Juice Cleanse Conclusion + Your Questions Answered

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Well yesterday wrapped up the end of my juice cleanse.  I originally was shooting for a four day cleanse but I concluded that two was my limit (for now).  I did end it with a bang though and made the most delicious juice yet.  I woke up this morning and decided I needed a friggin cup of coffee.  Plus I am starting to feel cranky from not running for two days now and no one likes a cranky Momma.  I also started noticing Ronin was not diggin the new "juicy" breast milk.  Even though his Pediatrician okay-ed the modified juice cleanse (eating was involved) he began to act like I was  sabotaging his milk. So that was the end of that.

I really do think juicing is awesome and is such an amazing and quick way to re-boot your body but I do think it's an individual journey for each person.  No one plan or system is right for everyone.

My best advice for anyone who wants to juice is do what you think is do-able. If do-able means you juice one meal or three meals a day.  If you want to juice and then eat lunch do it. Listen to your body and most likely you will figure out what will work best for you.

I still plan on juicing but I will not be making it my main meal source.  Instead, I will be incorporating it into my diet as a supplement.  I realized I need more fuel for all the exercising and the chasing around of my kids that I do.  I also need coffee.  Like can't live without it.

I have also concluded through this very short juicing experience that everything is great in moderation.  That includes juicing, wine, coffee, running and watching the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (ha).

 Carrot Beet Juice:
  • 4-5 large carrots
  • 1 beet
  • 1 inch slice of ginger
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 orange
 I still wanted to answer your questions that you left on my first juice post so here they are.

What kind of juicer do you have? 
I have a Breville Juice Fountain Elite.

How do you figure out carbs for insulin on this juice cleanse?
I boulsed for the carbs in the juice such as the carrots, apples, beets, oranges etc.  If I was unsure about carb count I just looked it up online.  I also had to lower my overall basal rate for the two days of the cleanse. 

Do you have snacks in between "juice meals"?
Yes!  I ate raw foods like almonds, apples, avocados and bananas.  I would have been starving if I didn't.  I also made a ton of juice throughout the day and did not only drink it at breakfast, lunch and dinner.  I drank it whenever I felt hungry.

If I work away from home, can I make juice ahead of time and bring it with me?
Yes.  My husband did the two day cleanse with me and he made all of his juice the night before and brought it to work with him in a little jug.  That worked out great for him and that way he was still able to do it.

Is a cleanse safe to do if you are breastfeeding? 
I made sure to ask Ronin's pediatrician before starting and she said it was okay as long as I was still eating food and making sure I was getting enough calories.  If you are breastfeeding, make sure you talk to your child's pediatrician before starting since everyone reacts differently.

Do you have a preference on juicing versus whole foods blending via a blendtech or vitamix? I have been making "green" smoothies with a blendtech for over a year now, but now I'm debating switching over to juicing, however, I dont really know the pros and cons between the two. Which one do you think is better? 
I think both blending and juicing are great!  I love smoothies and I love fresh juice.  When you blend you get the entire vegetable or fruit (skin and all), so if you are trying to purely "cleanse," juicing may be a better option because the skin of the fruit and vegetables is not included (only the juice) and your body is able to absorb and digest the minerals and vitamins quicker.  If you are looking for the fastest way to get nutrition into your body I would suggest juicing over blending.

And there you have it!  If you end up doing a juice cleanse best of luck!

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Way to go! Two days is much more than I could do!

Single Stone Studios said...

I was wondering how you managed your insulin for the cleanse. My daughter wears a pump and when she is really eating well with lots of fruits and veggies she requires less insulin. It can be a little tricky to know how much to back off sometimes. We love juicing and whole foods blending at house!

Simply LKJ said...

Good for your Lindsay. I really think it is an individual thing. I am not a huge breakfast person, so I had found a prepared juice at Whole Foods full of fruits and veggies that I love and drink it instead and eat a bit later. It actually keeps me more full and my sugar levels seem to stay more constant doing so. I am one that if I eat breakfast, I am starved a couple hours later.

NatalieM. said...

Thanks for sharing your experience! One of my friends recently did a cleans (with raw food supplementation) and I'm anxious to try it now. Approximately how many ounces or glasses or juice do your recipes make? My concern is that I'm going to buy TONS of fruit and only see a little juice produced as a result.

SHUG IN BOOTS {Beth} said...

"Listen to your body" is exactly it! This was one of the biggest things I learned from going to acupuncture. Your body is smart. If you feel better on 50g of carbs a day instead of 100g, do it. If you feel better on 9 hours of sleep, do your best to plan for it (I know having kids throws a wrench in that one). I found that cutting out gluten and processed foods, and doing plenty of protein, fruits and veggies and cutting back on coffee made me feel tons better as well. Great post! :)
Have a great day!

Unknown said...

A comment on juice cleanse and breast feeding. I was advised not to since your body releases toxins while cleansing and the toxins come out many different ways... Including breast milk. I definitely appreciate the reminder to use my juicer more. Any way to keep up with the kids;) (as I scarf down one of your brownies I made! ;))

Ashton said...

This was informative! My blood sugar always seems to react quite easily to fruit, so I was wondering how it would work to do a juice cleanse.
Obviously everyone is different, but that is cool that you had to reduce your overall insulin intake. Maybe I will give it a try now! :)

Bailey said...

Thanks for sharing! Glad you had a positive experience. It is so great to see other Type 1s in the comments section. If you are interested, I just did a post on Dr. Fuhrman's new book called "The End of Diabetes". You can read it here: http://vegtasticvoyages.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-end-of-diabetes-my-thoughts.html
Thanks for looking! :)

Unknown said...

I wondered how this was going. I just do 1 glass of juice per day and have seen such a difference in how my skin looks. I'm hoping that that's just an outward sign of more significant changes going on in my body but if not...I'm happier with healthier-looking skin.

Unknown said...

great conclusions! juicing is absolutely amazing and is something that we are incorporating regularly around here, also to add more nutrients to our bods ;) as for the cleansing, it is definitely hard to only juice...i hear you on the need for coffee! XO brynn

Unknown said...

I don't think I could ever do a full juice cleanse but I could do the once a day replacement. Thanks for the inspiration!

Unknown said...

LOVE this! New follower here :-) I recently did a juicing cleanse as well - SO MANY benefits!!!! Good for you!

Unknown said...

LOVE this! New follower here :-) I recently did a juicing cleanse and the benefits are AMAZING! Good for you! The juice recipe looks YUM. Trying soon! THX. XO

katie said...

My roommate and I are actually in the middle of a juice cleanse right now! We bought all our fruits and veggies last weekend and started yesterday (3 days anticipated). At first I was relying just on juice, but after the first day it became pretty obvious that I was going to need to supplement with raw foods as well (carrots, nuts, apples, avocados, and cucmbers). I'm really trying to stick with it the full 3 days!

P.s. I tried your carrot-beet juice and it was awesome!!

Anonymous said...

Just read some reviews on the juicersJuicer Reviews - not sure which one to get, however I do have 2 juicers ALREADY and I am an avid juice cleanser myself

Moonpie said...

I have been searching, do you know of a website that gives a carb counter for juicing? My husband also has an insulin pump. We have not been able to find one. Thank you

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