The skinny:
To go without carbs, fruit, fizzy drinks, alcohol and to not eat after 6pm in the evenings for one week. Plus have a colonic to clear out and detox my system and hopefully reduce any bloating!

Week One
Although I do ashtanga yoga at least twice a week, and run at least once a week, my eating habits are a bit sloppy and I like to indulge in a sweet after meals. I’m not fat exactly, but I feel a little on the plump side and I think I will really benefit from a week of healthy eating and eating less. I have very little willpower and I comfort eat. I like a cuppa and some biscuits, or chocolate if I’m curled up on the sofa and I will eat crisps and chunky chips if I’m meeting friends for wine.
My worst habit though must be eating my largest meal really late in the day. I usually don’t get round to dinner until nine pm or after. And sometimes after dinner I lie on the sofa and indulge in some late night snacking. Realistically, I eat too many cakes, brownies and treats and I know need to cut down on these if I want to lose weight so I'm hoping this week long diet will kickstart some good eating habits.
The detox experience
The week starts in the supermarket shopping for ‘healthy food’. Salad, vegetables, more salad, umm, eggs. None of the usual pasta, cous cous and potatoes. With a diet like this you need to be prepared because your three meals a day are all eaten before six pm at work. And packed lunches are really the best way to avoid temptation. I soon begin to feel ravenous in the mornings due to not eating after six so I opt for scrambled eggs each morning to fill me up. I take lunch early at 12 and have a big salad with lots of variety, adding nice cheese and seeds to spice things up. Dinner is around five pm so soup, salad or vegetables and cold fish are convenient. Because I'm conscious of not being able to eat in the evenings I make bigger portions of salad and veg, but soon realise I needn’t have panicked as throughout the week I never actually feel hungry in the evenings. I try to limit my evening activities, post-work meet ups tend to include food or alcohol and I can’t stand the thought of going out only to sit watching my friends indulge! So I mostly relax at home or go to yoga. It's a really boring diet - I miss fruit juice, smoothies, the odd glass of wine after work and more importantly, CAKES! But I’m kind of glad I’m not gorging before my colonic.

I visit the Hale clinic on Portland Place, London for my first colonic experience. The clinic is realxed and calm and I almost feel I’m there for a beauty treatment rather than to have a tube poked up my bottom. The doctor goes through my medical history in detail and then we begin. It’s not as painful or horrid as I imagined. Just a bit odd and I'm amazed by the results. I felt immediately better, my head is clear, my bloated stomach has receeded and I felt rejuvenated. I vow to go back in three weeks time, as advised.

As the end of the week approaches I can fit into a skirt that I amost threw out because it was too tight and the scales say I have dropped ten lb’s! I think the colonic is a major factor. By the time I finish the week I'm no longer craving carbs and cakes and I've realised how much I eat simply for the sake of eating. Also I'm learning about the hidden calories in thngs like smoothies and juices. I’m not quite ready to give up the diet either. There have been so many benefits, no hangovers, no chocolate binge guilt and definitely no bloated tummy in the morning. I’m going to make a big effort to have my main meal earlier in the day, and cut out all those snacks - marsmallows don't taste as good as this feels!
The verdict
This is great lifestyle shake up, habit breaking diet.If you are stuck in a rut the one week detox is a great idea and really helps show where you can cut down. I now realise that a cake is a treat - not an everyday necessity!

Total weight loss - 10lbs! I cannot believe I have lost so much in just one week, it may not stay off forever but at leats I am beach ready just in time for my holiday!

Colonic, £85 at The Hale Clinic. Call the clinic on 020 7631 0156 or click here to visit their website.

Difficulty Rating
4/5 - but I’m not a very good dieter so I found it quite a challenge!