So you want to start juicing?
Then you'll want to read this!
In my opinion, success comes with planning, but you have to be open to the fact that things may come up. Situations may arise and you may have to make some adjustments. For example, I went out with coworkers for happy hour and I cheated, and had a salad with dressing on the side while everyone else drank. I guess that wasn't the best example, but I could have just taken everyone's advice to drink wine since it's made from grapes and is a "juice", but I didn't!
By all means, I am not a juicing guru nor do I want to be, but I've been asked by many about my juice cleanse and how I did it. So read on if you want my advice on juice cleansing.
**Contact your physician or a healthcare professional before considering any diet if you have a history of health issues, complications, and/or illness.**
PRE-JUICING ROUTINE
1 Week prior: Increase your intake of vegetables and fruits (perferably green vegetables rich in micronutrients). I suggest eating a salad before you have your main course for lunch or dinner. Visit
http://www.jointhereboot.com/ for great juice recipes and to educate yourself about juice cleanses.
Cut out ALL caffeine.
3-4 days prior: Replace 1 meal with a juice. I replaced breakfast and lunch with a green juice (store bought juices, V8, and Naked Juices don't count).
2 day prior: Prepare a juice plan. If I were to do another juice cleanse, I would stick to the the same plan for the entire cleanse. I started my mornings with my "Morning Zinger" (a fruit juice with ginger) to energize me. Then I had a green juice for lunch, followed by a different variation of a green juice for dinner. I had 2-3 juice options as snacks to help curb my appetite when I had cravings or was hungry.
1 day prior: Look at your juice plan and purchase enough produce to last you 2-3 days. It's better to buy less than to buy more. That way you don't waste produce.
DURING YOUR JUICE CLEANSE
Prepare yourself mentally: Listen, you're definitely going to have some cravings, but you can have as much juice as you want, so you shouldn't be hungry. Cravings, yes; Hunger, no.
Do not make your juice more than 4 hours in advance: I
recommend that you have freshly juiced juice in order to reap the full benefits of juicing. However, that's hard to do when you are work during the day. So what I did, in my situation, was juiced in the morning right before I left for work. I would make my morning zinger and my lunch juice and put them in 28oz
Blender (Protein) Shake Bottles. You will notice that it does not take very long for the juice to separate when you store your juice. Having it in these bottles made it convenient to shake them back to a homogeneous state.
Don't tempt yourself: If you have little self-discipline, avoid temptation at all costs! Make sure, you have a juice you can always sip on in case you feel the urge to eat something. If you're going to cheat, then cheat by eating some snap peas, carrots, raisins, or fruit.
AFTER YOUR JUICE CLEANSE
Don't celebrate with a big feast of solids: The longer you've been on a juice cleanse, the harder your body may react when you reintroduce solids (especially meat) back into your system. So instead of just diving in, dip your feet in a little bit and have a small meal with healthy foods. My first meal was a baked chicken with a hearty serving of green beans and red bell peppers.
Accept the fact that you will gain some weight back: People who have gone off juice cleanses typically gain around 5lbs back. Just know that you will gain some weight back.
Juicing does not replace water. Make sure you drink 6-8 glasses a day!
Like I said, I'm not a juicing guru, so I suggest listening to what your body is telling you feels right or wrong. Juicing has helps me overcome a weight loss plateau and has increased my energy level. It's a wonderful holistic experience that I found be beneficial in many ways - mind, body, and soul.
Remember, Google is your best-friend. If you want to know something, just Google & use some sound judgment.
Ciao!
p/s My next post will NOT be about juicing!
