Quest for Detoxification

I have been obsessed with the idea of detoxing for quite some time now.  Now that I'm in my mid twenties, I've begun to notice the extent to which my mood, energy level, etc are affected by what I put into my body.  I cannot, for instance, eat a big plate of pasta, accompanied by several glasses of wine and followed by a rich dessert, without paying for it with my sense of well being the next day.  I become bloated, miserable, and cranky, and have come to realize that 90 per cent of the time it's simply not worth it.  Conversely, few things make me feel as vigorous, light, and free as several days of healthy eating in a row.  As a result, I'm somewhat curious to find out how I would respond to a detox cleanse.  I've tried to go on several extremely restrictive cleanses in the past.  None of these attempts were successful.  I lasted a grand total of ten hours on the famous Master Cleanse  (I guess it never occurred to me that subsisting on lemonade and and salt water for ten days in the middle of a Canadian winter is nearly as impossible as it is reckless). 

 Anyway, I've been eying a cleanse I came across on Gwyneth Paltrow's website several months ago (yes I KNOW I'm obsessed with Gwyneth...), in which you actually get to eat semi-normal food.  Basically, you avoid all dairy, grains with gluten, red meat, shellfish, anything processed, fatty nuts, nightshades, condiments, sugar, alcohol, and caffeine.  Ok, so maybe it's a little on the restrictive side.  But Gwyneth provides plenty of recipes exhibiting the many tasty combinations that can be made with the food you can eat.  I'm going to admit straight out that staying on this thing for the required seven days is probably not an option for me (I love food too much.  It's one of my main reasons for getting up in the morning).  I'd say five days (Sunday-Thursday) is a more realistic goal. 

Oh my poor reader, you're probably wondering why I'm boring you with all this tedious dietary information.  My reason is this:  If I think that hypothetical readers know about my detox attempt, I'm far more likely to stick to it because I will feel constantly monitored.  I have no idea how many people actually read this blog, but like I've said in the past, the mere idea of readers gives me hope on multiple levels.  I'll check in periodically and let you know how I'm doing; I hope - no, I know - I'll have good news to report.