Ex Nihilo is all about performing the way you were created to. We want to feel good, and perform at exceptionally high levels in everything. Plain and simple.

But sometimes life just happens.

This looks different for everyone right?

I have a tough travel schedule and sometimes that leaves me exhausted and susceptible to getting sick. For others they may have let their guard down and ate poorly for a few meals (or days?). And then there are those of us who party a little too hard and have a few too many to drink.

In all of these scenarios we feel like garbage afterward. I don't know about you but I hate being sick and I hate the feeling after I eat something bad. The process to recovery is usually a few days of getting back on track and then we're back to normal.

Well i've found some serious short cuts to this process. Instead of waiting, why not try feeling good right away? With some shrewd planning, you can shorten your sickness, feel great after a terrible meal and even eliminate your hangover.

Why detox?

Toxins from bad food, alcohol or exposure to environmental toxins store in your body. Our livers, body fat and kidneys love to house toxins and it's very difficult for them to shed the contamination. We think things like brain fog, headaches and fatigue are normal but they are all symptoms of toxicity. Toxicity can lead to long term problems and diseases and can cause us to get sick in the short term. A detox can quickly eliminate these toxins so we can perform and feel great.

There are three steps with a few different options in each step so read carefully:

At the beginning or before you start

If you are starting to come down with a sickness or, if you know you are going to drink/eat poorly there are a few initial steps to take that can soften the blow.

The first thing is to supplement with some quality minerals like Zinc and Magnesium. These magical supplements build your immune system to fight against your sickness. Both of these are miracle minerals that have a variety of positive effects including promoting quality sleep, which is crucial to repairing your body.

The next thing to supplement with is Glutathione. Glutathione is the most effective and powerful antioxidant in your body. Sometimes your body can slow it's glutathione production which can lead to getting sick or increased inflammation. Eating poorly and drinking alcohol can lower your body's ability to make this critical agent. Supplementing with this restores your body's supply, while strengthening your immune system. The best glutathione i've tried can be found here.

What about during?

There are a few things to do to detox during the event. First and foremost: Hydrate. Make sure you are getting down as much water as you can. This dilutes toxins and flushes them out. Most people's go-to when sick is a combination of 7up, Nyquil and chicken noodle soup out of a can. These are some of the last things you want in your body when sick. High fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oil won't exactly help you. One of the best things you can do is drink water. Carbonated water helps with some of the effects that Sprite has. When you are drinking, aim for one glass of water per drink. If you are eating a giant burger and fries, have a minimum of 20 oz. of water during.

Perhaps the most underrated detox agent of all is Activated Charcoal. This is what the hospital pumps into your stomach when you get food or alcohol poisoning. The charcoal is able to bind to the toxins in your gut and escort them out of the body. This is a game changer. Pop 2-4 after eating a bad meal to carry out any unwanted toxins. Have 1 pill for every drink you have along with that glass of water to avoid the alcohol's toxic effect.

If you are sick, activated charcoal can single handedly reduce sickness duration. For the flu or food poisoning, combine 2-3 charcoal pills with 2 TBSP of raw apple cider vinegar to restore your gut bacteria and feel a little better within minutes. I've actually gotten food poisoning and not thrown up once with this method! 1-2 charcoal pills every hour with some apple cider vinegar and you might be able to fully beat food poisoning.

Try this only while sick: When my me or someone in my family gets sick, we go on Bone Broth fasts. At the first sign of sickness, we throw a pot of grass fed bones in the crock pot with some herbs and spices and boil for 12-36 hours. The longer the better. that lets the collagen and detoxifying effects release out of the bones. This has the ability to shorten sickness by half, easy. Check out the full benefit list of bone broth in this earlier post.

Afterwards or while you're winding down

After you've wrecked your gut and immune system with poor eating/drinking or sickness, it's time to rebuild. The first thing to do is to solidify the immune system. Vitamin C and glutathione are crucial for that. Vitamin C's immune system benefits are well documented, but don't listen to marketers and try to get vitamin C from a sugary glass of Orange Juice. Opt for 500mg-1000mg every few hours from a supplement form.

Next it's time to replenish some lost nutrients. Try a quality greens powder to get a bunch of nutrients in you quickly. I love Biotest's Superfood. It's highly concentrated and packs a more powerful punch.

Jump in an infrared Sauna to finish off any deeply stored toxins. It penetrates under the surface of the skin to detox you deeply at a lower temperature. You won't sweat right away like a normal sauna. It takes about 20 minutes to finally start sweating out those deep toxins. Make sure you drink a lot of water as this will bring out a lot of hidden toxins you'll need to flush out.

Finally, I mop up what's left with some more activated charcoal. Just make sure you don't take this within few hours of another supplement or medication or it will likely absorb them rendering them ineffective.