By Amy Lawrenson

After five days detoxing, we reveal how we're doing...

Soulmatefood. Amy Lawrenson, Beauty Writer.

Five days of juices is tough mentally and physically. I was like a yo-yo all week, one minute I was tired the next delirious! I was also quite bored of not eating and I missed my morning coffee (‘my name’s Amy, and I’m addicted to coffee’, but there are worse things...). It made me realise that food really does punctuate my day, which isn't necessarily a good thing. I enjoy eating and not just bad stuff, but the healthy things too.
While a week of juice and water was hard, I lost half a stone in the process which made up for it. Since, I’ve have had some treats because I’m only human (a bag of Maltesers and a bit of cookie, if you must know) but I'm also eating healthier things like sea bass and mackerel, quinoa salads and plenty of fruit and veg. My skin looks better for it and I feel positive after losing so much and not putting it all back on within the first post-detox weekend (just three pounds).
It wasn't a miracle - the detox didn't rewire my brain or anything - but it did help me draw a line under the indulgence of Christmas and set me on a new healthier path, one which involves healthy eating, the odd edible treat and lots of exercise - another thing I missed during the detox – hmm, maybe it changed me more than I thought?

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Raw Fairies. Emily Cronin, News Editor.
Well, I did it. I subsisted for nearly an entire work week on raw vegan cuisine and juices alone (let’s not talk about Friday evening). I lost three pounds in four and a half days—I admit, it’s a smaller drop than I had hoped to achieve, but it’s within a healthy weekly weight-loss range.
Am I glad I did the mini-cleanse? On the whole, yes—I felt healthier and more alert during my five days of detoxing than during the rest of my tox-filled lifestyle. Such thoughtfulness went into the dishes that it was, at moments, possible to forget that the pad thai I was so enjoying was based on shredded courgette rather than rice noodles. It felt sensible to detox with real food rather than put myself on a deprivation-based regimen of juices, powders, broths, etc.
Certain aspects of the cleanse have already entered my day-to-day routine. I usually dump a spoonful or two of sugar into my coffee and tea, but after days on green juice instead of lattes, I noticed the natural sweetness of the milk in my first coffee. I may not shun non-vegan ingredients on a permanent basis anytime soon, but kicking sugar is A Good Thing.
It was still difficult, though. I wonder whether my mental fetishisation of barred foods will ultimately outweigh the benefits of temporarily barring said foods in the first place (hello, giant chocolate chip cookie on the desk behind me). But now I know: I can make it through a detox. Surely all that willpower deserves a little reward...

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