The Juice Detox Experiment

I decided to take the Juice Detox challenge. It wasn’t for weight loss per say though I can stand to lose a few pounds, but more of a way to flush the bad stuff out and give my body a break. Reading testimonials online, people seemed to feel great with lot’s of energy. After the detox they claimed they craved the juice and did not want any sweets or other bad food that held a ton of crap in them. After reading testimonials, researching, and watching a few different food documentaries, I was excited to give it a try!

 

Before I get into my experience, I want to rant for a minute. I promise it will be quick. It pains me now going grocery shopping. Where once products like butter held only one maybe two simple ingredients, now hold at least eight. And some of them I can’t even pronounce. I mean what exactly are we putting into our bodies anyway. Do we want a longer shelf life, or do we want to live longer? No brainer if you ask me. But then again, who is asking?

Anyway, back to the juice - Spoiler alert I did cheat and if I ever detox again, I would cheat then too.

The Plan - To drink up to five juices a day made up of fruits and vegetables. The greener the veggies, the more weight you can lose. I pulled some recipes off of the internet and others I just made up.

My ingredients for the juices included (not all at the same time): Celery, apples, ginger, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, swiss chard, kale, peaches, nectarines, strawberries, parsley, lemon, lime, cherry tomatoes, carrots, red peppers, oranges, and perhaps a few other veggies I am forgetting to list.

 

 

 

The shopping cost was really not the bad. It was about $14-20 a day. Going out to a restaurant you might pay that much and then some.

UMM was also really excited about juicing with me as he had done it before and loved it! Unfortunately he lasted a ½ day as he had to leave on a fire assignment. Out there fighting fires, you don’t really eat the best and you sure as heck don’t have time to juice. So, Ci’ le vie! I was on my own.

Man w/ the muscles not included!

 

I juiced for a few days, but as I mentioned, I cheated.

Day One was hard. I craved cheese. I love cheese and the cravings were intolerable. I liked the taste of all the juices I made but I did not feel satisfied. So on day one I had a few raw almonds (Cheating on Day one no less). There were no other ingredients in them besides well, almonds and even though I ate less than a quarter of a cup throughout the day, I felt satisfied.

Day Two was harder still. My energy not to mention my morale was down. It had only been two days and already I was sick of juice! I wanted nothing to do with it, but I pressed on.

I was a bit shocked that my cravings throughout the detox were not what I expected. I thought I would go mad without coffee or sugar, but really what I desired most after the first day was protein. Eggs!

 

And on the third day - I cheated again and I don’t regret it. Why? Because I CHOSE RUNNING! I will always choose running above everything else without question or doubt in my mind. I had plans to meet with a friend for a run date. Upon waking up, I felt weak, lethargic. I juiced, but I also made no frills scrambled eggs. No butter, no milk. Just a dash of cayenne pepper. I felt better ready to tackle the world until I started running! I had run a few miles on day one of the detox and while it wasn’t the greatest run of my life, it certainly wasn’t bad. On the third day even with protein, I had a no good very bad run! I got light headed, I felt ill, my bones literally felt like they were just going to deteriorate like some scifi movie and I would vanish within the dust. It was not pretty. When I was done, I felt very sick. I drank tons of water, ate some watermelon (Yes I actually chewed) and slept for a couple of hours!

Knowing very well that I had another run date Friday, I broke the juice code and made myself a beautiful spinach salad with grilled chicken with an olive oil and lemon dressing that I made. Thus ending my juice detox challenge.

So, I did not do it up to par and I have nothing to hide. I am glad I tried. I am in total awe of the men from the Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead documentary where they juiced for 60 days! I couldn’t even last three days! Now that is will power.

Here is a quick overview of my juicing experience, The Good, The Bad, and The Healthy.

The Bad -

Sadly, Juicing produces a lot of waste. Each day, I had a plastic bag full of discarded veggie droppings left behind from juicing.

Clean up of the juicer is a bit of a bitch.

My energy levels were lower than normal. Perhaps I should have seen the detox through entirely, but it just wasn’t worth it to me.

I was always hungry and had problems focusing.

I lacked protein, even though I made sure to eat plenty of green leafy veggies. It just wasn’t enough.

The Good -

I lost six pounds. Prob gain those lil buggers back in no time, but still.

I honestly felt like I was taking care of my body by putting good healthy nutrients into it.

I was very well hydrated. My pee was almost as clear as bottled water.

 

Overall, I am glad I tried it out. I perhaps would not do it again, but once the juice and I take a little time off from each other, I will definitely incorporate juicing into my once a day routine.  I took for granted the fact that my exercise regime would be out the window these past few days. I guess I was hopeful that I would just have a lot of energy and that perhaps detoxing would help me be a better runner. I thought wrong. This is clearly not recommended for high intensity workouts. Though some swear that the juicing helped boost theirs! We are all different thank goodness and my experience certainly won’t mimic yours.

Have you tried a juice detox ever? What was your experience?