I am never entirely sure what I think about the wide and sweeping concept of the ‘detox’.  Invariably seeing extreme oscillations in one’s diet as ill advised, not to mention impractical – when exactly, is it convenient within anyone’s working life, to have days of the week where you are eating nothing by apples, or equivalent?

Nonetheless, Detoxes in their various guises are a popular and longstanding part of the health and fitness minefield, and so, it was with no small amount of trepidation, that I took part in a three day juice Detox courtesy of NOSH.

The first thing that I will highlight as a major plus for the brand, for which I cannot fault them is that they are both extremely supportive (complete with ‘you can do it!’ emails), and informative, delivering a wealth of information based on experience and knowledge about nutrition and how to optimise it for your body.

Founded by Geeta Sidhu-Robb, the London based company has a wide celebrity following, with Georgia May Jagger, Rachel Stevens, and Gurinda Chadha extolling the virtues of her programmes, which are designed to target specific needs, whether that’s weight loss, improved skin tone, gut healing, anti cellulite or thyroid healing.  For all my uncertainty, the healing power of diet is a constantly fascinating topic of conversation, and so my three day journey began.

The way the juice Detox works is that NOSH deliver a bag filled with your daily allowance of juices in the morning, for each day that you are on the programme.  Arriving with a full set of potions, some big, some small, and in a variety of different colours, the day starts with a lemon and ginger drink, followed by different smoothies at intervals throughout the day.  I am not sure how much fruit I had over 72 hours, but even for someone who can generally be found with some sort of edible plant life on my desk at any given time of the day, it was a lot.

I think what everyone is worried about when undertaking something like this, particularly when you are sitting at your desk, and thus probably more likely to have thoughts of crisps, chocolate and the like, is ‘won’t I be hungry’, and to my overwhelming surprise, the answer, at least in my case, is an emphatic ‘no’.  One thing that NOSH has down to a fine art on their juice Detox, is providing you with enough juice to make sure that you are definitely not hungry.

Although there are warnings about feeling tired and getting headaches, I was rather pleased to experience almost none of these, with the exception of what I sincerely suspect was psychosomatic lethargy.  There is a sense after three days of being cleansed, and in a way, having an unusually high level of energy, and it is unsurprising perhaps that I certainly felt less bloated, perhaps a little more streamlined than usual.  I also felt holier than thou about the whole experience and considered I would be entirely justified in scoffing an entire jar of Nutella as soon as the Detox finished – definitely not the point – this is supposed to be the start of a generally healthier lifestyle (follow up programmes to reintroduce food are also available).

Overall, I found it to be a remarkably positive experience, but my major problem throughout (aside from it being a pretty unsociable way to conduct your week), was that even though I wasn’t hungry, I sincerely missed chewing food!  Suddenly realising that this is a great source of amusement, I felt a little cheated at my mealtimes … but then, this is something that NOSH is no doubt aware of, catering for a Detox including some foods as well – it appears they are one step ahead of me!