CHAPTER THREE:
DETOX JUICING 101
There are many different opinions as to what the best way of doing a juice cleanse is. Some people go on for several weeks drinking only water or only juice, and avoiding all solid foods. And there are those who do both juices and food at the same time.
Then there is the question of time. I have friends who have gone up to three weeks just juicing. They say they stopped feeling hungry by the third day, and had more energy and mental clarity than ever before. Most people, however, prefer doing this for shorter periods of time.
Our approach tends to be of the gentler kind, and we run away from anything radical. When it comes to juicing, we truly believe that the most important thing is that you actually do it! Cleansing in a way that will leave you starved and grumpy, and will be a huge (too huge) test on your willpower, won’t do. What’s the point of choosing the most life-changing diet if you’ll cheat or quit by the second day? We want you to succeed, and to enjoy the ride while you’re at it.
HOW OFTEN AND FOR HOW LONG SHOULD YOU DO A CLEANSE?
I personally like adding one daily juice to my regular daily meals. Usually, I take this as a snack, or a pre-breakfast or pre-dinner appetizer. If I’m too full from overeating the previous day, or feel a bit undigested, I’ll replace dinner or breakfast with a juice, as well.
I also like doing one-day juice fasts every now and then, particularly when the seasons change, or during a new moon. When I do this, I only drink juices and eat no other food. On that day, I have at least three or four juices. I have no problem maintaining these one-day cleanses, as they go quickly enough and I know I can eat whatever I want the following day. I have a very fast metabolism, and feel too weak, and get cold extremities and strong headaches if I fast for longer than that, or if I do it too often. Everybody is different, so you should try different approaches and see what works best for you.
If, after trying, you find that a three-day program works wonders for you, it could be a good idea to do it once a month, or once every change of season, depending on your lifestyle and the state of your health. Seven- or fourteen-day programs can be practiced once or twice a year for optimal results.
Spring is an ideal time to do a cleanse. It is no coincidence that we feel moved to do a spring cleaning of our homes every year. The liver is more active during this season, and cleaning our surroundings is just an outward expression of what’s going on at this time of year inside our bodies. So go ahead and cleanse away when you see the first flowers blooming in your garden or hear the first birds chirping.
TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT?
We’ve separated this book into three-, seven-, and fourteen-day programs. None of them are complete juice fasts, because we want to ease you into juicing, and then let this adventure take its own course in each of your lives. It’s better if you start this way, see how you feel, and start experimenting on your own. Try to always stay on the safe side, and if you don’t feel well, stop, increase the amount of food, or decrease the amount of juices. Every body is unique, and you should honor your particular constitution.
If you’re more of a free spirit and want to create your own detox programs using our recipes, follow these guidelines to have a pleasant detox experience:
For three-day programs, replace breakfast and dinner with a juice, and have two juice snacks during the day as well. Eat a regular lunch.
For seven-day programs, we recommend you replace breakfast and dinner with a juice on the first, fourth, and seventh day, and have a big, healthy lunch. Have two juice snacks throughout the day, when you feel hungry. During the other days replace dinner with a juice (choose one of the greener kinds) and have a healthy breakfast and lunch. Again, don’t forget to snack on green juices if you get hungry.
For a fourteen-day detox, we advise that you replace two meals with a juice on the first day, one meal with a juice on the second day, and eat your regular three meals on the third day. However, you should snack on one or two green juices, as always, even on the day when you eat three regular meals. Repeat this process several times, until you complete the fourteen days.
As you can see, in all the programs we encourage you to have one or two juices as snacks between meals if you feel hungry. If you do this, pick the ones with less fruit and more veggies in general. These can be found in the Super Power Greens recipe section.
Try to use this time to start listening to your body closer, and realize when you’re actually hungry, as opposed to thirsty, anxious, or bored. Why do you want to eat a particular thing at a certain time? What feelings triggered that craving? What are you trying to avoid, or what space are you trying to fill with that food?
