So You Ate a Bunch of Junk Over the Holidays...

Your 2018 "Get Back to Being Healthy" Plan

So you ate all the pies your mom made, cleaned out the leftovers, and dined on fast food just to survive the busy "I don't have time to cook" holiday season. That's just part of the holiday insanity (and fun), so don't beat yourself up. Instead, here are some tips and tricks to help you get 2018 off to a healthy start!

For a Good All Around Detox + Vitamin Boost: Seaweed, Your New Best Friend

Oh, seaweed, you miraculous salty sea treat, you. You're probably familiar with seaweed from eating sushi rolls, but there's so much more to it than just delicious sushi. Did you know that seaweed is one of the best foods out there when it comes to eliminating heavy metals from your body? Yep. It's also rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Super bonus: it's packed with iodine, which most of us don't get enough of, ever. Here are some super easy ways to incorporate seaweed into your diet.

Thrive Market

Cooking with Seaweed Seasonings: Sea Seasonings has great options for cooking with different types of seaweed. I like the Kelp and Dulse varieties, as I feel they blend pretty easily into a variety of things without altering the flavor of whatever you're cooking. Hint: Your local grocery store will carry these, so no worries on where to find them.

Seaweed Snacks: These are easy and inexpensive and you can eat three packages without feeling guilty because the calories are so minimal. Nowadays, there are all kinds of fancy flavors you can try, but my favorite is the simple, traditional, normal seaweed.

Nori Wraps: Also known as the ocean version of a tortilla. Go to your local grocery store, get some Nori sheets (not snacks, completely different) and find a great smoked salmon. Layer one wrap with spinach, some sprouts, salmon, and avocado. Roll that baby up and enjoy. Super easy and super healthy.

What to Avoid: The seaweed salads you find in stores that are bright green. Natural seaweed is a dull, dark green color. There are some other colors, depending on the type of seaweed, but they're also not neon in color. Seaweed shouldn't glow, gang. If you see bright green (or bright in general), skip it. That's a clear sign it has food coloring in it.

For Your Tummy + Liver + Bye Bye Bloating: Dandelion Tea 

Dandelion tea has long been my go-to when I'm feeling a little under the weather, when I feel bloated, or when I know I've overdone it on the holiday treats. I'm such a big fan that I even bring a box of it with me on vacation to help me bounce back to normal after all the flying. It's a magical tea, I tell you.

Traditional Medicinals

For instance, because it's a natural diuretic, it helps your liver eliminate toxins more quickly. It's great for your immune system, great for your digestive system, and king of all teas when it comes to helping with water weight gain. It helps with circulation, balances blood sugar levels, and helps fight inflammation. This tea is practically a Swiss Army knife, gang.

Here's the thing: it's a strong, specific flavor that not everyone will love. Even I don't, but I've gotten used to it and, since I personally know how well it works, I'm willing to put up with my mild dislike of the taste to reap the benefits. My trick is steeping one bag of dandelion tea with one bag of peppermint (both from Traditional Medicinals). The flavor combo works wonders together. Some of you will love it and won't even need to use my trick, but some of you will definitely want to. (Don't let my personal opinion of the flavor deter you. This tea is straight up magic. It's a serious weapon against illness that you should employ on the regular.)

For Your Skin: Coconut Oil + Essential Oils

Your skin is your largest organ. It's also one that tends to get neglected and mistreated the most. We burn it in the summer sun, dry it out in the winter months. We demand that it look flawless from the neck up, but then scratch and shave and completely ignore the rest of it. It's time to start treating your skin like the important piece of you that it is.

PetNet

Yes, lathering up with lotion is a good idea...as long as you know what's in your lotion. That can be tricky in this day and age of ingredients. My favorite before bed routine is lathering up with coconut oil, head to toe. Yes, it's an oil, so you don't want to go wild, but it absorbs into the skin easily and it doesn't mess up your clothes or sheets like some other oils do. Plus, it's antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal.

Bonus: It works wonders with essential oils. Find a small, round jar and fill it 3/4 of the way full with coconut oil. Choose an essential oil (or few) that you love. Lavender, for instance, is great before bed. Add about 10 drops to the jar of coconut oil, stir it up, then smother your skin in it.

Essential oils, in general, are down right awesome. Grapefruit is good for digestion, peppermint is great for colds and stuffed noses, rosemary and clove are healing in nature- and that's just a few of your options. If you suffer from dry scalp, try tea tree oil after shampooing. It seriously works wonders. You can also do an apple cider vinegar rinse plus the tea tree oil to really solve the problem fast.