This is my first cleanse experience so I am in no way a pro but for the average person who is curious about cleansing, maybe you will find it interesting. I dabbled with the idea of the master cleanse before my wedding but after one drink I knew I couldn't do it. Years ago, when Pressed Juicery first opened, I asked for their beginner 3-day cleanse for Christmas but I'm guessing everyone thought I was crazy because I somehow didn't get it as a present that year. Jason did a cleanse through his acupuncturist a couple years ago where he had to eat packets of herbal concoctions every time he was hungry and he had a really good experience with it and finished 30 lbs. lighter in 1 month. So this summer I took matters into my own hands.
My internship ended in the beginning of August and I had the rest of the month to clean the house, finish my pre-semester homework, and take some time to re-focus on my goals. We have been working towards a healthier diet all summer long but we don't like the idea of formally cutting something out of our meals, rather getting balanced meals, creating healthy habits, and consuming reasonable portion sizes. With Jason and I both having such an intense schedule this fall, both going back to school 5-6 long days a week, I knew I wanted to focus a lot of my energy on eating food that would be filling and energizing, instead of the usual cafeteria fare.
I did tons of research on juice cleansing beforehand and read all about how they can give you mental clarity, a better night's sleep, clear dewey skin, and even result in weight loss. What could go wrong, especially right before school started?! You're supposed to cut out red meat, dairy, caffeine (if you can), and processed foods in the days leading to and following the cleanse. I followed that pretty religiously although it's hard to say no to Chipotle when everyone else in the car wants it, so the night before, I got a salad with veggies and said no to both sour cream and cheese... which is exactly as hard as it sounds by the way. Bright and early Monday morning I started and immediately felt the effects of the cleanse after my first juice and especially after my third. I'll spare you the details but needless to say, I'm glad I did it while I was home. During the first half of your cleanse it's common to feel a lack of stamina and even headaches while your body shifts it's energy from digestion to fat burning, and I definitely struggled with that until halfway through wednesday. Throughout the week I noticed that my sleep was much deeper and I wasn't waking up in the middle of the night, by thursday morning I felt energized and motivated the entire day, and on friday my skin was looking fresh and dewey.
I was super hungry in the first couple days but by the end of the cleanse, when I went grocery shopping for the next week's food, the unhealthy items had almost entirely lost their appeal and a bite of carrot was the most deliciously flavorful thing in the world. Juice cleansing is not for the faint of heart and if you're looking for sweet, fruity juices this isn't where you'll find them! Not to say they're bad, they just definitely aren't something you'd want to casually sip 6X a day. Some companies are better than others in terms of flavor and I've found that price pretty much directly correlates to both the taste and cleansing benefits you're getting from the drink. I'm guessing if the single purpose of your cleanse is just to eliminate toxins and skip the whole appetite shrinking part, a 1 or 2 day cleanse would do the trick.
I lost over 5 lbs. in my first 2 days of cleansing and by the end of the week I had gone down over 14 lbs! As my cleanse is ending I'm trying to eat as many veggies as possible, less grains and dairy, and choose healthy snacks, some of which can easily be found at Moon Juice. Although it was hard, I would definitely do it again and recommend it to anyone who is thinking about it. I've linked some sources below for my favorite local juicerys.
My 5 favorite juicery's:
Moon Juice - their cleanse includes 8 drinks a day which will be really helpful if you think you're going to be too hungry to try, and bonus: they are all super tasty - even the green ones! They also have an incredible selection of snacks and tonics to try if you just need a side of #health with your morning coffee.
Pressed Juicery - the OG of juiceries. They are located basically everywhere and their delivery service is amazing. My favorite drinks are their signature nut milks and of course the charcoal lemonade.
Juice Served Here - they are pretty recent to the L.A. juice scene so the selection is a lot smaller but the juices taste good, especially if you aren't trying to cleanse but maybe just want to skip having a burger for lunch in favor of some yummy drink. If you do want to cleanse they offer customizable selections if you want a little more carrot and a little less kale.
Peel'd - for my friends in Sacramento, this place has some super tasty juices, soups, salads, and bowls which you can pick up or have delivered. Plus how cute are the names for each drink?!
Juicebox - if you're in Seattle, they have a lot of variations you can order for cleanses between 1-5 days, and at their cafe you can get super healthy and delicious breakfast lunch or dinner.
Have you done this or any other type of cleanse before? I'd love to hear how it went in the comments below!
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