Running Out Of Juice? Not Anymore
Just as your wardrobe is very likely to require a serious spring clean before you can get a new pair of SS14 jeans in, your body is cluttered with all the I-know-it's-comfort-food-but-it's-so-good stuff that we let ourselves munch on during long grey cold winter days. Hence low energy, dehydration, headaches, feeling grumpy, and inevitable weight gain. While the long-term solution to feeling better is not a rocket science (balanced nutrition, drinking lots of water, getting enough sleep and being active - you know it all perfectly well), when you are running out of juice, it might help to get the juice delivered to your door. Literally. Having gone on Fruveju 3-day juice cleanse I am coming out with the tell-all. This is how it really works and feels. Read on.
What is a juice cleanse? Juice cleanse is a nutrition plan based on freshly cold-pressed juices that is designed to help you re-set your healthy eating habits, rest the stomach, get rid of toxins, fill you up with energy and kickstarting your positive transformation. Use organic ingredients, Fruveju juices are raw, unprocessed, and contain no preservatives - they are not pasteurised but cold-pressed from local UK produce. Cold-press means that live juices stay potent and fresh, which allows live enzymes to stay intact for three days when kept chilled.
Contrary to the recently popular opinion that fresh juices contain a lot of sugar, cleansing juices tend to be largely based on vegetables (one of my most favourite ones called 'Pure Green' is a perfect mix of kale, lemon, ginger, celery, spinach, cucumber, green apple, spring green), as well as some of them, such as Fruveju's Cashew Milk, have cashew nuts, cinnamon, vanilla, coconut nectar and filtered water providing a rich supply of oleic acid, manganese and fibre, calcium and other essential nutrients.
The other juices within the cleanse collection are Watermelime (with watermelon and lime), Spicy Lemonade (lemon, cayenne pepper, coconut nectar and filtered water) and Red Pinapple (pineapple, red apple, carrots, beets, ginger) - covering the entire range of flavours to give sensation to your tastebuds.
How does it work? Choose between 1, 3 or 5 day juice cleanse plan depending on your objective and previous cleanse experiences. (I went for a 3-day one with the aim to detox after winter and kick-start my spring mood). The 3-day cleanse set consists of 18 juice bottles (6 juices a day), a cooler bag so that you could keep the juices cool and fresh and a leaflet with background information and guidelines, included recommended timings for taking the juices (the juices are numbered and you take one roughly every two hours during the day). There is a step-by-step guide available here which helps one to prepare for the cleanse and get the best of it.
How does it feel? I have always had more or less balanced diet (at least I prefer to think so;)) without the need to expose myself to harsh diets and starving techniques. I've never been attracted to fasting as I personally believe that harsh food deprivation can lead to very unpleasant results. Hence my big concern before starting the cleanse was - will I actually be able to make it without climbing the walls from hunger!!!
- Day 1 for me was about exploration and testing my own abilities - I was curious how my body will react to juices - as opposed to usual solid food - and the body was indeed demanding food. There is no point however in breaking the experiment having nearly started, so I stayed strong. :)
- Day 2 was surprisingly easier - it also helps if you have a busy day so that you wouldn't have time to sit around and think about food, and the fact that you have your juices with you and there is a schedule when you should take them creates a good 3-day routine that is quite exciting to follow.
- Day 3 was frankly the best - not only I felt great about following through the 3-day plan, I actually felt way better physically and emotionally - with more focus, clearer mind and definitely more energy. I suddenly realise how much food we consume a day - and we do not even need that much! - and how much we are missing out on greens and what a difference it makes to go green.
Will you loose weight? While the main objective of a juice cleanse is to replenish and take care of the body (not depriving it), as you give rest to the stomach, cut out processed food focusing on nutritious fresh cold-pressed juices, and get toxins out of your body, you are very likely to notice that you can get into your jeans again. So maybe your new SS14 jeans should wait - and for the money you'd save by not buying the new pair of denims you would get more greens and organic food on your plate.
