A Beginner’s Guide to Juice Cleansing: The First Things You Need to Know
by Tera Warner and Kelly Clease
Juice cleansing as a way to gently detox the body seems to be a rather heavily debated issue these days. About ten years ago, however, it was the hottest thing going; there were “juice feasts,” “juice fasts” and “juice cleanses” lasting anywhere from 3 days to 90 days and more! Everyone and their dog was juice cleansing!
But then juice cleanses seemed to fall out of fashion as bone broths and grass fed filet mignon moved in. The “paleo” movement stormed our veggie-laden path and made flesh the new fad. But, like fashion, the latest trends in eating will come and go, but there are a few undeniable facts about eating vegetables and a few fruits that will never go out of fashion. For down the best way I know to empower a woman and help her heal her relationship with her body and her food is a gentle 3-10 day juice cleanse.
What is a juice cleanse?
Many of you beautiful people are wondering what a juice cleanse is. Some of you have received misinformation about the process of juicing. Our culture focuses on sickly-sweet, processed “juices.”
Next time you are in the grocery store, look at the ingredient labels of processed juice!
You will be surprised to see how little fruit or vegetables are actually in processed juice, with the exception of high fructose CORN syrup!
These juices are mostly water, artificial flavourings, colourings and sugars – yuck! We have something far better! Juice-cleansing (or as we like to call it, “juice- feasting”) involves the consumption of freshly-prepared juice made from only fresh, raw leafy greens, vegetables, herbs and some fruits for a pre-determined amount of time — in this case, we recommend you try from three to ten inspiring days and nights!
How much do you drink during a juice cleanse?
You will ingest all of your calories each day by drinking at least 4 quarts or 128 ounces of fresh juice each day. By drinking such a high volume of juice, you ensure that you are consuming a nutrient dense liquid that will provide the body with ALL the nutrients that it will need for the day and even nutrients required to heal the body.
By consuming only the juice of the produce, the fibre is eliminated, allowing the intestines to have a break from digestion and to focus on the absorption of nutrients.
Juicing helps the body balance the pH of its fluids.
Many of us have eaten a diet high in processed foods, animal products and sugars. These are all acid-forming foods. Green juices tend to be more alkaline in nature, balancing our body’s acids and bases. Juicing also helps the body to prevent acidosis, which is the cause of many disease processes, such as heart disease and cancer. Juices consumed should be at least 80% green to ensure an alkaline balance.
Juice cleansing allows toxins to be purged from the body in a more gentle process than fasting. The body is not being deprived of nutrients; rather, it is being supplied with nutrients better able to be absorbed and utilized by the intestines. By allowing for a slow detoxification process, many participants note an emotional detoxification, as well.
What is a juice fast?
A typical juice fast (in contrast to a juice “feast”) entails the consumption of only one to two quarts of juice per day. This amount will only supply you with around half of the calories that your body will need for the day.
Intake of inadequate calories can result in a lack of energy and insufficient fuel for your daily life processes. While many people fast for spiritual reasons and even to give the intestines a break, consuming inadequate levels of calories is dangerous for one’s health in the long term. Juice fasting is a more rapid detoxification process than juice cleansing. Some individuals choose fasting to overcome attachments to food.
Others fast for seasonal changes, and some fast for spiritual or religious reasons. Still others fast to improve mental awareness. But, by denying your body nutrients, you trick yourself into thinking that you’re actually starving. While humans have been around for millions of years, constant access to food is a relatively new development. Our bodies simply have not adapted to changes in our environment.
By depriving your body of nutrients, you endanger your muscle structure due to a lack of protein.
As a rule of thumb, if you are consuming enough calories, you are consuming enough protein. Protein is simply a combination of amino acids found in all foods, including greens, veggies, herbs and fruit. Precautions As a general precaution, pregnant or lactating women should not fast, due to an increased need for nutrients during pregnancy or lactation. The seriously ill should only fast under the advice of a physician. Individuals with a history of eating disorders or those with absorptive issues also should only fast under a physician’s supervision.
What is the difference between a juice and a smoothie?
A juice cleanse is different from a smoothie challenge because in a juice cleanse, the pulp is removed from the plant and only the juice of the produce is consumed. A juice cleanse is beneficial to individuals who are very ill and have compromised digestion or irritated or inflamed intestines, or to individuals looking for a shorter detoxification commitment. It is very helpful to be able to get the nutrition of vegetables and fruits without having to process the fibre.
It gives your gut a chance to heal; energy can be spent on regeneration of damaged, intestinal cells and the purging of toxins, which is the purpose of cleansing. It is easy to consume up to ten pounds of produce per day through juicing.
This is a lot of food! Eating ten pounds of produce would be very uncomfortable to consume in its whole form.
