Above: My exercise mecca, the SRSC. Image: Indiana University.8 a.m. While I eat my morning egg white omelet and sip my cup of green tea, I take a moment to reflect on my week. I feel lighter, more energetic, less bloated and much more refreshed than I did before I started this detox, despite my momentary Red Bull and bagel slip yesterday.
11 a.m. I snack on some deli turkey and drink a giant Chai tea.
1:30 p.m. The chefs make spicy jambalaya, an off limits dish for lunch, so I don’t eat the rice or sausage slices to make it Kirsch kosher.
4:45 p.m. I take a strength core class at IU’s Student Recreational Student Center. The instructor, Michael, is middle-aged, dreadlocked, and wears copious amounts of spandex to highlight his unusually slim physique. He’s also a madcap character who likes to bark and meow randomly and order everyone to hug and kiss themselves while shouting, “I love me!” at the end of the class. I always welcome his bizarre antics, as they distract me from hating exercise.
5:45 p.m. I come home from the gym and eat a lemon herb chicken breast with a side salad.
8:00 p.m. I end the day, and my Turkey Day Detox, with a cup of herbal tea.
Tomorrow I’ll be done with this body plan, but I don’t plan to turn back to my unwholesome ways completely. In fact, I’ve decided to try Kirsch’s maintenance plan, which is specifically laid out in his book.
On the first stage of the maintenance plan, one off-limits item is allowed each day (i.e. a banana, a glass of milk, or red wine) and you can have one “cheat day" a week. On the cheat day, you can essentially eat whatever you want, but in moderation. In other words, a day of candy bars, pizza, Long Island iced teas, and a super-sized order of French fries is probably not what Kirsch had in mind.
On the second stage, two off-limits items are allowed each day plus the cheat day. With the maintenance plan, Kirsch promises long-term, healthy results. And I like the sound of that.
