Sunday, August 7, 2011

So Juicy!

I’ve always been curious about juicing. From time to time, I’d even try a shot of wheat grass when I stopped by my neighborhood health food store, feeling good about myself as I walked out the door. However, it was not until I recently saw the documentary film “Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead” that I feel really gung-ho about this.

In the documentary, an overweight, over-medicated Australian by the name of Joe Cross explores attitudes in the US about food and juicing while at the same time embarking on a 60-day juice fast. That’s right- No eating. Except for the fruits and (mostly) veggies he can stuff in his Breville juicer and as much water as he can consume, Mr. Cross forgoes everything else in a quest to lose weight and be healthier. As you might expect, he is successful and his transformation is awe-inspiring. Even as someone who is at a healthy weight and takes no medicine (except for the occasional Excedrin), it really made me think about my own diet.


How many of us are guilty of putting absolute trash in our body?
(If your hand isn’t raised, you’re kidding yourself.)


 After a late night out imbibing, nothing satisfies like a Five Guys burger! I think it’s totally fine to enjoy life and eat foods that make us happy but I also think it’s a great idea to occasionally re-boot our systems.
So last night, I trekked to Macy’s on 34th Street in Midtown Manhattan (on another note, Ohmygod, that place is INSANE!) and bought my very first juicer. Already, I wonder how I’ve gotten this far in life without one. Not only is it an impressive machine to look at but it’s super simple to use. You wash your veggies and fruit thoroughly then push it down into the juicer (using the piece for doing that, NOT your hand!) and it produces juice instantly. Very cool. Obviously, I’m just getting started. I’ve made three different juices. Here’s my beet/broccoli/squash concoction along with the pulp that was left:

So there you have it. This is the type of stuff I'll be feasting on for the next couple of days. I’m not going to tell you this is for everyone. If you don’t like vegetables, I can’t imagine how you’d make it through a day on this juice fast, much less three, five, or 60! (Note: Of course you can use fruits, too, but they contain more sugar so the vegetables are the best to use). I happen to LOVE vegetables so I’m having a ball! My very favorite is carrot juice

My plan is to juice fast for three days BUT allow myself some fruits to snack on as well as coffee. I’m not attempting a weight loss or anything like that with this- Just a way to partially detox and learn more. I can say I’m almost at the end of day one and I feel FANTASTIC! I really thought I’d feel like poo (low energy, hungry, headaches, irritability, etc.) but I have been running errands and doing chores around the apartment all day and I feel so energized and definitely not hungry at all. If you’d like an idea of what a true juice fast (no hard foods at all), my good friend Rachel will be writing lot about her five day experience! (I'll link you there when it's up!)
Again, it’s not for everyone. Even though it’s worth it to me, I have already noticed how much more time and energy go into this type of diet. I went out of my way to pick up organic, locally-grown veggies from a Farmer’s Market in a nearby neighborhood. I then spent about 45 minutes washing and chopping some of my produce. (Even though the Breville allows you to put full, un-chopped vegetables and fruit into it, for storing purposes, it makes more sense for me to chop and store it in Tupperware.) The cleaning of the machine, while easy, takes about 15 minutes each time I use it (I’m guessing I’ll use it about 4 times/day so that’s an hour a day cleaning it!) I also have to decide what to do with all the pulp that is left over (Should I compost it?! Throw it in a recipe?! Just eat it in pulp-form?! Big decisions.


To me, this time spent to get my food is not only worth it but I enjoy it. With each decision (to buy organic & local produce, to wash and cut it, to have to clean the machine after each use, to make a decision about the pulp) comes time to reflect on my food and appreciate it. Maybe it’s just the effect of all the nutrients going to my head but isn’t this better than simply throwing whatever’s convenient into your system?
I’ll be sure to keep you updated on this. Like I said, right now I’m loving it but maybe by tomorrow I’ll be going insane. Hopefully not. 

In the meantime, tell me about your own juice fasting experiences! Throw your questions and comments on the board or just suggest the craziest recipe you can think of- I promise I’ll at least try it! 

2 comments:

  1. Oooh, I'm intrigued! I've always wondered about juice cleanses, and your post shed some great light on everything and made a juice cleanse seem much more attainable. I'll be using my MagicBullet to juice fruits and veggies soon...I'd love to detox before my wedding in 6 weeks!
    Can I use any fruits and veggies, or are there guidelines about what I should be doing? I'd love some more info:)
    http://jacquelineparis.wordpress.com/

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  2. Oh my gosh, Jacqueline, I'd say definitely try it to feel amazing before your wedding! (Congrats, btw!)

    I know some people don't have the best experiences when they try juicing (one friend of mine actually felt sick during a majority of her 5 day fast but she still felt better overall after all was said and done) but I felt amazing and have become a total juicing convert now.

    My personal favorite is beet juice- That surprised me because I don't actually like to eat beets. (Shrug.) I stuck with veggies only because I wanted to avoid all the (natural) sugars you find in fruits but I can imagine fresh fruit juice tastes delicious!

    Here's a link to a helpful article: http://www.thatsfit.ca/2009/01/08/ten-foods-to-put-in-your-juicer/

    Happy Juicing and please let me know how your experience goes!

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