Juicing, Why I Love It

 I have had a few people asking me about juicing.  The recipes I use and is it really all that great?
My husband Scott and I started to juice back in December.  It was after we watched Fat Sick and Nearly Dead.  A documentary about one man's battle to get healthy and he did so by being on a juice fast for 60 days.  He documented the whole thing.  He was over weight and had to take many medications when he started and by the time he was done he was at a healthy weight and got rid of ALL of his meds!  That was it. We were hooked.

To maintain a healthy lifestyle we are supposed to eat 3 servings of fruit and 4 servings of veggies everyday according to the Mayo Clinic.  Although that may not seem like a difficult task it can be easy to skip out on some of those veggies. 

I went through and rounded up some of the pros and cons of juicing....

CONS
-Loss of Fiber. You loose the fiber when you are only extracting the juice and it is important to have a high fiber diet to stay healthy.

-Can lead to food born illness because you are drinking raw veggies that can harbor pathogens that will make you very sick. This is a risk you take when you eat any raw fruit or vegetable that have not been washed.  Even washing won't always kill what is growing there.

-High is sugar, yes it is true you are drinking a juice that has a high sugar content and even though the sugars are coming from real foods it will still spike your blood sugar level.

PROS

-Getting all of your servings of fruit and veggies in one single glass.

- Drinking juices like Beet juice can stimulate the liver which helps to eliminate stored toxins.

- Helps fight the seasonal mood slump and brightens your skin.

- It has heart healthy and has cancer protection benefits.

-Helps with gastrointestinal health as well as eases gallstones and indigestion. 

-The list can go on and on.....

I recently read THIS article from Ayurvedic about juice cleanses. I also copied the paragraph below for you to read.


"Great combo for Spring is beets, radish, cilantro, parsley, carrot, and celery. Beet juice is particularly effective at stimulating the liver. This allows the body to eliminate stored toxins caused by a poor diet and sometimes by prolonged use of antibiotics. While carrots help fight seasonal mood slump and brightens up the skin. Ayurveda also recommends adding some spices to boost the effects of juices and make them less Vata aggravating. Good juice additions are ginger, black pepper, aloe vera gel, and curcumin. Curcumin for example has been shown to prevent and/or cure cancer in laboratory tests. It is used to cleanse the liver, as an anti-inflammatory, to bolster the skin, heart and lungs, to purify the body and mind, and in the treatment of food poisoning, ease gallstones and indigestion. It helps balance cholesterol levels, boosts the immunity system, and modern research has found it beneficial in the treatment of Alzheimer’s. Try it in a carrot juice!"

I will be honest juice can not always taste like the best thing ever but I promise that the more and more you drink it you will find your favorites and grow to love them.  Scott and I try to stick to mostly veggies to avoid too much sugar.  We use the Compact Breville Juicer and buy ALL ORGANIC produce!  Here are some of our favorites that will make two large servings.

Beet Juice
1 Beet
1 Pink Lady Apple
4 Sticks of Celery
6 Carrots
2 Thumbs Sizes of Ginger (we LOVE ginger)
1 Lemon(we don't always add the lemon)

Kale Juice
1 Bunch of Kale
1 Pink Lady Apple
3 Sticks of Celery
6 Carrots
2 Thumbs of Ginger
(We will also swap the Kale for Spinach to switch it up)

Carrot Juice
10 Carrots
2 Thumbs of Ginger




It is true that you do go through a lot of produce.  We don't have a dish washer so cleaning it is not hard but not fun either.   But in the end it is something we truly believe in and love drinking everyday.  It is part of our routine.  I instantly feel better and energized after my juice.  I just wish I could have 2 a day if I knew I didn't have to do the dished again ;))

 This was my beet juice that I drank last night.  It was just so so good.

So that's it!  Juice and why I love it so much!  And in other exiting news Retro Fitness just opened up 4 blocks from my place and it is only 20 bucks a month.  Awesome!  Today was my first day there.  5 on the treadmill.  

 

So tell me, Do you guys juice?  If so what are your favorites? 

Treadmill or Outdoors?  I normally am all about the outdoors but I am getting a little sick of my daily routes.  TV time on the treadmill.

xx
Sarah

Want to read more about juicing?  Check it out Here and Here.