I was feeling pretty resistant to the whole New Year! New You! cleanses & detoxes breaking the internet a few weeks ago. Rebelling, in a very tantrum-y way, to the idea, I was SO BAD (and I was so bad!) through the holiday season that I needed to reconstruct my entire being.

Funny though, as the days rolled along it occurred to me that although I was resisting one piece of the New Year re-set I was fully participating in the fast of the season. I realized that I not only enjoy the feast and fast cycles of the year, my health relies on them. *Note: I use the term “fast” pretty loosely here to mean times of increased simplicity, discipline, and focus (tempering the times of increased “stay-out-until-1-am AND WOULD YOU PLEASE PASS THE EGGNOG NOW!!!!” opulence).

The holidays were a time of total decadence. I ate, drank, and celebrated….getting all of the life affirming/soul-warming things from rich food, friends and drink that a chia seed has never provided. But as the New Year bells rang and I fell into bed, exhausted, I decided I was ready for a shift…..and, though I felt physically revolted by the typical detox/diet hoopla, I naturally started to “tighten things up” all over our house: I cleaned out cupboards, re-vamped our schedule to bring more structure to our days, started back on the green-smoothie-a-day train, got my bum to a yoga class, and started flossing again (*aside: I have no idea why, when I get busy, I always think the best time-saving thing I could ever possibly do is to stop flossing…but that’s what I do. It saves me, like, 60 WHOLE SECONDS). Anyway, the point is I’m taking better care of myself and my oral hygiene is back on point.

I enjoy challenging my cravings….testing to see what foods actually nourish me and what’s become a crutch, contemplating deep nutritional controversies like: are there ways to consume eggs and nutmeg that do not include rum?

As with the feast, there are many health benefits to the fast. The physical benefits quickly become soul-fueling as I find more time to get back into my body through exercise, simple nourishing foods, one-on-one time with friends, regular meditation and massage.