Juicing, Day 1

Today I started a three-day juice fast. It wasn’t easy. I got really hungry. Hangry, even.

I was planning to consume nothing but fresh juice, mineral water, coconut water, and herbal tea for three days, but I’ve realized it’s a lot more challenging than I’d expected, and I don’t need to be so hardcore to get the results from juicing that I’m looking for. I’m not doing this to lose weight or to cleanse my body from alcohol, smoking, or other common toxins. I’m doing this to super-infuse every cell of my body with a high dose of nutrition, and I’m using this as a chance to break myself of daily sugar cravings. I’m hoping my taste buds will become accustomed to and satisfied by the taste of fresh fruit and veggies, which I want to incorporate much more into my diet.

After going the whole day on only juice, I decided at around 5 p.m. to eat an avocado with sea salt and felt SO MUCH BETTER almost immediately. I think I really just need some amount of fat in my diet. I decided it was excellent that I got in a full day of juicing, but I don’t need to cut out solid food to reap the benefits. As well as the avocado, I had a bowl of homemade chicken soup my roommate had made that was packed with veggies and rice. It filled me up and made me so much happier and less crazy. And with the juice, I still got a ton of fresh celery, cucumber, kale, carrot, apple, pear, ginger, lemon, and beetroot. And the best part is, I consumed no dairy, sugar, refined carbs or preservatives today. I feel satisfied, hydrated, and nourished.

I’m not one of those people who calls it a juice feast. That’s garbage. If you’re not consuming any protein or fat (the two other necessary macronutrients besides carbs) then regardless of what marketing spin you put on it, the fact is, you’re fasting. You’re depriving your body of calories and nutrients and driving yourself nuts because all you can think about is fried chicken and nachos. But juicing does flood the body with a fantastic amount of micronutrients – vitamins and minerals – from the best source on the planet: fresh veg and fruit. So for the next two days I’m going to continue to juice as well as eat whole, plant-based foods like salads and homemade soups to make sure I’m getting great nutrition without feeling like I’m starving to death. Today was an interesting day, and I’m glad I gave the juicing a shot, if for no other reason than to learn that moderation is key.

Here’s how it went: woke up, drank a cup of hot water with fresh squeezed lemon juice, waited half an hour, then drank breakfast: 2 cups fresh squeezed veggie/fruit juice – apple, carrot, beet, kale, and ginger. It was delicious, but I put way too much ginger root in it. Wow, spicy! I realized less is more.

The “Un-Beet-Able” juice, with and without kale added.

For lunch I drank a 520 ml can of pure coconut water to replenish electrolytes, as well as another big juice that was heavy on cucumber, celery, kale, and blueberries. Delicious and (temporarily) filling. For an early dinner I had another juice that combined the ingredients from the first two, plus a ripe pear. That was a winner. But then after an hour or so I decided I was ravenous and an avocado wasn’t going to take away any of the benefits of juicing, so I chowed down. And you know the rest of the story. Right now I’m sipping peppermint tea, and I’m not hungry anymore. So I’ve decided juicing is great, but a juice fast doesn’t work for me, at least not at this point.

Here are the problems I faced:

1. Although I had the day to spend working from home, I was not able to concentrate because I was hungry, light-headed, and foggy-brained. Juice fasting is something that really should only be done when you’re able to be completely free for the first few days to simply drink, pee, and nap. Anything besides that is too much, at least for me.
2. I went way over my food budget. I spent $90 on produce, one can of coconut water, and one bottle of mineral water, which was enough for only about 1.5 days of this juice fast. I’m sure produce isn’t as expensive in other parts of the world, but I live in a somewhat remote, northern region where it’s especially difficult/expensive to get fresh produce in the winter months. I’m also on a student budget, so I just can’t afford to keep this up.
3. As a part-time student in the middle of the semester, and being in a sub-zero climate, I realized this is not the best timing for a juice fast, which puts stress on your body and leaves you feeling cold. I took a hot bath this afternoon, and I’m sitting in bed wearing a scarf as well as sweat pants and socks, and I’m still chilled.

And here’s what I learned:

1.  Fresh vegetable and fruit juice tastes like heaven. If you compare fresh-squeezed juice with even the most fresh, organic, high quality store-bought stuff it’s still not even a contest. The fresh stuff is always going to be better, though it does require more work. (Which is usually true of most things in life, isn’t it?)
2. Juicing is somewhat time consuming but well worth the effort to get the whole rainbow of colours from the produce section in your daily diet. It’s easier to drink than a smoothie and more palatable, too.
3. It’s not necessary to fast to get the benefits of juicing. Whatever else you eat and drink, have just one juice a day and you’ll inevitably learn to love raw, fresh produce again. It might even lead to a more whole food, plant-based diet overall.

But if you think a juice fast is something that can work for you and you’re interested in giving it a try, here are some great tips on how to do a juice fast safely. The inspiration I got for the juice fast I tried was from the Reboot With Joe website, where I downloaded the free 3-Day plan.

Let me know how it goes if you give it a shot! I’d love to hear from anyone with IC who’s experienced the benefits of juicing.