Buzz
I aim to maintain a healthy diet, but without proper preparation and a nutritious meal ready, I often find myself eating whatever is available. I won’t elaborate, but once, I ended up having cookies for dinner just before heading out to teach a nutrition class. It’s not something I’m proud of.
I truly appreciate when someone else takes charge of meal planning for me. Recently, Goop (Gwyneth Paltrow’s somewhat health-focused website) has been encouraging its audience to try a '3-day summer reset.' While I don’t expect any detox benefits from these recipes, they are undeniably delicious and mostly simple to prepare. Here’s how to adapt Goop’s plan into a reasonable 3-day meal strategy.
Avoid the Arsenic
It’s somewhat ironic that a recipe on a detox diet includes a notable amount of something harmful. Each morning on the Goop plan starts with a Morning Matcha Smoothie, which requires four tablespoons—yes, a quarter cup—of Sun Potion Tocos. This is a rice bran-based vitamin supplement.
You’re probably aware that brown rice and white rice differ mainly because white rice has its outer layer, the bran, removed. This bran is packed with vitamins, which sounds great. However, rice bran can also contain high levels of arsenic, as highlighted by Goop critic Dr. Jen Gunter. While one smoothie won’t harm you, it’s odd to include it in a diet marketed as healthier-than-usual. I decided to skip it, saving myself $35 in the process.
Increase the Protein
I didn’t realize until I was midway through the first recipe that each dish serves two. This means an 8-ounce salmon fillet or a single chicken breast is split between two people. While this might work for cutting calories, the small portions left me feeling hungry and concerned about my gym performance due to insufficient protein.
To address this, I doubled the portions: I’d eat an entire chicken breast or consume both servings of a meal. Adjust this based on your own appetite and needs.
By the way, adding a scoop of whey powder to that matcha smoothie makes it absolutely fantastic.
Adjust Seasoning to Preference
From the start, I noticed these meals were bursting with flavor—far from what I expected from a detox plan. I assumed detox food would be bland, but after the first day, every meal left my stomach feeling like it was on fire. Ginger was a dominant ingredient, and by the second day, it was swapped for generous amounts of cayenne pepper.
I enjoy ginger, so I’m not complaining, but a shopping list requiring half a pound of ginger is excessive even for me. I suspect the ginger is meant to address anxiety, food sensitivities, and even abnormal pap smear results (though, to clarify, ginger doesn’t actually do these things). I felt comfortable reducing the quantity slightly. Feel free to do the same with cayenne if you’re not a fan of spice.
Prioritize Convenience (and Affordability)
The first day’s lunch, featuring fennel-crusted salmon over a simple salad, was both quick to prepare and delicious. Even the more complex recipes were faster than typical meal kits like Blue Apron. However, some included creative elements I wasn’t particularly in the mood for.
I skipped buying large lettuce leaves to wrap my turkey burger (who says you can’t eat a bunless burger with a fork?) and certainly didn’t attempt to slice a butternut squash into taco shells. Instead, I grabbed pre-cubed squash from Trader Joe’s and roasted it in the oven while preparing the previous night’s dinner.
While we’re adjusting the recipes, let’s swap out some ingredients too. I omitted spirulina from the spirulina popcorn because I couldn’t find it at a reasonable price. (Besides, its claimed benefits are tied to amino acids, which you can get more of from any protein source. Skip the spirulina and just have an extra bite of chicken at dinner.)
I also excluded olive oil from the turkey burger’s basil guac (why was it even there?) and freely swapped lemons for limes because I like to live on the edge. Oh, and instead of making my own turkey meatballs, I opted for frozen chili lime chicken burgers. Go ahead, Gwyneth, judge me.
