Fashion forward shopping addicts all know what the approach of the autumn season really means. This year, it's about the procuring and wearing of extra skinny jeans, Mad Men inspired fitted suits of wool and tweed, romantic evening dresses with cinched waists for that nostalgic 40's look that is so in again. And t'is the season of thigh high boots worn over skin-tight leather biker pants and looking good naked in the bedroom for the coming cold winter nights (above the covers)! While the pressure of swim season is over, inner thighs and potbellies simply never lie when dressed in low rise stove pipe distressed denim or a well-fitted suit. Do they?

In the health world, fall is a time of cleansing and fasting, alongside the season of spring. Any guru will tell you that your body naturally begins a process of its toxins, come spring and fall. Livers and kidneys flushing, lymph nodes gushing- it's all about rushing the toxins right on out of your body during the seasons of flux and yes, we can and should help ourselves make the most of this. It is to our benefit to cleanse and detoxify our innards and organs because in doing so, we keep disease at bay, our bodies are more vibrant and able to stay charged with more energy, longer. We process our food more efficiently and are not as sensitive to climate change, viruses, and bacterias when our bodies and immune systems are optimized.

Fasting is an age old method for meditation, cleansing, and healing. Fasting for fall means beginning a diet of raw fruits and veggies, right about now, for a week or two before eliminating all solid food. Fasting anywhere from a few days to a month means discipline and a gradual process of easing off solid food as well as easing back on. Blended soups, broths, vegetable and fruit juices should become your only form of sustenance during this time and the only liquids that are not allowed are coffee, alcohol, and cow's milk.

Vegetable based broths and fruit juice smoothies are the best thing to nourish your body while fasting. Milk thistle and dandelion tea encourage the liver to cleanse itself. Cranberry juices helps to flush the kidneys. Go the extra mile and swallow a teaspoon of benonite clay each morning which will draw out any heavy metals your body may have accumulated. Your body is programmed to respond extremely well when you do yourself the favor of fasting for a week or two at the start of fall. Try combining this time with a parasite cleanse. It is a natural time to work it in. You can find several herbal supplements and psyllium husk laden drink combos that target parasites in the human body and let's face it- we all have them. All of us.

The good news is that fasting and cleansing your body of toxins and parasites is a natural trigger for weight loss. Continue eating those fresh vegetables and broths into the fall season and watch the pounds melt away. With a little focus and perserverence- you may find that you are feeling and looking better than ever before! The trick to success is focusing on something outside of yourself. Focus on the thousands of animals being surrendered, abandoned, held in shelters, and put to death across the United States of America right now. Or focus on the epidemic of horses being set loose or left to die because the recession has put so many people out of work and out of their homes, that they can't afford to keep them and no one wants to buy and keep an extra horse right now. Think of the homeless shelters innundated with mothers, fathers, children, young people, old people- people who are unemployed or left behind. How can you help?

Consider volunteering at a shelter. There are thousands of souls in America that desperately need your help, concern and care. Keep a puppy or kitten at home as a foster parent, volunteer at a soup kitchen every Sunday, offer to do a craft class at the old folks' home, or spend time at the animal shelter comforting all of the dogs and cats there. By focusing on the greater good and a situation larger than yourself, you cleanse and purify your mind and heart and keep the focus off of yourself. Your fasting falls into the background and the essence of life's true meaning becomes your only reality. This focus of compassion will sustain you mentally and emotionally as your fast and purify your body. Each hour of selfless service given will in turn, gift you in the long run with a terrific sense of love and appreciation for self, for others, and all of the positive things in your life that you may have been taking for granted or overlooked, unwittingly.

As a reward, you will look amazing and you will feel amazing about yourself after a month of fasting with a couple weeks of raw fruits and veggies, 1-4 weeks of only liquids, and then two weeks of steamed veggies and oatmeal once you ease back into solid foods. The noticeable glow will come from having a truly healthy body and a rejuvenated sense of self, knowing you have contributed in a selfless way to the greater good. Your good karma and sense of achievement will surely be your greatest asset, even when you slide into the fall season's skinniest pair of skinny jeans without a second look.