It’s not very often that we give our system the chance to completely rest from the work of digestion and the processing of whole foods, but doing so can have potent, health-giving advantages. Juice cleansing is also beneficial to individuals experiencing issues pertaining to leaky gut, candida and Crohn’s Disease.
This is in part due to the temporary absence of fiber that otherwise can be an irritant on inflamed intestinal tissue. Green smoothies are a great way to ensure that you get all of the fiber and nutrients that your body needs. Since the whole plant is blended, there is no waste.
Which one is better? Green juice or green smoothies?
Green smoothies make a great, raw-food meal that is satisfying even to people who are very new to raw foods. Almost everyone loves smoothies! In addition, the fiber can absorb toxins trapped in the gut and then drag them out, which is a wonderful, effective way to expel toxins.
Because you consume a lot of fiber on a smoothie cleanse, you experience a lighter detox than you would in a juice or water cleanse. However, your digestive tract does not get as much of a rest as on a juice or water cleanse, because you are digesting the plant pulp and fiber. It is important to note that if not enough fluids are consumed during your smoothie cleanse, the excess fiber can lead to bloating, gas and constipation. In order to ensure healthy bowel movements on a smoothie cleanse, water intake needs to be monitored carefully.
Both juice cleanses and smoothie cleanses facilitate a valuable detox for the body. Many participants alternate between smoothie challenges and juice fasts for their detoxification needs. You can find many smoothie recipes throughout this site, and if you sign up for the Juice Cleanse, you’ll have the chance to purchase three additional menu planners to guide you through the complete detox.
What is the difference between a juice cleanse and a water fast?
In a juice cleanse, the juice extracted from raw produce is consumed, whereas water fasting involves the exclusive intake of water only for an extended period of time. A juice cleanse is much more gentle on the body than a traditional water fast. In a traditional water fast, no calories or nutrients are consumed.
Why you should try a gentle 3 to 10-day juice cleanse.
When you struggle to be the fish swimming upstream as you proceed on your juice cleanse, remember that senility, arthritis, boogery noses and distended bellies are considered “normal” too.
You have a chance to be extraordinary!
You have a chance to glow and grace the world with the presence of what health, vibrance, optimism and hope can really look like.
There’s nothing “ordinary” about you if you’re reading this article. You’re a trail-blazer, a truth-seeker, and an example to all those who will look up to you and ask, “What are you doing?”
Sometimes you’re going to get up and it’s not going to be easy or comfortable to make green juice instead of brewing coffee. Sometimes it’s not going to be easy to politely decline the cookies being passed around the table. But it’s not easy popping pills, or “growing old” by society’s standards, either.
You already know what white bread, sugar, excessive or processed meat and conventional dairy products can do. Just look around your local grocery store at the quality of health of people in the streets.
Nearly every religion and healing tradition incorporates a form of fasting or cleansing through food for spiritual and therapeutic reasons.
We have included recipes to guide you through the days ahead. There are no secret ingredients or complicated techniques to master. Juicing is a fun and exciting way to incorporate pounds of whole foods into ounces of nutrient-dense nourishment!
You can sign up to join us here for the full Gentle Juice Cleanse experience. We’ll give you daily love notes with the tips, tools, inspiration and support you need to radically improve your health, mood and your life! LEARN MORE HERE. Here’s to your fiber-free adventures in health and well-being! Cheers!
Meet Your Guides for The Gentle Juice Cleanse
Meet Tera Warner
Tera Warner is the frisky founder of the world’s largest, online resource of raw-food cleansing and detoxification programs for women.Through her programs and events, she invites a community of over 100,000 women around the world to pick up their parsley sprigs and march, dance, sing, jump or fly along the path to vibrant living! She doesn’t have fancy credentials or a string of acronyms after her name, so don’t bother looking for them. She’s a monkey lovin’ mama (Tera spent most of her days at university studying monkeys; now she’s simply trying to teach the world to eat like one!) doing her best to remind you that your self worth is not measured by the size of your thighs or the width of your hips, but by the breadth of your dreams and the depth of your love.
Meet Kelly Cleason
Kelly Cleason is a Clinical Nutritionist from New York. She began her thirst for raw juice following the birth of her son, who experienced severe skin allergies. As a nursing mother, she relied on her nutritional training to find a solution to heal her son through his diet. Kelly has been helping mothers work with food allergies ever since. Kelly studied Acupuncture and Nutrition, receiving a Master’s Degree in both. In addition, she has become a certified nutritional consultant and an holistic health coach. Kelly brings her knowledge of nutrition and Eastern medicine to her patients and uses techniques that she has mastered, both in New York and in China. Kelly’s goal is to introduce the Western culture to a concept of preventive health through proper nutrition.