and alcohol anymore, so your energy levels even out. It’s pretty awesome, actually. Once you get over the 5th day hump.

6) Get ready to say no. And perhaps be poked at about detoxing. You know, saying yes to greens and no to junk food is really a lot easier in Boulder. Waitresses get it. Baristas get it. Friends get it. Maybe you should just take a vacation to Boulder for your detox.

7) Have something in mind that you’re working towards. For Patrick, it’s Bruce Lee’s body. For me, it’s feeling really, really good…inside and out.

8) Sit with it. To resist and fight it usually doesn’t work. Sit with it, breathe with it. Write about it or talk about it with someone that supports your detox. Rather than saying “I can’t have X” say “I’m doing this because…” Frame it in the positive and you’ll get a lot further than beating yourself up. Really. I’ve tried both.

9) Create sustainable practices. Try out new foods and when you find some that you like (for me, kale), figure out a way to incorporate them into your life. When the detox is over you have newfound food friends.

10) Find supportive friends. Let them tell it to you straight and support you when you’re low. This is probably the most important part of the detox.

If you decide to give it a try, feel free to shoot me an email. I use Stickk to monitor my progress (and support several people with similar goals). Patrick and I podcasted about the process. And there are more resources at Whole Foods than you can shake a stick it.

Have fun with it! Happy Spring Cleaning!!