Spring into shape with our motivational day-by-day detox plan

Spring has officially sprung, which means it's time to get your body out from under wraps. But if you're feeling flabby and under par, don't panic - our gentle detox plan will kick-start the good diet lifestyle habits you need to get in shape.

Detox regimes conjure up images of carrot juice and colonic irrigation, but you don't need to go through pain to cleanse your body. Our two-week plan gives a day-by-day motivational guide to kicking the old habits and sprucing up for spring.

Day 1
Eat Light
For just one day, give your digestive system a holiday by eating only the highly nutritious foods listed below. Include at least one food from each of the six groups during the day, and make sure to eat enough to feel full. Vegetables can be steamed, stir-fried, baked, roasted or eaten raw.

Group 1: Watercress, red peppers, cabbage, sprouts, sweet potatoes, spinach, apricots, mangoes, tomatoes, guavas, cantaloupe melon, kiwifruit.
Group 2: Boiled or canned beans or lentils, brown rice, porridge made with soya milk, millet, baked potatoes, buckwheat, quinoa, corn pasta (all available form health food stores or bigger supermarkets).
Group 3: Onions, garlic.
Group 4: Raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, cherries, grapes.
Group 5: Citrus fruits
Group 6: Unsalted nuts and seeds, linseeds, sunflower oil, rapeseed oil, olive oil.

Day 2
Cut the Junk
Stick mainly to the foods outlined in day one, but during the rest of your detoxing fortnight, it's fine to eat fresh meat and fish. Continue to avoid processed foods, ready meals, as well as deep fried or sugary foods. It's also a good idea to give up, or at least minimise, wheat and dairy products as there's growing evidence that an occasional break from the foods we eat every day is a good idea. Habitually eaten foods are those most likely to cause intolerance - symptoms include headaches, tiredness, aches and pains and bloating. Even if you aren't affected there's no harm in having a wheat and dairy-free period as long as you substitute alternative foods like corn pasta, rice, wheat-free bread and soya milk.

Day 3
Get moving
Half an hour of moderate exercise daily at least five times a week is enough to reap fitness benefits, so start making a habit of it - beginning today. Any form of exercise that makes you slightly breathless and sweaty is ideal, but it must be something you enjoy and can fit into your normal day. Regular exercise can reduce the risk of cancer and the government health recommendation is for women to do 30 minutes of moderate exercise at least five times a week. Stuck for ideas? Walking, jogging, swimming, vigorous housework or gardening all fit the bill. Sex is pretty good too, as long as you're putting enough effort in!

Day 4
Try some affirmations
Affirmations aren't all weird mantras or chanting - you can simply use them as a way of reinforcing positive thought. 'An affirmation is just something you tell yourself out loud or in your head over and over,' says Jane Scrivner, author of Detox Yourself (Piatkus, #6.99). 'If you tell yourself something often enough you will believe it, and if you believe something it becomes real.'

What you decide to focus on is entirely personal, but here are some ideas:

'I am feeling great'
'I'm learning to love my body'

Whether you repeat your affirmations out loud or just in your head is up to you, but whichever you do, make sure you do it several times a day.

Day 5
Cut down on caffeine.
It's impossible (and unrealistic) to shake off all your bad habits at once. But if you're still downing gallons of coffee, now's the time to start cutting down slowly - by half a cup a day to avoid headache withdrawal symptoms.

Caffeine stimulates the release of hormones from the adrenal glands, which in turn raises blood sugar. But the long-term effect is counter-productive, because the boost is followed by a slump. The maximum safe intake for most people is four cups of coffee (or six cups of tea) a day - preferably less.

Day 6
Catch some sunlight.
According to Jennifer Eastwood of the Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)Association, getting as much natural light as you can helps boost mood and make you feel more energised. But spring sunshine can be quite strong - remember to use an SPF 15 cream when you are in the sun.

Day 7
Take up skin-brushing
A daily skin-brushing habit will markedly improve texture and appearance by boosting circulation and lymph (cell waste) drainage. Use a natural bristle long-handled brush and make long sweeping strokes, always towards the heart. Afterwards, take a bath or shower.

Keep going - get ready for week two of the Spring Detox