Cleansing is a great opportunity to reconnect with your inner guide, and perhaps dig deeper into your relationship with food, with your body, and with your emotions. If done with awareness, cleanses can impact your life at deeper levels than you would expect.
Cleansing is a fun and natural way of pressing the reset button on your body’s healing mechanisms. Wise men and women all around the world have been practicing fasting (both with and without juicing) for centuries as a regular way to bring balance back to their bodies, minds, and even souls.
We recommend juicing as a way to enhance your life and health. However, we are not medical practitioners, and talk only from our own lifelong experience with juicing.
As with any other lifestyle and dietary changes, you should consult a physician before starting a detox program, especially if:
You have any serious or chronic health concerns.
You have an eating disorder.
You are taking medications.
You are pregnant, trying to get pregnant, or nursing.
You feel there is any other reason that may put you at risk. Use common sense to evaluate this.
Even if you’re healthy, we don’t recommend you follow these programs for longer than fourteen days, unless you are under strict supervision from a doctor. You may, however, keep adding a juice or two to your daily routine after you finish a cleanse, or even replace a meal with one or two juices every now and then if you feel your body needs it. If you’re about to have a naughty snack between meals, you can’t go wrong by replacing it with a juice.
SIDE EFFECTS OF JUICING
When you go through a cleanse you release toxins stored in your colon, liver, lungs, bladder, sinuses, skin, kidneys, and fatty tissue. The more toxins you’ve accumulated throughout the years by a lousy diet and a sloppy lifestyle, the more you will have to release. This may cause a few unpleasant symptoms that you would probably be happier without. Any discomfort caused by toxicity, such as bloating, phlegm, or acne, may become stronger at first, before it starts getting better.
Experiencing this toxic hump is natural, as the stored waste needs to be released back into your bloodstream before it can exit your body. At the end of the day this downside is nothing compared to the many upsides you will get from sweeping those little buggers out of your body once and for all. Just be patient and you will soon start seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
If symptoms arrive, drink lots of water to flush them out of your system quickly. If they are too strong or persist, consider stopping the cleanse and trying a milder version of it in the future.
It may also be the case that you experience no negative symptoms whatsoever, so don’t take this potential scenario too seriously. We just feel that for the sake of honesty, it’s better to warn you that this may not be a complete walk in the park for everyone.
To avoid a tough ride, make sure you begin slowly, especially if you don’t have the most “kosher” of diets. Start getting acquainted with a higher daily dose of fruits and veggies little by little. Ambushing your body with a triple dose of the strongest detoxifying juices, such as the Beet-er Dandelion on the very first day of your cleanse would be a recipe for disaster. Instead, be slow but sure like the turtle, and build your detox practice one juice at a time.
Five Simple Ways to Boost a Cleanse
Dry scrub your skin first thing in the morning. Our skin is the largest organ of our bodies, and every day toxins are released through its pores. If they are blocked, toxins are reabsorbed and go back into your bloodstream. By scrubbing regularly, you’re easing their way out of your system and guaranteeing better-looking skin at the same time. If you leave the scrub in a visible place of the bathroom it will be easier for you to remember, and will become a regular habit just like brushing your teeth.
Exercise. Moving your body gets those stored toxins moving too, and sweating gets them out. It’s as simple as that.
Clean your tongue when you wake up. Those funny-looking tongue cleaners are much more important than you might think. Most of our body’s detoxification happens during sleep, and the white coating on the tongue that most people wake up to is actually a fresh layer of toxins that the body released during the night. If you don’t clean it out, you will swallow it back.
Get a massage. Do you even need persuasion for this one? Digging deep into your tissues and moving them manually also moves what’s stuck to them (toxins!). So indulge in this healthy pleasure as often as you want, and drink tons of water when it’s finished to help flush them out.
Go to sleep early. This one is tricky for night owls and party animals, but at least during your cleanse, try to go to sleep at around ten at night (if you’re already asleep at ten, even better!). Your liver is the most active at this time, so if you’re resting, all your energy can go into its important repair work.