There’s something about the first Monday of the New Year, no?  It must be the ultimate #motivationmonday.  I am feeling super inspired today for the upcoming year. I had a full day or work, a kick butt workout, and also taught a yoga class that has become really special to me (it’s close to home and therefore with many familiar faces).

Reflecting back on 2015 I realized just how many changes I made on the road to better health.  I’m not just talking about diet and exercise. I’m not just talking about losing weight or inches. I’m talking about what I worked on from the inside out.   Or more specifically what I eliminated from my daily habits and routines to remove toxins from my body.  Here’s what I did over the last 12 months to detox my body.

1. I decided to see a naturopath about getting my hormones in check.  After being on birth control pills for far too long, I decided to give my body a break.  A year later I still had no period.  My naturopath put me on a regimen that consisted of taking vitamins and a few homeopathic remedies.  I got my period four weeks later.  And my period is slowly becoming more regular every month.
2. I switched to natural deodorant.  This was quite the experiment and took a few tries, but I finally found one that I love and agrees with my body.
3. I quit smoking. Yup, that’s right.  Those closest to me knew this about me. But many people never knew that I smoked. I mean I started teaching yoga, how could I ever admit that I was a “smoker?”  It was a very bad habit that I had for way, way too long.  Once I took a good look at my (healthy) lifestyle and realized how many steps I was taking to detox my body, it was a no brainer that I had to quit.  So last January I did just that.
4. I removed any beauty products that contained parabens.  I realized that my face lotion actually contained these widely used chemicals!  Parabens have been linked to a possible cause of cancer and also disrupt the endocrine system (surprise surprise that we all have so many hormonal issues).
5. I took a look at most of my beauty care products.  Shampoo and conditioner, body lotions, and even our toothpaste.  I have tried to make better choices in the products I am putting on my body making sure they don’t contain dangerous chemicals.  I still have opportunity in the makeup I use and will be tackling that in 2016 as I just became a Beautycounter consultant! Beautycounter creates safe and effective skincare and cosmetics by meticulously screening ingredients.

It’s funny how things start to shift without you really noticing.  I’ve been eating a paleo / primal diet for about three years now.  The first thing to come off were some pounds.  My energy was up and my immune system strong.  It wasn’t until this last year though that I noticed even more changes in my body. Here a few:

I hardly ever get sick, and if I do I recover fast.
My hair grows twice as fast as it used to.
My nails grow fast and are strong.
I have been getting my period every 4 – 6 weeks.
I’m calmer and more relaxed.

There are still improvements I can make for sure but I’m really happy with my overall health due to all of the changes I made in 2015!