But the glue-free carpets will be the last thing on your mind once you start your fast. Other than a hot potassium broth in the morning, detoxees drink only two fresh juices a day. Working with ayurvedic principals and energy chakras, various juices are blended to satisfy your cravings and invigorate the body. Distract your stomach with fun “un-cooking” raw food classes, knitting, salsa dancing, facials, waxing, manicures and massages. The spot also offers daily vinyasa-kundalini flow yoga classes taught in a spacious studio. While McGuire believes the Classic five-day retreat ($755 shared room; $1,400 private room and bath) is the most effective, you can jump-start your detox diet from Friday night until Sunday and pay the Weekend Bridge price ($500–$800). Both include accommodations, juices, seminars and postdetox counseling.

Birchcreek Health and Weight Loss Retreat
A supportive and well-informed staff is necessary when undergoing detox transformation, so at Birchcreek Health and Weight Loss Retreat (2) (weightlossretreat.com, 877-254-0070), expect a high staff-to-client ratio. Located two and a half hours north of the city, in Shandaken, New York, Birchcreek’s personable and intimate setting is tailored to fitness buffs, health nuts and people who are serious about losing weight. Three-, seven- and 14-night retreats ($1,450–$5,797) include private rooms with Internet access, daily juices, fitness classes and hot-stone massage. Health seminars are also offered to educate and inform on topics from osteoporosis to diabetes. “You really can be liberated from health problems like diabetes and hypoglycemia without medication,” says Stephanie Seminara, one of the center’s directors.

Worried about falling back into the Frito-Lay bag after the week away? Birchcreek’s “Stay on Track” continued support program offers personal coaching, biweekly phone meetings and recipes to encourage healthy habits back home.

Martha’s Vineyard Holistic Retreat
If the Catskill Mountains still feel too close to NYC’s smog, escape to Martha’s Vineyard Holistic Retreat (1) (mvholisticretreat.com, 800-595-9996). Started by Dr. Deluz (R.N. homeopath) nine years ago, the quaint center accommodates up to eight people and staffs an array of therapists and nurses. Select from a wide variety of all-included services like facials, body wraps, cellulite treatments, lymphatic drainage and Pilates. Take your mind off colonics with a revitalizing afternoon antioxidant berry smoothie. According to Dr. Deluz, each juice (served every two or three hours) contains six to eight servings of fruits and veggies. “Most people assume you are taking nutrients out of your body during a cleanse. But the opposite is true. You are loading up on the essential vitamins that will enhance your health and get rid of impurities,” she explains.

You’ll pay out the nose to be pampered here (daily rates start at $4,000). For those who can’t foot the bill but still crave the benefits, Duluz recently published a book, 21 Pounds in 21 Days, modeled after the program at the retreat.

The Cleanse
Budget-conscious New Yorkers should check out the booklet from The Cleanse (thecleanse.com), a 10-day detox based on ayurvedic and Chinese medicine. Combining a raw, alkaline diet with kundalini yoga, meditation and colon cleansing, the 96-page treaty guides you through a daily regimen in the privacy of your own home. Sometimes the creators, Kartar Singh Khalsa (a licensed Doctor of Oriental Medicine) and Deva Kaur Khalsa, travel around the country offering group retreats. Preregister for the Being Healthy Weekend January 25–27 in Cornwall, Connecticut (just two hours from the city), and pay $650 for three days of yoga, meditation, hiking, raw food prep classes, gourmet vegetarian meals and lectures in a cozy rural setting. Call 800-563-3327 to register.