THE MENOPAUSE JUICE DETOX
VIRTUAL RESORT: Amanda Hamilton’s Online Midlife reset Detox retreat ( amanda hamilton.com).
COST: £295 for a fiveday course, with interactive small groups of up to eight women of a similar age, all via Zoom. includes easy menus, workouts and access to a WhatsApp group, and promises to
manage your hormones, improve leep, beat stress and lose weight. Recipes and suggested menu plans re provided but participants shop or and prepare their own food. EXT ONE: June 14 to 18.
STEPPING on the scales for the irst time in weeks, I was horrified o see that I’d piled on a stone in wo months. Drastic action was needed if I was going to lose the ockdown lard for the summer. Luckily, nutritionist Amanda Hamilton is offering an online Midlife Reset Detox Retreat. One of the main aims of the etreat is to improve metabolism nd switch cells from storing fat o burning fat, especially around what Amanda calls ‘the menopause middle’. Eliminating all meat, fish, wheat, unnatural sugars, dairy, caffeine nd alcohol, it will also detox the liver and gut and give my poor body a break from the mountain of junk I’ve been filling it with in recent weeks. The detox follows a strict routine: On rising: Hot water and juice of half a lemon. 9am-9.30am: A fruit and veg smoothie.
10am-10.30am: Pilates. 12pm-12.30pm: Soup and a ‘slaw’ (like coleslaw but without the mayonnaise). 1pm-2pm: An online class to raise questions and discuss our detox. 3pm-3.30pm:
Another smoothie. n 6pm-6.30pm:
Soup. An afternoon snack is permitted if needed. I must also drink two litres of water and can have herbal teas.
There are five of us, all in our 50s, ‘attending’ the retreat and we meet online to discuss our woes and goals. I state that I want to lose my pudgy ‘carb’ face and to deflate my giant stomach.
My first breakfast smoothie was a ‘berry beet’ made with cooked beetroot, spinach and avocado, blended with coconut milk. I expected it to be foul but was amazed at how delicious it was.
Over the next few days my smoothies include: carrot and ginger, pineapple and coconut, cucumber and spinach and even a frozen pea and mint one. Our
Pilates classes focused on the areas most likely to bother middle-aged women: bingo wings, tummies, inner thighs and a backside set on migrating down the backs of our legs. And they must have been hitting the spot because I ached like a 100-year-old the day after our first session.
Preparing the soups was timeconsuming but worth it, as they were tasty and insanely filling — so much so that I couldn’t finish my evening bowls.
The huge portions of raw slaws meant I never experienced my usual mid-afternoon energy dip that sees me heading for the fridge.
By day two I’ve developed a pounding headache — caffeine withdrawal no doubt — that eventually eases thanks to all the water I’m drinking.
I enjoy our afternoon Zoom classes where we learn about gut health, nutrition and the effects of alcohol on weight.
I was staggered to learn that one study found a 72 per cent drop in fat burning immediately after drinking alcohol. I was starting to regret all those lockdown cocktails.
A fellow detoxer says she now pictures wine as ‘liquid cake’ — a tip I’ll be using in the future.
By day three, I’m shocked I don’t feel hungry and, if I’m honest, shocked I haven’t cheated. Instead, all the nutritious smoothies and shakes have made me feel energised and surprisingly full.
On day four, I wake up and notice that my stomach has gone down significantly. It’s not washboard flat but it’s nowhere near as roly-poly as it was.
By the time I’ve reached day five, my ‘carb face’ has gone and I am five pounds lighter. I feel light, revitalised and like I’ve had an internal spring clean.
The detox has proved so effective that I’m going to carry on for another five days. I thought I’d be reaching for the pizza delivery menu as soon as it was over, but I have no desire to drink alcohol or eat junk.
What’s happened to me? Whatever it is, long may it continue.
‘It’s the first time I’ve seen you smile in ages,’ says my husband. I’m not a yoga fan. I can’t surf and my body feels battered, but I haven’t felt this relaxed in weeks